Kia Optima: which years to buy, and what breaks on them
Best and worst years of the Kia Optima
Of the 20 model years of the Kia Optima that carry enough owner reports to score, 2005 comes out best at 57 out of 100 and 2019 worst at 80. The scores rank each year against other cars of the same model year, so an older one is not penalised for having had longer to break.
10,375 owner reports across 20 model years, 5,789 of them carrying an odometer reading. 20 years carry enough reports to score.
The year to buy, and the year to avoid
Both figures are ranks against other vehicles of the same model year, so the two are comparable even when the years are a decade apart. Each links to that year's full report.
2005 Kia Optima
Best of 20 years on 180 owner reports, its own worst problem being other body or interior problem. Evidence behind the score: moderate confidence.
2019 Kia Optima
Risk 80 of 100 from 318 reports, worst problem other driver assistance problem.
Severe High confidence confidence
How much the year actually matters
The gap between the best and worst year is 23 points on a 100-point scale, which is wide enough to be worth acting on when two cars are otherwise comparable.
Across every year of the Kia Optima, owners have filed 10,375 reports with NHTSA. The 2013 accounts for the largest share at 1,887, which can mean a genuinely troublesome year or simply the year that sold best and has been on the road longest.
What tends to break across the Kia Optima
Taking the most-reported failure from each model year, the recurring problems on the Kia Optima are other engine problem (worst mode in 9 years), other body or interior problem (worst mode in 3 years) and control arm, ball joint or bushing failure (worst mode in 2 years). A fault that heads the list in most years is characteristic of the design; one that heads a single year is usually a batch or a supplier.
Every model year, scored
Shorter is better, and the outlined row is the best year of the line. A year with too few reports to score is shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not the same as no problems.
| Year | Reports | Per 1,000 | Median report | Most reported problem | Recalls | Risk | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 Kia Optima | 231 | 14.2 | 79k | Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure | 3 | 70 | High confidence |
| 2002 Kia Optima | 168 | 13.0 | 89k | Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure | 3 | 68 | High confidence |
| 2003 Kia Optima | 190 | 14.7 | 84k | Other body or interior problem | 2 | 62 | High confidence |
| 2004 Kia Optima | 306 | 33.5 | 80k | Other body or interior problem | 1 | 64 | High confidence |
| 2005 Kia Optima | 180 | 5.5 | 80k | Other body or interior problem | 0 | 57 | Moderate confidence |
| 2006 Kia Optima | 214 | 7.3 | 64k | Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault | 2 | 64 | High confidence |
| 2007 Kia Optima | 217 | 7.4 | 79k | Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault | 2 | 63 | High confidence |
| 2008 Kia Optima | 188 | 5.8 | 68k | Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | 3 | 70 | High confidence |
| 2009 Kia Optima | 166 | 5.1 | 65k | Other powertrain problem | 1 | 69 | High confidence |
| 2010 Kia Optima | 99 | 3.0 | 70k | Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | 1 | 69 | High confidence |
| 2011 Kia Optima | 778 | 12.6 | 90k | Other engine problem | 5 | 74 | High confidence |
| 2012 Kia Optima | 1,264 | 9.8 | 80k | Other engine problem | 5 | 74 | High confidence |
| 2013 Kia Optima | 1,887 | 14.6 | 82k | Other engine problem | 9 | 76 | High confidence |
| 2014 Kia Optima | 787 | 8.9 | 72k | Other engine problem | 7 | 75 | High confidence |
| 2015 Kia Optima | 1,404 | 15.9 | 79k | Other engine problem | 4 | 75 | High confidence |
| 2016 Kia Optima | 1,081 | 30.5 | 67k | Other engine problem | 5 | 77 | High confidence |
| 2017 Kia Optima | 356 | 10.0 | 54k | Other engine problem | 3 | 74 | High confidence |
| 2018 Kia Optima | 334 | 9.4 | 45k | Other engine problem | 2 | 75 | High confidence |
| 2019 Kia Optima | 318 | 27.8 | 20k | Other driver assistance problem | 1 | 80 | High confidence |
| 2020 Kia Optima | 207 | 6.3 | 46k | Other engine problem | 0 | 73 | Moderate confidence |
What each column means
Reports counts owner complaints filed with NHTSA against that model year. Filing is voluntary and unverified, so the count is a floor on how often something went wrong, never a census. It also rises with how many cars were sold, which is why the next column exists.
Per 1,000 divides those reports by an estimate of how many of that model year are on the road, so a common car and a rare one can be compared. The estimate comes from the vehicle counts in recall campaigns covering the same model year, which is the only per-model fleet figure published free of charge; where no recall covers a year, this column is blank rather than guessed.
Median report is the odometer reading at the midpoint of that year's reports: half of the readings owners gave were below it. It is a description of when problems get reported, not a prediction of when this car will break, and it needs at least eight readings before it is shown at all.
Risk is a 0–100 score combining how often reports arrive relative to fleet size, how serious they are, and how early they land, ranked against other vehicles of the same model year only. Confidence says how much evidence sits behind it: a low score on thin evidence is a shrug, not a clean bill of health. Both are defined in full on the methodology page.
Generations, and why the boundary matters
The Kia Optima splits into generations: 2001–2004 (best 2003, worst 2001), 2005–2010 (best 2005, worst 2008), 2011–2016 (best 2012, worst 2016) and 2017–2020 (best 2020, worst 2019). Comparing years inside one generation is the fair comparison — same body, same engines, usually the same suppliers.
Generation boundaries here are inferred from the pattern of model years in the data rather than taken from manufacturer documentation, so they are occasionally a year out. Where a boundary matters to a purchase, check it against the build date on the car.
| Generation | Years | Best year | Worst year | Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-2004 | 2001–2004 | 2003 Kia Optima 62 | 2001 Kia Optima 70 | 7 |
| 2005-2010 | 2005–2010 | 2005 Kia Optima 57 | 2008 Kia Optima 70 | 13 |
| 2011-2016 | 2011–2016 | 2012 Kia Optima 74 | 2016 Kia Optima 77 | 3 |
| 2017-2020 | 2017–2020 | 2020 Kia Optima 73 | 2019 Kia Optima 80 | 7 |
How to use this page
Use it to eliminate rather than to select. The years at the top of the risk column are the ones where enough owners reported enough serious failures to be worth avoiding when there is a choice; below that, the differences are smaller than the difference between a well-kept car and a neglected one.
Every figure comes from owner complaints filed with NHTSA and from recall records, both voluntary in the sense that nobody audits them for completeness. Counts are floors. The AtWhatMileage methodology page sets out each formula.
Questions this page answers
What is the best year for the Kia Optima?
Of the model years we can rate, 2005 Kia Optima scores best at 57 out of 100, based on 180 owner reports. 2019 scores worst at 80.
Which years of the Kia Optima should you avoid?
2019 has the highest risk score in this model line at 80 out of 100. The scores compare each year against other vehicles of the same model year, so they are not affected by age alone.
How the generations are drawn. NHTSA does not publish generation boundaries, so ours are inferred from breaks in the recall and complaint record and from the model's own year range. They are close to the enthusiast consensus but not authoritative — if a boundary looks wrong for a car you know well, tell us and we will fix the table rather than argue with you.
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed