Kia Optima 2006.5-2008

mickeyrom

I don't need that right now,but I will around Novemember. I'm just getting prepared.

bargugl

Here is what I have found out. The fuel tank air filter is up on the fuel filler pipe. You can find the actual fuel system layout on the shop manual by following the chain Optima MG->Fuel System->Fuel Delivery system->Components and Component location.

The fuel filter is going to be a major pain. It is integrated as part of the fuel pump assembly. Here is the technical bulletin on how to replace: http://www.kiatechinfo.com/TechInfo/TechnicianTimes/board_view.asp?docu_no=744. Make sure you are logged in to Kiatechinfo before you click on the link or you want get to it directly.

The dealers are going to charge a fortune to replace that thing. The maintenance on this vehicle is going to cost. The maintenance schedule also calls for transmission fluid change every 18K miles, which seems a little excessive to me. I was expecting more like every 30K. I have been having a hard time finding anyone who sells the fuel tank air filter and fuel filter so if you find a place, please post it and also let us know how much they cost you. I'm hoping Kia still honors the warranty if I do the fuel filter replacement myself.

backy

18k seems really short for a transmission fluid change. Is that from the manufacturer's service schedule, or a dealer's?

bargugl

It comes from the severe maintenace schedule in the owner's manual. It does not make a lick of sense since for the normal maintenance schedule it does not recommend transmission fluid change at any point for the first 105k miles.

mickeyrom

My dealer charges $200 to replace both filters.Parts and labor. Does that sound reasonable to you?

mickeyrom

http://www.kiacarparts.net/.....there you go.

bargugl

Thanks. What is the break down for the fuel filter vs the fuel tank air filter at your dealer? Do you think I will run into any warranty problem replacing them myself? I will definitely do the fuel tank air filter myself, but I am waffling on the fuel filter. Of course, I won't have to do either for quite some time yet.

backy

What is considered "severe usage"? Taxi driving maybe?

mickeyrom

I dont know the breakdown. They just list 199.95 for replacing both.Is it that easy to change the air filter?

mickeyrom

Excessive stop and go driving.Lots of stop and go in hot weather...It's all in the owners manual.That is why my Optima spends over 90% of its driving time on the highway.probably 95%.I cant afford the maintenance for heavy duty.Of course that means my wife drives the 2 miles to work in our 97 Town and Country.That really sucks up the gas(10-11 MPG),but I consider that use more advantageus to the alternative.It's only one tank per month.

csandste

I (almost) didn't believe it until I reread the manual. Kia really gigs people with maintenance and dangles that 100K warranty to keep people in line. Differences in maintenance between my Optima and Malibu Maxx over a 100K would probably be in the thousands, and that's with the four. The V6 with timing belt would be unbearable. I'm much happier with the sophisticated OLM and 7000+ oil change cycles on my Maxx. Insurance costs on Hyunkias used to be awful because of parts but at least that's changed. I guess they have to recoup the low sales prices some way.

Backy-- Does your Elantra automatic have the same 18000 fluid change? My wife keeps the car in the garage unstarted days at a time, I'll probably split the difference with 30,000 or so fluid changes. Of course, I'll still have to go back to the dealer since the Mitsu/Hyunkia fluids are probably not widely available.

himi1

For 2009 model year, Optima will receive a major design update. Facelift will also include an engines upgrade which will then offer more hp and lower fuel consumption.

While we are searching for additional informations, you can check for some spy shots:
http://www.kia-world.net/index.php/2008/03/14/2009-kia-optima-facelift/

mickeyrom

I gues we should have read the fine print. The only thing that really bothers me is the expense of changing the fuel and air filters. Chrysler has a similiar set up, and they change their filter only if they have to change their fuel pump.Considering the expense,it seems only fair.Since my Optima is not "heavy use" I can change the tran fluid only if I feel like it.I have always done that every other year. My dealer charges only $79 for that service so it's no big deal, but that filter has me really steamed. Why the hell do they hide that thing in the fuel tank?(I think that's where it's at)

backy

No, it's 30k. Just had it done a little while ago.

backy

So it looks like this time, the Optima is catching up to the 2009 Sonata on the powertrain--after the Sonata finally got the 5AT from the Optima.

mickeyrom

P.S.... I just talked to a service manager at a KIA/Hyuindai dealer in Peoria,Il.
He said "there is not need to change the fuel filter unless there is a fuel starvation problem" .
I have a friend who works for Chrysler and they have the same system. They do not require any fuel filter maintenance. It makes sense.I am not sure about the air filter.

bargugl

Reading through the shop manual, the fuel tank air filter will not be technically challenging, only time consuming. You can actually see that filter if you look under the car behind the rear wheel. There is a small opening where the filler pipe runs up to the gas cap. In order to get to it to replace it, you will need to take the wheel guard panel off (about an 1/8" thick black plastic housing). The panel is held in by six screws and two bolts which means you can take it off with a screwdriver and a wrench. However, you may still need to jack up the rear of the car and remove the rear wheel to have enough room. Once you get to it, you just need to take the old filter off and put the new one on. You don't have to run the engine or mess around with gas to replace it.(There seems to be three screws holding it in place and you need to disconnect a tube.) All you need is a wrench, screwdriver, maybe a jack and tire iron, and an hour to kill to do the entire process. Since the cost of the filter is $12, if the dealer charges an arm and a leg to do it, I would just as soon do it myself. The fuel filter is much more involved, though, so that's why I am very curious on what the break down would be for the dealer to only replace that.

mickeyrom

According to at least one service manager,there is no need to replace the fuel filter and the same for the air filter unless you are in the habit of overfilling your tank.I'm going to take him at his word.He also said there are only three kinds of maintenance that could affect your warranty,should you fail to do it.
1.Oil and filter
2.Trans fluid
3.Radiator flush.

bargugl

Fuel Filters are generally only a problem when they start to clog and generally they are not going to cause serious damage as engine symptoms would be pretty obvious. The fuel tank air filter is actually there for evaporative emission control from my understanding so I can't imagine it could cause any mechanical trouble from not being replaced. Most of time where I have heard Kia denying warranty service it is because people have not followed the schedule for the oil and transmission changes, as well as timing belt for those with the V6. I guess it all depends on how good your service department and dealer are. I wonder if some service departments will even look it up on the filters if you just call and say I want my 30,000 mile service done or whatever. I think some places just lube everything up, do some checks, change the oil and send you on your way.

mickeyrom

The service manager I spoke to told me that they dont even bother stocking that fuel air filter.That is how rare it is to replace it.He does however recommend flush the trans and Rad. at 30K

iluvmysephia1

I wouldn't skip the radiator flush at 30,000 miles. Absolutely vital maintenance for the Long-Haul ahead, gentlemen.

csandste

That's what I'm thinking, 30K for coolant and transmission fluid. Kind of splits the 18K and 105K transmission change but seems a lot more reasonable. From memory, I think Edmunds service schedule calls it out for this car as well. I assume this means dealer because of the specialized trans. fluid. Anyone have experience with independent trans. fluid changes?

mickeyrom

Dont mess with non KIA tranny fluid.That would void your warranty. Its not overly expensive every 30K miles.

csandste

Hyundai-Kia-and Mitsu. all have the same standards. I simply wouldn't trust an independent shop unless I was very very sure they weren't just running some kind of a mass fluid flush through the system.

mickeyrom

If the fluid is IDENTICAL it would be OK I guess,but the owners manual is very specific on that point.
BTW, why not just use a KIA dealer,none in your area?
I'm probably going to get a flush,not just a partial fluid replacement.Every dealer seems to be different.

csandste

Since I dislike the Hyundai dealer, I'll probably take it to the Kia. I just like to have some options in case I have a bad experience.

FWIW-- Pennzoil has fluid that (supposedly) meets multiple specs.

http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:gEUZfn-ProoJ:www.pzlqs.com/Tech/Pdsheet/Dome- sticMarketing/Gear%26Transmission/Pdf/MultiVehicleAutomaticTransmissionFluid.pdf- +kia+transmission+fluid&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us&client=firefox-a

mickeyrom

Thats odd...I liked my Hyundai service dept and hated the KIA at the same mega dealer.I did find another dealer that was very nice,so I'm all set.Let me know what you find about that Penzoil fluid, especially will KIA be OK with it.
Happy St Pats day. :surprise:

csandste

Sad-- Maybe it was because of the low score review for the Optima. Haven't looked at it yet, but it must be a doozy to drop the average score down to 6.6. Although I haven't been the most boisterous fan of my 07, it definitely has been a lot better than that! Hopefully there'll be some additional reviews soon.

backy

No, it was because someone complained that the Passat wasn't one of the featured cars on the discussion, so it replaced the Optima. Apparently all you'd have to do to get the Optima back on there is complain that it isn't there. Maybe they could drop a car that's inconsequential in the mid-sized market... like the Accord. Or Camry.

pat

No, backy, you are wrong.

The Passat was mentioned and some others engaged in conversation about it. That has not happened with the Optima for quite some time in that discussion. Your assumptions are incorrect and unhelpful.

It is not easy to manage which cars are displayed there. I do the best I can. If anyone wants to complain, the way to do that is to email either me or Karen. Continuing to disrupt various discussions over this is pointless.

mickeyrom

There are only 2 reviews so when one gave it a 4.1 ( think) it really knocked it down.As far as I know the car is basically the same as the 2006.5/2007 and I LOVE my Opti, so maybe someone just had some bad luck and got a :lemon:

backy

One owner had a check engine light come on twice (which can be due to something as innocent a loose gas cap, but many other reasons too), and noted the rpms went to 6000 on the freeway (which I'm assuming was not expected!). Both reviewers have the same trim--EX 2.7L. One loves it, one thinks the transmission should be redesigned. Looks like there may be something amiss with that one V6 sample.

mickeyrom

Maybe he was driving in the shiftronic mode and the tranny would not shift by itself. I have done that a couple of times.
PS not sure why anyone would buy the 2.7 engine.It's only slightly more powerful, and gets worse MPG not to mention the dreaded timing belt issue.

backy

Yes, especially for 2009, with the I4 being bumped to 175 hp, in a lighter car, and with better fuel economy. I just wonder how many V6s Kia will sell when the 2009s roll out.

csandste

part of the problem of being "delisted" from the mid-size sedans forum?

mickeyrom

What are you speaking of ? I mean "delisted"....

chizi

About time some body wrote on this board again (thanks mickeyrom and csandste) I have observed the inactivity on this board the past weeks and was beginning to wonder if we (Optima owners) have nothing more to say about our Optimas. To get things rolling again here's a few question for anyone who might know:
1)What are the specifications for the front and rear stabilizer bars on the 07 Optima? (Any one noticed it's not published on Kia's website compared to other manufacturers that publish such details)
2)Is anyone here using synthetic oil on their Optima? What brand and what weight? For conventional oil what brand and weight? My dealership seems to be switching brands every six months..........I am considering just buying my own oil from Wal-Mart and taking it to the dealership for consistency since different companies have different additives.
3) This one I should probably post on the mpg forum, those of you who claim to be getting higher than 35mpg what would you recommend with regards to oil brand,type of oil (synthetic or conventional) and cold tire pressure reading? I follow the owners manual closely....so 32psi cold, and 5w30 for oil and my best mpg has been 31 (2007 Kia Optima EX w/ Apperance Package).

bmetelsky

I had thought 5w20 was the oil specification for the Optima. That is what I use. If I try to get that done at Walmart they charge me extra for some reason. I've been going to Firestone to have the oil changed and they are using Kendall 5w20 synthetic blend.

mickeyrom

I use Mobil1 5W20 and change it every 6 months or 6000 miles. 90% highway.
35 lbs air, and just last week had tires inflated with nitrogen.It's the latest fad. Can't hurt. I did get over 40 MPG one time but that is not typical.Usually straight hwy I get at least 33.

backy

Just thinking, the Optima doesn't sell in huge volumes, so maybe we'd get more traffic if all the general discussions on the Gen 2 (2006.5+) Optima were consolidated, instead of one for 2006.5, one for 2007, none for 2008, and one for 2009. Then everyone who wants to talk about the Gen 2 Optima could get together here.

csandste

I got Wal-Mart's house brand 5w20 at the regular price last time. Warren Performance Products lists this as a semi-syn so my assumption is that the ST is as well. Since I'm sticking pretty close to a 3K oil change in order to keep the warranty going, I'm not investing in an oil with a more robust ad. pack. Any SM oil is good for that kind of service.

I got a good UOA with ST 5w30 going 4000 miles with my 01 Elantra so I may run one on this car and then stretch it out if everything looks good. The short Hyunkia service intervals are a way for them to get even for the long warranty. The oil life monitor on my Malibu Maxx runs over 7000 miles. That's a bit far to pust SuperTech so I switch to Pennzoil 5w30 for that one.

csandste

That makes a lot of sense.

csandste

I mean it's no longer on sedans 2.0 board.

chizi

Thanks to every one who gave in-put to my question. For those of you using 5w20, the only reason I've been using 5w30 is because that's the only thing the service department stocks. Switching to 5w20 won't be an issue when I start taking my oil to the service dept. My other question is with an OCI of 6,000 miles, do you change the filter (assuming it's a Kia filter) at 3,000 miles or do you run with the same filter for 6,000 miles? Can Kia filters survive an OCI longer than 3,000 miles (synthetic oil or not) or is that a disaster waiting to happen? What after market oil filters would you guys recommend?

mickeyrom

The 2006.5 is the 2007,but the 2008 is slightly different.I think only that the EX lost the cassette deck.However,all are pretty much the same car with the same issues and same power train so why not consolidate.I'm all for it.BTW has anyone looked up KIA Optima on youtube? There is one guy who really...really loves his KIA.Others ...not so much...

backy

Only because only a fixed number of cars can be listed there (nine?). But the Optima can still be discussed there. As well as the other mid-sizers that aren't listed.

sienna_az

These boards were confusing to me at first, as I was looking for information on the 2008 Optima, but there didn't seem to be one. So, I made do with poking through the 2007 board. Are there just really that few Optima owners out there? I've actually never seen one "in the wild" other than the one that's been parked in my garage for almost a week. I am really enjoying the car, except for the fact that the "Check" indicator for the emission system came on about 5 days after we bought the car and it hasn't shut off. I'm having to bring it in for it's first service after owning it only seven days. I'm hoping it's just something silly like the gas cap not being on tight enough (they filled it before we took delivery) as we had a bad experience buying our Toyota Sienna in 2000. We had the "Check Engine" light come on as we were driving it home from the lot. Turned out they had to replace the torque converter in our van along with many others manufactured in the two months before we purchased the van. On the same van, we then had to replace the transmission at 44K miles (thankfully it was under warranty). So of course, having this light come on is giving me flashbacks. Hopefully though, it will end up being nothing. We really like the car other than that. We purchased the 4cyl LX Auto in light almond beige. Anyone else have this happen when they purchased the car?

mickeyrom

I've had my 2006.5 since Nov 2006 and now have around 16,000 miles on it. We had two issue in all this time. I had out of round michellin tires and they put Khumos on and fixed that.We also had a problem with the passenger side air bag light. It tooks around 6 visits until they reflashed the computer and now it's fine. I am quite happy my my Optima EX,but I do wish I had bought a Prius or a Civic Hybrid,Unfortunately the depreciation on my car is so high that I cannot afford to trade it for a hybrid.
There are 3 current generations Optimas that I have seen here in Kewanee. It's fairly unusual,but I think as people come to realize the Korean cars are almost as good as the Japanse brands,more KIAs will be seen on the road.
PS Love those heated seats and the cassette deck allows me to listen to my old tapes.

csandste

I think there's only two generations of Optimas. The first generation was a Sonata with different front and rear clips. The first year's grill looked like a eighties Chevy egg crate, followed the next year by some kind of Hannibal Lechter mask toothed thing, then the fairly attractive grill that lasted for several years.

The present generation came out as a 06.5. The 09 model with the different front and rear clips is a mid-cycle upgrade.

csandste

Your 5w30 oil is just fine. Hyunkias have a wide tolerance for different weights of oil. The Kia filter is one of the best ones. I use a SuperTech since I go to WallyWorld. Champion filters (ST) are good but the OEM filters are better.

There are warnings from both Hyundai and Kia about not taking responsibility for rattles caused by non OEM filters. This is probably the Fram Orange Can-O-Death. These have very little filtering capacity, but thousands of people have driven cars with Fram filters for hundreds of thousands of miles. If I can get Wal-Mart to substitute a SuperTech filter it's worth the extra buck over a Fram (Fram costs more over the counter but not with an oil change).

Your car is undoubtedly good for a 6000 mile OCI. The problem is Kia's practice of pushing people to short fluid changes in order to keep the 100K warranty in place. The 18,000 mile transmission refill is especially egregious.

I'll probably run an analysis at about 4000 miles on the Wal-Mart 5w20 and then gradually stretch the intervals out. If you have to bring in 5w20 from Wal-Mart, I'd recommend the TropArtic. Conoco Phillips has a lot of group 3 refining capacity and their oils (including Kendall and Motorcraft) is a very robust semi-syn that sells for little more then the SuperTech. It's got a very good ad pack and should easily last 6K. Again, if I was running it that far I'd get the oil tested in order to shut up the service rep who might hassle you if you have a power train warranty claim.

Frankly Pennzoil yellow is a very good group 2+ oil with an excellent ad pack. I run that in my Malibu which I routinely take to 7500 miles before the oil life monitor bottoms out. Depending on what your dealer's 5w30 is, I don't think you have any reason to bring in an outside 5w20. I really can't think of a bad SM rated oil. Valvoline is probably the weakest, but it should do fine.