And KIA folks here?

Automotive
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@jast

This weds I received messages on a 2014 Optima(2.4 GDI)…another brand I wouldn’t buy.

Good person calls and asked for help - said the belt came off and there is a pulley broken and it beat up the water pump and alternator…hmmmm so I asked for pics of the pulley and a pic of the engine and belt area.

Also asked the other obvious questions.

Pics clearly show piss poor design.

Hopefully the engine is salvageable and didn’t bake to death before she stopped driving. Kia replaced the engine with new under a bearing failure recall less than 9 months ago.

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So we think the idler pulley just melted, launched the belt, and the rest is collateral damage?
Is this thing electric assist steer? If not, driver probably noticed lack of boost immediately & wrestled it off the road, minimizing opportunity for overheat. If it’s electric, they might have kept driving after the noise/lights-on events, hoping for a better stopping place…
Curious to see what-all ends up where on this. Kind of seems like it might should be covered by the installing dealership with the recent work, no?

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My sister in law’s former Kia mini van, you had to jack the engine sideways in order to remove the alternator bolt completely. You also had to have forearms the size of an 8 year old but the length of a full grown adult to remove the radiator fan bolts.

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We own a 2014 optima…
alternator comes out from the top… fairly easy once you get the wires removed…

That cars engine bay is very filthy needs a good cleaning. Someone might think you have dirty underwear if you leave it like that…

Sadly the rod bearings let go on our car at 120k miles. Thankfully Kia extended the rod warranty to Life Time.

. rhey replace the motor.

Other than minor maintenance and light repair work on the car it’s been fairly inexpensive to own.

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Non turbo, but yes to Electric power steering.

According to the car owner, “i was only 10 minutes away from my dad’s home so I drove it there”…

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:man_facepalming:

betcha unboosted steering would have gotten immediate(r) stoppage, and dad would have been asked to drive the 10 minutes to retrieve offspring.

Ah well.

This makes me recall the 1979 BMW 320i that rode in on a rollback one day. College student daughter stated “I was on I-35 when it just quit”. Dad on the phone hoped it would be a quick fix. We popped the hood. CIS injector lines (shockingly to me, accustomed to VW’s stainless braided CIS fuel lines, and MBZ’s hard steel lines, made of “plastic” of some form or another) melted to the injectors. :grimacing: Sorry, Pop, pretty sure this ain’t “add some water & call it a day”.
It left on the hook of a local salvage yard wrecker. Bet they made good bank on it for body/interior. It was in perfect condition except for that melted lump where an engine should be.

Here’s hoping the outcome on this one is better! :crossed_fingers:

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