Background:
I bought my 2005 Kia Sorento in October 2011 at Brick City Motors, 316 Broadway Ave, Newark, NJ 07104. A warranty for 6 months or 7500 miles was issued with it. [The warranty did not cover the defect in the engine.]
On February 7 2012 I was driving on Interstate 280 in the 3rd lane going west and the vehicle shut off, power steering went out, and I was unable to turn the hazard lights on. Thank God the people behind me were not speeding or there would have been a tragic accident.
I had the vehicle towed to a Kia dealership in Nutley NJ. The result was a replaced Timing Belt/Crankshaft Gear/Tensioner/Pulley/Idler/Balancer-note: CR Damaged- jeweled Keyway to crank slot limited warranty on REP. The labor cost was $826.00 with no guaranty on parts or labor. Brick City paid for the Parts and I paid for the Labor.
On July 15th 2012 my KIA Sorento had to be towed again to the Kia dealership in Nutley NJ. The Rep Advisor [Dennis] told me that I need to get rid of the vehicle while I can. The vehicle had shut off again like it did in Feb 2012. The rep also told me that I needed a transmission.
On July 26 the vehicle would not start up and a friend of mine took me to her brother's mechanic shop. The end result was that they found the crankshaft needs replacing and was bent again. I went back to the Kia dealership in Nutley NJ and the manager [Anne] told me the work they did was not warrantied and that Brick City Motors screwed me.
I called Kia Motors in Woodbridge, NJ, and they told me the worst case scenario is that I would have to pay maybe 2000.00 for a replacement. I am a disabled veteran - permanently and totally disabled. I have to have a SUV due to daily chronic pain. I still have to pay a car note on the KIA 2005 until November 2014 for a vehicle that is a death trap due to a faulty defect regarding the crankshaft. If you are travelling within the speed limit on the highway it can shut off while travelling at a high speed and cause a serious fatality.
Kia is well aware and they now have a process where they send out the parts to have 2 extra holes drilled to install the additional pins just like described on the video link below. Still no recall from Kia and I have to pay the whole bill.
Another person posted a video explaining why the defected crankshaft pin causes the problem from a mechanic stand point. KIA Sorento 2005 Bolt in Crankshaft breaks
Action:
If you have been affected by this defect and would like to join the class action lawsuit, please contact attorney Shmuel Klein at shmuel.klein@verizon.net for more information.
The KIA Public Relations Director is Alex Fedorak and KIA Motors America Public Relations is on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kiamotorspr.
Contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). To find out more about NHTSA, please go to the Safercar.gov website or call the Vehicle Safety Hotline toll-free at 1-888-327-4236.