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I have a 2012 Kia Forte with 12,000 miles on it. I have had it for 5 months.

The AC went out and I brought it in to Billion Kia in Rapid City, SD. The service manager says a rock hit the AC condensor which is not covered under warrenty. If it really was a rock then it is a poor design. I bought this car for the "great" (haha) warrenty, makes me wonder what else is not going to be covered.

I also wonder how he could tell a rock hit it.

I tried to talk to customer service and got nowhere. Has anyone else had this problem?

Monetary Loss: $900.

Location: Upton, Wyoming

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Guest

Purchased a 2018 Kia in November 2018. It has 11K miles when the AC went out.

Took it to a dealership and they charged us $1200 to replace the condenser. They claimed a rock hit it and it was road hazard so the $2k warranty I purchased would not cover the cost. Seems to me this is a defect in the Kia that should be recalled.

I am not happy and would like a refund for the repair. What is to stop it from happening again?

Guest

I had the exact experience! Took the Service Tech all of 15 seconds to tell me what was wrong and how much it was going to coast.

it is an cash flow source for Kia.

They are well aware of the issue but won't do anything about it. At $1800 a pop, it is pure profit for them.

Guest

Yeah. I'm here listening to the,same b.s.

the whole thing is exposed.

They need to cover it or recall it and fix the issue. Over, $1000 to fix it and it could happen again tomorrow

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1331462

I still have the car it now has 130,000. Miles on it.

When this happened I got some screen door screening and put it in front of the condenser. I am still angry at kia and will probably never buy one again but putting the screening on has prevented it from happening again.

With that simple and cheap fix you would think they would fix the design . .

Guest

Have a 2015 KIA Forte with only 1200 miles on it. Why hasn't factory fixed this? $900 with a 500 deductible is painful, not to mention ridiculous!!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1064798

I cannot even begin to understand why Kia does nothing about it. When we replaced our own condenser we put a screen in front of it to prevent it from happening again.

It was a simple fix and for anyone who has to have theirs repaired I would suggest they do that or have it done when it is all taken apart. I now have almost 100,000 miles on it and it has never happened again.

It is why I will never own another Kia, I cannot trust them standing behind their warranty.

Guest

Yes today! Very upset with kia. Exact same words!

Guest

I'm having a problem now with my 2012 Kia Sorrento air conditioning and the service person told me to bring it in and it was covered..when I show up at dealer they advise me it is no longer covered because I have 72,000 miles and the warranty was only good until 60,000? really!!??? Just wondering how many others have this problem?

Guest

Yes sir I have a 2012 Forte Coupe as well. The a/c quit working took it to Kia and they told me the same thing. A leak in the condenser due to a rock and not covered under the Kia warranty.

Guest

I have a 2013 Kia Soul and having problem with AC leaking and was told it would cost $100 to run diagnostic on it to see why it leaks

Guest

Sure did. On my 2014 Sorento. It is definitely a design flaw.

Guest

My son has same problem, 2011 sportage. Rock put hole in condenser.

Dealer wants $800. Not covered on warranty.

Guest

Good luck Maintenance man. We replaced our condenser.

It took my husband and me several hours but we didn't really know what we were doing. It wasn't bad. It went out in the summer and I was driving 120 miles a day getting radiation for breast cancer and had to have my AC. It will be hard to find a lawyer to file a class action law suit because people have not died because of it, but I could see living in Phoenix where that could happen.

I agree its BS that these big companies can get by with this.

Guest

Is there an active KIA motors Class Action Suit for AC Condensers hit by tiny Phantom rocks? I want to sign-up.

We bought a 2014 Hyundai Elantra a few months ago, and the AC went dead in just 4000 miles. They put dye into it, and showed me the supposed pinhole leak, and said a tiny rock must have made a pinhole. I looked and saw no dents, and the origin of the dye leaking looked like it was at least a 1/2" into the fins. I grew up fixing cars, and troubleshoot things all week long as a Bldg.

Maintenance Technician. I smell a rat here. There are no dings, rock chips or cracks on the front of the car.

I'm not buying the BS, and now brainstorming what direction to go in. We live in Phoenix, and will probably pay to have it fixed right away, but really feel bent-over.

We bought Hyundai because we wanted to be worry free, and sleep good at night, thinking the car would be reliable.

Please help if you have ideas, or know of a class action lawsuit.

Contact: maintenance@***.com

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-945609

This is exactly what happened to me. I ended up filing it under my insurance and after paying my deductible it cost me $500+.

Without insurance it was like $750+. I know I am female but I do know a little bit about cars and like Maintenance Man saw no dent, etc. They did the die, etc after I took my Forte in after my air conditioner stop working. It was August in Alabama and I drive 30 minutes one way a day to work and have young children.

The insurance claims guy even said he couldn't see anything but they paid the claim. He stated that he had heard of this happening and suggested putting mesh over the inside because it was a flaw that Kia was not going to fix.

Guest

I have a 2013 Kia Sorento with 41K miles. Just replaced the A/C condenser for $815 at the dealership.

When they told me there was *** in it, I didn't see what choice I had but to replace it. I didn't realize it was such a small hole. Couldn't it be weld repaired? Of course it's not covered by the warranty and Kia customer service did not offer any help.

I hadn't thought of submitting a claim with my insurance, might be an option, but probably cause my premium to increase. I'm certainly concerned about it happening again.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-945034

When we replaced our condenser on my Kia Forte we added some window screen mesh in front of it to prevent it from happening again. We did it when it was apart but I would think you could add it at any point.

It probably cost me a whole dollar, you would think that Kia could do it for pennies when building the cars.

Guest

Has anyone spoken to an attorney and explored a class action lawsuit? I know it's not a safety issue so the transportation agencies will not force a recall.

Kia knew about this in 2011 and have failed to react.

Guest

I am having the SAME problem! I have a 2014 Kia Sorento.

Same problem, with the same excuse.

And they have horrible customer service. I'm telling EVERYONE I know not to buy a Kia.

Wayman Rei

My AC went out as well on my 2013 KIA Forte. After taking to the dealership here in Huntsville twice I was told the same thing.

I was so upset and yes it is a horrible design flaw. KIA needs to do something about the design if they are not going to cover it under warranty. Since there are so many of these instances, there needs to be a recall so that KIA can fix. I filed it under my comprehensive insurance & they paid it after I paid my deductible of course but the cost was $700+ so paying the $250 was not that bad.

The insurance adjuster and a friend told me that it would be beneficial to put wire mesh behind the grill so that this wouldn't happen again. I still get upset every time I think about it because since it is obviously a design flaw it SHOULD be covered under the warranty.

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