Starter wouldn’t stop. Almost caught fire

[VA-Mack]

I had a harness recall administered already. Probably almost a year ago.i have a 2018 GT.

Today my wife went to start the car as normal. It powered up with accessories as normal and went to turn over except it didn’t start and the starter(I believe) wouldn’t stop trying to turn over and started smoking. I pushed the car out of the garage thankfully and it eventually stopped trying to start up (I guess it finally burned out) after about 8 minutes.

So right now the power is still on inside the car and I can’t turn it off. Just sitting in my driveway.

Could this be the same starter issue/recall or something else? Any ideas what I should do? I figured tow it to the dealership and tell them their starter recall didn’t work? Lol

Any help is greatly appreciated. I couldn’t find any similar issue when searching other threads

 

[D.J.]

I had the recall administered already. Probably almost a year ago.i have a 2018 GT.

Today my wife went to start the car as normal. It powered up with accessories as normal and went to turn over except it didn’t start and the starter(I believe) wouldn’t stop trying to turn over and started smoking. I pushed the car out of the garage thankfully and it eventually stopped trying to start up (I guess it finally burned out) after about 8 minutes.

So right now the power is still on inside the car and I can’t turn it off. Just sitting in my driveway.

Could this be the same starter issue/recall or something else? Any ideas what I should do? I figured tow it to the dealership and tell them their starter recall didn’t work? Lol

Any help is greatly appreciated. I couldn’t find any similar issue when searching other threads

What recall did you have completed on your vehicle? There have been more than 1!

Was yours
RC120
Completed
Front Wiring Interface Inspection and Grommet Installation

On certain vehicles, the front wiring harness could come in contact with a sharp metal opening on the left inner fender and become damaged. This could result in an electrical short-circuit and create the risk of a fire causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will inspect the front wiring harness for damage. If no damage is found, the dealer will install a plug/cover to the opening on the left inner fender. If damage is found, the front wiring harness will be replaced and a plug/cover will be installed to cover the opening on the left inner fender.

Look on the bright side, your battery was in great condition! Approximately 8 minutes of cranking is indicative of a strong battery.

I do recall reading one other story similar to this where the starter motor was stuck on!
It was fixed with a new starter motor.

 

[VA-Mack]

That actually does look like the one I had done before. For some reason, I was thinking it was the actual starter. I’ll have to check my records.

 

[VA-Mack]

Was there ever an actual starter replacement recall?

 

[D.J.]

Was there ever an actual starter replacement recall?

Not that I'm aware of.

 

[VA-Mack]

Ok thank you. Sounds like a costly repair. I actually have an appointment on Tuesday for the recall on the left hand turbo charger oil feed pipe and hose assembly so I guess I’ll be without a car for a while lol

 

[D.J.]

I had my starter replaced under extended warranty @~115k KMs once - not a recall.

Mine was an intermittent no crank, so different issue than yours.
It would have been fairly expensive. ($CAD)

 

[D.J.]

Ok thank you. Sounds like a costly repair. I actually have an appointment on Tuesday for the recall on the left hand turbo charger oil feed pipe and hose assembly so I guess I’ll be without a car for a while lol

I believe during the starter replacement, they have to lift / tilt the engine slightly - which could possibly give even greater access to the left side turbo oil feed pipe - dealership might be happy.

 

[VA-Mack]

Yeah I’m hoping they’ll be reasonable with me since they’re already doing most of the work for the warranty.

 

[D.J.]

Yeah I’m hoping they’ll be reasonable with me since they’re already doing most of the work for the warranty.

I wish you luck
I read about very few good news dealer experiences.

They exist, they're just not the norm.

 

[Snicklefritz]

I wish you luck
I read about very few good news dealer experiences.

They exist, they're just not the norm.

I feel to point this out every so often. Forums like ours attract issues to share, not when things are going well. So the appearance is that most KIA dealerships are incompetent fools. The service and repair experiences that go well don't get mentioned like the bad ones do.

 

[D.J.]

I feel to point this out every so often. Forums like ours attract issues to share, not when things are going well. So the appearance is that most KIA dealerships are incompetent fools. The service and repair experiences that go well don't get mentioned like the bad ones do.

I totally agree, but I personally only have negative experiences to share.

I avoid the dealership at all costs, only visit for warranty work or recalls, and I advise others do the same.

 

[Ohiocruiser]

Sounds like stuck starter solenoid. Which is on the right side of the engine. Engine mount has to be removed in order to replace it. That's why it's expensive. Has nothing to do with left side turbo oil pipe. Do you use your stop start system, and what's the milage on your car?

 

[VA-Mack]

Sounds like stuck starter solenoid. Which is on the right side of the engine. Engine mount has to be removed in order to replace it. That's why it's expensive. Has nothing to do with left side turbo oil pipe. Do you use your stop start system, and what's the milage on your car?

Yes we have stop start. 90k miles
The smoke was coming from this area.

 

[Ohiocruiser]

Yes we have stop start. 90k miles
The smoke was coming from this area.

That's where the starter sits. Under right side turbo. The oil line that is getting replaced under recall is on the opposite side. But since they will be doing the recall, they might give you small discount for the starter replacement. Or, if you are original owner, that might be covered under 100k miles warranty. Which will be real nice, because that job is expensive otherwise.

 

[VA-Mack]

That's where the starter sits. Under right side turbo. The oil line that is getting replaced under recall is on the opposite side. But since they will be doing the recall, they might give you small discount for the starter replacement. Or, if you are original owner, that might be covered under 100k miles warranty. Which will be real nice, because that job will is expensive otherwise.

Sounds good. Thanks for the feedback!

 

[VA-Mack]

Do you think that the auto start stop contributed to the starter issue? Can we disable the auto start stop?

 

[D.J.]

Do you think that the auto start stop contributed to the starter issue? Can we disable the auto start stop?

Contributed, most definitely
Can you disable it, yes. There is a button for that.

Can you automatically disable it every time you get in the car, also yes.

How to permanently turn off the Auto Start/Stop button

This is the annoying Auto Start/Stop button on the center console (the “A” with the circle around it with an arrow) that you have to push every time you start the car to disable Auto Start/Stop. This mini project should take less than 30 minutes to complete. Step 1: Open up the center colsole...

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