Buying a brand new car is an exciting experience. But one mother says that thrill turned into a nightmare that put her toddler’s life at risk.
Amanda C. Gutierrez (@amanda.c.gutierrez) says she bought a brand new 2024 Kia Carnival. The mother of four boys was looking for a safe, reliable vehicle and the Kia Carnival seemed to fit the bill.
“Never been driven by anyone else. Zero miles, all the things,” she says in a TikTok.
Things quickly went south with the vehicle. Gutierrez says the sensors on the back passenger doors kept malfunctioning.
What she says ended up happening has people urging her to sue.
New car becomes a legal claim
In a TikTok with 154,000 views as of Saturday, Gutierrez recalls taking the Kia to the dealership over and over to get the doors fixed.
“They’re finicky. Sometimes they open. Sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they won’t close,” she says.
After the fourth visit failed to fix the issue, Gutierrez claims she opened a case under her state’s lemon law. Gutierrez says her claim was approved.
Lemon laws allow people to bring legal claims over defects with a new car. Relief typically consists of a full refund.
A day at the ballpark gone wrong
Gutierrez continued driving the vehicle while the claim went through the necessary process.
Two of her sons were sitting in the car on a rainy day at the ballpark, Gutierrez says, when suddenly a scream pierced the air.
“And there’s my 3-year-old stuck in the sliding door of the minivan,” Gutierrez recalls. “So I start panicking, screaming Will’s name.”
Parents came running from the stands to help, she says.
Gutierrez says the door closed completely on her son’s body. She says that for three agonizing minutes, the adults frantically tried to pry it open while she ran through worst case scenarios about her son’s fate.
He was ultimately freed. She doesn’t say what injuries he sustained, if any.
Gutierrez has a message for Kia: “Why are you going to make a family vehicle and not make sure there are safety measures taken?”
At the end of the TikTok, she declares. “Let this be your PSA. Don’t buy a Kia. Don’t ever buy it … A Toyota Sienna would never.”
Gutierrez told the Mary Sue via direct message that Kia told her it would add the video to her case file.
“I tried to call the manager of the service department & no one answered me,” she added.
Is Kia a good brand?
Kia is South Korea’s second largest automobile brand behind parent company Hyundai.
Like many car companies, it’s faced consumer complaints over the years. And the Carnival model has reportedly generated numerous complaints.
In October, Carscoops reported that Carnival owners filed a case over allegedly defective sliding doors on the 2022 and 2023 models. They allege that a recall failed to fix the issue. One person reportedly suffered a broken arm.
The issue purportedly affects 51,568 vehicles.
Judging by the comments on Gutierrez’s post, many people have misgivings about Kia Carnivals specifically and the brand itself generally.
“I don’t need the whole story, you had me at Kia,” one wrote. Gutierrez replied with three skull emojis.
“How terrifying! I will be sticking with either Honda or Toyota until Jesus takes me home,” another said.
@amanda.c.gutierrez Do better @kia @Toyota would have never let this happen. ? #kiacarnivalhorrorstory #kiacarnival #minivan #familycar #fyp ♬ original sound – Amanda Gutierrez | Boy Mom ?
Several urged Gutierrez to sue the company. “Sounds to me like you got a lawsuit on your hands,” wrote one.
Kia did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
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