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65k Kia Sorento models face NHTSA probe for shattering sunroof

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration isn't ready to give up its investigation into spontaneously shattering sunroofs in the 2011-2013 Kia Sorento yet. In fact, it has actually broadened it into a full engineering analysis affecting as many as 65,347 vehicles.
The investigation started in 2013 when NHTSA received 15 complaints about breaking sunroofs in the crossover. Since then, the regulator requested data from Kia and found that there have been 95 complaints of the roof abruptly braking. In many of those cases, the vehicle was moving at the time. People have been injured when this happens; NHTSA found 14 incidents where at least one person in the vehicle suffered from cuts or scrapes.
According to the investigation document, Kia also conducted its own internal review but couldn't find any defects. The company claims that the only way for the roof to break is for an object to strike it. Although, it does admit that the large surface of the sunroof on the Sorento could be the cause of the high frequency of damage. NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation isn't convinced and calls it "concerning." It's pressing forward to find more details in the engineering analysis.

J.D. Power 2020 Initial Quality Study puts Dodge and Kia in first place

For the first time ever, an American automaker is ranked at the top of J.D. Power's yearly Initial Quality Study as Dodge tied with Kia for the top spot. Kia landed in first from second place last year — though it's Kia's sixth consecutive year as the top-ranked "mass market" brand — while Dodge jumped an impressive seven spots to move into a tied first from eighth in the 2019 edition of the study. Dodge is one of seven domestic automakers that find themselves in the top half of J.D. Powers' 34th consecutive IQS study. Dodge and Kia's score of 136 problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100) puts them ahead of Chevrolet and Ram (141 PP100), Genesis (142 PP100), Mitsubishi (148 PP100) and Buick (150 PP100), which make up the top five after accounting for tied scores. GMC, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Jeep and Lexus round out the top 10. As you probably noticed, Mitsubishi and Lexus are the only Japanese brands to make it into the first 10 spots, and Genesis took home the award as the top-ranked premium brand. This is the first year that J.D. Power released data on the survey results from Tesla owners, and it's not good news for the California-based electric vehicle manufacturer. With an adjusted score of 250 PP100, Tesla is in dead last place on the 2020 IQS Study, just behind Land Rover's score of 228 PP100. It's worth noting that Tesla's score isn't an official entry into the IQS study because surveys were only available in 35 states as the company is the only automaker that has not granted J.D. Power permission to survey Tesla owners in the 15 other required states. According to J.D. Power, about a third of all problems reported by owners of 2020 model-year vehicles within the first three months of ownership relate to issues with infotainment and technology. In many cases, the high-tech systems aren't broken, but are difficult for owners to use or don't work as well as they should. Those issues are "just as severe as other problems," according to Dave Sargent, vice president of automotive quality at J.D. Power, especially since a "customer is stuck with this [issue] for the rest of the time they own the vehicle." J.D. Power surveys the owners of new cars with a questionnaire that covers 223 problems organized into nine categories: climate, driving assistance, driving experience, exterior, features/controls/displays, infotainment, interior, powertrain and seats.

New electric Kia spied, looks like the production version of the Imagine Concept

Last we heard, Kia had plans to bring forth a production version of the Kia Imagine Concept vehicle. These spy photos today suggest that the intel was good, and Kia is well on its way to transforming its concept into a production car. The shape and proportions of the heavily camouflaged car seen in photos here are the two most intriguing elements. From the side, this vehicle looks like a short, lifted wagon. One look at the Imagine Concept is all you need to know where this one is going, though. Its roof slopes further downward the closer you get to the rear of the car, and despite the black tenting, we can still see that it’s going to have a heavily raked rear window like the concept. In a nutshell, the best way we can describe this thing right now is a cross between a wagon and a “crossover coupe.” Kia called the concept a sedan, but the higher-than-normal ride height suggests something in the same vein as the V60 Cross Country. One other big element in all of this is its powertrain. The Kia Imagine Concept is an electric car, so we can assume that Kia is going to keep the production version of it electric. ThereÂ’s no sign of an exhaust hanging out under there. ItÂ’s a pretty safe bet that this camouflaged tester is electric, which will just add to the legion of electric cars Hyundai and Kia have on the way or at dealerships now. The last new electric car out of Korea that we spied was the 45, which is yet another EV based on a recent concept car. Assuming the coronavirus didnÂ’t knock the Imagine ConceptÂ’s timing too far off track, we expect to see it revealed in full in 2021. The concept was revealed in Geneva, so that would suggest that itÂ’s definitely bound for Europe. However, itÂ’s unclear whether Kia will also sell the vehicle here. With the illusion of it being a crossover, Kia might try its luck. If there are Kias it reminds us of the most, though, itÂ’s the XCeed and ProCeed. Obviously, we donÂ’t get either here, which is a shame because the new ones are rather attractive. We will hopefully have more concrete news on this car in the coming months or in 2021. Related video: