Matthew Rose described his beloved 2012 Kia Optima as a “big toasted marshmallow.”

Seeing a car burst into flames for no apparent reason was a new experience. And, it seems, Rose isn’t the only Kia or Hyundai driver to experience something so scary.

Rose said his Optima delivered great gas mileage for his 45-minute commutes back and forth to work in Grand Rapids. He really loved that midsize car.

But then it burned to a crisp on Feb. 28.

“This was the first brand-new car I’d ever purchased in my life. I never had any real major issues with it, except for some recalls and guest service bulletins here and there,” said Rose, 53, a systems analyst from Holland, Michigan. “When I took it in, people were friendly at the dealership. It was a comfortable car to drive. It was kind of a shock that it just, all of a sudden, it did this.”

The company said in a statement that Kia has taken proactive steps to address an engine manufacturing issue that “can, in rare instances, result in a non-collision fire, including the recall of more than 680,000 vehicles, and is committed to taking any necessary actions in a timely manner.”

But a consumer advocacy group wants a total 2.9 million Kias and Hyundais recalled: 2011-14 Kia Sorento, Kia Optima, Hyundai Sonata and Hyundai Santa Fe; and 2010-15 Kia Soul.

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Rose is among hundreds of drivers who have reported such fires to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and independent Center for Auto Safety involving certain 2011-18 Kia and Hyundai vehicles. These fires have led to higher-than-average insurance claims and a public plea that Congress launch a defect investigation.

“Recently, Hyundai and Kia acknowledged there are additional millions of their vehicles experiencing engine failure, a frequently cited precursor to fire events, yet they have refused to recall almost any of these vehicles to address the risk of fire,” said Jason Levine, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, which has called for the broader recall.

“Instead of presenting the public a solution for these fires, or a satisfactory explanation, or simply taking responsibility for continuing to sell what appear to be defective engines," both manufacturers have recalled only a portion of the "potential fire-prone vehicles and hoped no one would ask about the rest,” Levine said.

James Bell, Kia spokesman, said, “Customer safety is one of Kia’s top priorities and we are taking this matter seriously."

A Hyundai spokeswoman referred inquiries to Bell. Kia is part of the South Korea-based Hyundai Motor Group.

Levine said he has reviewed more than 300 reports since June 2018 filed with his organization and federal safety officials.

Rose surfaced as one of many.

Rose worries that the service campaigns don’t go far enough, and lives are at risk.

'Car is definitely on fire'

He was driving about 70 mph on his way home during rush hour, merging from Michigan Highway 6 onto I-96 westbound near Hudsonville, when the engine stalled. Just died. Rose used his blinker and coasted through traffic to the shoulder to call for roadside assistance. While sitting in the driver’s seat while using the phone, smoke began “coming up from the front of the hood.” At that point, he told the tow operator he planned to call 911 “in case of fire.”

Then things took a turn for the worse.

“About a minute after I hung up, smoke started coming in through the vents,” Rose said. “I had my insurance information, which I put in my pocket, grabbed my laptop and was able to get out of the car. There was still quite a bit of traffic. I was going to try and open the hood. I had popped it but didn’t look inside. I could see there were flames inside the engine compartment. I called 911 back and said, ‘Hey, the car is definitely on fire.’ And they said they were on the way. By the time I hung up, the engine was engulfed, the whole hood, everything.”

So a guy who paid off his $28,000 vehicle about six months ago is waiting for an insurance settlement check. His son-in-law gave the family a 2005 Kia Sportage.

Rose agreed to an interview because he wants to get the word out that if people see smoke, they should exit their Kia or Hyundai immediately. “If a person stays in the car too long, it would overtake you quite quickly. I’d hate to hear of people getting injured or dying.”

Rose explained, “We are frustrated and kinda upset. Here we were, no car payments. And we were kinda focusing in remodeling the house. Now we’re looking at getting a used Lexus hybrid.”

He has owned a Ford Explorer, Ford F-150 pickup, Ford Expedition, Ford Taurus, Buick Regal and a Volvo S80 T6 sedan. He was attracted to the fuel efficiency of the Asian brands.

Thing is, Rose took his vehicle to the Kia dealership in 2018 for an engine bearing recall and other repairs. No engine replacement was done. On Feb. 9, Rose’s vehicle had a “knock sensor detection system upgrade” that is part of Kia's Product Improvement Campaign and intended to warn the driver prior to catastrophic engine failure that can result in stalling and engine fires.

“I was reading more about the issues other people are having and why there’s an issue with the recall,” Rose said. “Even though my car has the same motor, same year and same model as other recalls, my particular VIN is not on the recall list. Yet it caught fire. I’m not real pleased.”

He applauded the Center of Auto Safety for pushing to get Kia to do a “full-on recall and not pick and choose.”

Kia says it will help

Meanwhile, Rose tried filing a complaint online with Kia but the system timed out.

“Perfect, right?” he said, laughing. “I found a link to consumer affairs and I think, in all fairness, I should give them the opportunity to make it right. I was enjoying the car with no payments.”

Upon hearing that the customer planned to reach out, Bell said, “I’m happy to hear he is planning to contact us. … We welcome the opportunity to investigate and provide assistance when and where appropriate.”

But consumer watchdogs aren’t so sure.

“The engines in question are all exactly the same. The part is the same part, the problem is the same problem. Their recalls have been identical,” said Levine, who has been tracking the data over the past year.

”There’s a history of manufacturers who have defects that contribute to car fires that are brought to their attention and they are not addressed soon enough," he said. "Fortunately, so far only one death is associated with these models. That’s dumb luck. Over 300 car fires on just ones we’re tracking. This has been going on for years now and their response has been pushing it off, kicking the can down the road, to do an improvement campaign, with a resistance to actually addressing the problem. We want to stop it before someone does die.”

He emphasized, “It’s like, ‘We know it’s going to catch fire but here’s a knock sensor.’ How does that help? So you’ve got an open wound and here’s a blood pressure cuff. If it goes up, come back to the hospital?”

Engine can be off

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Highway Loss Data Institute, which analyzes data from insurers, has noticed the Kia and Hyundai non-collision fires.

“When these vehicle fires occur, typically it results in a total loss. The consumer loses use of the vehicle,” said Matt Moore, senior vice president at the Highway Loss Data Institute financed by the insurance industry to track patterns. "Second, these problems can manifest themselves when the vehicle is turned off. That vehicle can be in a garage, attached to a home, and there can be a significant loss of property and possible loss of life. That’s the reason we pay attention to these things.”

Tracking shows higher insurance claim rates for the 2011-15 Kia Optima, 2011-14 Hyundai Sonata, 2011-15 Kia Sorento, 2011-12 Hyundai Santa Fe and 2013-14 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport.

A U.S. Senate committee in November asked the CEOs of Kia and Hyundai to testify about fire risk in the vehicles in response to the Center for Auto Safety’s concerns, according to the Associated Press.

The executives refused to testify, Levine noted.

The automakers had recalled 1.7 million vehicles starting in 2015 because of possible oil flow blockage, increasing fire risk, AP said. Kia acknowledged that dealer fixes in response to an initial recall hadn’t been done properly.

Kia also encourages customers who drive certain Optimas, Sorentos and Sportages to contact the dealership to address pending recall issues. In addition, the company issued non-repair “service campaign” alerts for an additional 3.7 million vehicles including Hyundai Sonata (2011-18), Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (2013-18), Kia Optima (2011-18), Kia Sorento (2012-18) and Kia Sportage (2011-18).

Rose drove one of the models that hasn't yet been recalled.

Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: 313-222-6512 orphoward@freepress.com.Follow her on Twitter@phoebesaid. Read more on Ford and sign up for our autos newsletter.