2014 Kia Morning Problems: 3 Known Issues

On the 2011-2015 Kia Morning, a widely reported chronic problem on the TA Morning: the crankshaft rear oil seal (크랭크 리데나/리테이너) loses tension or walks out of position, letting engine oil leak at the junction between the engine and transmission. Korean repair shops document this as a recurring Morning failure, and owner communities report that Kia quietly issued a one-time free-repair directive to its Auto Q service network for this leak, though application was inconsistent between service centers. Because the seal sits behind the transmission, the gearbox must be removed to replace a cheap part, making the repair disproportionately expensive — roughly 300,000-350,000 KRW out of pocket. On manual cars, leaking oil can contaminate the clutch and cause slip.

On the 2011-2015 Kia Morning, early TA Morning vehicles built between January 15, 2011 and March 28, 2012 suffer intermittent hard starting after a long cold soak (typically winter mornings): the engine cranks, almost catches, then dies or refuses to start. Kia identified the cause as excessive fuel-injection quantity at cold start producing unstable combustion, and issued a free-repair campaign (무상수리) consisting of an ECU software upgrade. Korean owner forums also document residual cold-start delay on later TA cars (e.g., 2015 models) that was ultimately resolved by replacing the fuel pump assembly when the ECU update alone did not cure it.

On the 2011-2018 Kia Morning, manual-gearbox Morning/Picanto cars show two related, well-documented clutch complaints. First, cold/damp-morning clutch judder: a pronounced shudder when pulling away in 1st or 2nd gear that fades after a few miles, attributed to condensation on the friction surfaces and addressed by revised clutch part numbers — repeatedly discussed across Kia Owners Club threads for the Picanto (the Morning's twin, same platform and drivetrain family). Second, Korean owner communities document low durability of the clutch and flywheel on the TA Morning: habitual half-clutch driving can glaze or burn the friction plate in remarkably low mileage, and uneven flywheel wear then perpetuates judder even after a new clutch. Korea-market evidence is the Morning TA; the judder threads are from the EU-market Picanto with shared running gear.