2014 KIA SOUL Complaints

The contact's neighbor owned a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in his neighbor’s garage, another neighbor noticed smoke coming from the walls of the garage. The contact then stated that his neighbors were awakened by another neighbor alerting them of the fire. The contact’s neighbor was able to exit the home and notified the fire department that extinguished the fire. No injuries were sustained. No medical attention was required. A police and fire report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot and deemed a total loss by the insurance company. The vehicle was inspected by an investigator who determined that the fire was started in the engine compartment. Additionally, the contact stated that prior to the failure, on three separate occasions, while his neighbors were driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle stalled without warning. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that oil had leaked profusely from an unknown location and the catalytic converter had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired three times. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The contact then stated that upon research, the VIN was included in the NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V750000 (Engine). Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 118,006.

As I was driving on the highway, driving uphill, the car began to rattle under the hood as I attempted to increase speed. When I came to a full stop, the car completely shut down. I popped the hood, and the coolant cap was blown off and coolant was leaking everywhere. I was stranded on the highway until fire and rescue helped pull the car off the main road onto a side road. Called the Tow truck who took my car to a place in Ardmore, OK. Called Bobby’s Radiator and auto repair. Upon inspection, the mechanic stated that “the motor is locked up.”

The contact called on behalf of his daughter-in-law who owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing abnormal oil consumption. The contact stated that the vehicle owner had been adding a quart of oil to the vehicle every week. The contact's mechanic informed the contact that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where a diagnostic test produced DTC Code: P0420; and the dealer determined that the catalytic converter and the engine had failed. The dealer informed the contact that the engine could not replace under the recall because additional diagnostic test which related the engine failure to low engine compression. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that the catalytic converter could be replaced under recall; however, the replacement would be pointless because the engine had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that he believed that the engine failure was related to the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist because the dealer determined that the engine failure was not related to the recall. The failure mileage unknown.

The car was having an oil consumption issue so I took it to the dealer where they said it wasn’t considered excessive to them and said to get the PCV valve replaced which I had them do. Then the car went into “limp home” mode while on the highway and began displaying a check engine light intermittently with a PO420 code. Took it to the dealer and they said it needs a new catalytic converter. It had just had the catalytic converters recall performed and when I talked to the service manager about that he agreed and said it was a latent defect in the car and that Kia would goodwill repair the catalytic converter. Kia denied doing that and continued to deny it even after I appealed several times. The car still has an oil consumption problem, still intermittently displays the PO420 error and has a check engine light on and last I talked to the dealer they said now the car needs an entirely new engine.

In 2021, my Kia Soul engine locked up entirely to the point of needing a total engine replacement. I received mail indicating that engine failure is part of a class action settlement from Kia. Due to the pandemic, I hadn't been able to find an engine or afford the replacement costs.

I phoned your hotline today to report that I have been unable to get the dealership and the manufacturer to repair the SAFETY recall. She told me filing a complaint wouldn’t help me even though I kept telling her that I wanted to file a complaint. I asked to speak to someone else and she said because she was working remotely I could not speak with anyone else. So I saw I could file a complaint online, but that doesn’t seem accurate either. I am completely frustrated. My vehicle isn’t up to safety standards and I cannot get anyone including this agency to help me solve the problem. Thank you

The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the contact smelled an abnormal electrical burning odor inside the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to dealer however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was 60,000.

Car knocks bad. Air has never worked well. Car had been stolen before. Insurance did not do anything. My insurance has gone up because of the security system scandal.

The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost power. The engine warning light was flashing. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who replaced the catalytic converter on two separate occasions. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that an unknown sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. Additionally, the mechanic informed the contact that the catalytic converter was clogged, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000.

I drove my car a short distance, parked, and turned off the engine. about 5 minutes after I left my car in the parking lot, we heard a loud explosion and everyone in the office stepped outside. My car became a ball of orange fire and burned for some time. It took 3 fire trucks to contain the fire and several other vehicles were damaged from the explosion. Pictures taken after the incident show the engine was gone (melted maybe). The inside of the car was also burned beyond recognition. My potential death was approximately 5 minutes after I parked my car. The gas tank did not explode; rather, the car burned from the front to the rear. This vehicle should not be on the road and the problem should be made public immediately.