2020 KIA SOUL Complaints

Transmission going into neutral while driving.no help at this time from the dealership

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated during acceleration and would not exceed 40 MPH. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The dealer informed the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that they would escalate it for review. The failure mileage was approximately 21,500.

Driving car on I-10 west. Near Pensacola, FL tachometer started fluctuating wildly. Car seemed to be losing power regardless of whether using accelerator or cruise control. Passed exit with a Kia dealer too late to exit, so drove to next exit 4 miles down. Light at end of exit was on hill. Stopped, but when light turned green, car would not move. NO WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON AT ANY TIME. Took Kia Roadside Assistance about 2.5 hrs for tow. Towed to Team Gunther, Daphne, AL Kia dealer. Service rep thought was transmission prob as another customer had reported similar situation. Had to wait til Monday, 2/28/22 to get official word that transmission needed to be replaced. Covered by warranty but since wld take about 2 wks to get part and do work, had to find way to get back home to Jacksonville, FL. Kia Travel Interruption assistance covers max of 3 days and $100 a day, so have been reimbursed for some, but not all expenses since total expense over $300. Car ready for pick up on 3/12/22 and picked up 3/15 after getting back to the area from Jax FL. Could have been major safety probs if I had been unable to exit I-10 or if car had lost power on road with no shoulder....

The vehicle was in perfect operating condition than began knocking. Less than two miles down the road the vehicle engine seized and a piston oil ring sheared. Shortened timeline: Jan 15 - engine knock, engine seized during transport (Jan 26) Jan 15 - Call to Lithia Kia in Anchorage, spoke to Brian (Service manager) confirmed on recall. Feb 18 - Kia Consumer Affairs (CA) schedules transport to Lithia Kia in Anchorage Feb 22 - Transport falls through on Kia end, denies all further transport. Feb 27 - Hired private transport ($500) March 1 - Lithia confirms Vehicle March 4 - Lithia demands service records March 10 - Service records are sent March 16 - Jessica Weaver with Kia CA looses contact with dealership March 18 - Brian with Lithia Kia in Anchorage says they do not honor recalls on rebuilt or salvage titles.

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated while she was at a stop light, the vehicle stalled inadvertently. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The vehicle was towed to a Chevrolet dealer who had sold her the vehicle. The Chevrolet dealer diagnosed that the starter needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the starter was replaced; however, the engine remained locked. The dealer associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V259000 (Engine). The vehicle was towed to a second dealer Bramlett Kia (3326 US-31, Decatur, AL 35603) but was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

Contact has 2020 Kia Soul bought from Beaumont Texas at Classic Kia. Contact was driving to school to attend a class of speeds approximately 20-30 mph, when the engine light kicked on and the car stalled. Contact immediately called Classic Kia in Beaumont to speak to service department. Previously contact had piston rings "inspected" with no detection. Informed the occurrence to the maintenance department and was told to bring the car into dealership. Contact did as instructed and brought the vehicle to Classic Kia, contact was then told by Maintenace manager that this car has never had an oil change (which the first was done by the dealership itself) and there is sludge in the engine. Contatct stated "I did not have free ones with the dealership, why would I come here". Manager stated on the day after occurrence there were 2 years free oil changes in which was not in my contract and we informed that he was incorrect and the subject was dropped. Contact provided some receipts to manager immediately at Classic Kia and submitted others to Kia corporate on the customer service website to ensure all items could be reviewed. Maintenace manager contacted to verify car was denied by kia, contact called Kia Corporate to ask why and case was still open at that time. When contact had problem, was able to go to the nearest AutoZone, there was a timing issue with vehicle. Informed Maintenace manager of recall sc209 and if it had been completed. Manager stated there was "no need to do the recall" as I have "voided my warranty" for "not maintaining the vehicle". Informed receipts are in case number and manager linked case number to see if kia would approve new engine. Dealership stated we cannot get a loaner and they will not provide contact a way to work and school at this time due to "voided warranty". Currently waiting for approval at this time, recall sc209 still not completed as of 3/4/2022. Occurrence happened on 2/17/2022, with 43,000 miles on vehicle.

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated that he became aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V259000 (Engine) and the vehicle was taken to the local dealer for the recall repair; however, the dealer did not complete the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH, the vehicle started decelerating independently. The contact pulled into the nearest parking lot and opened the hood but could determine the cause of the failure. The contact continued to drive the vehicle and the vehicle stalled inadvertently. The check engine warning light, the oil warning light, and other unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was unable to veer to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after 5 minutes; however, the vehicle was shuddering and would not exceed 15 MPH while driving. The contact also stated that there were abnormal sounds coming from the engine. The contact pulled into the nearest parking lot and parked the vehicle. The vehicle was towed a second dealer - Kia of Lincolnwood (6750 Lincoln Ave, Lincolnwood, IL 60712) where it was diagnosed that there was a lack of engine oil and the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the manufacturer approved the request to cover the engine replacement under the recall of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V259000 (Engine) however, the parts were not yet available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the new engine had been shipped to the dealer but they did not have an ETA. The manufacturer also advised the contact to rent a vehicle and they might reimburse him for the expense. The failure mileage was approximately 25,053.

The supposed remedy for SC209 on my vehicle only included a test as per the Kia certified techs on 10/27/2021. In June 2021, while the vehicle still had warranty remaining, my Kia soul stalled out at a traffic light near Towson, Maryland. The check engine light illuminated, as well as oil pressure. I brought the vehicle to Kia of Westchester (PA) to remedy the issue. The determination at the time was a cam shaft pin had broken, and that was the cause. They replaced the pin, and I continued to have the check engine light come on. I took the vehicle back on 6/17/2021 with the same issue of check engine light and stalling. They reported no issue, and no light after they had cleared the code. I noticed by early autumn a strange knocking sound at low RPM and the check engine light re illuminated. This was the time frame that the "test" for the SC209 recall was "performed" and the Soul apparently passed (no explanation was given for the parameters at the time). The techs suggested the check engine was now due to a faulty catalytic converter (10/27/2021 mileage 107564). I was also told that the sound I was hearing at low RPM was "engine pinging" and I needed to use higher octane gas (not manufacturers recommendation). 1/15/2022 My wife was operating the vehicle coming back from work in Philadelphia when the Soul sputtered and died, shutting off the engine and causing check engine and oil lamp to illuminate. At this point, the engine struggled to reach any highway speed, the engine could would rev loudly and clouds of bluish grey smoke billowed from the exhaust. I replaced the spark plugs (2nd time, less then 12k mileage) and all coil packs with OEM parts. I noticed burnt oil on the old spark plugs. I brought the vehicle to Jiffy Lube in Glasgow, DE to perform a full synthetic oil change (recommended, and what I normally do). The vehicle continued to have the same issues, and blow out large blue gray clouds of exhaust.

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, but the dealer could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 21,116.

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled while the oil change, battery, and check engine warning lights illuminated intermittently. The vehicle was taken to dealer where it was diagnosed that the ECM computer upgrade was needed. Additionally, NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V259000 (Engine) needed to be completed. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 160,200.