2014 KIA SOUL Complaints

PROBLEM: MULTIFUNCTIONAL SWITCH ISSUE (LIGHTS FLICKER WHILE I'M DRIVING AT NIGHT AND TURN OFF RANDOMLY!) CAR: KIA SOUL 2014 NO APPARENT RECALL. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THIS SINCE THIS IS A MAJOR CONSUMER SAFETY ISSUE.

MY 2014 KIA SOUL KEPT GETTING CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON CODE P050A WHEN COLD OUTSIDE SINCE NOVEMBER 2019. IT STARTED TO DO SO SINCE I GOT THE ECM FLASHED IN MAY 2019 FOR RECALL SC176. DEALERSHIP DOES NOT HAVE A SOLUTION TO FIX THE ISSUE.

MY 2014 KIA SOUL, VIN# [XXX], BROKE DOWN ON 12/26/2019, ONLY HAD 33,766 MILES ON IT. THE DEALERSHIP SAID THE DOWNSTREAM CATALYTIC CONVERTER WAS CLOGGED, FOR AN INTERNAL MELT DOWN DUE TO HIGH EXHAUST TEMPERATURE. DEALERSHIP SAID THE DOWNSTREAM CATALYTIC CONVERTER IS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THIS VEHICLE HAD THE RECALL SC176 FOR ECU CATALYTIC OVERHEATING PROTECTION (COP) LOGIC UPDATE DONE ON 05/08/2019 AT 32,461 MILES, INVOICE # K1CS806584, THE RECALL SAYS 'THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER MAY BECOME DAMAGED DUE TO OVERHEATING CAUSED BY AN EXCESSIVE INCREASE OF EXHAUST GAS TEMPERATURES'. THE DEALERSHIP SHOULD HAVE DETECTED THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER WAS FAILING AND REPLACED IT WHEN THEY DID THE RECALL INSPECTION BUT THEY DIDN'T. NOW ONLY 1300 MILES AFTER, THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER FAILED. CATALYTIC CONVERTER SHOULD LAST 100K+ MILES. LESS THAN A WEEK AND 130 MILES AFTER THE REAR CONVERTER REPAIR, I HAD FRONT CATALYTIC CONVERTER FAILED AT 33892 MILES. (INVOICE # K1CS829713, 1/23/2020, IT IS REPAIRED UNDER EMISSION WARRANTY. I FILED A CLAIM AT THE KIA RECALL DEPARTMENT FOR A REIMBURSEMENT OF $1485.58 FOR THE REPAIR I PAID, CASE#13505076, BUT THE CLAIM WAS DENIED ON 2/8 SAID THEY CAN ONLY REIMBURSE IF THE REPAIR IS DONE BEFORE THE RECALL. WHEN THEY DID THE RECALL INSPECTION, THEY SHOULD HAVE DISCOVERED THE DAMAGE AND HAVE IT REPAIRED UNDER RECALL, BUT THEY FAILED TO DO SO AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY FOR IT ONLY 1300 MILES AFTER. THE RECALL IS A FRAUD, ALL THEY DID IS FLASH THE ECU. REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *CC

MY STEERING HAS A SIGNIFICANT KLUNK NOISE. AFTER SEARCHING THE INTERNET FOR INFORMATION REGARDING THIS SITUATION I FIND THAT THERE IS A RUBBER DRIVE COUPLING BETWEEN THE STEERING WHEEL AND THE SHAFT WHICH TRANSFERS THE ROTARY MOTION OF THE STEERING WHEEL TO THE LINEAR MOTION OF THE STEERING RACK WHICH STEERS THE FRONT WHEELS. THE CONSENSUS IS THAT THIS CAN EASILY RESULT IN LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE STEERING WHICH WOULD END IN A TOTALLY UNPREDICTABLE CRASH. THE RUBBER PART APPARENTLY DISINTEGRATES WITH TIME SUCH AS CRAZING FOUND IN OLD PLASTIC, PLEXIGLAS ETC.

ENGINE OIL CONSUMPTION HAS BEEN .69QTS PER 1K MILES. I BOUGHT THIS CAR NEW. IN THE BEGINNING I THOUGHT THAT THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT WASN`T CHANGING THE OIL. I WENT TO A METALLURGIST I HAD DONE SOME WORK FOR AND ASKED HIM TO OBSERVE MY DRAWING OF AN OIL SAMPLE TO SEND OFF FOR ANALYSIS. THERE WAS NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY IN THE OIL. I STARTED SERVICING THE CAR MYSELF. OVER TIME I KEPT TOPPING UP THE LEVEL IN THE ENGINE. THE CAR WAS GETTING CLOSE TO THE END OF WARRANTY AND NEWS HAD REPORTED ENGINE FIRES IN MY MAKE AND MODEL OF AUTO. KIA CALLED IN AUTOS FOR AN OIL CONSUMPTION ANALYSIS: AN OIL CHANGE - GOOP UP THE DRAIN PLUG, DIP STICK - OIL FILLER - CAP - DRIVE 1000 MILES - BRING THE CAR BACK - CHECK THE OIL - TOP IT UP - DO IT AGAIN. THREE OF THESE CYCLES WERE CALLED FOR. I BROUGHT MY CAR BACK FOR THE FIRST CHECK BY THIS TIME I HAD ZERO CONFIDENCE IN THIS PROCESS. I MADE THEM ALLOW ME TO OBSERVE THE DIP STICK CHECK FOR CRANKCASE OIL LEVEL. LOW AND BEHOLD IT HAD MADE OIL. THIS INDICATED THE OIL LEVEL HAD BEEN EXCEEDED AND THERE HAD BEEN NO BASE LINE BEEN ESTABLISHED SO THE FIRST 1000 MILE CHECK WAS A WASTE OF TIME. I MADE THEM SUCTION OFF THE EXCESS OIL TO ESTABLISH AN APPROPRIATE POINT OF REFERENCE. IN THE END THEY SENT ME HOME WITH A STATEMENT THAT KIA CONSIDERED .7 QUARTS PER 1K MILES ACCEPTABLE. ONE FREE OIL CHANGE @ 1K MILES THEN 10K INTERVALS MILE TO THE NEXT OIL CHANGE. 10K MILES @ ACCEPTABLE ENGINE OIL CONSUMPTION OF .7 QUARTS PER 10K MILES = AN EMPTY CRANKCASE BEFORE OIL CHANGE IS DUE. NO WONDER THEY FOUND DEBRIS IN THE CRANKSHAFT. IT DOESN`T TAKE A NUCLEAR PHYSICIST TO EXTRAPOLATE THIS. KIA FEELS ITS THE OWNERS FAULT DEBRIS IS FOUND. WHO WOULD BUY A NEW AUTO WITH KNOWLEDGE OF THESE STATISTICS. AT A MINIMUM THE AUTO WAS MISREPRESENTED.

VEHICLE STOPPED RUNNING WITHOUT ANY WARNING, KIA DIAGNOSED IT AS ENGINE FAILURE REQUIRING NEW ENGINE AND WOULD NOT CONSIDER ANY PORTION OF THE REPAIR COST AS ITS OBLIGATION EVEN THOUGH IT WOULD BE WARRANTIED TO A FIRST OWNER WELL BEYOND THE APPROXIMATELY 74,000 MILES IT HAS. ULTIMATELY, GAVE A FEW HUNDRED DOLLARS TOWARDS A TRADE. I HAVE ATTACHED THE DISPUTED CASE INFORMATION. *TR

DRIVING THE CAR AT 50MPH ON A ROAWDAY ON 5-25-2020 AND THE CAR MADE A HORRIBLE ENGINE NOISE, SLOWED AND WOULD NOT START. IT WAS TOWED TO KIA OF STREETSBORO WHO FOUND THE ENGINE FAILED AT 95183 MILES. WE CHANGED OIL CONSTANTLY AT 3-4000 MILES AND ARE ORIGINAL OWNERS. NEVER HAD A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATE. ONLY ISSUE EVER WAS A WARRANTY CLAIM ON A STARTER THAT FAILED. KIA FOUND METAL IN THE OIL PAN AND VERIFIED OUR CONCERNS, INSTALLING A REMANUFACTURED ENGINE. APPROXIMATELY 100 MILES LATER, THE CAR STALLED AT 35 MPH AND DIED, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FLASHED AND WE HAD IT TOWED TO WAIKEM KIA. THEY DIAGNOSED A $1500.00 CATALYTIC CONVERTER FAILURE INDICATING A HIGH AMOUNT OF CARBON BUILD UP CAUSING FAILURE. CONTACTED KIA WHO REFUSES TO ACCEPT ANY CUPLABILITY FOR THE CAT FAILURE. THAT'S TWO TIMES WHERE A CRASH COULD HAVE HAPPENED DUE TO FAILURE OF THE VEHICLE ON THE ROADWAY.

CAR HAD A DECREASE IN POWER WHILE DOING THE SPEED LIMIT ON THE INTERSTATE. WE RAN A CODE CHECK AND IT CAME BACK AS P1326. DETERMINED WE WERE ABLE TO ATTEMPT A DRIVE HOME AS CODE DESCRIPTION ONLINE INDICATED CAR WAS IN 'LIMP HOME MODE'. COULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 60, HAD DIFFICULTIES GOING UP HILL. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AT TIME DECREASE IN POWER OCCURRED. WARNINGS OF ANY ISSUES PRIOR TO THIS. DAMAGED CATALYTIC CONVERTOR WAS REPLACED IN FEB OR MARCH OF THIS YEAR, UNDER RECALL, THOUGH TOLD NO DAMAGE TO ENGINE - HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? WILL NOT DRIVE THE VEHICLE BASED ON POSSIBILITY OF INJURY, DAMAGE, INABILITY TO GO WITH FLOW OF TRAFFIC SAFELY. *TR

WHILE DRIVING A 2014 KIA SOUL ON THE FREEWAY, THE ENGINE STARTED TO MAKE A SUDDEN AND LOUD POPPING SOUND. WHEN EXITING THE FREEWAY, THE VEHICLE LOCKED UP AND STALLED. IT WOULD NOT START BACK UP. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE FROM KIA WITH 27K MILES ON IT. IT ONLY HAS 76K MILES ON IT NOW. I HAD IT TOWED TO THE LOCAL KIA DEALER WHO DIAGNOSED IT AS A SPUN BEARING OR ENGINE FAILURE. NO OBVIOUS SIGNS OF DAMAGE AND NO LEAKS. NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS OR ANY OTHER ISSUES PRIOR TO ENGINE FAILURE AND THE OIL WAS JUST CHANGED WITHIN THE LAST MONTH. NO STORED ENGINE CODES OR FAULTS. *TR

WAS DRIVING THE CAR AT NORMAL SPEEDS WITH NO PRIOR ISSUES, ENGINE SEIZED UP. REQUIRED FLOORING TO ACHIEVE 25 MPH. STALLED REPEATEDLY. TOOK TO SHOP AND ENGINE DESTROYED, NO OIL FOUND WITH NO PRIOR LEAKS AND REGULAR CHANGES. NO PRIOR ENGINE TROUBLE/HISTORY. CAR HAS 68,000 MILES. *TR