KIA Complaints

While driving on I-95 at 60mph the car began to jump as it attempted to shift gears and the speed stalled to where it slowed down to 20mph and would not go any faster. The car slowed while I was in the fast lanes of the highway and I had to work my way to the right to the slower lanes to avoid abusing traffic congestion or any accidents. It was scary. Separately, my engine light has been on for the last year. I recently had the MAPs replaced and the light went off for two days and came back. It’s a steady continuous light, no flashing. The analysis check gives some other reason for the light but when checked it doesn’t fix the issue.

My car (Kia EV6) suddenly stopped charging with Level 1 and Level 2 charging. I brought it to the Kia dealership and it was diagnosed ICCU failure. ICCU was swapped and the car is charging again.

My 2016 Kia Sorento with 2.4L GDI Theta II engine began consuming excessive oil despite regular documented oil changes. At approximately 86,000 miles, the engine failed and requires full long block replacement. The vehicle has been at a Kia dealership for 5 months while I went back and forth with Kia Corporate. I was quoted over $8,000 for replacement. Kia has declined assistance. This appears consistent with known oil consumption and bearing failure issues in the 2.4L Theta II engines. This failure occurred without warning and creates a safety concern due to potential engine stall while driving.

No oil in engine can cause fire. Meineke in walkertown inspects the vehicle. No lights or warnings. Vehicle just started running funny. Problem confirmed by Meineke in walkertown. They claim it is a consumption issue because there are no leaks.

[XXX] Kia Seltos engine stalled and then stopped running. Driver attempted to turn engine over with no success. [XXX] The 2021 Seltos was towed to Kia in Jacksonville Nc. Kia Jacksonville stated engine seized, performed a compression test of cylinders with failure. cylinder 1 had a 135 psi, cylinder 3 had a 105 psi. It was stated that cylinder 1 and 3 had excessive scoring on the walls. Prior recall fixes included SC209 on Jul 19, 2021 with a dealer code of NC072. Recall SC209A was issued on 4/13/2021 per a car fax report. Recall for Sc209A was issued before the Sc209 recall fix. SC209A was not fixed on Jul19,2021. In February 2026 SC209A was updated after the engine stalled, had cylinder scoring and inadequate compression in cylinders. Owner of the 2021 Kia Seltos paid $1304,91 after a goodwill assist was authorized by the General or Regional Manager of Kia Jacksonville NC. Service Manager stated that Engine does not qualify for a replacement under the recall for not meeting the workflow criteria issued by Kia. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The fuel tank malfunctioned while driving. It appeared on my odometer that I had zero gas, once I pulled into a gas station to fill up, I could see the gas pouring out of the tank while the pump was unable to pump any gas due to the pressure coming out of the tank. Bev Smith Kia of Fort Pierce has the vehicle if you would like to inspect it. I also have photos of the melted tank from the dealership. NHTSA Recall Number: 25V-794 The fuel tank expansion/melting risk, fuel leak, or fire risk, put the driver, passenger, and nearby citizens at risk if the car caught fire. Also, the seats have been known to eject with this particular recall. Yes the vehicle was inspected by Bev Smith Kia per my insistence, and instead of fixing it and returning the vehicle, Kia Corporate forced the hand of Bev Smith Kia to confiscate the vehicle due to it being a deadly recall. SC288 Alpha Campaign Failed is what the dealership told me to tell corporate. There were no warning lights when the odometer appeared to have zero miles, it simply went to zero and the backseat became very hot to the passenger. There was no ability to fill the gas tank as the pressure of gas was pouring gas out from the fuel tank and the pump would not add additional gas. This appeared in May of 2025. We took it to the dealership and they said there was nothing wrong with the car. The next time is happened was Sunday [XXX]. The car was taken to Bev Smith Kia dealership that Monday November 24th where it was confiscated by the dealership for the deadly recall that they claimed could never be fixed and Kia would do a buy back. There were no other issues with the vehicle prior to the incident in May of 2025. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I have less than 100,000 miles on my 2018 Kia sorento. When I reached probably 50,000 miles this car went DOWN HILL. I feel like I’ve replaced everything on this car. Now every oil change was saying no oil on the dip stick, so I take it to the Kia dealership. They tell me that I need an ENTIRE engine. My car is less than 100,000 miles. I saw something that said if it was under that threshold, it could be covered but they said they couldn’t find anything. This car has been failing me. I still owe HALF of the car, what it’s not even worth on carfax anymore. AND the engine cost is exactly 50% of what I owe on this car. I don’t know what to do, but never buy a Kia again. This is a hazard for everyone around me the gas it is putting into the air. I don’t know what else to do. I even paid them to do an oil change and the oil light lit up as SOON as I left the parking lot. There are no leaks whatsoever. I even had someone from the Kia engine settlement verify my VIN # and told me that it was eligible and she told me that everything would be taken care of at the dealership without charge. She then told me to wait for the dealership to call and let me know because I was on hold while they were talking. But right after I received a call asking how I was going to pay for it because they could not find anyway to cover it. I don’t know how to ask for a second opinion. Kia is never available to speak with or try to resolve the issue. This has just been a nightmare.

My car started shaking as I was on the interstate headed to Orlando I decided to turn around and go back home I tried putting gas in the car and the gas was shooting back out I was literally a hour away from home so as I’m driving back home the back seat flew off causing my niece to fly from the back seat half way to the front the dealership said I have to pay for my own rental they can’t give me another vehicle and I have to keep making my car payments and insurance payments and they don’t have a answer for me about my car I have to make it to work

The contact owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving 65-70 MPH, the fuel gauge displayed zero miles to empty. The contact pulled into the nearest gas station, and while attempting to add fuel to the vehicle, the contact became aware that there was fuel leaking out of the fuel tank outlet, and the gas pump nozzle was stopped. The contact was unable to refuel the vehicle. The contact stated that after returning to drive, the fuel gauge indicated 100 miles to empty. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair under NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V794000 (Fuel System, Gasoline), and the dealer advised the contact that the manufacturer had instructed the contact not release the vehicle to the owner due to the recall. While diagnosing the vehicle, a technician at the dealer sent a photo displaying that the rear driver's side seat had melted internally due to the fuel tank overheating. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that the SC288 Alpha Campaign had failed. The vehicle remained at the dealer for four months; however, the manufacturer later sent a letter advising the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired, and a buyback was suggested. The manufacturer offered to reimburse the down payment for the vehicle. The contact stated that the buy-back offer was unsatisfactory. The contact declined the offer, and the manufacturer then threatened to tow the unrepaired vehicle back to the residence. The contact stated that the manufacturer had failed to honor the recall repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 145,000.

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2020 Kia Sportage. The contact discovered a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. The vehicle was a dealer sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 70,000. It was later discovered that the mileage on the Title was 107,000 while having a routine oil change. The service records indicated that the mileage had been altered.