KIA Complaints

Recently had oil change . Right after B oil change engine light came on, a solid yellow light car is driving rough it’s a 2015 Kia Forte. Have an appointment Monday 7/13/2026 to have dealer to do a B diagnostic. The same place I had oil change

Twice I was making a right hand turn through a green light and an alarm sounded and the dash displayed an ”Engine Off” message. I was able to pull over and restart the car. I took it to the dealership but they were not able to replicate the incident. They told me that they tightened a few connections and sent me on my way. About three weeks later, I was driving straight at about 45mph and it shut off again. Fortunately I was again able to safely pull over and restart the car. This time I recorded it. I will return it to the dealership ASAP. I am afraid this will happen again while I am on the freeway or in heavy traffic and I won’t be as lucky as I have been.

I parked my car and it was sitting for about an hour I came back to the car and heard a humming noise found that weird but I had to drive home about 10 mins later I parked car, sound was still going even while car was off. So I thought to let it sit for another while. Came back to car sound was still on I started car and the abs, traction, & brake light came on and not even 2 mins later my car starts smoking. So immediately I shut it off and have to leave my car parked in another city because I didn’t want to risk driving it home. Fast forward to next day. I got to my car and notice the speedometer had went out. i called Kia because I read about the HECU ABS recall. the service rep assured me my car would be covered so I pay a tow to get it towed to Kia dealer where they then tell me the recall had been repaired in a year that I didn’t even own the car and they refuse to look at it or fix without a fee. With this problem being a fire hazard and a manufacturing problem I should not have to come out of pocket for Kia mistake. I will be escalating this to corporate level.

This is a follow up submission to NHTSA case #XXX. Organization Under Complaint: Hutchinson Kia, [XXX] Complaint Summary: The dealership is utilizing unfair and deceptive financial gating practices to avoid its legal obligations under a federal safety recall. The dealership refuses to look at or evaluate a vehicle subject to an urgent fire-risk HECU safety recall unless the consumer first authorizes a $189.00 diagnostic fee. The dealership refuses to give a firm, legally binding commitment that this fee will be waived for a confirmed recall component. Instead, they require the consumer to assume all financial risk upfront, stating the fee will only "likely" be waived based on their own internal, unverified findings. This creates a high-pressure trap where the consumer is forced to sign away financial rights to access a free, federally mandated safety remedy. The dealership is weaponizing a acute shortage of independent import and specialized repair facilities in the Macon, GA market. They are aware consumers have almost no local alternative venues to get an independent, affordable cross-check scan, and are using this regional monopoly to coerce consumers into signing open-ended diagnostic authorizations. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Car does not unlock with keyless key fob. This is too often an issues to overlook. Car will just keep locking and eventually nothing. I have been stuck outside in thunderstorms, a huge safety concern, rain, snow and uncomfortable situations. This causes me to be more soaked, wetting the car and fishing out my keys getting items inside wet. Key is mostly in pocket because its a keyless entry car, or in backpack. 2023 was superior.

I am the original owner of a 2022 Kia Telluride. Since approximately late September/early October 2025, the vehicle has experienced an intermittent engine stalling condition while stopped and idling. I first reported the issue to my Kia dealership on October 8, 2025, when the vehicle had approximately 59,761 miles. At that time, I advised the dealership the engine had already stalled twice within two weeks. I also sent a photo of the warning lights and suggested they allow the vehicle to idle to recreate the condition. The dealership stated they could not duplicate the problem and returned the vehicle without repairs. The same issue continued over the following months. The check engine light appeared multiple times, including in February and April 2026. My Kia Access app repeatedly reported diagnostic code P21A100 (Cylinder 6 Air/Fuel Ratio Imbalance). The dealership advised they could not repair the vehicle because they could not duplicate the concern. During one visit they repaired two engine oil leaks but stated those were unrelated. On July 8, 2026, the defect escalated. While driving through downtown Cincinnati, the engine stalled at three separate traffic lights. When the engine shut off, the battery, oil, check engine, and seatbelt warning lights illuminated. I had to shift into Park, turn the vehicle completely off, and restart it before it would drive again. This created a significant safety hazard in active traffic. The dealership’s current diagnosis is contaminated fuel, but I am reporting this because the same intermittent stalling condition has been documented with the dealership since October 2025 and has never been resolved. An engine that unexpectedly shuts off in traffic presents a serious safety risk to the driver, passengers, and surrounding motorists.

My 2023 Kia Telluride has been subject to at least 8 separate NHTSA recalls, including SC181 (seat belt/child restraint), SC194 (trailer brake light/cruise control), SC207 (airbag OCS/ODS), SC262 (side airbag wire harness), SC303 (driveshaft/rollaway risk), SC316 (power seat motor fire risk), SC347 (door trim detachment), and now SC374/NHTSA 26V430 (recurrence of the power seat motor fire risk, explicitly noted as possibly caused by an improper repair under the earlier SC316 recall). I am especially concerned that the current recall (26V430) describes the same underlying defect as an earlier recall (SC316/24V407) that was supposed to have been repaired, and that no remedy is yet available for this recurrence. This raises serious questions about the adequacy of the original repair and the vehicle’s ongoing fire risk. I am filing this complaint to document this pattern of recurring safety defects and request that NHTSA and Kia treat this as evidence of an unresolved, recurring hazard — not an isolated incident.

My 2022 Kia Seltos is burning through oil at a very high rate. I was reading that there is a recall for 2021-2023 Kia Seltos for this exact issue with the engine, but my vin from my vehicle is not listed on the recall. I spoke with Naperville, IL Kia and they advised I would have to buy a new engine.

The fuel gauge intermittently fails and incorrectly displays that the vehicle has little or no fuel, even when the tank is nearly full. On the first occasion, I was at home. The second time, after shopping, I started the vehicle and the gauge indicated there was no fuel, despite knowing the tank was almost full. As I continued driving, the fuel gauge slowly began registering correctly until it eventually returned to showing the proper fuel level. This has now happened twice. This is a serious safety concern because the driver cannot accurately determine the amount of fuel in the vehicle. An incorrect fuel reading could cause someone to believe the vehicle is out of fuel, become stranded in an unsafe location, or make unnecessary emergency stops, creating a potential hazard for both the driver and others on the road.

About 3 months after I bought a brand new 2025 Telluride the vehicle started to randomly accelerate rapidly without increasing the gas while driving and stall when idling at lights, stop signs, or slowing down and would not turn back on for several minutes. When it does start back it misfires causing a rumbling before the check engine light comes on. It would show code P006800 and P017100 saying “critical engine error”. Despite bringing it into the dealership multiple times we were told they couldn’t replicate the problem and sent home with no solutions just to wait for it to happen again. This became a extremely dangerous situation when recently at a red light on a busy highway in the rain my telluride stalled leaving me and my young children trapped inside unable to restart the car while other vehicles flew past narrowly missing us. I’m extremely concerned for the safely of my children if we continue to drive this car. We went back to the dealership just to be told that Kia may not honor our warranty despite this being a documented problem with the 2025 Kia Telluride.