10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 6
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 1 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 20,342 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
Our 2016 Kia Sedona SX with the 3.3L engine was consuming engine oil very quickly and experienced overheating. It is available for inspection. One time when the engine overheated, my wife was driving on the highway during a very cold day and had to pull over to stop the car. She had both of our children with her. The engine failed a block test that was performed by an independent mechanic shop. It was also taken to a nearby Kia dealership, and found to have a cracked head gasket, which is the cause of the steel bolts pulling and destroying the threads in the aluminum engine block. Since the dealership said they had to pull the engine apart to inspect it, the engine CANNOT be put back together since the threads are destroyed. There was no indication light that the engine was consuming oil so fast and low. We did get warning light and message when the car was overheating. There was NO indication on the warning lights that oil volume was low.
- Cincinnati, OH, USA
Engine failed at less than 90k miles. Kia wants to put a new engine in for $15,000. I bought it used so no 100k mile warranty. I have always had my car serviced at the dealership and never missed a service. This is a common problem and Kia has already been sued by multiple parties including a large class-action suit that resulted in them recalling 3 million cars. There is no warning when this happens. If you are driving on the freeway, as I was with my three kids, this type of failure can lead to loss of control of the car. They need to own up to this problem. People will get hurt/killed as a result of Kia's negligence.
- Penngrove, CA, USA
Experienced overheating issues at only 105,000 miles due to leaking cylinder head gasket diagnosed at multiple mechanics, including the local Kia dealership. I was informed that this engine has a common defect where the head gasket bolts strip out of the engine block.
- Roanoke, VA, USA
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the heater was no longer blowing hot air. Additionally, the engine was overheating. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who replaced the thermostat and the water pump, but the failure continued to occur. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the rear cylinder head bolts had failed, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 123,000.
- Black Mountain, NC, USA
There were absolutely no warning lights on my dashboard for the engine, engine oil or anything. I was on a busy 2 lane road with my 7 year old on December 21, 2023 and suddenly the Charging System Warning light and the Immobilizer Indicator came on and the car stopped accelerating. I had to coast off of the road where there was no where to pull over. There are only 61,355 miles on my car and I had just had the safety inspection completed by Kia on September 7, 2023. I had the car towed to the Kia dealership in Leesburg as I always trusted them with servicing my car. They now want me to pay $9,899.72 to replace the long block, starter motor, and intake manifold OR they said they will pay me $500 for my car. The car is in the Kia dealerships lot right now because we would have to tow it somewhere else. The only symptom started 2 days before the incident. When starting the car it made a clicking sound. There were absolutely no other symptoms.
- Purcellville, VA, USA
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact became aware that the radiator was overheating while driving. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact replaced the thermostat, the radiator cap, and flushed the coolant and radiator system. While driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed that the temperature gauge was indicating that the vehicle had started overheating. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to the dealer. Upon inspection of the vehicle, the mechanic discovered that the head bolts on the cylinder heads had been stretched, causing coolant to leak into the engine cylinders. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
- Vacaville, CA, USA
No warning lights ever came on. We took the vehicle to the KIA dealer because the fan stayed on when we shut off the engine and the heat stopped working. The KIA dealer said the vehicle needs a new engine due to head gasket leakage. This vehicle clearly has a major engine defect that could cause the vehicle to breakdown at any time with a failed engine. How does an engine fail without the engine light ever coming on? The vehicle has been properly maintained with timely oil changes and fluid checks.
- Fanwood, NJ, USA
Engine failed without warning on a trip to urgent care with our daughter. Was running normally, then started losing some acceleration and knocking loudly. Further inspection showed almost no oil in car, with no evidence of a leak. Car is parked in same spot on driveway daily and there isn-??t even a drop of leaked oil. Both the loss of power on the freeway and failure with no warning during an emergency left us and others at risk. Our son, a certified mechanic, has confirmed a thrown rod bearing. It failed October 6, Kia can-??t even look at it until the 26th. I-??m currently incurring the cost of a rental vehicle in addition to the cost of replacing the engine. No warning lights were illuminated before the failure, and none are illuminated after the failure.
- Thornton, CO, USA
We were driving with FIVE kids and my 2016 Sedona lost power while driving & wouldn't accelerate over 30mph. Drove home couldn't go over 30 mph even with the pedal to the floor. Got home, checked oil and it was bone dry. Check engine light NEVER came on and the oil light NEVER came on. The check engine light only came on AFTER it lost power and went into limp mode. Oil was not leaking as I park on a concrete driveway and would have seen any leaks immediately. $2,000 later at the mechanic (they replaced value covers and sensors) and the check engine light still wouldn't go off and the car continued to lose power after driving for about 20-30 minutes. I can turn the car off, wait a few minutes, turn it back on and it runs FINE for a while (20 mins. max). Also, the car runs absolutely fine until it loses power. No noises, no knocking, nothing to indicate there is an engine issue. The mechanic who couldn't fix it recommended; I take it to the dealer for a complete diagnostic workup. After a week at the Kia dealer with little to no feedback / info as to what was going on, I was finally given an estimate for $7,800 worth of repairs and told that still may not fix the issue as there could be internal engine failure because it ran out of oil. After a cursory google search, this appears to be a common problem with the Kia 3.3 GDI engines like mine. There were recalls and Kia extended the engine warranties on various other models with the same engines due to the exact same issue, but they have not extended the same benefits to Kia Sedona owners. There was even a class action lawsuit regarding this issue but again, not with the Sedona. My concern is this is a MAJOR safety issue. FIVE kids in the car on a normally busy highway (it was early so there weren't many people on the road). Had it been as busy as it normally is, we would have been rear-ended which could lead to MUCH worse on a busy highway. Please investigate this before someone is seriously hurt or killed.
- Marlton, NJ, USA
The vehicle started making a rattling noise, but there were no lights on the dash at all!. My husband checked the oil and there was no oil. (It wasn't even due for an oil change yet.) Even after adding 5 quarts of oil, the engine threw a rod through the oil pan while it was being driven down the road. Then the engine caught on fire. Thankfully, my husband was able to get the car to the side of the road without causing an accident or getting burned. There were chunks of metal and oil sprayed all over the road. We had to have it towed and upon an independent mechanic's inspection, found out that the engine was completely destroyed and would have to be replaced and would probably cost about $8,500 (not including the added cost of a rental vehicle while the engine is replaced.) We had just had the oil leak recall completed in May and the local Kia dealership said everything was fine. My husband attempted to call Kia directly as well as the local Kia dealership, but no resolution has been reached.
- Roanoke, IN, USA
A few weeks ago, we were taking FIVE kids to the beach (a one-hour drive) when after about 25 minutes, the van (2016 Kia Sedona SXL with a 3.3L V6 GDI engine) would not accelerate above 35MPH. We drove it home in "limp mode" on the shoulder and going 30MPH. I took it to my regular mechanic who informed me the engine oil was completely dry and the recommended $1900 in repairs to replace damaged valve covers and sensors. After picking it up, the check engine light came on only a few miles from the mechanic. I took it back and they recommended taking it to Kia for a complete diagnostic workup. After a week at the dealership, they gave me an estimated repair bill of just under $8,000 and stated after all that work then engine could possibly still not work due to total engine failure because it ran out of oil. I get the oil changed on a regular basis. absolutely NO warning lights came on prior to the vehicle failing to accelerate onto a busy highway. We had five kids in the car - two of which were friends of my kids. We were lucky that no one was zooming by when we tried to merge onto the highway because the engine completely lost power. It could have been a very dangerous situation. Now, after reading literally HUNDREDS of posts and complaints stating the EXACT same issue, I'm wondering why Kia has not recalled this particular model of car. They have, however, recalled the exact same engine in different models. I'm genuinely confused as to why SO many people are having the EXACT same issue and Kia is refusing to acknowledge it's an issue on their end that they should be fixing. I have a 2016 van which is otherwise in perfect condition sitting at my house needing a completely new engine. I should not be needing the engine replaced after only 108,000 miles - of which it has been regularly services. It's absolutely infuriating. The dealership basically threw up their hands and said they couldn't do anything except replace the engine for $8,500!!!!
- Marlton, NJ, USA
I was driving on 2 two lane highway and starting to go up an incline. All of a sudden the vehicle started making a low rumble type sound and even though my foot was on the accelerator, the vehicle would not continue to drive. Everything basically stopped working. I was able to pull over onto the shoulder and put the vehicle in park. The engine light started blinking and then several lights started coming on. I turned the vehicle off for a few minutes and the restarted. Same thing happened. The engine light came on and the vehicle would not go after I put it in drive. Same rumble as well. I was able to get it towed to a trusted independent mechanic. After checking out the vehicle, he found there was no oil. What? We get it serviced on a regular basis and wasn't due for an oil change. There was NO WARNING LIGHT to alert me that the oil was gone. This ruined our engine. Our mechanic stated Motor is bad, no compression on 2 4 6 bank of engine. There was only 126, xxx miles on this vehicle. I am beyond upset as the vehicle is still in great condition and will now have to spend almost $5,000 on a replacement engine with 100,000 plus $1,000 in labor. This is unacceptable!!!!!
- Mountain View, AR, USA
Engine caught fire while traveling on the highway. It was towed to the dealer. Dealer told us that engine failure and fire had been caused by oil leak, which occurred even with us bringing the car in for routine maintenance regularly and as recommended by Kia. Yes, our safety was put at risk as our engine failed and caught fire while we were traveling at high speed on a highway. There was no warning prior to this happening, and I had just brought the car into the dealer for routine maintenance within two weeks prior to the fire. With that said, I had been bringing the car to the dealer for routine maintenance regularly and bringing to their attention that the "low oil" warning light would appear intermittently, which it should not have done as I WAS bringing the car in for regular maintenance and oil changes. They did not seem to feel that that was an issue and would replenish the oil and send us on our way.
- Chapel Hill, NC, USA
While driving down the road, the car started sputtering and smoking. There were no warning lights on the dash, or irregular readings. My son pulled over and flames were coming from underneath the vehicle. Upon immediate inspection, there was an oil trail in the road behind the vehicle and pieces of the rod and oil pan. They said it looked like the engine threw a rod, damaging the oil pan, and causing the fire. We are still awaiting an independent inspection and solution from Kia, but they-??re taking their time. Thankfully my son was able to exit the vehicle quickly and safely.
- Lemoore, CA, USA
My car was at a stop sign. Upon accelerating after the stop, the engine stopped working without any warning. There were no warning indicators that there was a problem prior to the car ceasing to work. Itook the car to my usual mechanic and he indicated that the engine would need to be replaced. In his assessment, at only 68,800 miles, the engine should not have been an issue. The car has been at a local dealership for a week now, and I am waiting to hear their assessment of this situation. The car stopped directly in the middle of an intersection, and prior to this we were on the a highway. This would have been a much more significant issue had it stopped in the middle of the highway. Additionally as there were no warning lights prior to the issue, a driver would have no indication that there is a problem.
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
Our Kia Sedona had the cooling fan harness negative Cable melt and caused making our engine overheat. When we took our vehicle to get serviced they told us that the cooling fan harness melted and then it's a common problem with kias. They fixed the pigtail cooling fan harness but are cooling fan does not turn on anymore and they said that it is now an electrical issue and this was from a Kia dealership in Dodge City Kansas. They recently did a recall on sliding doors because they weren't shutting all the way and it worked for exactly one day after the recall and now it's back to not shutting and making a really loud noise when it attempts to shut. When this happens we can't lock our doors because the doors won't lock when doors open and we have to constantly shut off our interior lights so that they don't stay on because the doors don't shut. We've notified the Kia dealership that have done our recall on it and told them that it didn't fix it but they refuse to make it right. We only have 106,000 MI I've got a new cooling fan resistor and put it in and a new pigtail harness and put it in but the cooling fan is still not turning on the low speed and the air conditioner doesn't work either. Our engine constantly smells very hot but it doesn't indicate that it's overheating. We haven't had this vehicle for very long and because of all the problems we've had with it are considering on getting another vehicle and we're considering a carnival but are afraid to because of the way Kia handles their issues.
- Dodge City, KS, USA
The engine failed. It burned through all of the oil, didn't give any warnings or light and just died.
- Apopka, FL, USA
While driving engine started making a rattling noise and then died. Checked and there was no oil. No warning lights came on at all. No oil light, no check engine light; nothing. Van only has 96,000 miles. Service is performed regularly on van. Was 2 hours away from home and had to have vehicle towed. After researching I found that the 3.3 liter engines on some Kias are failing due to oil starvation caused by the oil light sensor not coming on. Kia has addressed this issue in some of their other vehicles but have yet to add the Sedonas to the engine recall. Now I-??m stuck with a vehicle that more than likely needs a new engine and a company that will not take responsibility for their failure to include the Sedonas in the engine recall.
- Arab, AL, USA
The engine oil leaking for any anywhere, first look like transmission fluid leaking, but clear it didn't find any leaking, and check engine oil tank didn't find any leaking, find from recall have same problem but not my Vin number, and in my car didn't show warning light.
- Oviedo, FL, USA
- Seward, PA, USA