I have a used 2019 Niro PHEV. I started getting a loud jerk when starting from a full stop. At first it started happened in EV mode only but I've had it happen in Hybrid mode a couple of times ( not sure if the engine is actually working or just on for Heating). The sound and jerk can best be described as what happens when you drive a stick shift and you pull the clutch too quickly in first gear without any gas and the car jerks forward. It also feels like I've been rear ended. The car feels unsafe the drive. There were no warning lights. Dealer hasn't reproduced it yet. I just brought it in. Please see these forum posts about this issue. Many others are experiencing this: https://www.kianiroforum.com/threads/brand-new-2019-phev-loud-jerking-noise-when-starting-from-full-stop.8740/ https://www.kia-forums.com/threads/occasional-hard-loud-shift-from-start-on-new-niro-phev.342780/

- Manassas, VA, USA

There is a pause upon acceleration from a stop (unresponsive). Then the vehicle will lunge forward and make a loud noise. For both driver and passengers, it can be quite startling and feels as though the car has been hit from behind. This started happening in the fall of 2021, when the car was about two years old with about 18,000 miles. It has happened about a dozen times in the six months since first noticed. It seems that this may be a software issue related to the hybrid system - a lag in triggering which motor to use for acceleration.

- Henderson, KY, USA

Multiple problems with transmission and electrical. Electrical: 1) While traveling 80mph in the far left lane of the highway, I had to make a hard break when someone changed lanes and moved into my path. When I did that, the car turned off completely. (The key fob was still secured in my cup holder.) I could no longer accelerate and it was slowing down quickly. There was no way for me to turn the car back on using the start button. I could do nothing but try to cross 6 lanes of oncoming traffic to get to the roadside in order to stop, which was extremely dangerous on a busy highway. I was very luck I didn't get slammed from behind and end up in a horrible accident. Once I got to the roadside, I stopped the car and was able to re-start it. Kia mechanics said a diagnostic turned up nothing, and they could not "duplicate" the problem. Of course, they can't guarantee it won't happen again. 2) Another time, I turned off the car after parking, grabbed my key and exited the vehicle. It started loudly beeping at me. It's the sound it make when the key fob is taken from the car while it's on, or you try to lock the car and leave when it's still on. I had to turn the car back on and then back off in order to resolve the issue. Transmission: Transmission was replaced at 19,000 miles because the gears were grinding when I was downshifting and it wasn't shifting from 3rd to 4th well. I'd put my foot on the gas and it just wouldn't go, and then it would finally kick in. I was also having issues with it when parking or coming to a stop. It would get to a point when the car was slowing down and should now coast slowly, and instead, it would come to a sudden stop, then it would jerk forward. When on any kind of an incline, it would stop, roll backward, then catch and roll forward. It seems to suddenly shift into neutral when I'm not in neutral and it should be moving forward. New transmission addressed grinding, but other issues remain. I also multiple issues accelerating now. On May 12, after driving the car to a nearby sto

- Atlanta, GA, USA

Since the beginning of April 2021, and just after the odometer turned over to 10K miles, my E-Niro has been experiencing a bizarre behavior that poses a potentially serious safety risk. This takes the form of total loss of acceleration power for a few seconds, usually after deaccelerating to a near stop (usually, but not always, when using the paddle on the left side of the steering wheel to regeneratively brake) then pressing the accelerator pedal, or when making a very tight turn (e.g., into a parking space). Power returns a few seconds after the pause, and I can continue. I have been driving this vehicle for almost 2 years, and there has been nothing similar happen prior to the start of this behavior at the beginning of April. The vehicle has been garaged and charged normally and no extreme weather conditions or other factors had been present before this was first noticed. Instances now seem to be increasing in frequency the past couple of weeks, however. On 2 or 3 occasions, the vehicle actually backed up a couple of feet (on level ground), which was frightening both for me and the auto behind me and could have resulted in an accident. On the other occasions, being momentarily unable to accelerate is also concerning (for instance when it dies halfway into a traffic circle or in an intersection when starting to make a turn). Although no warning lights were initially seen, I now get a "check electrical system" warning when this power loss happens, sometimes even when there has been no loss of power to the motor. The warning light disappears after the vehicle has been turned off and only reappears when another incident occurs. I have asked the dealership service department about this, with no firm response yet. I'm reporting to document this in the event others experience this problem.

- Bend, OR, USA

My brakes failed as I tried to stop for a traffic light on a city street. There was a car already stopped at the light, which I bumped into. As I was depressing the brake pedal, it 'gave', and the car continued to move forward; I was unable to stop. Luckily, I had already slowed considerably prior to the brakes failing, so no one was hurt and there was minimal damage. The other driver left the scene without exchanging information, and no police report was filed. The Kia service technician was unable to find anything wrong with the vehicle: No codes showed up regarding any problems; nothing was in the online history report; no leaks or damaged brake components were observed; test driving failed to replicate the problem. Although he said I could pick it up, so far I haven't ' I won't drive it if the brakes are not reliable! the accident could've happened on the highway at high speeds; someone could've been gravely hurt or killed... I found an article online that described a recall of Kia optimas for what sounds like the precise problem: The 'software for forward collision warning (fcw) may prevent the automatic emergency braking (aeb) system from engaging as expected when fcw senses a potential collision with a stationary vehicle.' NHTSA campaign number: 19V539. Article at www.consumerreports.org/car-recalls-defects/Kia-optima-recalled-because-automatic-braking-could-fail/ when I brought this article to the technician's attention, I was told they couldn't do anything about it unless a recall specific to the Niro was issued. I then called the Kia customer service number in the article I found, and was told they would initiate an investigation; so far I haven't heard back from them.

- Salem, OR, USA