10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 4 / 28
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 5 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 26,148 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.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
Fire from fuel pump engine failure catalytic converter issues from engine
- Jacksonville, FL, USA
My kia Sorento 2016 uses excessive amount of oil resulting in engine failure. At the moment my car need an engine replacement. I took my car to get a diagnostic at the auto shop, I was informed that my car engine was dying. I did some searching online, and I find out that Kia Sorento are known to have engine issues and unusual excessive consumption of oil.
- Frederick, MD, USA
My Kia Sorento 2016 use alot of oil, resulting in my car needing a new engine. The contact stated to cancel the complaint because the wrong vehicle was entered.
- Frederick, MD, USA
Replaced engine 6 months ago only to have the same problem again engine is locked won't start cut off while driving excessive oil consumption
- Central, SC, USA
My shifting lever acts all wonky. Feels lose. It acts as if it does not want to go into the gears I put it in, especially park. I have to wiggle the lever before it will lock. When I put it in reverse it takes a minute before the R comes up and then my back up camera won-??t come on because I feel it-??s not telling it that-??s it-??s in reverse. Yesterday I was driving the SUV and going down the road and all of a sudden it was like my SUV was put into to neutral going down the road, nothing touched the shifting lever but it was as if the car had no idea what gear it was in. This worries me as if someone was behind me I could have been rear ended. This is a real safety concern to me and my family. The SUV only has 60,000 miles on it. Are there any issues with this make and model? I would really hate to get into an accident.
- Turin, NY, USA
Car was in an accident; started on fire, car is totalled
- Vancouver, WA, USA
Engine stopped working.
- San Antonio, TX, USA
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving approximately 40-50 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to the residence and then to an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with Manufacturer Recall Number: PI1802B; however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 79,571.
- Arlington, TX, USA
My issues began when the vehicle was leaking oil, took it to dealer and was told I needed a valve cover gasket (?). After that repair the vehicle began to burn oil excessively. I noticed this after the check engine light came on previously. I took it to the dealer and was told I needed spark plugs. Plugs were replaced but the vehicle continued to burn oil. Check engine light came on. At approximately 7am as I traveled on a very busy highway so my Kia Sorento began to sputter before losing power.
- Ellenwood , GA, USA
The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at 70 MPH and accelerating uphill, the vehicle rapidly decelerated, and lost motive power before reaching the top of the hill. The contact was able to safely exit the freeway but was afterwards unable to reach RPM's above 2,000. The check engine warning light was illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a general engine failure. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer for a second opinion, which confirmed the engine failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 122,000.
- La Puente, CA, USA
was driving at 11mph and car would not Accelerate almost causing and accident issues with engine sparking flames fuel system problems, transmission issues when putting the vehicle into park. Engine problems check engine light keeps blinking on an off system says park vehicle do to diagnosed problems. suspension issues afraid to drive vehicle do to so many safety problems.
- Jacksonville, FL, USA
On Fathers Day, my 2016 Sorento had a flashing check engine light. I pulled it over and had it towed to the dealer I purchased it from. While they thought it was a knock sensor, they could not ensure that would fix the problem. I then had it towed to another mechanic who diagnosed it as a bad connecting rod in the motor.. It was at this time that they told me there was a recall for this type of engine, which is the 2.4 TDI. After contacting 4 dealerships, Kia of Lanham agreed to look at it but I must show proof of the last 10 oil changes. Fortunately, while I just purchased the truck in December 2022, the Carfax report detailed that the SUV had been serviced by a Kia dealership in VA. I have incurred 3 towing charges, 2 diagnostic fees plus a 2 week car rental until I could purchase another vehicle. Finally, it is well known by many mechanics that Kia-??s customer service is often poor and st times, quite arrogant. If my 7 year old, 114k mile Sorento is not repaired, I will NEVER buy another Kia or Hyundai product again.
- Camp Springs, MD, USA
I was accelerating as normal and as soon as i got up to speed my car started to decelerate without me pushing the break. I could then not accelerate at all. I was able to pull off to the shoulder/ median of the road and was thankfully able to avoid a crash. Once I was stopped I could not accelerate anymore. I turned off the engine and was not able to restart it. There was no check engine light warning or any warning for that matter. I had to get the car towed to a local car shop. They did an evaluation and told me the engine seized and it would be an estimate of $11,000 to replace the engine. I went to research and found out there has been a recall on the exact year, model and engine of my car and there was never and notice of this or that there has been other safety problems with Kia sorentos.
- Evergreen Park , IL, USA
Shift lock does not come out of park. Started September 2022. Excessive oil burning 2 quarts a month( every 500 miles) Started June 2022 Low oil light does not turn on ever Electrical issues. Locks turn on and of every time I open door. Check engine light is always on. Since I bought the car. Kia tried fixing but it didn't help. Now have engine failure.
- Waynesville, MO, USA
The oil pressure switch failed in our 2006 Kia Sorento with 46,681 miles. We purchased this car new from same Kia dealer that services it. The oil leaking from the pressure switch got onto the exhaust manifold, and lots oil had traveled through wiring harnesses and got inside electrical connectors including half filling inside the computer unit ECM/ECU? main pin wiring connection. After searching online I found that many other people have reported the same oil leaking problem with the oil pressure switch in various Kia vehicles, though the Kia dealership told me there is no recall for it. This was surprising to me especially when I noticed smoke coming off of manifold when I took it to the Kia service center, and when their repair service man sent me a video from Kia showing the amount of oil that leaked up the wires inside of harness into the electrical pin connections going to the car computer system. I do have a copy of this video. This seems very concerning to me and makes me worried.
- Pflugerville, TX, USA
Yesterday while driving the engine began to shake and seize, it would not accelerate above 40 mph. I was seconds from entering the hwy but pulled into quick trip where it died and had to be towed at own expense. Oil pressure sensor had been flashing on periodically when breaks were applied between regular oil changes. Vehicle was consuming 3-4 qts of oil between oil changes, which is not normal. There were no signs of any oil leaks, oil light did not remain illuminated to suggest low oil levels, nor a check engine light warning. Vehicle has less than 100,000 miles. When contacting KIA was told I would need a warranty to fix. This is not a warranty issue, this is a KNOWN issue and class action lawsuit related to these symptoms. I was seconds from a possible fatal accident on the highway and I'm sure a buy back or vehicle exchange would be better than a lawsuit involving corporate negligence resulting in a death.
- Grain Valley, MO, USA
automatic transmission shift lever assembly components, fuel pipe exhaust causing fumes to come through the vent area causing fire and smoke. accelerator assembly issues when driving
- Jacksonville , FL, USA
I have been calling Kia corporate for a year now. They will put me on hold or transfer me until they think I give so they disconnect me! I finally got a supervisor on the phone to help me and he was very rude. I told him that -??I knew Kia did not want to have a situation where one of their vehicles caught on fire with children in it-?? and his answer was -??ma-??am that happens all the time-??. They have not fixed the seven recalls that are on my 2016 Kia Sorrento. Not one out of seven. I asked for whatever was fair, I buy back, I trade, whatever was fair for both parties, and asked to speak to that gentleman-??s [XXX] Supervisor so she could listen to that call. When I got a callback, she did apologize or say anything about the car and then she had [XXX] call me back again so that he can tell me that in the state of North Carolina, there was nothing they could do for me because he cannot do a buyback, and he cannot do a trade-in. I know that is incorrect. I have friends and family that work at Car Dealerships and one place is Chrysler Dodge. We got this car because we had a two year old and I had done research for six months and wanted it so bad and they only had it for two days. They never even had time to check it out but they still sold it to us. I still got some of the man [XXX] information that was the previous owner. If they looked it over so well, why did I have to drive back there twice to get head rests" Why when I brought all this information up to them" Did they throw me straight to Kia corporate. We bought this vehicle at Bob King Kia in Winston, Salem North Carolina. I don-??t expect a telluride from 2023 to pull up with a bow on it. I do expect to be treated like a fair consumer, so I have something to say to drive my child in. It got to the point where my best friend let us buy her minivan. Literally having to get out to check if there-??s fumes smoke my door handle broke there was a recall, there-??s a recall on the hatchback it doesn-??t open anymore etc INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
- Greensboro , NC, USA
Vehicle is consuming an excessive amount of oil, I see this is a common issue with this make and model, even a TSB regarding this issue. Yet, dealership states it is normal. I-??m sorry but I have never owned a vehicle where it is normal to have to add 4 qts of oil between oil changes. This is a serious concern for engine wear and tear. I would like to escalate this issue to seek resolution. Another issue I see is both rear window regulators failed at same time. This I believe is due to poor design and low quality parts being used. Plastic pieces are used to hold metal wire in place to raise and lower windows. This plastic easily breaks over time causing windows to fall down suddenly and potentially shatter sending glass and debris in rear passengers. Headlight switch is defective causing headlights to turn off randomly while driving and then not being able to turn back on immediately. Huge safety concern at night.
- San Tan Valley, AZ, USA
- Palm Beach Gardens, FL, USA