10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 7
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
10,170 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.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2016 Kia Sorento:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #55

Apr 212022

Sorento

  • miles
My kia started making knocking noise. NO warning light came on while driving car home check engine light came on and car just quit. Engine is seized up for no reason.checked recalls but says none. But there was a major recall on these engines but I just bought this car from dealer 3 years ago. And, when I give it gas it don't always accelerate..I can have gas pedal to floor and go nowhere then all the sudden it will finally lunge forward. I have almost been hit a few times in my car. There has to be something wrong

- Wintersville, OH, USA

problem #54

Apr 192022

Sorento

  • miles
During a mpi, valve cover gasket was brought to my attention as needed. I was told that I had a very small leak. During scheduled service maintenance, service advisor requested spark plugs and fuel assembly part to be done to since getting gasket cover replaced. I was told that I could wait due to it being a minor leak and it wouldn't cause any problems yet after discussing concern of oil leak and an upcoming road trip that I'd rather be safe than sorry. Previously had knock sensor replaced(recall item). Since having the gasket cover, plugs, fuel assembly, and topping off oil, I have noticed a white smoke today( near oil dip stick and oil cap), oil consuption still burning fast (very light travel since repair) and louder idling noise. There has never been a low oil light coming on or any other lights since I've had the knock sensor(check engine light near the end of last year) recall part fixed. I don't want to be stranded nor lose an engine with only 123k plus miles. I'm afraid that this issue may be related to all the other kia engine complaints and cause more unseen damage. I do have pics on my phone and videos. My vehicle is still being paid on via a very high interest rate and is my only source of transportation. I also have my receipts for oil changes not documented under carfax....car fax is not correct with the vehicle maintenance information. The shop that did the repairs isn't the same shop that pointed out the valve gasket cover but the are part of the same car shop..different locations

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #53

Apr 152022

Sorento

  • miles
After 30 minutes parking in driveway rear underneath rear hatch erupted in flames. Flames engulfed entire rear of vehicle. Only outside no damage from fire inside vehicle. Started in trailer hitch rear area. Hitch was installed by Kia dealership when we purchased vehicle. Hitch was never used.

- Melrose, MA, USA

problem #52

Apr 012022

Sorento

  • miles
Problems with parking lock, no release. Possible body control module.

- Mayaguez, PR, USA

problem #51

Mar 292022

Sorento

  • miles
I was driving on Route 78 (an interstate highway) when I heard a loud "POP" and suddenly my sunroof's glass was raining down on me. The front window of my sunroof totally shattered leaving a huge hole in the roof. Luckily, I did not lose control of the vehicle as I tried to figure out what happened to the sunroof. I recently had to have the car towed and I did not want to wait for another tow truck so I drove home with the huge hole in the roof. Upon my arrival home, my husband met me with the shop vac and he cleaned up the glass. His notes about the situation - there were no scratches or dents on any part of the car, there was no foreign object in the car that may have fallen through the roof, and he thought that the amount of glass he vacuumed out was not all of the glass missing from the roof. He believed that a lot of the glass must have burst out of the window and onto the highway. The next day when I drove home (in another car as mine was unable to be used for several days), I looked to see if I could see an unusual object on the side of the road that could have perfectly missed my windshield but hit my sunroof. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the road. FYI - The day's weather was fair, in the high 50-s to low 60-s. It was a cloudy but dry day. I posted my harrowing experience on Facebook, and a friend told me about the NHTSA.gov website. Upon searching, I found that several other 2016 Kia Sorentos had exploding sunroof issues. I reported the issue to my insurance company as I wanted to know how much my deductible was. Unfortunately, the cost is coming out of my pocket. I have since had the window fixed. I did not file a police report as I honestly believed that somehow something got kicked up off the road and onto my roof. I do not believe that to be the case anymore. I did call my local Kia dealer and he was shocked to hear what happened. He did not say he had any experiences like this.

- Plainfield, NJ, USA

problem #50

Apr 042022

Sorento

  • miles
my vehicle is exhibiting symptoms of a defective gas pedal as described in kia recall SC115 for the 2016 kia sorento. however my vehicle is not part of the recall group. i took my car to the dealer to request this recall (SC115) be done on my vehicle but they would not make an exception. my vehicle is unsafe to drive because the accelerator pedal will randomly stop working causing the vehicle to go into "forced idle" mode for several minutes while driving on the road. this is dangerous because the car just idles and will not accelerate. kia dealer has inspected the vehicle but will not assist me with this recall issue.

- Hudson, FL, USA

problem #49

Sep 012021

Sorento

  • miles
Paint chipping in large areas occurring rapidly over the course of 6-7 months with no external damage or accidents to cause this.

- Glen St. Mary, FL, USA

problem #48

Jan 252022

Sorento

  • miles
in September 2021 between regular oil changes, lost most of oil and check engine light on. After using many quarts of oil, service center replaced the valve cover gaskets needed. Misfiring of engine traced to cylinder damage due to loss of oil. Evaluation and diagnosis by local independent service center, recommended replacing engine.

- Glen Allen, VA, USA

problem #47

Oct 082021

Sorento

  • miles
Car does not want to go when push gas pedal. It jumps around and the engine light is

- Iowa, LA, USA

problem #46

Oct 062021

Sorento

  • miles
Rear hatch locked and would not open from outside of vehicle. Released hatch with emergency release from inside of car per manual page 4-27. Hatch could then be manually opened and traveled up and down full range on automated open from exterior switch, key and driver's switch. However the hatch will not latch and opens when the vehicle is in motion.

- Woodbury, MN, USA

problem #45

Jan 192018

Sorento

  • miles
When I am driving at night the dashboard, media system/radio, and headlight go out randomly. It is really scary at night because I cannot see where I am driving. My kids are in the car with me and this has been happening for the past 3 years. If I take it to the dealership they cannot find the issue or refuse to even look. They said it is out of warranty and too bad. Why build vehicles so dangerous?

- Montgomery, AL, USA

problem #44

May 222021

Sorento

  • miles
I was driving, when my car started making an unfamiliar sound. I have never heard of it before because I have never had problems with my car so I decided to pull over on the side of the road. Before I was able to do so, another driver rolled down her window and yelled, -??you know your car is on fire!-?? Realizing my safety was at risk, I immediately merged to the right side of the road and noticed flames igniting from under the hood. I put the car in park and jumped out of the car and called 911. Within minutes, the Whitley County Sheriff-??s and Fire Department arrived. I am unsure the specifics on what caused the fire. Luckily enough, no other vehicles were involved. My car was inspected by Geico Insurance Fire Adjuster and his lack of communication with Kia Motors of america, they were unable to inspect the car. According to Kia Settlement, I am unable to receive money but I do not understand because this was a situation that I had no control of and I am at a loss of money because I was not been able to get all of my personal belongings recovered and had to put an additional down payment on another car.

- Fort Wayne, IN, USA

problem #43

Jun 012021

Sorento

  • miles
Excessive heat has caused the trunk latch to fail. It suddenly stopped latching, which creates an obvious safety issue as the car cannot be driven safely with a trunk that flops open every time you accelerate.

- Boulder, CO, USA

problem #42

Aug 062021

Sorento

  • miles
I have always had my car serviced regularly for oil changes. starting in July 2021 my mechanic told me that I was EXTREMELY -??dangerously-?? low in oil, without low oil warning ever turning on. Researched and saw this is a common problem leading to engine failure/ needing replacement. Called local Kia dealership about the issue was told to come in for an oil consumption test, left today and was told oil consumption is not covered in the extended coverage for my engine. I was basically told in order for the repairs to be covered my engine would have to blow up while driving. So every day I-??m putting my self and others at risk while driving for my engine to fail at any given time. After seeing other complaints on this site of very similar problems, why has there not been a recall on this engine" It is obviously a very well known problem!! Why am I like a sitting duck every time I drive praying my engine doesn-??t blow" Kia dealership told me they have a $500 fix that -??might-?? work but with no guarantee and no refund will be given if it doesn-??t work.

- Newnan, GA, USA

problem #41

Jul 302021

Sorento

  • miles
My Kia recently stopped and cut off on me and my engine started shaking and making a knocking noise I-??m up to date with all my oil changes and I had just got one when I checked the oil it was barely any and I didn-??t have any check engine light on I had my car towed to the Kia dealership to see what-??s wrong I only had the car since 2019 February and it-??s never gave me any problems til now the dealership claims they can-??t help because the recall was from 2018 I didn-??t have the car yet and I didn-??t receive anything in the mail my engine is basically not good

- San Pablo , CA, USA

problem #40

Jun 072021

Sorento

  • miles
Paint is rapidly peeling

- Bentonville , AR, USA

problem #39

Mar 172021

Sorento

  • miles
My 2016 Kia Sorento is pearl white and the paint is chipping. All over the engine hood and roof of my car. Paint bubbles, cracks and peels off. It-??s getting worse rapidly.

- Orlando , FL, USA

problem #38

May 242021

Sorento

  • miles
NOT SURE !!! We were on the Interstate and all of sudden smoke starting coming out of rear end of our vehicle.Our Car started sounding slow and not sounding good, It was me and my husband in the Car. My husband was driving, I started panicking and told my husband about the smoke coming out of the back of our vehicle. Suddenly we saw "Good People "who were on the Interstate right behind our vehicle. They immediately drove passing our car and shouting loud "Get out, Your Car is on Fire". They stopped ahead of us and started calling 911. We both jumped out in a shock. God was with us on this day!!!

- Nashville, TN, USA

problem #37

Jul 132021

Sorento

  • miles
The Pearl White paint is chipping off the hood. It looks horrible and needs to be fixed ASAP! The sunroof, back latch and BSD have all been -??fixed-?? by Master Mechanics but they are still not working correctly. The sunroof is slow closing and won-??t close all the way. The back latch won-??t open most of time without you getting it started. It also makes a horrible noise when it closes. The BSD doesn-??t work at all.

- Starkville , MS, USA

problem #36

Jun 082021

Sorento

  • miles
Vehicle displayed intermittent overheating on temp gauge. Fans would run for extended period on shutdown. White smoke from exhaust on first start up in the morning. No check engine light. Had vehicle towed to dealership. Failed hydrocarbon test, meaning seal between combustion and coolant compromised. Many complaints online regarding stripped threads in engine block causing bolts to loosen and and seal to fail. Kia is aware of issue and fixes or replaces engine for original owners. Company is knowingly defrauding the public by not issuing service bulletin or recall to original owners to have problem corrected before subsequent ownership. Subsequent owners are left with a $7000 liability on the purchase of a used $15,000-25,000 car, along with an uneasy feeling the same thing may happen to the replacement engine. I am starting a class action law suit in Indiana.

- Franklin, IN, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »