10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 2 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 1 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 19,000 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.
The contact owns a 2002 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that whenever he drove, the check engine light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop where the thermostat was replaced. The failure continued. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the radiator was replaced. However, the failure continued. Also, while traveling approximately 35 mph, the contact noticed that the power steering malfunctioned. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the fan belt was replaced. The failure mileage was approximately 68,000 and the current mileage was approximately 78,000.
- Saint Pete, FL, USA
While driving on a straight stretch of highway my daughter felt her car jerk to the right. She attempted to turn into the jerk and was not able to control anything on the car. It began to rock despite her efforts and then immediately rolled over multiple times. The front end of her Kia Sportage sustained considerable damage, the airbags did not deploy and she suffered almost complete loss of use of her left arm. She is still undergoing treatment and therapy for the injury and also will probably have to have further surgery. There were witnesses behind her that reported that the car was going straight, did not run off the road just began to flip. She did not lose conscience, did not look away from the road. Also the driving conditions were normal and she was going 5 miles under the speed limit. We requested that the insurance company investigate but they stated they do not do investigations. We really believe that there was a steering malfunction as well as failure on the airbags.
- Oxford, AL, USA
The steering box in my 2002 Kia Sportage suddenly become inoperable and would not permit the car to be steered to the right. It happened while I was driving and I nearly had an accident before I could get it stopped.
- Jacksonville, FL, USA
Steering has excessive play. Kia representatives state " all Sportages are like that and they will not fix."
- Brandon, FL, USA
- Mableton, GA, USA