Kia Sorento Complaints (2016)

1,262 consumer complaints on file.

#11508172February 20, 2023
ENGINE
Engine lost power over night. No warning lights or other signs prior to it happening prior. One day it was running, the next it wasn't. The starter, battery and all oil etc was changed. After everything has been changed out, the car starts but is not in running condition. A continuous knocking in the engine is heard. Had it professionally diagnosed and was told the engine is bad. There is only 69k miles and no problems prior whatsoever! I am the 2nd owner and am upset that this has happened.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11508033February 19, 2023
ENGINE
2016 Kia Sorento LX which was regularly serviced and well taken care of completely shut off while I was commuting to school on a notoriously dangerous stretch of road. I was in disbelief when the mechanic diagnosed our vehicle as a complete engine failure with 122,000 miles. I thought things couldn’t be any worse until I had the trauma of interacting with Kia “customer service” and I use that term very lightly. I had never owned a Kia before and I naively thought this well known manufacturer would back their product. HA. Instead, I was insensitively told I was “out of luck” and worse yet incriminated to an extent when I didn’t have oil change receipts from the past going on 4 years of financing the vehicle during a hysterical phone ordeal (on hold for 45 minutes- I was in the shower when he finally picked up, didn’t rinse my hyaluronic acid exfoliator off and burned my face). I explained to him that the mechanic described the issue as “the bolts are walking off of the engine block, it’s a known KIA issue” - to which he ironically vehemently denied any knowledge of. So not only was I lied to but patronized days before Christmas. I tearfully pleaded with him to help me in some way because this is my only vehicle and I’m counting on it to commute to school everyday, I graduate in the Spring. Kia did not care. Where is my sorento now? The garage. We had GAP coverage so they required the engine be completely tore apart and sent out - our mechanic stated the bolts were so badly warped and wore a machinist would be unable to work with them and fire was clearly on the horizon based on the dangerous conditions. FIRE. I have a 14, 5, 4 and 3 year old who are almost always with me. My children could have been killed. So worse than this inconvenience is the blatant lack of regard for human life. To add insult to injury I guess insurance companies are tired of taking the brunt of Kia’s incompetent craftsmanship so they are only covering half of the cost, I must pay $5,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507785February 17, 2023
POWER TRAIN
Would not shift out of park Dealership repair cost $1000 - told “not part of transmission so not under the warranty “ - now reading online and on recall site lever and linkage column shift issue but now dealership says “not the same” but reading lots of Kia owners reporting same problem? Should be a recall!!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507831February 17, 2023
ENGINE
Traveling from Cheyenne, WY to Houston, TX my SUV overheated without warning and bubbling coolant sprayed everywhere. I was 200 miles south of Pueblo, CO in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico. I then had my SUV towed to the Kia dealership in Pueblo, CO and was informed I needed a total engine replacement. I decided to have my car towed to the Kia dealership here in Cheyenne, WY. I was told 2 bolts were stripped which caused engine failure and overheating "Kia used a bolt thread that fails to grip the block with enough force and overheating is a common scenario. This is a known Kia manufacture defect". I have always maintained my SUV and had regular service performed because I never wanted to be stranded on the side of the road. I am requesting KIA step up and help cover some or all of these expenses due to it being a known manufacture defect. I have not heard from Kia since my case was opened six weeks ago. The Kia dealership here in Cheyenne, WY indicated there have been over 20 cars at their service department alone with this issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507868February 17, 2023
ENGINE
My wife was driving the vehicle and the engine locked up because it had burned through all the oil in the vehicle. There was no warning lights to let us know it had low oil. The vehicle is available for inspection. My son was also in the car as well. I had the vehicle towed to my local machanical shop. The owner of the shop was the person that notified me of the engine default.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507395February 15, 2023
ENGINE
I was driving down the interstate going 80mph when all of the sudden the vehicle lost power. I had to dodge traffic and cross over into another lane to get to the side of the road I’m lucky I made it and nobody was hurt.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507485February 15, 2023
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
My headlights go completely out, pitch black, going over 50mph, several times now. I have turned them off the automatic setting as this has happened more than 5 times over the past year. Everything out front goes black including fog lamps, meeting cars, not meeting cars, lights, no lights on the roadway, no rhyme or reason. No warning lights, no sensors covered. My children have been in the car everytime but once. Nobody knows what's going on with it as it happens intermittently and no codes appear.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11506372February 9, 2023
ENGINE
Smelled something burning. Pulled over and noticed smoke coming from under hood. Called the fire department. It was fully engulfed by the time they got there. Pictures of it burning are available. The vehicle is a total loss. Police report taken today 2-9-2023. Insurance company being notified. No warning lamps. No check engine light. No inspections made yet.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11506203February 8, 2023
ENGINE
My engine needed to be replaced after they said it overheated and was beyond repair.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11506239February 8, 2023
TRAILER HITCHES
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V703000 (Trailer Hitches) several months ago; however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the part was not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue but could not confirm when parts would become available. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11506142February 7, 2023
ENGINE
We were driving home from a road trip in November 2022 - and the heater was failing, not working. There were no warning lights showing. There was a rattling-type sound when we got nearer to home and since there were still no warning lights coming on, we got the car home. Checked the coolant and oil levels - topped them off (not too low). The next morning, I was going to drive to work - started the car and it sounded rough. Took daughter's car to work. My husband took the car to shop near the house - they said they got air pocket out of coolant line and suspected head gasket was blown. Took it to KIA dealer and they confirmed head was blown and would need a new engine - $12,000. Never had any indication of overheating until just before we took it to the dealer - the temp gauge indicator would be in the middle then would rise to high and go right back down to middle. Did that a couple of times on ride to the dealer. It's now sitting in my garage while I figure out what to do with it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11505789February 6, 2023
SEAT BELTS
We bought a used 2016 Kia Sorrento. Upon driving, we realized that the seat belts were not tightening up on the driver's seat. We took the car into Kia in order to get the seat belt fixed. They told us it was the seat belt tentioner was bad and that the repair would not be covered under any kind of warranty. I called Kia directly to ask them to override what the dealer was telling me and cover the seat belt since it was a safety issue and the car was under 10 years old. They denied my claim.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11505582February 4, 2023
ENGINE
I have had my car less than a month as I’m driving my car starts to rattle loudly and loses power I go to a nearby auto zone and they run a test which says I have a recall on my engine
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11505469February 3, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
On 02/03/2023 and once before, I stepped on brake to come to a stop and car accelerated to the point that braking took more distance to come to a stop. I called the Kia dealer today and got an appointment which is scheduled for 02/09/2023 to have them inspect vehicle for problem. I read an article published 11/23/2021 by [XXX] on the MotorBiscuit website that states the problem is with an issue with the throttle contol system. This problem nearly caused my to crash into car in front of me and could have been catastrophic if I had been going at a higher rate of speed and had to stop quickly. resulting in loss of life or injuries to myself and others. My vehicle is available for inspection upon request. There were no warnings. The floor rug was not jammed under accelerator. The first time it happened was also when coming to a stop. At that time I wasn't sure why it happened. This time myself and my passenger both heard the engine revving while I was trying to brake. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11504884February 1, 2023
TRAILER HITCHES
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V703000 (Trailer Hitches) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. Additionally, the contact mentioned that a recall notice was received confirming the remedy was available and to contact a local dealer however, the dealer informed the contact that the part was not yet available. The manufacturer was notified of the issue and confirmed that parts were unavailable. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11504966February 1, 2023
ENGINE
With just a few payments left on my 2016 Kia Sorento I was traveling home from work when without any warning at all, my car, in the middle lane of a highway, dropped from about 65 miles an hour down to 30 mph. This almost caused a major accident involving many cars. I managed to get the car off the road and to the mechanic. I was told that there was very little oil left in the motor, which was hard to believe because I was only a month beyond my scheduled oil change. I was told by the mechanic that this engine is known to start burning oil at an excessive rate without warning. I was also told that the motor was no longer any good due to the damage that was caused. I was disappointed to find out there was no recall and I was left with a car that had very little value. Please recall these cars before someone gets hurt or worse.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11504675January 31, 2023
TRAILER HITCHES
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V703000 (Trailer Hitches) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11504412January 30, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, STRUCTURE
2016 KIA SORENTO. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO PAINT PEELING ON VEHICLE.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11503982January 27, 2023
ENGINE
The Engine failed due to bolts backing out of the engine and causing a leak into the exhaust system.This causes the head gasket to leak. This comes without warning of any kind. Kia is aware of this problem. There were not any warning lights on. It was diagnosed at an independent service center.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11503095January 23, 2023
ENGINE
Did oil change on vehicle about a week ago. A week later checked oil noticed it was a quart low and put more oil in. Next day heard a knocking sound come from engine compartment. Checked oil noticed no oil. No warning lights came on to show I had low oil. Put more oil in took to kia. Kia told me that engine rods are gone and engine is fried. Need new engine and its going to cost me $11,000. No lights or warning system was in place when I bought the car and no one informed me of any update or issue needed to prevent this. Car only has 67000 miles on it so I should still be covered under manufacturing warranty but they are blaming me for the no oil when no idiot lights came to tell me low oil. This is Kias fault.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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