Kia Soul Complaints
5,626 consumer complaints on file.
- #11584442April 22, 2024STEERING
No warning but the steering is shaking a going out on turns. It almost didn't turn properly in oncoming traffic with children in the car. Kia refused to fix the "star flexible coupling" from their recall: WTY013 or CHAO74Revision2 or the MDPS flex coupling replacement was not done by by Kia as the allowed owners get a free repair. We didn't get notice and now the Kia dealers refuse to fix this. Kia refuse to fix it or help. For the steering going out because the steering is shakey and is not stable, its unsafe, risky and my children are in the car. The repair notice was not received at the previous owner and we bought car and moved to FL. I want to complain that Kia will not honour its recall and fix this. I want to use Kia of Ft. Walton Beach, FL for the repair. Kia company has my case number [XXX] on [XXX]. 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
- #11584493April 22, 2024SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contacted stated the vehicle lost motive power and the vehicle does not start up for at least a week. The contact had a independent visited the contact home and the vehicle was diagnosed with a failure with camshaft sensor which was replaced. The vehicle started up, but the failure persisted the vehicle would not start up after a few days. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The dealer was not contacted for diagnosis or repairs. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but was unable to confirm when the part was to become available. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts not available
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11584541April 22, 2024POWER TRAIN
2018 KIA SOUL gas pedal stopped working while driving on interstate 695. On April 7, 2024 my car displayed the following warning message on the dash while I was driving on the beltway. “Transmission Temp high please stop safely”. The warning light went off, but I took my car to the Koons Kia service on April 9, 2024. A few days later I was informed by the dealer that the transmission needed to be replaced and that the engine had sludge. I was later informed that the clutch actuator also needed to be replaced. The Transmission was covered under warranty and Koons Kia allegedly did the repair. I picked my car up on April 17th. The very next day (April 18) the transmissions started making noise. I contacted the dealer on the 18th and reported the concern. They told me to bring the car back on Tuesday , April 23rd. At no time did anyone warn me of the potential safety issue. I do not know what the mechanics at Koons Kia did, but the car was worse and more dangerous after the repair. Unfortunately, on April 22,2024 while driving on interstate 695, my car started to lose power and suddenly slow down. Cars rushing by and my car would not accelerate when I applied the gas pedal. The warning message “ Transmission temp high stop safely “ appeared again. I pulled over on the shoulder until the car cooled off. This time there was a smell along with it. When the car cooled off, I slowly drove the rest of the way with my hazard lights on. I contacted Kia dealership, Kia roadside assistance, and Kia customer service. No one warned me of the extreme safety issue nor did they offer any assistance with getting me home or with getting car back to service department. My car is back at the dealership. But this is a major safety issue. The gas pedal stopped working without warning while I was on interstate 695 going well over 50mph. There were other cars zooming by. very dangerous. I could have been hurt or someone else could have been hurt.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11584607April 22, 2024UNKNOWN OR OTHER, VISIBILITY/WIPER
Safety at risk:yes Lack of visibility Problem has not been reproduced by dealer. Smells are only warning signs: Smell is like rubber but not very strong. WARNING SIGNS OF the PROBLEM: Turned on heat and EXTREMELY HOT HEAT CAME OUT OF VENTS; turned A/c and EXTREMELY HOT HEAT CAME OUT OF VENTS in both cases turned the vehicle off. After 5 minutes, i started to drive with A/c later there was still HOT heat coming out vent since i had URGENT appointment. After the appointment, over an hour, drove car and A/C worked fine. : April 16th, Turned on defrost for front windows. Instead of defrost, windows fogged up completely and i was unable to see and pulled over to side of road. As i pulled over, BLACK SMOKE CAME OUT OF A/c vents and began to fill up the car with black smoke. There is a smell that happns right before the smoke comes out. April 17 took to Classic Kia. Unable to find the problem. Vehicle returned to me. :April 18 drove 4 miles. No problem. Drove 12 miles. The smells started and black smoke started coming through A/c vent and i drove home and parked. Called dealership told problem.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11584067April 19, 2024ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
Kia is refusing to repair a 2016 Soul subject to NHTSA recall No. 23V-218.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11584084April 19, 2024ENGINE
The recall for the rod in the motor is not being honored due to me being a second owner. When i called about the recall i was told by the manufacture that because i purchased the vehicle with an open recall and was not informed that it had an open recall.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583798April 18, 2024ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM:EMISSION CONTROL:CATALYTIC CONVERTOR
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the local dealer in 2022 for a Warranty upgrade on the catalytic converter. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired, but the failure occurred. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 91,283.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583478April 17, 2024SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583515April 17, 2024ENGINE
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 25 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle made an abnormal clicking sound. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with a catalytic converter failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 126,965.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583233April 16, 2024SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) 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. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583238April 16, 2024SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) 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. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583414April 16, 2024ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Vehicle entered limp mode on a dangerous rode in central Florida and would not accelerate over 20 mph. We had the vehicle towed 70 miles at the expense of $350 outside of coverage by our auto insurance. The dealership advised this was a failure of the catalytic converter which was just changed in Dec 2021 under a Kia recall campaign. They’re now saying it is not under warranty as they only cover 12 months 12,000 miles.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11582961April 15, 2024UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The HECU fuse issue (recall SC284) was announced in September 2023 - and there is still no remedy issued as of April 2024. This marks almost 7 months where my vehicle has been a potential fire hazard, risking life and property. The marked delay is unacceptable and unsafe.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11582994April 15, 2024ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
The engine is consuming motor oil in excess after conducting oil changes. If it goes unaddressed after oil changes, it causes the pins in the engine to not operate properly. This results in a check engine light requiring the owners to get another oil change prior to actually needing one. Kia motors is aware of this issue; however are only willing to replace the engine if it fails due to pins and not the excessive oil consumption if your mileage is over the 10 year/100,000 miles. Both issues are interrelated and the engine needs to be replaced regardless!
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583016April 15, 2024SEAT BELTS
Seat belt extenders are not made available at Kia Dealership.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583040April 15, 2024SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle shut off and was unoccupied, the engine caught on fire from the engine. The fire was extinguished by the local fire department and a claim number was provided. A police report was filed. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to repair was unavailable. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- Yes
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583097April 15, 2024ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
On April 11,2024, I attempted to drive my Soul EV out of the parking lot of my place of employment going less than one block only to have the power severely limited (from a speed of 40mph to 15mph on a busy road at rush hour). I was able to safely get myself to a parking lot and placed the car in park. I noticed both the triangle with the exclamation mark and EV in the center plus the turtle lights illuminated on the dashboard. I searched those lights and discovered there was an immediate warning about the EV battery and a failure within the battery plus a problem with the temperature of the battery cooling system. I turned the car off, placed it in park and attempted to drive again within the parking lot only to have the same scenario repeated. I was informed by the Kia Service Center that "Kia engineers are aware of this problem but there's no solutions. This is the THIRD time I have received a notice that the EV battery may malfunction or ignite and cause a fire. This car just had a battery recalled due to a malfunction as I had the car stop suddenly on a 3 lane highway. I waited months to get a replaced battery, then I got a recall notice but my battery had been replaced but I had to have some "wiring harness" repaired with the computer upgrade. Now suddenly the car stopped and showed a warning light about the temperature of the motor is too high. The service advisor acknowledged the car is unsafe to drive and has been unsafe.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583136April 15, 2024ENGINE
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V750000 (Engine). The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and after parking the vehicle, the contact detected an abnormally strong burning odor. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who inspected the engine compartment for fuel and engine oil leaks and performed an engine test according to the recall remedy. The contact was informed that the vehicle had passed inspection and no repairs, including the engine replacement, were necessary. Additionally, the contact was informed that the strong burning odor would subside on its own. The failure recurred. The dealer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11582843April 14, 2024ENGINE, SERVICE BRAKES
Engine burning oil..started knocking
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11582757April 13, 2024UNKNOWN OR OTHER
At a speed of 50+ the car wants to shake and sputter as if trying to die out. Oil, all fluids faithfully changed since purchased, along with rotatable tires.fuel pump good, many trips to local dealership but nothing completely resolved as informed. Aside air bag never checked or replaced. Desperately need assistance in resolution please.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0