Kia Carnival Complaints

515 consumer complaints on file.

#11679528August 9, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
UNKNOWN. While driving, an alert will pop up "Consider taking a break." It is very distracting and actually startles me to the point of almost having had an accident several times. It will pop up several times while driving at random intervals. I have tried to disable it, but cannot. I called the KIA hotline and they said for me to not drive the vehicle, but also, they would not purchase the vehicle back from me. They did not offer any other solutions beyond that. I have talked with the dealership and they do not have a solution. They did not mention this feature when purchasing. I would not have bought the vehicle if I had known about it ahead of time. I would like for the Kia company to allow users to disable this distracting feature.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11677758August 1, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Battery randomly dies.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11676838July 28, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY
After working out at my gym, my daughters and I were driving on a side street near at around 35MPH. With no warning, a large POP happened and our passenger sliding door window shattered. Thankfully, nothing but a scratch happened to my [XXX] that was in her car seat closest to the window that shattered. I called our local KIA dealership and my insurance agent and both mentioned that it could be because of the heat we are having in our area. This concerns me because the Carnival is a “MPV” aka family car and this happened without a chip or anything in the glass and terrified both of my girls. I have never heard of a window solely shattering bc of heat. 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
#11676353July 26, 2025
AIR BAGS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On or around [XXX] the rear occupant sensor warning light came on. We scheduled a service appointment with the dealership for 7/15/25 at 7:00 a.m.. We were informed later that morning that it was a defective module that could affect the air bags and it wasn’t safe to drive the car. It is 7/26/25 and we still wait on the part. Yesterday we were told by the service department that they didn’t know when the part would be available, it is back ordered due to the number of vehicles with the same issue. While our car waits at the dealership we got an email from Kia Connect giving us a 12 volt battery discharge warning. We don’t know if this is related or not but when looking online we found several people with that same problem as well. Our mechanic agreed that the 12 volt battery should not be discharging that fast due to just not being driven. The car sits at Russ Darrow Kia in Madison WI where parts and other information should be available. 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
#11675728July 23, 2025
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
This is the second time, while I was driving that the car would not want to pick up speed and shuddered. The engine light came on again. And stayed on this time. I brought it back to the Kia dealer. They ran a diagnostic. They first wanted me to pay the cost. It is under the warranty. Now I am waiting for the parts and was told to not drive my car until it gets repaired. No loaner was offered. They said to drive it home and they will contact me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11674907July 20, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY
The passenger sliding door pinch sensor did activate; but not before child’s hand was pinched in door and it almost drew blood. Door closes forcefully I have noticed compared to other minivan experiences I have with automatic doors. Quite a bit of force is needed to activate the sensor and cause the door to open back up. It needs to be more sensitive to avoid injury.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11674870July 20, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The floor behind the passenger side gets very hot and you cannot touch where the tracks for the seat are with your hand for risk of pain. This occurs for the middle passenger behind the front passenger and also the third row floor on the passenger side. Also the temperature in the cabin is substantially warmer due to this heat
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11674792July 19, 2025
ENGINE
While driving my 2022 Kia Carnival Prestige, the engine started knocking and the vehicle started sounding like it was going to turn off. There was no alert or light on until we got to the service center where the check engine light came on. I took to the nearest dealer with service center for Kia for inspection and repair which the dealer's service center indicated it was an engine failure at 62,203 miles. This failure was hundreds of miles away from my home. I had to return to my state on a rental vehicle. The vehicle remained at the service center for 2 months for engine replacement. Prior to this event, I had serviced the vehicle at my home dealer's service center since I bought it. I performed all maintenance and my home dealer never alerted to an engine trouble before this event. Once I retrieved my vehicle, the vehicle was fine for few weeks and at 66,427 miles the vehicle started having issues with a check engine light on again. I took to my home dealer's service center and after inspection they indicated it was a bad fuel injector. The vehicle became unreliable and unsafe for my regular commute. Once I received the vehicle with the new engine the performance and sound was very different than my old engine had been since I bought the car. I believe the original engine has been faulty since I bought the vehicle.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11674719July 19, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
A/C system on my 2024 Kia Carnival failed twice within weeks. First at 60,100 miles, repaired at dealership for $398. Then again shortly after, leaving vehicle undrivable in summer heat. Kia has done nothing despite having a case number (#25267950). This is a recurring failure that affects safety and comfort during high-temperature seasons. I believe this is a manufacturer defect and request a formal investigation.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11673997July 16, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Sometimes when I start the engine the sliding doors does a quick open and closes. Told the dealership about it and they couldn’t fix the problem. It’s annoying but I Didn’t really have an issue until my [XXX] old got hit on the head by the sliding door. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11673961July 16, 2025
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
The car doesn't start after overnight, or after a period of no usage for a certain time. Push button doesn't start the engine, it takes 25-30 attempts to get it started. It keeps happening almost every day.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11673327July 14, 2025
Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness
My child’s seat buckles are still not locking into place. I’ve contacted Nuna and their response was they needed 24-48 hours to find a solution as I’ve already don’t the seat recall solution. But they told me I can’t use this seat for my child. So I’m stuck without a car seat until they find some solution for me. I found this issue because my child was able to move the seat straps on his own, while I was driving down the highway.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11672647July 11, 2025
VISIBILITY/WIPER
My front windshield on my 2022 Kia Carnival has shattered in two places from a small hit. I have owned lots of cars and never had a windshield break in two places all the way across. There must be an issue or problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11671372July 5, 2025
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Vehicle vents gasoline fumes into the passenger cabin causing drowsiness, headaches, and impaired cognitive function as well as exposure to a carcinogen. Vehicle has significantly high levels of CO2 inside the cabin at all times (2000-4000ppm) as well as TVOC and HCHO being higher than OSHA allows. Engine temperature gauge does not function properly and sliding doors have closed on myself and my children leaving bruises. If car were to be in an accident it would likely explode. Critical levels of CO2 have caused me to fall asleep while driving on several occasions including on the highway. I have brought car to Kia dealership in Tucson, AZ on 4 occasions, is currently back again for gas smell and high levels of CO2, with no resolution. Dealer manager and service team did confirm gas fumes in cabin and are currently using my CO2 monitor to test for CO2 levels. Vehicle component hasn't been inspected by police, insurance rep., or others. There are no warning lights of any kind on any instance of these occurrences. Images will not upload- email or call.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11670806July 2, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Was driving through a roundabout, at slow speed, and heard a very loud pop, then I felt something poking me on my right arm and it was glass. Looked up and my sunroof was shattered. Nothing above me, nothing falling out of the sky, but totally shattered.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11669584June 26, 2025
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I was turning onto a main thoroughfare fare, and the van was slow to accelerate, Engine light briefly blinked, then went off, and then when I was on the interstate I had to pull over the van was running rough. Once I went back on the road, the steering wheel was shuddering and finally the engine smoothed out. This has happened more two other times to me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11669436June 26, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Purchased a 2024 Kia Carnival on Monday, June 2 from a dealership. On Friday, June 6, the battery was dead and I had to have it jumped. I took it to the dealership the next week to have it looked at and they said the battery was fine. A week and a half later, after sitting for two days, the car wouldn't start again. Had it jumped again and took it back to the dealership. They seem to be confused with the issue and said they will need to have the car until the battery dies again so they can see it in "real time". A quick Google search indicates that this is by far not an isolated event. Something is very wrong with the electrical draw.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11667760June 18, 2025
POWER TRAIN, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
While I was driving on a highway, my vehicles "check engine" and "batter" lights were illuminated and a warning came across the car screen that said something along the lines of "Battery Management System Failure" and then "Powertrain failure". The car was not able to accelerate by pressing the gas pedal, and the heating/cooling features within the car stopped working. I quickly changed lanes to get to the far left shoulder of the highway, putting other cars at risk of my car that was slowing down to 50mph as I was getting over. When I would press on the gas pedal, nothing would happen. The car did remain on. When the dealership received the car the next morning they conducted what they referred to as a recall, but KIA refers to it as a "Service Action" - SA617 MCU DTC Logic Improvement. This requires a simply software update, which the dealership conducted, and the car was then working just fine, with no issues that I had indicated above. The dealership was Greenway KIA of Rivergate, 1526 Gallatin Rd North, Madison, TN 37115. The warning lights in the car illuminated about 5 seconds before the car was no longer able to accelerate due to the powertrain failure. In talking about the problem with a KIA representative, it was communicated that KIA has looked into this and it didn't pose any serious problems, so they left it as a "Service Action" item, not a recall.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11666909June 14, 2025
ENGINE
On 6-9-25, for the second time in the 10 weeks that I have owned my new 2025 KIA Carnival it has failed to accelerate beyond 30 MPH after pulling away from a traffic light. The vehicle displayed a warning that The Speed Limit Was 30 MPH and would not accelerate beyond that speed. The speed limit was not 30 MPH. I was able to pull onto a side street and take a photo of the warning, I took the vehicle and the photo to Boniface-Hiers KIA on 6-10-25. The dealership was not able to determine the problem but thought it could have some connection with the cruise control system. Once again I was lucky not to be rear ended by the car behind me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664744June 4, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
2025 KIA Carnival Hybrid gets stuck in electric mode. This cause rapid draining of the electric vehicle battery, reduced maximum speed, and reduced acceleration. This has occurred while merging onto the highway. I had to pull over to the highway on ramp shoulder, turn the vehicle off and back, and then merge back until the highway. I have a video of it happening while picking up my kids from school, but it is too large to upload here.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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