Kia Sorento Complaints

10,397 consumer complaints on file.

#11541817August 31, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
While driving on a paved highway, very light traffic in the early afternoon at approximately 65 miles per hour the sunroof on my vehicle suddenly and violently exploded spraying shards of glass everywhere. The "explosion" caused me to veer from the roadway and momentarily lose control of the vehicle. My safety as well as my 2 (two) passengers were placed at risk. Damage to my vehicle is substantial and both of my passengers complained of bits of glass in their eyes.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
2
Deaths:
0
#11541862August 31, 2023
ENGINE
Burning oil rapidly at approximately 100,000 miles. Engine started to make a clicking noise when going uphill with poor acceleration. Engine seized while driving, but was able to pull over to safe area thankfully. Learned of engine recall and is now being replaced by dealership at 118,000 miles.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541867August 31, 2023
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Check engine light came on. 65,000 miles with documented regular maintenance. Took to dealership where i purchased the vehicle new. Engine code (P0172). Was told gas was getting into the oil and i would need a new high pressure fuel pump. This is a common issue and should be repaired free of cost.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541704August 30, 2023
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the engine made an abnormal knocking sound. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to drive to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where it was diagnosed that the rod bearing had failed, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 152,250.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541500August 29, 2023
STRUCTURE:BODY
Around June 11, 2023, I took my car to the dealership for a recall item. They washed the car and a large section of the paint came off around the windshield. The Kia dealership said that Kia Corporate is aware of the problem but is not paying to have it fixed. I had to pay the dealership to have it repainted. I now see other small areas on the hood that are starting to chip as well.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541565August 29, 2023
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
Car shutters and stalls and metal shavings in the oil pan
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541153August 28, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
We were driving on the highway at about 65 MPH. Without warning, the vehicle suddenly started to struggle and slowed to about 40 MPH. We were able to safely pull over, but we were in an acceleration lane merging onto another highway and didn't feel safe due to the sudden deceleration. This is a plug-in hybrid. We have driven at 65+ MPH on long rides before, and this was the first time that we noticed that the battery had completely drained. We expect that when the battery is drained that the car would function like a normal hybrid and continue to function in a safe manner. The car's cluster displayed a message along the lines of "Maintaining hybrid mode," although it isn't clear if the speed-limiting behavior was an expected consequence of that. After being pulled over for a bit, the battery level recuperated enough that we attempted to resume driving on side roads. Battery level varied from red to blue (normal) and then back to red, but thankfully the battery didn't fully deplete again and we were able to return home safely. We're waiting on an appointment with a dealership to have the car checked out. It was last serviced 3 days prior to the incident (first oil change, filters changed, etc).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541224August 28, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SUSPENSION, ENGINE
Transmission / or gear shifting
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541039August 27, 2023
STRUCTURE:BODY
The paint on the body between the windscreen and sunroof is rapidly delaminating, literally overnight. The vehicle color is Pearl White. I wish to add my case to what I understand is an ongoing effort by other Kia owners with similar delaminating paint issues for the NHTSA to get Kia to act on this and issue a recall.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541051August 27, 2023
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
At various times the headlights shut off while in "auto" mode. Since it is "auto" mode it is always at night and you suddenly cannot see the road. We have found when this happens that the system goes to the "Parking" light mode. Rotating the multi-function switch to a different position other than "auto" and back allows the headlights to come back on. We have not found a pattern in this dangerous event where we are able to repeat the failure.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540954August 26, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On Thurs 8/24/23 approx.5/5:30 I was driving home on highway 290 and my Kai Sorento 2015 just quit. No warning of any kind it just quit. I had no steering so had to hang on tightly to the wheel. It was rush hour and I was on a highway doing speed limit of 55. How I and anyone behind me was not in a serious serious accident is unbelievable. The car would not start again and has not started since. Had to be towed home. Since it is the weekend I haven't been able to have it towed to a shop. This is a very serious problem to have nothing wrong and no warning at all and your vehicle just quits in the middle of rush hour doing 55mph. I can't believe there is no recall abt this issue. Looking on the internet I am not the only one that has had this very dangerous problem. The vehicle is available for inspection. Posted 8/26/23
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540897August 26, 2023
ENGINE
Without warning, engine stalled while in motion. Electrical system was still functioning and on. Loss of power steering and power brakes. This continued to happen at random times during driving, putting all passengers at risk. Kia dealership looked in to the problem and diagnosed it as a faulty PCM/ECM module and replaced. Rolling engine stall continued and continues to happen at intermittent times. We are now 6 months in to the process of trying to determine the issue. The car has been taken back to Kia dealership for inspection. The problem has been reproduced by another auto repair shop but they are unwilling to work on it since there is no check engine light or corresponding code to work from.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540904August 26, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I was driving down the highway on cruise control going 67 on a 65. The car started revving up and then proceeded to go faster. I turned off the cruise control but its continued to speed up. I stomped on the brake 4 or 5 times with no effect. I rammed into the back of a bus at 110 mph.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11540700August 25, 2023
ENGINE
2016 Kia Sorento suddenly without any warning lights started losing power while driving on busy intersection. Vehicle dies, have towed, they say looks like there was no oil despite fairly recent oil change and without oil light popping up. Mechanic states it was ok for now but would need to start thinking about a new engine. Pick up vehicle and it didn’t even make it home before it lost power in an intersection again. Called Kia multiple times and despite other Kia’s having this issue apparently my vehicle is not one of the ones with a recall. There is nothing they can do for me. Owe 11k on vehicle, motor will probably be close to that. For now I am making payments on a vehicle that won’t go anywhere. Went to Kia dealership to see what help they could provide and their suggestion was to stop making payments and let them take vehicle back. Obviously I’m still making payments. But then they sold me a used Hyundai which subsequently caught fire a month later. Turned out while it didn’t have a recall on the Hyundai it had a campaign about a software update that would have indicated a problem before my engine caught fire. Dealership couldn’t have cared less, I’m aware that one was a Hyundai but that’s the level of customer service Kia provides. And will also sell you a vehicle with outstanding issues and not bring to your attention.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540734August 25, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that upon depression of the accelerator pedal, the accelerator pedal became stuck, causing the vehicle to unintendedly accelerate. There was no warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle stalled while driving at various speeds. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and the vehicle operated as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that there were no open recalls on the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 139,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540830August 25, 2023
EXTERIOR LIGHTING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
While driving at night, the headlights turn off by themselves randomly. The lights need to be turned to off and back on to get them to turn back on. Driving with no lights in an area with no streetlamps obviously could result in an accident. It has not yet been inspected by anyone yet, but a check is scheduled. There were no warning lamps, messages, etc. when the lights turned off. Not a safety concern, but seems related: On another occasion, the car had been parked and locked for hours with the engine off, and the parking lights turned on and remained on until manually shut to off. They did not turn off by a remote unlock and lock.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540836August 25, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
In early June, my car went into limp mode. The two lines with a car between on the dash were blinking red. I notified Kia, both Roseville and Folsom, but they seemed unconcerned since it seemingly corrected itself after restarting car and driving it. Since then, the car has had the Ebrake engage while driving at least 6-7 times. After the 5th or 6th time, I reported to Kia and after much back and forth they agreed it was a safety problem since it would cause my car to brake slowing it suddenly to about 1/2 of my traveling speed. The week of August 7th, they had it a week and said they couldn’t replicate the issue. They did do something pertaining to TSB SC252. I got it back on Aug 11th and on the 17th, it did it again when I was traveling about 35 mph causing my car to pull right. It is back in the shop again. On Aug 4th, it engaged, causing me to swerve into the lane to my right. I was in rush hour traffic. On July 28th, I was on the Hwy 50 traveling approx 70-75mph, when it happened causing me to suddenly slow to 35 MPH. It happened 3-4 times previously as well. The emergency brake lights up red and blinks a few times before it disengages. Kia refuses to acknowledge there’s an issue, but they’ve asked me to turn off driver assist and other safety features. It is random and I googled if anyone else had ever had the issue. I found on Kia Forum of someone that had a 2021 model that did the same thing. Kia customer care rep said it wasn’t a real Kia site and the person was probably lying. The contact stated the dealer believe it’s the forward collision sensor that is malfunctioning.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540259August 23, 2023
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The vehicle consumed one quart of oil for every 700 miles driven. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540270August 23, 2023
ENGINE, ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:OIL/LUBRICATION:PRESSURE/TEMPERATURE SENSOR
The engine overheated passed the point that the radiator could keep it cool and cause the radiator to crack and explode
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11539969August 22, 2023
ENGINE
P1326 came on while traveling at highway speed 70mph, the vehicle jerked and turned of while traveling. Managed to pull over at weight station to get towing service. The vehicle just started knocking and on safe mode at 2000rpm. Can't drive it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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