Kia Carnival Complaints

397 consumer complaints on file.

#11736945May 11, 2026
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH
The contact owns a 2024 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that while her husband was loading the child into the car seat. The rear button for the door was depressed by the child. The husband became stuck in between the sliding doors. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact sustained injuries to his previously injured rotary cuff, but medical attention was not provided. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 35,815.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11734940April 30, 2026
LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING
I am submitting a safety complaint regarding the driver monitoring/driver assistance system in the 2025 Kia Carnival. The system repeatedly issues “take a break” or inattentive driver warnings during normal, attentive driving conditions. These alerts are overly sensitive, frequent, and intrusive. Rather than improving safety, the warnings are highly distracting. The visual and audible alerts demand attention at critical moments, pulling focus away from the road. This creates a counterproductive and potentially hazardous situation, especially in traffic or complex driving environments. There appears to be no reasonable way to adjust the sensitivity or disable these alerts without impacting other safety features. A driver assistance system should support the driver—not introduce additional distraction or frustration. I request that this issue be investigated, including the calibration, trigger thresholds, and user control options for the system. A redesign or update may be necessary to ensure the feature enhances safety instead of undermining it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734933April 30, 2026
Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness
The harness straps on the seat have begun to loosen while my child is riding in the seat. You do not need to use the harness adjuster button to loosen the straps. This is allowing a secure fit to become dangerously loose while the vehicle is in motion. I removed the car seat from the vehicle and was able to replicate the issue. A slight tug or movement makes the straps become loose and I can pull them completely out of the shell without using the harness adjuster. This is the same issue that started the Rava recall recently. The harness adjuster is clear of any debris and fully covered by fabric in this seat. There is no valid explanation to this other than a manufacturer defect. The seat is a few years old and has been used daily since receipt in Spring of 2023. It was purchased from the manufacturers website. One minor crash and the seat was not replaced because of the manufacturers stance on replacement (crash was May of 2024). This has been reported to the manufacturer as of 4/29/26.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734511April 29, 2026
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
I am reporting a safety defect involving my 2023 Kia Carnival SX Prestige. On June 6, 2025, I brought the vehicle to Yonkers Kia Service Center because of a strong gasoline odor. The dealership told me the fuel tank was swollen and that the vehicle was unsafe to drive. The vehicle remained at the dealership from June 6, 2025 through October 17, 2025. Kia later indicated that the fuel tank, canister, and vent valve had been replaced. When the vehicle was returned to me on October 17, 2025, it still smelled like gas. Within 24–48 hours, the same or related safety issues returned, including strong fuel odor, loss of engine power, check engine light, abnormal fuel consumption, and later a visible fuel leak, which I documented on video. Because the vehicle did not feel safe, I stopped driving it on October 19, 2025. In March 2026, the vehicle was towed back to Kia for renewed diagnosis. Kia later reported that one fuel injector was leaking and performed additional repairs. My VIN now shows open unrepaired Recall SC368 / NHTSA Recall 26V232. That recall states that the high-pressure cross-over fuel pipe nuts may loosen over time, resulting in a fuel leak and fire risk. The recall warning signs include fuel smell and/or check engine light, which directly overlap with the exact symptoms I repeatedly experienced and reported. I am reporting that this vehicle had repeat fuel-related safety failures, a prior extended repair attempt that did not resolve the issue, and was previously returned to me in what I believe was an unsafe condition.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734666April 29, 2026
ENGINE
Carnival was working fine then, without warning, I was unable to accelerate. Had entered highway and reached a maximum speed around 30 mph in a 55 mph zone. Pedal fully depressed and zero acceleration, dashboard read "check hybrid system, stop safely". Tried changing driving modes to no effect. Lots of cars speeding past as I pulled to the side to restart the vehicle, then it worked again without issue. Happened one other time, similar circumstances and results.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734515April 29, 2026
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Carnival. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V320000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734153April 27, 2026
ENGINE
Our 2024 Carnival has had a recurring engine oil leak that has required the vehicle to be left at the dealership 4 times for the same issue. Each time we get the van back the repair lasts about 1-3 weeks (depending on how often it's driven). Oil continues to leak from the engine area, creating risk of engine damage or a potential fire hazard if oil contacts hot components. The issue has not been resolved despite repeated repair attempts under warranty. The Carnival has 38,092 miles on it, and has been in the repair shop over 4 times. The 1st time it was put in the shop the van has 34,420 miles on it. Each time it has been left at the dealership for 9 - 17 days while the repairs were made. We have brought it to the same dealership each time and they have been very sympathetic and helpful. Not only does this issue cause the risks mentioned above, but it has ruined the concrete in my garage as well as added oil to the roadway which could cause an accident. I have all the repair orders from the first 3 repairs that I will attach. However I do not have thee current one because the vehicle is currently being repaired for the 4th time and I haven't received the finalized repair order documents. I can update this claim once the repairs are completed. I will be contacting Kia tomorrow and wanted to have a claim number started.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11734099April 27, 2026
POWER TRAIN
I purchased this 2024 Kia Carnival on 2/7/2026 with less than 10K miles. The vehicle has died while I was driving 4 different times. Twice each day that it happened. The first time was on 4/7/26. My car died on the way home from getting my kids from school after fixing a flat tire. The check engine light came on after getting a jump and when I took it to Auto Zone the battery was fully charged and the codes were for the Power Train, which didn't make sense for a brand new car. Miracle Mart told me that Kia needed to be utilized for any issues because I purchased the vehicle as is. Their solution was to tighten the "loose cables". On 4/25/26 the car died again two more times. Something is terribly wrong with this car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11733144April 22, 2026
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On the motor, when off for more than a certain time prolonged, when is a cold start motor make a noise like it doesn’t have oil in it since new I let the dealer know but they say it’s normal and I don’t believe so. Also, the transmission have a problem since New it shifted weird sometimes, and the dealer says it’s normal
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11733125April 22, 2026
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I was on the on-ramp getting on the highway and whenever I started to increase speed and try to get over into the next lane, I noticed the car all of a sudden jumped a little bit and then it started consistently jumping in the check engine light was flashing, and I couldn’t keep the car over what ended up being 50 mph anytime I tried to go over 50 mph. The car jumped in was shaking pretty pretty aggressively I was able to finally make it to a gas station at the very next highway stop and after I shut the car off and turn it back on it seems like it was OK, but I’m still very scared to drive it. I then took it to the dealership to have them check for any store or pending codes because after we had stopped and turned the car back on it no longer had the check engine light on, and the dealership was not able to locate any stored codes in the system to see what it happened nor were they able to replicate the issue that we had found. Is a rec out on my vehicle, but no remedy is available and notices will not be sent for another month and a half at this point I am extremely uncomfortable driving my vehicle as I have young children and anything with a fire hazard is not safe.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732931April 22, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
4/6/2026 vehicle stalled in traffic multiple times, entered "Limp Mode", unable to accelerate after stopping or after deceleration. I had to press the gas to the floor to get the vehicle to move. While driving, if I had to brake or lay off the gas at all, the vehicle would not accelerate back to the original speed quickly. This put myself and my four children at risk of being rear-ended. I drove with the hazard lights on to Kia of Wesley Chapel Service center. The Battery Management System Warning displayed at the time of the stalling. The Kia Access App displayed the BMS Warning and code P0AA600 (High Voltage Isolation Fault). Initially, Kia of Wesley Chapel Service Advisor stated No warnings displayed and No historical or active codes found. I provided a screenshot of the Kia Access App showing the active BMS Warning and active P0AA600 code at 2:48PM on 4/8/2026. The Service Advisor maintained that they could not find any active or history codes. At 3:00PM the same day, the Kia Access App suddenly showed "No Issues Found". The code was obviously manually cleared. I filed a complaint with Kia Customer Care the same day (4/8/2026) and requested a Kia Technical Specialist be assigned to the case. On 4/12/2026, the original Kia Service Advisor stated "the history code has finally appeared which was the one presented in the screenshot but we cannot replace parts based off of a code that is no longer active unfortunately". He stated they would "keep driving and testing" to try and duplicate the issue. The Kia Access App shows the last trip was 4/7/2026 (the day after I dropped off the vehicle). Interestingly, the vehicle was not moved from the drive up lane at the Service Center until 10:40AM that day, after being dropped off at approximately 6PM the evening prior. I believe they could not get the car to move the evening of 4/6/2026. The vehicle remains at Kia of Wesley Chapel. I am sending the Motor Vehicle Defect Notification to Kia Corporate today.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732656April 21, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Kia has a recall (Campaign SC 368) on a fuel pipe that may be defective causing a gas leak leading to fire. I called the dealer I bought the vehicle from to request an inspection of the part. I was told Kia will not send letters out until June 2 so dealers are under no obligation to inspect the impacted area before then. Why should a family have to wait six weeks or more on such a critical issue for it even to be visually inspected. Kia's direction is simply to be on the lookout for gas smell and park the vehicle outside. The length of time that they are going to be taking shows a lack of concern for safety, especially since the initial step simply requires inspection of the part. Does the NHTSA have any plans to require car manufacturers to handle all recall matters in a more expedient manner?
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732059April 18, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Car Problems Purchased March of 2025 #1 First black out summer 2025-Driving at 10 PM and lost all electric driven items. Headlights turned off as well while driving 70 MPH in the dark Scheduled an appointment to get the car looked over. They said that there was a part that they were waiting on to help with electrical issues. #2 Next black out fall of 2025 Used the update part to see if that would fix the problem #3 February 6th, 2026 Got my oil changed and it blacked out when I left the dealership. Went back to tell them and they documented it. #4 April 14th, 2026
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11731853April 17, 2026
SEATS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The component of the vehicle that malfunction was the front passenger seat. The driver came to a stop at an intersection and the front passenger seat started auto reclining. The seat was reclining into a life, flat position, almost. The driver was concerned because no one was pressing buttons and put the vehicle in park in the seat did not stop auto reclining so the driver turned off the vehicle, but the seat reclined as far as it could into the middle section of the vehicle and encountered the driver’s child in a car seat. The seat reclined onto the child's legs and pinned them down against the car seat and the seat below them. The driver was unable to remove the child from under the seat nor able to physically lift the seat, but the buttons on the front passenger seat on the lower right side, did work in order to lift the seat back into an upright position and unpinned the childs legs. The driver took it and to a dealership to get it looked at and they failed to reproduce the issue. The local dealership did look at the vehicle, but failed to reproduce the issue. There were no warning lights to indicate this was going to occur. The local dealership suggested this was a user error, and that something must have damaged the components of the seat to activate an auto recline, which is still problematic. The dealership said due to the owner unplugging the power to the seat that the issue could not occur again, but they did not solve the mystery or issue of how it actually occurred. The child was restrained in a car seat, and the seat was pushed back in the middle section of the vehicle as far back as it can go. The front seat was still able to auto recline somehow into the child’s car seat and pin them down.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11731536April 16, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The fuel pipe in my 2024 Kia Carnival has been identified by Kia as part of Safety Recall SC368 due to a fire risk. The component is available for inspection at the dealership where the vehicle is currently located. My safety and the safety of my family — including young children in car seats — was put at risk because the vehicle carries a known fire hazard related to the fuel pipe, yet no remedy is available until June 2026 at the earliest, according to Kia Customer Care. Kia confirmed the recall and the fire risk but has not provided adequate alternative transportation, leaving a family with young children without a safe vehicle for an extended period. The problem has been confirmed by Kia Customer Care, who verified that my vehicle is included in recall SC368. The dealership also confirmed the recall exists but stated the remedy is not yet available. However, when I contacted NHTSA by phone to file a complaint, the representative stated they could not find my vehicle in their recall database, directly contradicting Kia's confirmation. This discrepancy between Kia's internal records and NHTSA's database is concerning and may prevent other affected owners from being aware of the safety risk. The vehicle has been surrendered to the dealership via tow due to the fire risk. It has not yet been inspected or diagnosed by the dealership service department. I have requested written confirmation that the vehicle is safe to drive before accepting it back. I was notified via a CARFAX alert and the risk was identified/confirmed by the manufacturer.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11731411April 15, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I reported a fuel smell in the cabin of my vehicle in June 2024. It was dismissed because they could not recreate the smell. I reported it again and they said that is just how the vehicle purges fuel. I reported it again and drove it right to the dealer when it smelled and multiple mechanics at KIA confirmed they smelled it. Reported it again in September 2024, then tried to deal with it, and reported it again in June and July 2025. In July they confirmed I had raw fuel in my evaporator canister. I also had misfire notifications on my dashboard which were dismissed as they could not determine where the misfire was coming from. The misfire stopped after they replaced my fuel canister but the smell never fully went away. I received an email follow up in July 2025 and I reported the smell was not as strong, but still occurring intermittently. They closed the case. I reported and had 2 open cases with KIA, and noted that I was feeling lightheaded and nauseous, as well as 2 of my 3 kids at the time.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11731247April 14, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The car now auto locks on the vehicle upon exit, even with key fobs in the car. The first few months I had the car this did not happen. I left me keys and phone in the car. I turned vehicle off, exited the vehicle and walked around to get my daughter out of her car seat. After about 5-8 seconds of walking around. The car automatically locked. The key fob was placed in the center console. My 1 year old daughter was left trapped in the vehicle, placing her life in danger. I had to call emergency services and have them open it for me. This is a huge saftey concern. I never changed any setting to allow for this. The car should not auto lock, and definitely should not lock with keys in the vehicle a few seconds after exiting.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11730937April 13, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I am writing concerning the Driver Attention Warning system and how it seems to be way too sensitive and when it keeps going off, trying to see what is causing this issue. This seems to be creating more distractions than it is designed to solve. From my understanding Kia through a software update removed any sensitivity adjustments which makes this problematic.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11729561April 6, 2026
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
Engine light turns on every couple months. The Kia either stops accelerating and goes into “limp mode” or gives code for misfiring cylinders. Took to dealership several times, they did nothing but reset battery so light goes off. Unsafe when driving my family around and has turned into an unreliable vehicle. SO frustrating for a new vehicle to have these issues.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11729116April 3, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Due to soy-insulated wiring used in wiring harnesses, rodents are attracted to the wiring components in the engine bay. Even using deterrents doesn't see to affect them. What started as a simple check engine light for what was assumed to be a faulty sensor turned into a total wiring harness replacement. Without knowing that the wiring provided an added risk to damage from external factors, there was no need to check any of the wiring. If the check engine light didn't come on, it was possible that total power loss to the vehicle could've occurred at any time, due to the various wires damaged by the rodents. We were driving on the freeway at the time when the initial check engine light came on, and a loss of power while going 65 mph could've been devastating to both our family and other drivers on the road at the same time. Insurance confirmed that the cause of the wiring damage was related to the rodents being attracted to the material, and at the dealership there were at least 2 other cars needing full wiring harness replacements due to similar damage from rodents.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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