Kia Sorento Complaints

10,397 consumer complaints on file.

#11495255November 29, 2022
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
While driving at night with headlights set to "auto" the car will (without moving the physical switch) change the headlights to "off" for approximately 2 seconds, after which it will change them back to "auto". This causes a momentary loss of vision to the driver. The drivers display shows the change from "auto" to "off" as though the switch had been turned. I am unaware if this also happens in lighted conditions, as It is only noticable when you are driving in the dark. It appears as though this has happened to multiple drivers of different vehicles
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495325November 29, 2022
POWER TRAIN
Vehicle suddenly displayed the message "Stop Safely Immediately" and then lost all traction to the wheels. This happened as I was entering a busy street and could have resulted in an accident. I had to coast to the side of the road where the car would not drive. I took the vehicle to my Kia Dealer and they performed a software update as part of a recall. The update or "fix" only prevents the immediate loss of traction and does not address the underlying cause. My car is now back at the dealer with a failing transmission.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495077November 28, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My car is facing a huge amount of oil consumption in a short time period of a month after change the oil. I have an appointment this morning and see what they can do.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495144November 28, 2022
STRUCTURE:BODY
2014 KIA Sorento; at 80775 miles the passenger side pillar by the front windshield the Pearl White Paint has peeled off. There was no impact. The paint code is SWP. I see that this is a wide-seen condition of this paint color; Pearl White with the KIA vehicles. I can see other spots on the car that appear to be weak and ready to peel.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495175November 28, 2022
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage as approximately 84,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495184November 28, 2022
TRAILER HITCHES
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Sorento PHEV. 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 made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495202November 28, 2022
TRAILER HITCHES
The contact owned a 2021 Kia Sorento. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V703000 (Trailer Hitches) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that after being parked for about 3 hours when someone informed them flames were coming from near the fuel tank. The fire department was called to put out the fire. The vehicle was towed and deemed totaled. A fire report was made. The contact's spouse burned their hand attempting to remove items from the vehicle before it completely burned. Medical attention was not needed. The contact stated that a nearby tree became charred by the fire as well as the ground surrounding the vehicle. The dealer was not made aware of the issue. The contact stated their insurance was going to contact the manufacturer however they were unsure if their insurance had done so as of yet. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000. The contact stated that they were not aware of the recall until after the vehicle caught on fire. Both the manufacturer and the insurance company were notified of the chain of events. The insurance company deemed the vehicle a total loss. The contact is still waiting to hear back from both of them about the cause of the fire.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11495013November 27, 2022
STRUCTURE:BODY, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The hood of the car has large amounts of paint peeling. The paint peeling has progressively worsened. The paint on the roof of the car also has a similar problem with the paint.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495047November 27, 2022
POWER TRAIN
Vehicle transmission completely failed immediately after long (~4 hr, 224 mile) highway drive. During drive vehicle hesitated slightly when downshifting to accelerate. After arriving at destination, vehicle showed a check engine light and would not consistently accelerate. After sitting for ~36 hrs, vehicle would not shift into any gear (drive or reverse). Had to have vehicle towed. After unsuccessfully attempting to update and flush transmission, and consulting with Kia engineers, Future Kia in Fresno, CA informed me that the dual clutches in the transmission had “melted and fused.” Failure occurred the day after a transmission software update by the Kia dealer in Carson, CA.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494954November 26, 2022
ENGINE
Car infotainment center reported a possible engine condition, the next day we brought into dealership fir a full diagnostic of engine, they said it was just low on fluids, after filling up with fluids we left. The next morning, engine seized in middle of road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494973November 26, 2022
ENGINE
While driving down the road at highway speeds, the engine died. Losing power brakes and steering. I was able to move over to the shoulder. The engine is seized. Oil changes done every 3,500 miles and with full synthetic and a kia branded filter every time. I believe the 2016 2.4L engine has an internal oil problem. There are 617 complaints on the 2016 Sorento, and every one of them that states Engine, is a seized engine. That's only the people that thought to complain. I have found hundreds of comments on youtube videos and several friends that own similar (2015 2.4L Sorento) that have all had to replace their engines from loss of power at highway speeds. I was passing a car when the Sorento engine died and had to navigate back to the left lane and onto the should with no power steering or brake assist, all while being surprised and confused as to why the engine wouldn't restart. Not taken to the dealer yet for inspection, but a local mechanic said the engine appears seized. No warning lights on the dash until the engine died. No oil pressure light, no battery light, no check engine light, until the engine died.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494664November 23, 2022
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My 2016 Sorento started using oil in between oil changes last summer. Per Kia dealership's instructions, I performed an "oil consumption test" which resulted in being told that it was using oil, but not enough to qualify for any type of repairs or assistance from Kia. I continued getting the oil changed on schedule and adding additional oil in between changes, checking the oil almost daily. Now, my engine has completely locked up and have been told I need a new engine, at my own expense of course. Kia should be made to fix these cars! I took good care of my car with regular oil changes and overall maintenance. This is obviously a case of a bad product on Kia's part, and they should be made to stand by their work!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494702November 23, 2022
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
The low beam headlights are VERY dim when driving at night. Very hard to see unless high beams are activated. Even replaced bulbs with LED's. Helped some, but not much.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494712November 23, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Headlights drop out without notice, most noticeable when it’s dark! Happens often
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494729November 23, 2022
STEERING
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the steering wheel started shaking abnormally and swaying back and forth. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact stated that he inquired if the vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V656000 (Steering) and was informed that his vehicle was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000. The contact stated that the dealership was able to fix the issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494767November 23, 2022
ENGINE
Excessive consumption of oil. At my last oil change, I was told that my motor was completely dry. Engine knocks and shuts off. Need to monitor and top off motor oil every week.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494771November 23, 2022
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
The lighting switch assembly has an issue that causes the headlights to turn off at random times. I have only seen it happen when the switch is on the auto setting, but that is the setting I most often use. When the lights go off, the instrument panel display shows that the switch has changed to the parking lights setting, but the physical switch has not been moved. The lights remain off for a few seconds and then switch back to the auto setting. I have also seen issues with the turn signals, such as when I make a left turn and complete the turn, the switch flips to the off position and then the right turn signal turns on by itself. This is a safety risk because the lights randomly turn off at night and it hinders my ability to see in the dark and for other vehicles to see me. It is also a safety risk because other drivers may react based on my turn signal being on, but I don’t intend to move in the direction it is indicating. I have seen this happen multiple times over the past year, but not consistently. The dealer I brought it to was not able to reproduce the issue and did not replace the switch. A dealer has inspected it, but no other parties have. There is no prior warning or messages before it happens.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494763November 23, 2022
POWER TRAIN
This has happened to this car 2 times already. First when the vehicle only had 12k miles, an MIL showed up. Took it to the dealer and they said they could not find any DTC codes in there. When they gave it back to me the MIL light was off... Surprisingly. 2nd time, 16k miles, the transmission gear was slipping some of the gears and we have never taken this vehicle to off road. The MIL light came back on and also a message saying "Transmission system error! Check transmission oil immediately". After this message came to the dashboard , the transmission started to fail and like going into limp mode - could not drive this vehicle over 20mph. Fortunately , this issue happened during the day so I took my kia 2022 Sorento AWD to the dealer. Now my vehicle is there for 4 days now and they dont know what is really going on with it. They are now talking with the headquarters Engineers to see if they can figure this out but so far nothing yet. The dealer still have my vehicle trying to figure this out.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494623November 22, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, STRUCTURE:BODY
Yesterday I drove home from work and this morning when leaving I notice paint missing from my car near the passenger side of the windshield. There is no reason this should be happening. My car is kept in a garage. This is a paint defect and I would like this taken care of. I will be calling Kia in the morning and will be getting a lawyer.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11494553November 22, 2022
POWER TRAIN, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Vehicle's rpm goes up but the vehicle does not move and then goes back into shift or shifts into neutral without manually doing it. It stalls and refusing to shift while driving, coasting or at stoplight/sign. It unpredictable when it's going to happen, Have almost gotten hit from being since it looks like I'm going and the car is not. No lights come on and I have reached out to numerous Kia services and keep getting runaround. I was told that there was no recall and looked it up and there is. Power window and reverse camera continue to not function correctly either. This care is dangerous to drive!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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