This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
While driving on the local street prior to entering the freeway, the vehicle completely stalled without any notice. Attempted to step on the brake pedal, however, there was no response. Had to use the emergency brake to stop to a safe spot. Had I been driving on the freeway, the end result would have resulted in possibly a fatal crash. While the vehicle stalled, I noticed 3 light indicators were lit: Charging System Warning Light, Engine Oil Pressure Warning Light, Malfunction (Engine Malfunction) Indicator Lamp. Keep in mind, all maintenance and services were up to date including oil change, which had been performed at KIA dealership service. The gears were then changed from "drive" to "park" and attempted to restart the engine. Engine turned back on without any light indicators on the dashboard and assumed that it might have been a minor electrical issue. Attempted to drive back onto the road and then the engine completely stalled again, however, this time the brake pedals responded. Not to mention, there were consistent rumbling sounds coming from the engine after the initial engine stall. Called KIA's roadside services for tow services and after 6 hours, the car was towed to a local KIA dealership to Valley-Hi KIA located in Victorville, CA. Received a call today from the dealership (June 4th, 2021) this morning and was informed that there was no oil in the vehicle and was charged $44.99 for the oil fill. Was told that there was no evidence of oil leakage and was advised to drive the vehicle 75 miles back home to take to a local KIA dealership to run an "Oil Consumption Test." Texted "Stacey Keen" at the dealership the article regarding this recall for 2021 KIA Seltos for a defect in the Piston Oil Ring and asked to speak to the service manager. Current status: Did not receive any text or call back from the dealership and was told that I will receive another update this upcoming Monday to see if the vehicle will have oil left in the vehicle.
The contact owns a 2021 Kia Seltos. The contact stated that when she took her vehicle in for an oil change, she was informed that there was no oil in the engine. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking oil and there was a loud knocking sound coming from the engine. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that nothing needing to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was relating the issue to NHTSA campaign number: 21V259000 (engine) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 10,122.
Going on a slight incline my engine felt like it was surging slightly and after 5 min the engine was really surging and the no matter how hard you pressed on the accelerator the speedometer would max out at 65. And then after 10 min no matter how much you pressed on the accelerator there would be about a 5 second delay in the rpms. Which would go from 1 to 8 max. And it finally died on the freeway. When I finally got it to the dealership they said the transmission blew on it and to get a new one they would have to order it from Korea. I will be without a car for almost 2 full months.
Car has 3000 miles, car had been surging when accelerating, it revved up when in drive, wouldn't go as I was exiting off of interstate. Was towed to dealer, they couldn't find anything wrong, sent me home. I made it 47 miles when it stopped accelerating and stopped going. Was towed back to dealer, where it has been for over 2 weeks. They are putting in a new transmission.
Vehicle was having difficulty shifting between gears, until one time it did not switch from automatic off at stoplight back into gear. Had to turn car off/on to get it into gear. Later on the highway at ~60mph, as it was trying to downshift to go up a hill, it failed to engage a gear. Engine light came on and had to coast into shoulder to await it being towed. Dealership said it needs a new transmission, was bad from factory - car has ~2K miles on it. Technician said it's not the first he's seen like this.
- Boston, MA, USA
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HVAC blower would not blow. Dealer found melted relays. One week after replacing the entire engine wiring harness I started to get a burnt electrical smell through the vents. I looked in the engine fuse box and there were melted relays again.
My Kia Seltos with only 900 miles has done the following twice: When at a stop and I step on the gas the car turns off. The first time it happened I was at a stop light and when I stepped on the gas the car turned off and took a couple of minutes before I was able to turn the car back on. The second time it happened I put the car in reverse and stepped on the gas and it turned off. I was told by the dealer that it appears to be a problem with the engine control unit. Now my car has been in the shop for 15 days so far with no knowledge of when the car will be returned because the part is on "back order". I'd like to add that while at the car rental place I met another person with the same car and exact same issues.
Transmission defect, transmission over heats in stop and go traffic, also causes skipping of the gears. Kia know this is a problem and indicated that car will shut down on its own because of this.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Fullerton, CA, USA