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.
I received a manufacturer recall notice about possible fires due to braking circuits in the early spring, but the dealership knew nothing about it. The car was parked outside as suggested. I received a second notice at the end of June. The SUV was serviced 7/14/20 for a recall on the braking circuit. On 8/22/20 a beautifully clear Saturday, I was driving home from a neighboring community on a paved country road. I noticed that the ESC off indicator light displayed on the dashboard. I stopped to look in the manual to see if the car was driveable. I parked my car in the garage after arriving home and noticed that tail lights/brake lights remained on even with the engine turned off. Because of two prior manufacturer warnings about fire with the electrical system, I parked the car outside away from the house as recommended. I called the Kia dealership at 4:30 that day and arranged with cameron to drop the SUV off on Sunday. On Sunday, my neighbor helped jump start my car and he fooled around under the dash to turn the brake lights off. He said to tell the dealership that the wires were warm which I did. I included a list of concerns/facts with my key in the drop off box. On Monday, 8/24/20 cameron, the service agent, said that the braking circuit "was fried". the repair cost of $2,516.07 would include the electrical circuit and all wires. The completed work order bill said that the hydraulic modul was replaced, the switch assembly, and hecu,
While the vehicle was sitting, not running, the car began to smoke from the drivers side engine compartment and under the dash. The smoke got much worse and the heat from the source was growing. After opening the hood and disconnecting the positive terminal on the battery the smoke slowed and eventually stopped all together. Note - the car was parked and the engine was not running. Also the car was, and had been sitting since the night before and the engine was cold to the touch when the electrical fire transpired. Note: The locations that were bellowing smoke were hot to the touch and the smoke was black and gray. The inside of the cab had filled up with smoke as well and had a strange new odor that is unpleasant to say the least. Over all the car did not catch full fire and the damage is not visible to the eye. The enteral unseen damage may be significant. Note: Current mileage unavailable being the battery must stay unplugged to avoid the entire car catching on fire. The only reason that the car stopped burning was because of quick and dangerous actions taken to disconnect the battery.
The contact owns a 2007 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while at idle at fast food drive thru, when he saw smoke exiting from the hood. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to park at the parking lot and was able to extinguished the fire with a wet towel. A fire report was field with the fire department. The contact stated no one was injured or sought medical attention. The vehicle was not drivable. The vehicle was towed to local dealer Kia atlanta South (7310 jonesboro rd, morrow, ga 30260. (770) 968-3400) where the vehicle was still being diagnosed. The VIN was associated to NHTSA campaign number: 20V088000 (electrical system, service brakes, hydraulic). The manufacturer had been informed of failure and stated the failure was not associated to recall associated to the VIN. The failure mileage was 102,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Kia Sorento. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 20V088000 (electrical system, service brakes, hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated while driving 55 mph, the vehicle decelerate. The contact stated she depressed the brake pedal however the vehicle failed to stop. The contact stated the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact was able to park on the side of the road. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact also stated she saw smoke exiting the hood. The contact stated a sheriff was on the scene to assist her and he opened the hood and more smoke was seen however, no flames were seen. The vehicle was towed to Kia of vacaville (651 orange dr, vacaville, ca 95687; (707) 392-4623), where it was diagnosed with a cracked radiator that needs to be replaced. The dealer also informed the contact that the radiator failure was not associated to the recall. The vehicle had not been repaired as of yet. The dealer also confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 131,000. Parts distribution disconnect.
I just received a recall on my Kia Sorento, it says it is due to a electrical anti lock brake system. And followed by this letter my light does stay on for this part and other lights are on too do to this. I'm scared to death to drive this Kia now. I think for this kind of problem, they should recall the entire vehicle. And give me a brand new Kia sorrento. Because this is life or death, and this is the only vehicle I have to take care of my daughter. To school and doctor, or what ever her needs and mine are. I am a single mother on a fixed income and I'm very scared for mine and my child's life or who rides with us. So I think Kia dealership should take my Kia that's recalled and give me a new one for that. I travel alot everyday and I need a dependable vehicle and shouldn't have to worry about my family's safety for using my Kia.
- Maysville, KY, USA
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Takata recall. Air bag light on dash stays on at all times and "passenger air bag on/off" indicator indicates off, even when an adult is sitting in the passenger seat. Additionally, horn won't blow at times.
Service brake hydraulic switches brake light, exterior lighting brake light switch, air bag frontal sensor/control module. No brake light when brake is press, cruise ontrol, ESC light, air bag and gear shift will not move from park.
Takata recall: Vehicle is unstable when driving, it jumps when on motion. When driving in the night the head lights goes on and off, rear wiper is working non stop even when the car is off. This electric system dysfunction also affects the radio system.
My 07 Kia Sorento when trying to enter the state highway. When you push down on the accelerator pedal. The viechel state to accelerate and then all of a sudden the ESC. Light comes on and the SUV. Goes into safe limp mode. Where it will not accelerate and will not climb over 20mph. For a very long period. My family and I have been in a few situations where we were almost hit. Looking online I can see that this is far from being a isolated ordeal. And that because of the age of the viechel. I am reading where more and more people are dealing with the same issue but not going to the dealer because of the cost involved. With the number of the viechels sold there have to be quite a few that have resulted in a accident that involves bodily injury. If not god forbid even death. I just hope this reaches the desk or screen of someone who can investigate this matter. A lot better than what I am capable of doing.
When car is in motion even when cruise control is on going over 30 miles an hour, there will be a hesitation in forward motion. Its not a transmission jerk. Its a pause while in motion. The headlights also do the same when on. They will be on normal then go dim while in motion. We have trouble shooted and no codes come up. We believe it is an electrical issue. We have only had vehichle for 2 yrs and its done this every since we had it but its gotten worse. Wasnt as noticable when we purchased but it wasnt being driven for long distances. Now it has been drove on long trips and is very noticeable. Feels like the car will just stop/shut down in motion.
Daughter was driving the vehicle when the turn signals started flashing. As she pulled to a stop, someone came up to her window and told her there was smoke coming from the back of the vehicle. She pulled in to a parking lot to call me. When I arrived at the vehicle there was a small fire coming from underneath the right rear of the vehicle. Fire department was called and fire was out by the time they arrived. Fire department looked underneath the vehicle and found that the trailer hitch wiring harness shorted out and started on fire. My daughter was not towing anything at the time. Wiring harness is oem
Takata recall I have had my 07' Sorento to several places. I originally took it to the place I biought it from. I was referred to a Kia dealership, which took my car apart twice and ran a camera through it and replaced the rear crank shaft. Then I replaced every sensor and spark plug ion the thing and also had power steering problems. It sounded loud and was always needing parts but in the spring, I pulled in my driveway and left my car running a few minutes while I got things outside taken care of because it was dark, ( the car has approx.124,000 miles on it) while it sat in my driveway for maybe 5 minutes it spit and sputtered and died in my driveway. I tried to restart it and it would barely start running. I took it to have it looked at once again and was told timing chain, electrical and crank shaft again. Needs new engine most likely and no one wants to work on it because it has some many issues! so, I am paying a loan for this car that has been sitting in my driveway for months because I will not and cannot pay for this vehicle to have anymore work done!
I own a 2007 Kia Sorento. Recently, my check engine and ESC off lights became illuminated on my dashboard. I noticed that my brake lights were not illuminating when I pressed the brake pedal. After looking up my car make and model on the NHTSA website, I noticed there was a recall for my model year Sorento for the exact same problems (NHTSA campaign number 13V114000/Kia service campaign SC098). I took the carto my local Kia dealership and they told me I was not eligible for the recall as my VIN was not included. As such, I have to drive around without functional brake lamps until I get this problem resolved--increasing my chances of being rear-ended. I travel constantly for work so I do not have the luxury of not driving. This needs to be investigated and resolved.
When opening doors, the dome light no longer would turn on. This eventually continued until the front lights no longer turn on, and now the rear hatch lights do not turn on either. The lights work when they are manually turned on, just not when the doors open. It was checked by a repair shop and they say it is not a switch issue (as the lights on three of the doors still light when open). They feel it is an electrical issue and found hundreds of posts from as far back as 2003 Sorentos with the same issues. The lights not turning on is a huge safety issue for myself and my family trying to enter a pitch black vehicle at night time.
Part was already replaced on a mandatory recall. Now the replacements for the recall are failing. Kia will not stand behind the repair costs, this means many people will be driving with out brake lights. I am on my third switch- the part should easily out live the car! I am sure they replaced it with the same exact part thinking most people would be out of the vehicle by the time it failed again. I am sure this is not what you had in mind when you issued the other recalls on this part.
Sunday morning, I was driving my vehicle at a speed of less than 45 mph. The "check engine" light and "ESC off" light came on simultaneously. At the same time, my vehicle lost power and would not change out of 2nd gear. I pulled into a nearby parking lot, turned off the vehicle, and waited for one minute. I restarted the vehicle and it cranked just fine. I pulled out of the parking lot and went no more than 30 yards when the lights came back on and my vehicle lost power completely - no response when pressing the gas pedal. I coasted into a loading area where I was forced to call aaa to have my vehicle towed to the nearest car repair center. I communicated with them throughout the day Monday, and the end result was this: My vehicle was taken to the charlotte Kia dealership and a test was done to read and determine the error. The diagnosis was a faulty "transfer case decoder motor", something I had never even heard of. The repair is going to cost approximately $1,000 because of associated diagnostic tests and the part itself costing $570. According to what I read on the internet, there is a "service" for this component that is to be done around 45,000 miles. My vehicle has been to the same Kia dealer numerous times and this component has never been addressed. Not once was the "service" mentioned to me by the service team. This is a serious issue that could result in injury or death if it occurred on an interstate or in an intersection. Thankfully, I was in a safe area and no one was at risk of accident or injury. This problem is widespread among Kia vehicles - the service manager at aaa stated he has a 2007 Kia sedan in there right now with the same problem. I feel Kia is at fault and negligent for this malfunction.
Vehicle ignited from rear left tail light. It was not running nor were the keys in the ignition. Upon contacting Kia, they asked for photos of the damaged vehicle to submit to engineers. The engineers said that the fire didn't have anything to do with a brake light switch recall and offered no other explanation to what started the fire. The vehicle was just sitting in the driveway.
I have taken this vehicle to the purchasing dealer 7 times for multiple issues including transmission or torque converter difficulty switching gears, the main wiring harness fell down into the dash, poor braking performance. The major issue has been the random, but daily ESC off light coming on and off. The dealer seems either unwilling or incapable of correcting this issue. I have filed a customer service request we Kia two weeks ago, randy ext 45295 Kia customer service assured me he would 'get back to me' in two business days. Today is the seventh business day and no reply. It's my opinion that the ESC issue, wiring harness, and poor braking are issues that should be address in via recall since Kia customer service and warranty commitment are meaning less to Kia corporation.
The contact owns a 2007 Kia Sorento. Three days after purchasing the vehicle, the air bag light illuminated, which indicated that the passenger side air bag was deactivated. While driving between 40-45 mph, the vehicle hesitated and jerked. When the vehicle is stopped at a stop sign or a red light, the exterior lights shut off. The contact has had to strike the dashboard in order to get the air conditioning to work. In addition, none of the windows will roll down. The blinkers, turn signal, and cruise control do not work. After owning the vehicle for ten months, the alternator had to be replaced and it currently needs to be replaced again. The rails to step up into the vehicle had to be replaced twice. During a crash with a deer, both the driver's and passenger side air bags failed to deployed and the seat belts did not work. As a result, the passenger sustained a broken arm. On two occasions, when the vehicle was taken to the dealer, the contact was informed that the tires needed to be rotated and aligned. On the third occasion, she was informed that the vehicle was out of warranty. Since owning the vehicle, she has been to the dealer several times with many complaints, but they have never made any repairs. A Hyundai inspector stated that the entire vehicle was out of specifications. The failure mileage was 600. Updated 09/23/08. The consumer hit a deer and the air bags did not deploy and the seat belts did not perform as they were designed. The transmission would delay in shifting and would not shift in the correct gear. Updated 09/24/08.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Temperance, MI, USA