What 512 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Kia Soul

Transmission is going out. Valve and piston issues.

NHTSA ODI 11571701

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed with the cruise control activated, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and then lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 172,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11563129

I saw a puff of smoke then the engine started knocking while I was driving, I had the car brought home and I called Joey Griffen dealership and they told me it will be a four month wait that I would have to come out of pocket $7000 to have it fixed, that's when I found out about the recall I should not be coming out of pocket for something totally out of my control I saw metal parts on the ground, the car started knocking a few seconds after seeing smoke under my hood, it literally came out of no where

NHTSA ODI 11562867

My car died while driving it down the highway. And I couldn't get it drive. I had to have it towed.

NHTSA ODI 11562771

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated and jerked. The check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, a burning odor was detected. The dealer was made aware of the failure but confirmed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11562547

I have contacted KIA Corp. and advised them that my 2012 KIA Soul ! with 146,500 miles was consuming so much oil that the KIA dealership had to replace my engine for $5000 and that I had to pay it. Why won't KIA Corp reimburse me? It is under 150,000 miles. They advise me that they would pay a Good Will fee to me and never did !!! The KIA dealership always did my oil changes on time and have records of them. KIA Corp should reimburse me for a GOOD WILL FEE.

NHTSA ODI 11562195

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact also stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly shuddered before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic, but the dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The failure mileage was 115,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11557426

I was driving at night down a major highway when the car stopped dead. I towed it to a repair shop and they told me that the engine was completely gone. They informed me that there was a class actions case on Kias due to engine failure. I need my Kia to have the engine replaced and covered under this situation as it totally does not work anymore and from what I am told it is a catastrophic occurrence happening to many, many Kias. Who can I contact about getting this fixed?

NHTSA ODI 11554619

The engines makes a weird chatter noise all the time

NHTSA ODI 11554605

DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AT A SPEED OF 65MPH AND MY CAR JUST BEGAN TO IDLE AND SLOWED DOWN TO REDUCING SPEED QUICKLY. I COULD NOT GIVE IT ENOUGH ACCELERATION TO PICK UP SPEED. I PULLED OVER TO SHUT MY ENGINE CAR OFF. TURNED CAR BACK ON AND MY RPMS TO SHIFT TO 2ND GEAR WERE LOW. I HAD TO SHIFT MY GEARS QUICKLY TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE. SINCE THEN, MY ENGINE LIGHT IS BLINKING AND I CANNOT GO FASTER THAN 50MPH

NHTSA ODI 11547738

My 2012 Kia soul base, had this SC176 recall which I took it into the dealer, at that time I really didn't know exactly what the recall consisted of, until months later after researching the performance of my car, my engine lights comes on and stays on for two weeks ,then go off a day and it's back on, my car drives sluggish and it's acceleration power is bad , where it won't get up to necessary speed, and it making a loud noises when I accelerate ,which the mechanic said it's my Cadillac converter which was under recall and most likely damaged , from high exhaust gas temperatures,I do believe it's all under the last recall, my engine was damaged and should of been replaced along with the catalytic converter, I believe the KIA dealership knew of the damages but didn't replace my catalytic converter or my engine, my cars performance has gone down tremendously , month by month because of this recall that didn't work , I loved my car but sometimes I don't feel excited about cranking it up and driving it away from my house, because I'm not sure if I'm going to make it back home safe or maybe have it towed, I'm depending on Kia to do the right thing and fix this recall ,because I could be a returning customer.

NHTSA ODI 11546870

The car experienced a sudden catastrophic engine failure. We had just pulled out of the driveway and were on our residential street, so there was no accident, we were able to pull over and stop the vehicle without incident. It was towed to the Kia dealer (Premier Kia of Carlsbad 5331 Paseo Del Norte, Carlsbad, CA 92008). After detailed inspection by one of their service technicians they determined that the cause of the engine failure was the same connecting rod bearing failure that other years/classes of Kia Soul have experienced. The dealer initiated a claim with Kia to try to get the extended warranty and engine replacement covered for my vehicle since it was exactly the same issue they have seen with the vehicles covered in the legal settlement (Techline case #15756680). However, Kia has denied responsibility for what is clearly a defect in the engine affecting other Kia owners not currently being reimbursed for their loss by previous recalls and legal settlements.

NHTSA ODI 11543503

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the engine was misfiring. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road for 20 minutes. The contact stated that he turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle responded as needed; however, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred a week later. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the catalytic converter had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the VIN was not included. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 149,000.

NHTSA ODI 11537138

Engine seizure, stalling, engine turns off without any warning. When taken to dealership or mechanic there is no error code for the issue.

NHTSA ODI 11527086

My car stalls and the engine light frequently stays on, my car is driving sluggish every since I got the recall adjustment my car has declined in performance and the engine light started coming on more frequently up until now, it's loud at and experiencing a great lost of power ,the computer is giving the code PO420 reading as bank 1 oxygen sensor , I had intended changing out both sensors, but wasn't sure if it's a damaged engine effecting the Cadillac converter from the 2019 recall, # 19V120000 giving a false reading.

NHTSA ODI 11526267

The contact's daughter owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while her daughter was driving at an unknown speed, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle started making abnormal sounds before stalling. The vehicle was not drivable. The owner and a friend pushed the vehicle a short distance to the friend's residence. The contact stated an independent mechanic arrived at the location of the vehicle but was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The independent mechanic informed the contact that the vehicle failure was associated with NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact spoke to the manufacturer and made them aware of the failure and was informed that the VIN was included in the recall. The contact towed the vehicle first to the residence and then to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the engine to be replaced. The manufacturer informed the contact that due to the failure mileage; the vehicle was not covered under the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 222,114.

NHTSA ODI 11525552

While driving down the freeway, the engine began to smoke and caught fire. My husband and kids were in the car but were fortunately able to pull over without physical injuries. Our insurance company held the car and a third party company (hired by Kia) concluded “ the origin of the fire is in the engine compartment at the exhaust manifold. The cause of the fire is internal engine failure resulting in a hole in the block allowing oil to escape and ignite on contact with heated exhaust components”. There were no warnings, check engine light, etc. Kia pointed us towards a class action lawsuit but when you search our VIN # on Kia’s website, there’s are no recalls or issues reported, which is clearly false. Our family escaped serious injury/death but it could have easily been a different story. I will not stay silent and let this happen to other families. I am going to continue to advocate for my family until Kia listens.

NHTSA ODI 11525369

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was flashing. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal; however, the vehicle continued losing motive power. The contact stated that the engine did not rev while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact pulled off the highway and the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that he restarted the vehicle however, while attempting to shift into drive(D), the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired; however, the mechanic acknowledged the open recall of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that the dealer did not perform the recall repair. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 172,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI 11524918

i was driving, all of a sudden my car started losing speed so i got onto the shoulder. then i saw smoke and a fire from under the hood. the door stuck and i hit it with my shoulder to get out. 30 seconds after i got out the engine bay exploded.

NHTSA ODI 11523474

My car got hot and just stopped on me crazy and I just had work done on my rotates and brakes.

NHTSA ODI 11522716

2012 Kia Soul 4dr wagon engine fail no warning lights sudden strange noise driving on highway with grandbabies. Heard a strange noise under hood then the vehicle lost acceleration and right before shutting down and dying the oil light came on and car went dead. No warning to any problem. Had the oil changed and double checked new oil was replaced. When I opened the hood and checked the oil their was no oil in vehicle it was as if it was drained out yet have no oil leaks to show it leaked out. If the oil disappears and no warning lights show no oil and car just dies on highway that is engine failure and burning up engine leading to fires and danger to drivers and passengers. 2012 Kia Soul 75,262 miles well maintained should not just be driving along engine malfunction and die and oil has disappeared. Let alone possibility needing new engine. Very scary and not safe to drive as the vehicle immediately dies on busy highway so by given no warning till last second the drivers behind me had no warning and luckily no accident was caused but possible it could be a serious problem. Apparently other people are having same engine issue reading online forum that several incidents missing oil and engine failure with little or no warning but hearing strange noise and engine shutting down and oil missing.

NHTSA ODI 11517347

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact retrieved DTC code: P0420 (Low catalyst system efficiency) using a handheld diagnostic tool and drove the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The contact reported that he informed the dealer that DTC code: P0420 (Low catalyst system efficiency) was related to the catalytic convertor. The dealer advised that they would replace the catalytic convertor if he paid for the spark plug replacement. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 140,951. The contact changed out the spark plugs but was still getting check engine lights for the catalytic converter. The manufacturer denied the contact's request for a rental car. No other assistance has been provided yet.

NHTSA ODI 11515669

The contact owned a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph a loud popping sound originated from the undercarriage on the driver's side. The contact witnessed smoke coming from the engine compartment and veered to the vehicle side of the road and turned the vehicle off. The contact was then notified by pedestrians, that a fire was originating from the engine compartment, and the contact exited the vehicle. The fire was extinguished by the fire department and a report was available. Additionally, the contact stated that the Engine Oil Level and the check engine safety light had been illuminated for three days prior to the failure, and approximately three quarts of oil were added four to five days before the fire. The contact believed that the failure was associated with an unknown recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 127,000.

NHTSA ODI 11515170

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH, the engine seized. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to his place of employment. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no additional assistance. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The failure mileage was approximately 99,760.

NHTSA ODI 11512343

We were driving and the car just shutdown, luckily at a stop sign. Wouldn't turn back on, and nothing when we tried to jump it. Had it towed to the nearest service center in town and were told a rod punctured the block and the engine is blown. The service center said they had seen this happen before and to contact a Kia dealership to check on a recall. I talked to the Kia dealership in Topeka, KS and they said Kia had been denying requests to replace the engine, if the recall update had not been done. We never received any information about the car having a recall or needing an update, so therefore it was never performed.

NHTSA ODI 11508159