What 1,237 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Kia Sorento Plug-in Hybrid

The exterior paint on my 2016 Kia Sorento (Snow White Pearl, paint code SWP) is peeling off in large chunks across multiple panels. The clear coat is delaminating and lifting in sheets from the surface, exposing bare metal underneath which is now actively rusting. This is consistent with a known defect documented in hundreds of complaints about 2013-2016 Kia Sorentos in Snow White Pearl (SWP). I have photographic documentation showing significant progression of this damage over the past few months. The vehicle has not been inspected by a dealer or manufacturer regarding this issue. No warning was given prior to the paint failure — it began suddenly and has spread rapidly. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. Additionally, the gear shift randomly locks in Park without warning, leaving me unable to operate the vehicle. This has occurred on multiple occasions and presents a direct safety risk as it strands me without notice. No warning lights or messages appeared prior to the shift lock engaging. The dashboard is also cracking in multiple locations, including near the airbag housing, which may present an additional safety concern.

NHTSA ODI 11746729

Pearl white paint has begun flaking, and peeling.

NHTSA ODI 11715158

I have a white pearl 2016 Sorento and Paint started peeling around windshield. Now paint is peeling all over. Recently had windy day and sheets of paint are laying on ground. I take care of my car and this is embarrassing. Kia should be embarrassed as well. Not good for sales I’m sure.

NHTSA ODI 11711575

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that the dashboard was cracked in the shape of an air bag on both the left and right sides, causing concerns about a potential inadvertent air bag deployment. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, who confirmed that the crack was cosmetic and advised the contact to reach out again if the air bag started to protrude through the crack. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact reached out to the manufacturer and provided photos, but received no assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 86,711.

NHTSA ODI 11694941

We have a 2016 Kia Sorento that has the Snow White Pearl paint. Our vehicle has a tad over 100k miles and the paint is peeling. We take care of our car and always have it clean and do not understand why this is happening. Paint is flaking / peeling off in large amounts exposing the primer underneath. I had a body shop look at it and they say it looks like something went wrong with the painting process when vehicle was made. I have a 1997 ford ranger that has 280k miles on it without this issue so I do not believe that this is a mileage / age issue. I did reach out to kia but had no luck with this problem. Thank you so much for your time and any help is greatly appreciated.

NHTSA ODI 11691002

I now believe I've had a lemon. Since I purchased my car in 2016 they have been trying to diagnose a smell from the exhaust and started replacing parts, this was in Miami. Then for a few years in Vegas the car spent months at the dealership trying to fix a burning oil issue which I've been told there is a known problem with the turbo still isn't fixed. From the first year I had paint peeling on my snow white pearl color which has numerous forums about KIA/Hyundai paint issues especially with my color. I had them repaint the hood which took twice after the bad job the first time. I saw little bumps in the paint which I thought was over-spray from that incident and now I have peeling from one of those spots which is how they form from what i read. My car is 2016 but only has 65k miles. The spot now is getting bigger by the week, the rain isn't helping. there are other spots around the edges and a big spot on the roof and others I've already filled in with a paint pen which looks ugly. If you see my car, inside and out it looks pretty close to new from the way I've taken care of the car. The paint started in August of 2016 but most recently 2025. The engine issues were day one but most recently 2024 they fixed a cylinder that got a hole in it after consuming all the oil and it seems to be headed down that path with the remedy they are offering at KIA. The engine and paint should be convered under a class action lawsuit or recall to hold them accountable and fix the issues.

NHTSA ODI 11682890

manufacture paint peeling all over my car

NHTSA ODI 11681577

Paint on our Pearl White 2016 Sorento is beginning to delaminate on the front of hood and the two pillar posts. It began as a small bubble and continues to spread and chip off. Several quarter-sized spots now and two hand-sized places.

NHTSA ODI 11681282

I purchased my Kia sorento in August of 2024 in April 2025 my Kia went into limp mode p1326.  It was determined to be part of the ksds recall but all they did is replace the sensor.  Something caused that sensor to go off and I feel they just masked the problem.   At the same time in April I was told that there is a severe case of oil consumption that the Kia dealership requested information i do a $700 engine cleaning but actually made the oil consumption worse.   Also just in the last 11 months ive had excessive paint issues where overall there's random chips, then peeling on the hood, side of the windshield and top of vehicle.  I messaged Kia USA where I was informed neither situation is covered under warranty.   My thoughts on oil consumption is i myself and the previous owners via carfax show consistent maintenance which in turn make it seem to be a manufacturer issue.  I'm in imperial MO 63052 USA  Not sure if your company can help or refer me to someone who can. 

NHTSA ODI 11678129

Paint peeling everywhere an innocent burning excessive oil.

NHTSA ODI 11675603

Pearl white paint on hood is peeling

NHTSA ODI 11659957

THE PAINT ON MY PEARL WHITE CAR IS PEELING OFF.

NHTSA ODI 11652827

The paint on our Kia Sorrento is chipping and flaking off.

NHTSA ODI 11646089

The paint on my vehicle has started to peel and is increasing getting worse. Will Kia repaint my car. It's looking very bad

NHTSA ODI 11645871

Vehicle has paint that is delaminating in numerous places. It starts as a raised area then the paint just flakes off leaving bare metal exposed. My vehicle value has gone down and the cost to repaint is over $4000 because the damage is not isolated to one area, but is scattered across all sections of the car body. The paint color code is SWP, Snow White Pearl. We have been to the Kia dealership where the car was purchased new. They said we would have to call Kia corporate, which we did, but their answer was for us to pay out of pocket for repainting and then TRY to get reimbursed from them. Corporate told us they were not taking any action for paint beyond the 3 year / 36K warranty period.

NHTSA ODI 11640621

Paint chipping/peeling severely from hood and top of car

NHTSA ODI 11628159

The paint is bubbling up and peeling/chipping off on the hood and roof. Color is snow white pearl

NHTSA ODI 11609158

I have the Pearl White paint on my 2016 Sorrento and the top front ,hood and pillars are all delaminating. I have tried to touch up paint some areas but it has gotten too bad to keep up. The paint is peelin g now all over the car.

NHTSA ODI 11609085

Body paint has started peeling. Local Kia dealership acknowledged frequency of defect however corporate denied claim due to being outside of original warranty. Advised to pay for new paint with possibility of reimbursement.

NHTSA ODI 11607414

The paint color - white pearl- is peeling off the hood of the car.

NHTSA ODI 11594814

2016 Kia Sorento with 80,000 snow white pedal paint peeling at a rapid paste. Factory defect

NHTSA ODI 11593190

The paint on my car is peeling off. Attached is pictures of the top of the back door window(In back of the driver’s seat)and the flap on top of the back window.The paint is Snow White.

NHTSA ODI 11593069

I have a 2016 KIA Sorento. The paint is pearl white and it is peeling. The peeling is on the hood, roof and A pillars so far.

NHTSA ODI 11587307

The Snow White Pearl paint on my Sorento has started chipping and peeling away on the hood, front quarter panels and roof. This is leading to rust which is quite concerning. It is understandable that environmental factors such as road debris might cause chipping but this is an issue that appears to have affected a large number of people with the same paint color and the rapid deterioration of the paint covering the vehicle is not indicative of normal wear and tear.

NHTSA ODI 11585117

A rain storm came and I left my car out of the garage and the rain peeled off huge parts of my paint. There is no reason that my car last paint should have been washed off from rain.

NHTSA ODI 11582074