What 181 owners told NHTSA about the 2022 Kia Sorento Plug-in Hybrid

The Auto Start-Stop System light came on flashing while driving. Vehicle wouldn’t accelerate while in heavy traffic. Pulled over to the shoulder and turned vehicle off. Attempted to start vehicle again and would not start. Had to get the vehicle towed. Positive battery post is loose and screw is tightened as much as possible.

NHTSA ODI 11741207

I own a 2022 Kia Sorento that was manufactured on January 13, 2022. My vehicle experienced a failure involving the electronic oil pump within the transmission system. While driving, a transmission error message appeared prior to the failure. Shortly after, the vehicle unexpectedly entered a limited-mobility condition and significantly slowed down, operating only at a reduced speed. This created a hazardous situation, as I was unable to maintain normal traffic flow, increasing the risk to myself and other drivers. The issue has been diagnosed and confirmed by a service center as a malfunction of the electronic transmission oil pump. I am aware that Kia Motors has issued a recall for certain 2021–2022 Sorento and 2021–2023 K5 vehicles related to a defect where the fail-safe limited-mobility drive mode may be impaired due to a transmission oil pump malfunction, potentially resulting in a complete loss of drive power. Although my vehicle appears to have been manufactured during the same timeframe as the affected vehicles, it has not been included in the recall. The failure I experienced is consistent with the conditions described in that recall. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives, but the issue has been confirmed by a service center and the component should be available for inspection upon request. Given the safety risk and similarity to the recalled defect, I believe this issue warrants further investigation and potential inclusion of my vehicle in the recall population.

NHTSA ODI 11737579

The fuel door actuator failed. The gas door would not open due to the actuator being seized shut, preventing access to the fuel tank. This vehicle does not have a manual release mechanism, so there was no alternative way to open the fuel door. The dealership confirmed the actuator malfunction. My family’s safety was put at risk because we were unable to refuel the vehicle. The incident occurred during extremely cold weather, with a windchill of approximately -8°F. Due to the inability to add fuel, we were at risk of running out of gas and losing heat in the vehicle, which could have resulted in a dangerous exposure situation. There were no warning lights or messages indicating a problem prior to the failure. The issue was first noticed when attempting to refuel and the fuel door would not open.

NHTSA ODI 11732430

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the instrument panel displayed a blank screen. In addition, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred several times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with battery sensor failure. The contact was informed that the battery sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the diagnostic test was not performed on the instrument panel. The contact was informed that an additional diagnostic test was required to determine the cause of the failure with the instrument panel. The contact stated that the failure was a known failure with the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 39,000.

NHTSA ODI 11727036

The vehicle has less than 75k miles, and I am the second owner. I was driving, and the vehicle lost power. Creating a traumatic experience that could have been fatal. After Kia had inspected the vehicle, I was informed that I needed a new engine and it would cost 8k or more, and my extended warranty would not cover it. Kia has current recalls for similar issues.

NHTSA ODI 11719170

There is a safety recall concerning fire hazard during normal operation. Kia is refusing to buyback the inoperable vehicle

NHTSA ODI 11716773

My reverse camera bracket broke off leading to the camera dangling on the license plate and unusable for rear backup safety.

NHTSA ODI 11712105

My check engine light came on and my SUV started sputtering so I pulled over called my Husband who came and had it towed to Langdale Kia of Valdosta, Ga.

NHTSA ODI 11692691

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that after coming to a complete stop, while attempting to accelerate, the vehicle failed to immediately respond. Additionally, the “Battery Failure” and check engine warning lights were illuminated in red. The contact scheduled an appointment with the dealer, but the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 26,000.

NHTSA ODI 11689184

Thermal Module went out, causing car to not accelerate when pressing on the gas pedal. Mileage at 76,000

NHTSA ODI 11669304

I was driving on a busy road when the computer system completely stopped the engine from running and gave a message/notice appear, accompanied with an alarm stating "engine failure." I had to put the car in neutral and try to pull over to safety. This is the third time this has happened. The second time, the dealer repair shop ran a diagnostic test and told me that they reset the computer, and nothing was wrong mechanically. This time, it is sitting at the dealership waiting to have a diagnostic test done, but I was told it was likely just a computer issue. Prior to the engine being completely stopped, the car will jump gears while driving [i.e., from 1st to 5th while going 25 miles an hour and not accelerating], and the car feels like it is misfiring. The car is two years old and has 50,000 miles. It should not have any of these issues. A car should not be putting my life in danger while driving for no reason and without any effort to fix it.

NHTSA ODI 11623632

Automatic stop start admission. Was turning right on a green light. The vehicle stalled while trying to take the turn. All the dash lights flickered and the dashboard made a buzzing sound. Then vehicle then shut off, while trying to take the turn. There was 4 people in the vehicle 2 of them small children. We almost got hit on the left side of the vehicle. Because the light that was green had turned red. This is the fourth time the vehicle had failed us. By shutting off while driving. We having taken the vehicle in 2 times to be inspected by Kia, but have been told there is nothing wrong with the vehicle. But we are still having issues. There is no warning signs that the vehicle is going to shut off. It shows it after the fact.

NHTSA ODI 11604627

The car just randomly turns off mid drive, several times a week. Even in drive the engine turns off and says I need to put it in park and return on the whole car, very unsafe.

NHTSA ODI 11580119

While driving, all lights on the dash will light up and the gas pedal loses power. The only way to move the car to the side of the road out of danger is by coasting to the shoulder which can be very unsafe on the interstate. The car remains running with no power until it is cut off and turned back on. This has happened four times with the dealership being unable to specifically identify and fix the problem.

NHTSA ODI 11569924

I was driving when the ESC electronic stability control kept going on. Then all of a sudden the pedal and brake would start to shake and not work. Randomly driving when light would go on and then the pedal and brake would shake. I had to pull over. Light would go on and off. Roads were dry normal no issues.

NHTSA ODI 11559429

I was driving the vehicle on a highway when the car shut off. No electrical or steering. It was very difficult to get the vehicle safely off the highway. Before the vehicle shut off there was an alarm and a message on the control panel to shift to neutral and restart the car. There were 2 incidents before this one. Both didn't have an alarm. The vehicle shut off with no warning.

NHTSA ODI 11539970

Warning lights go crazy. Power steering goes out for several seconds. Rpms and speedometer go nuts or lay on zero. Sometimes I can’t shift into drive for several minutes. sometimes it sounds and feels like (under the pedal, in acceleration) it’s losing power for a few seconds, almost like a slipping feeling but in power. The clock and profiles have reset overnight before where I had to reset clock and presets. Kia has had my car for many weeks already in January at just 2-3 thousand miles I’d say (I bought it brand new in October 2022). My dash cam was plugged in. They tried so many things…the “remedy” was to not use the dash cam a while to see if it happens again. After a few months, I plugged it back in. Issues returned. Took back to Kia who said they’ll need it to do it again without dash cam in so I unplugged it that night. Issue has returned at least three times since then. I’ve sent video to Kia and i guess I’m still waiting for them to get an extra loaner because they’ll need to keep it…when I went up there a couple weeks ago, I was told they didn’t have any loaners available so they would call me when they did.

NHTSA ODI 11536843

My raise and lower Windows don't work some times including the unlock and loock Windows. I get my house and want closed the car but I can rise the Windows, and try many times after a couple hours and could. I was far for the kia service and I dont have time at the moment to go, went al make the appointment the said that the car need to have the fail in the moment if the not fail at the moment the can do anything.

NHTSA ODI 11536264

The Sorento went in for three recalls on 1/24/2023 at 6970 miles. These were tow hitch recall ( no tow hitch on the vehicle) . SC250 8 speed electrical oil pump and SC252 B HECU inspection. One week later , (and after approx. 35 miles) , while driving all warning lights started flashing and the engine lost power. Luckily I was in an area where I could stop and when the car was in neutral with all lights warning still flashing the engine ran irregularly between 1000 and 1500 revs. When I tried to put in back in gear and drive it just limped at a about 5 miles per hour and when you depressed the accelerator nothing happened. I switched car off and waited 10 seconds and restarted it. This time the malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) stayed on. I then switched it off again and waited 30 minutes. This time all lights went out and the engine operated normally. I immediately phone the dealer who did the recalls and who then examined the car. The error codes they found were P065312 (engine) C1161386 Brake) C136081 C174181 C161381 (Front Radar) C161386 C164286 (Front View camera) C169381111111 (Rear corner radar). They redid the SC 250 update and test drove the vehicle to see if the problem reoccurred. It did not and the vehicle was returned to me on 2/3/2023. With the sudden loss in engine power this could have been very serious had it happened on an expressway. My wife is now too scared to drive the vehicle. I did phone KIA Customer service to report the issue and their file number is 15300218

NHTSA ODI 11505505

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was jerking and was losing motive power while at a stop light. The vehicle was able to restart, and no warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where an unknown software update was completed. The vehicle was repaired; however, the contact stated that the failure recurred and the gauges on the instrument panel were failing to display and that the auto START/STOP function and the downhill brake control were activating and deactivating independently while driving on flat surfaces. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where the failure could not be duplicated. The contact then stated that when she was shifting the gear into drive(D) the vehicle started reversing, and while shifting into park(P), the vehicle moved forward. Additionally, the contact stated two unknown warning lights had illuminated intermittently and that while driving at approximately 50 MPH, the Forward Collision Avoidance Emergency Automatic Braking activated independently and caused the vehicle to swerve. The vehicle was then taken to Kia of Valencia (24095 Creekside Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91355) where it was diagnosed that the Lo-Jack system needed to be removed; however, after the removal the contact stated that the failure recurred. The contact was awaiting another service appointment for additional diagnostic test and repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The approximate failure mileage was 13,882.

NHTSA ODI 11503990

Dear. NHTSA Good morning, Yesterday I filed a complaint regarding 2022 Kia Sorento Car Problems regarding recall issues. This morning, I received a response from NHTSA saying that NHTSA cannot help with this matter. My complaint is about serious car issues which concernts 2 recall issues. Kia America took my car for repair on 12/20/22 and today is 01/27/23 Until today, Kia American is not responding about my car. Kindly re-review my complaint and help advise. My case information is as below. Request #[XXX] Re: Kia Customer Care Case#[XXX] Thank you for your help. Best regards, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11503971

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!

NHTSA ODI 11494553

I was pulling out to cross a highway with my 13 year old daughter in the passenger seat when my brand new 2022 Kia Sorento completely lost power and we were almost T-boned by a white Ford F150 (I have all of this drivers info if needed). The screens went black like it simply shut off & I had no control of the vehicle whatsoever. I quite literally could not move my vehicle. We sat helpless, my daughter screaming bloody murder, watching a truck barrel towards us. By what could only be the grace of god, this man came to a screeching hault mere inches from my daughters windows. The car started back up like it never happened & I was able to drive almost 10 miles homes before suddenly losing power again, only this time, the screens turned black for a moment and it started back up on its own. I do not trust this car & I will be taking it back to the dealership today to demand a different car or a refund. This vehicle WILL CAUSE A FATAL ACCIDENT.

NHTSA ODI 11493406

Smell something burning like electric

NHTSA ODI 11482790

Last Tuesday, August 16, I parked in the driveway at around 8 PM. After about 2 hours I heard car alarm. I looked out window and saw flames engulfing rear of vehicle. Called 911. Firefighters extinguished flames. Fire crew stated fire was likely electrical and started near tow hitch receptacle. Tow hitch was installed by Kia dealer weeks after I bought car; they told me it was an OEM hitch. I'd never used the hitch until the day of the fire. That afternoon I bought a Kuuat bicycle rack with lights. Bike store installed the rack and plugged it into the hitch receptacle. I did errands for several hours with nothing appearing amiss. Then parked, and fire started hours later. No injuries and no other damage. Looks like total loss, but State Farm hasn't confirmed yet.

NHTSA ODI 11480894