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What 39 owners told NHTSA about the 2023 Kia Niro

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (39)Crash / fire / injury (8)Electrical system (10)Driver assistance (7)Airbags (6)Transmission & drivetrain (5)Fuel system (4)Brakes (3)Engine (3)Speed control (3)Steering (2)Wheels (2)

1 of 39 complaints match · Speed control · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Apr 25, 2024Speed controlFuel systemCrash

While entering into a parking spot at minimal speed, the vehicle experienced an unexpected spontaneous acceleration, causing it to lunge forward, climb onto the curb, and collide with the adjacent building. This resulted mainly in damage to the front end and front passenger door, and the shattering of a large tempered glass window that cushioned the impact. Thankfully, there were no pedestrians on the sidewalk, and the impacted office space was unoccupied at the time of the incident. It is important to note that I was not utilizing the cruise control at the time of the spontaneous acceleration incident and that the vehicle had only been driven 1760 miles since it was purchased, further highlighting the totally unexpected nature of the occurrence. This alarming event of the car accelerating on its own, when it had come to an almost full stop, leads me to believe that the car could pose a significant safety risk. I am deeply troubled by the potential consequences of this spontaneous acceleration; no warning light or collision safety feature turned on. I consider that it is imperative for Kia to conduct a thorough investigation and retrieve the vehicle data to determine the root cause of the incident.

NHTSA ODI 11585252

Working with the data? Download all 39 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 10, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2023 Kia Niro verdict →