Feb 2, 2026Visibility & wipers
The contact owns a 2024 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the sunroof exploded. The contact stated that there was no evidence of an impact on the sunroof glass. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to a Collision Center for assistance. The vehicle was taken to the Collision Center, and the contact was informed that the failure was a known failure with similar vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline and the manufacturer to report the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 28,525.
NHTSA ODI 11715023
Dec 23, 2025Visibility & wipers
6” Snow ice storm & negative degree temps 12/13/25 used heated windshield deicer. On 12/15 driving to work on a country road no other traffic, heard pop cracking noise above my head checked sunroof snow ice melting no visible cracks thought noise from thawing ice. Parked vehicle in my home garage while I went out of town. Returned home 12/22 found large crack origination point in front windshield originating in glass down the middle of rear view mirror sensor housing black box mounted on inner windshield the crack spans from top middle to bottom of black box glass over to right center half of windshield. Believe this is a manufacture defect design flaw low quality integrity of glass weaker than standard glass making it more susceptible to temperature changes or minor impact. Entire crack feels smooth interior exterior glass as if the crack is in the inner layers of glass windshield. Due to multi complaints & prior class action lawsuit regarding manufacture defect of KIA windshields I am reporting my complaint as it is quite similar to others complaints, issues & lawsuits. The massive crack in windshield is a driving safety hazard & a manufacture defect that needs recalled & resolved before injury or death occurs. KIA must acknowledge, issue recall &/or post a bulletin, accept responsibility this is a manufactures defect, notify the public and replace the windshields under Good Faith Customer Relations Warranty
NHTSA ODI 11706746
Dec 20, 2025Body & structureVisibility & wipers
While traveling at approx 65 mph on a clear, debris-free Alaska highway in -5°F temperatures, the panoramic sunroof of my 2024 Kia Sportage spontaneously shattered with an explosive sound. There were no vehicles in the immediate vicinity (nearest car was maybe 50 to 75 ft away) and no observation of flying debris or falling objects from overpasses. The failure appears to be a spontaneous glass breakage (SGB) incident potentially caused by thermal stress or manufacturing defect rather than external impact. Crucially, some of the remaining glass fragments and one large attached piece are displaced and flexed OUTWARD (upward toward the sky). There are also fracture lines in the remaining glass along and parallel to the sides of the vehicle as well as parallel to the front frame of the glass. They do not radiate out from a central point as one would expect from an object strike. This geometry to me indicates internal tension or cabin pressure release, as an external impact from a projectile would have forced the glass inward into the cabin. Additionally, there was very little glass in the vehicle cabin, certainly far less than one would expect given the size of the opening in the sunroof and the amount of glass missing. I have personally previously been in a vehicle whose side window was blown out from a vehicle kicked rock strike and in that case was showered with a lot of glass. Yesterdays catastrophic failure resulted in some glass intrusion into the passenger cabin at highway speeds, creating a severe distraction with sound was loud & sudden enough to potentially cause a loss of vehicle control. I am aware of similar reports regarding the 2023-2024 Sportage (and previous Kia panoramic sunroof class actions) regarding the use of ceramic glazing or assembly stresses that contribute to such failures. I request an investigation into whether the current model's panoramic roof assembly is capable of withstanding extreme thermal differentials and body flex.
NHTSA ODI 11706279
Nov 25, 2025Visibility & wipers
The sunroof shattered while driving without any sort of impact.
NHTSA ODI 11701591
Mar 3, 2025Visibility & wipers
What I assume happened to my wiper blades: In December of 2024 we got a lot of heavy snow. I turned on my car to heat it up while I worked on cleaning off the outside of the car. My wipers were set to auto so the car automatically tried to clear the snow from the windshield. I did not notice this since they didn't move due to the snow weight. Once snow was removed I noticed the wipers did not work so I brought it in for the dealership to look at it. They determined that the gear had been stripped and needed to be replaced and informed me that this is not covered under warranty. Since the repair I have not driven the car in snow, no longer use the auto wiper function, and am sure to clean off all snow/ice before I turn the blades on. End of February I turned the wipers on to clean the windshield by pulling lever back. No fluid came out, the blades went back and forth a few times and then only one blade started coming up while the other lay in its off position. Determined that my car is not holding any wiper fluid (unsure if this was not connected properly during last repair). Have an appointment to get the car looked at again.
NHTSA ODI 11646044
Oct 28, 2024Visibility & wipers
The contact owns a 2024 Kia Sportage. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the windshield cracked without impact. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer; the vehicle was not diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 23,000.
NHTSA ODI 11622218
Apr 12, 2024Visibility & wipers
On 4/42024 I was driving home and there was a mix of rain and snow. My riverside windshield wiper went out of sync and slammed into the passenger side damaging the blade, it then went over the edge and was stuck on the windshield frame overhanging the side view mirror. It made it very difficult to drive. When driving behind any other vehicle ot creates a scenario where you can't see how far or close you are to another vehicle. When I got to the dealership to have it looked at, they tried to blame it on a buildup of the wet snow that happened overnight. I cleared off my car completely before going to work. The fix was they had to tighten the linkage. While I was there, I overheard them complain in the service department that they had a lot of wiper related incidents that day.
NHTSA ODI 11582695
Feb 19, 2024Visibility & wipers
Not really sure what happened, but last week the temperature suddenly dropped below freezing and there was ice built up on the windshield. We started the car and turned on the windshield defrost at high and we began to drive the car after the windshield was clear of ice and about 10 minutes later we noticed a crack develop on the windshield going from where the hot air from the defrost was hitting the windshield. and through out the day we noticed the crack grow exactly along the line where the defrost air would hit it. The crack is connected to a 2 mm round spot where a rock chip hit the windshield a few weeks ago but the crack seems to have started because of the temperature difference that was caused by the windshield defrost.
NHTSA ODI 11572706
Nov 30, 2023Body & structureVisibility & wipers
The sunroof exploded all of the sudden. I was driving on the I-675 highway toward Wright-Patt Air Force Base and the sunroof exploded, barely maintained vehicle control. The shattered glass hit my head and my child legs. Some glass sand enter my eye. I manage to pulled over and check my car interior for any strange/outside object but there was no external object, nothing. Called the police, they also inspect the vehicle and found nothing. I’m very concerned about this, could cost our lives. Drop the car at the dealership and they said that definitively was a manufacturing defect.
NHTSA ODI 11557569
Oct 23, 2023Visibility & wipers
On October 22, 2023, we made a restroom stop at an ARCO in Moapa, NV. I was in the car while my wife used the facilities. It was a clear day with the temperature in the mid 70s. As I backed out of our parking space I heard a loud pop. I checked to see if I had run over something or had a flat. I saw nothing. I got back onto the interstate and about 2 miles later I heard a loud pop and in my rear view mirror saw debris flying from our car. I pulled off the road and again checked my tires. I then checked the roof and saw that part of the sunroof glass was gone. This was a new car only 23 days old, with only about 550 miles on it. It had never been on rough roads. We had never opened the sunroof. We understand that this is an ongoing problem with sunroofs that use tempered glass. Please add ours to your investigation and fix the problem. It is at the Kia dealer now. They said they would check with KIA.
NHTSA ODI 11551418