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What 20 owners told NHTSA about the 2026 Kia Carnival Hev

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 (20)Crash / fire / injury (3)Electrical system (5)Transmission & drivetrain (4)Speed control (3)Backup camera & sensors (2)Driver assistance (2)Airbags (1)Body & structure (1)Engine (1)Lane Departure (1)Seat belts (1)

1 of 20 complaints match · Seat belts · clear filters

May 27, 2026AirbagsSeat beltsCrash

The contact owned a 2026 Kia Carnival. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently hit a deer. The check engine warning light illuminated after the collision. The contact's wife was occupying the front passenger's side seat and the contact's daughter was occupying the rear driver's side seat during the collision. The air bags failed to deploy, and the seat belts failed to retract as needed. There was no reported injury. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The vehicle was then towed to an autobody, where it was totaled by the insurance company after further investigation. The dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle operated as designed upon reviewing pictures of the damaged vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 2,379.

NHTSA ODI 11740309

Working with the data? Download all 20 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 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 2026 Kia Carnival Hev verdict →