general problems of the 2015 Kia Motor Sorento - part 1

In the last year I have had to replace my headlight bulbs at least 3 times on each side. My yearly mileage is only around 9,000-10,500. The body shop has tried different brands of bulbs, tried not having the automatic light setting on and only turning on when needed, etc. Nothing seems to correct the issue and once I had them both go out within the same week. They go out so frequently that the shop has an extra set on hand now for when I call. I'm worried if I don't notice one out because I don't drive at night every day that I'll be without either headlight until I can get into the body shop yet again to have changed out.

Low beam headlights would work and some times not work and then one day they stopped working completely. We've had everything checked out and there is no explanation as to why this is happening. Replaced headlights, relays, and checked wiring.

The contact owns a 2015 kia Sorento. The contact stated that on several occasions the front low beam headlights failed and was no longer illuminated. The headlight bulbs were replaced but the failure eventually reoccurred. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on several occasions and the driver’s and passenger’s side headlights failed to operate as needed. The contact stated that on one occasion there was a burning odor inside the vehicle. Upon inspection, it was discovered that the front passenger’s side headlight had failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the passenger’s side headlight assembly had melted. No further information was available. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 115,000.

The lights dim way too quickly. Hid basically is garbage. Major safety issue since most people can’t afford to be constantly replacing their headlight assemblies.

Overtime the low beam headlights have become very dim. The bulbs have always blown a lot but I have recently replaced both bulbs and they are still very dim. I ordered high powered led bulbs and still the low beams are very dim. So dim you can barely see 10 feet in front of you when driving at night. I have to drive with the high beams on to see where I am going. Research online shows this is an issues with the projector type headlights on these vehicle but no recall is there. The headlight are over $600 to replace for an off brand set. Not something that should be going bad on a 2015 car.

Low beams have completely gone out and will not work. High beams and all other lights work fine. Car burns oil regularly. 2 quarts every 2 weeks is required now ro operate the car. I have only had the car since 2020.

The contact owns a 2015 kia Sorento. The contact stated that on various occasions while driving at night, the front low-beam headlights failed to properly illuminate and was very dim. The headlight bulbs had been replaced approximately four times, but the failure returned after replacing the bulbs. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 120,000.

The low beam headlights are very dim even after replacing bulbs. Have replaced 2 sets in less than a year. Not sure if issues are related but I have seen multiple people have posted about dim headlights on this model.

Driving at night on an unlit rural road with the high beam lights engaged, a car was coming in the opposite direction, at which point the headlights were switched to low-beams to not impact the visibility of that driver. The headlights and lighting of the cluster turned completely off for a few moments before the low-beam headlights re-engaged and remained on for the remainder of the trip. The headlights throughout the trip were turned on by having the auto function engaged. This has happened a few times before, but the possibility of having reduced/no vision while driving prompted taking it to a mechanic to be checked out. The issue has not been replicated by a mechanic, and to date has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives. No warning signs had been present before this and other instances where the lights cut out as headlights are switched from high to low beams or vice versa. The vehicle has also been experiencing a battery drain that has yet to be identified. This has occurred within the last month, and two batteries have been drained within a month.

The headlights on this vehicle you can’t even tell they are on after dark even after kia of cape coral florida tried adjusting them it’s so bad I ended up installing a light bar on there just to be able to drive this after dark if I get in a accident because of this who is liable I just think there should be a repair they should have to do.

Engine seized while I was driving.

The low beam headlights on the 2015 kia Sorento has made it very difficult in viewing the road at night. It is hard to visualize objects within short distance. The socket to install the headlight bulbs point more to the ground instead of outwards. Your assistance in this matter would be greatly appreciated.

Lights are very dim, had to put in a brighter lightbulb. All of the sudden today the radio fm/am satellite and blue tooth stopped working. 12/22/22 - driving home the lights stopped working and I was driving in the dark with no lights.

Hi my vehicle is very dangerous and unsafe when driving at night. I can't see at all when I drive at night. The factory headlight bulbs has not burn out but they was so dim. I replaced them with new ones and still could not see. I want and got the brightess headlight bulb for my car and still are dim. I clean the headlight and still did not fix the problem. I drive at night with my high beams on and I still can barley see I and thousands of others have the same problem with a kia Sorento and ask the dealership for help and nothing hibings nothing was done I'm afraid to drive my car when the sun goes down I cannot see at all I can't even see when I have my bright lights on I looked online and I see there's thousands of people complaining about this issue and nothing has been done. I am scared to drive my car at night I am a single parent kia is putting my life my family and others in danger because they don't want to fix the problem but they know they have one but don't care please help me and others kia Sorento is a very popular car and the more on the road with dim headlights the more people or at risk.

The low beam headlights are very dim when driving at night. Very hard to see unless high beams are activated. Even replaced bulbs with led's. Helped some, but not much.

Low beam headlights are so dim, si don't allow my wife to drive at night. Had dealer look at them and change bulbs with a small improvement, but after a while they have gotten so dim that even I don't like driving at night.

Two things- 1) headlights replaced in March and dim again, cannot see 50’ in front of the car. 2) driving on interstate the car sputtered and skipped and missed beats, would not go 55 mph. I left the interstate because it was night and cats were flying up on me. I was 140 miles from home and had to take a regular road at 10pm until 2am.

Sc197 completed 11/06/2020, sc212 completed 07/272021. Recently found brake fluid leak results on my garage floor several times, but not after each use of vehicle? also having to replace brake light bulbs often ,because apparently one will fail and all remaining stay on as if one was riding the brake pedal?.

I bought this car used and never thought to check any problems associated with headlights. The first time I drove it at night, I stopped to see if the lights were even working. I took it to my local garage who has taken care of all my vehicles from Chevrolet s10 to BMW x5. They changed out the bulbs and made no difference. He then contacted various auto parts companies to order the housing for both headlights. The part is priced approximately $600 to $700 each plus his labor. I don’t take this car on the road at night unless absolute necessity. I planned to drive this car for a short period and then give to my grandson. Now, not a chance. He would be safer on the road with a skateboard and a flashlight and he lives in the city of atlanta. Never have I driven a vehicle that felt more unsafe than this car. In the past, I had a commercial drivers license so I am capable of driving day, night, rain, and shine. Not in this car! this is a problem identified and reported for many years and appears no action has been taken to require kia to make the cars safe for drivers of their cars as well as the risk to other vehicles and drivers on the road.

My problem is with the headlights, in that the condenser lens for the low beam lights has clouded so badly that driving at night has become so dangerous. I have changed the bulbs twice in an effort to correct the problem to no avail. And with the sealed unit not able to be disassembled to clean the lens, my only option is to replace the units at approximately $800 each. This condition in my opinion should not have occurred.

The lowbeam headlights are extremely dim. The high beams are just fine, but the low beams are so dim that it's dangerous driving anywhere at night without the high beams on. I have replaced the bulbs, and a voltage test right before the headlight assembly show significantly less than the 12v standard. At night, when high beams are dangerous to other drivers, I mainly rely on the fog lights to provide at least a little bit of light. The fog lights are significantly brighter than the low beams, which seem nonexistent.

The headlights do not illuminate down the road. Visibility at night is greatly impaired. Taken to dealers twice. First dealer in nm said it was just the way they were. Second dealer in texas did realign the lights. Better but still very poor. I have installed the brightest bulbs allowed by law,.

The low beam headights are extremely dim. The outer headlight cover is not degraded. It appears to be the inner light cover that is fogged over (just for the low beam light). The lights are aimed appropriately, but you can barely see the road and obstacles at night. It is even worse when raining. The high beam headlights are functioning normally. The low beam lights are significantly dimmer than when it was new. There are no warning lights on the dash or error codes. I don't know exactly when the condition started, but it has gotten worse over time. This is extremely dangerous.

My vehicle was stuck in park. I noted that module 2 fuse was blown. I replaced the fuse and smelled smoke. I took my Sorento in to the local kia dealership for diagnosis. It was determined by a technician that the headlight level sensor and harness pigtail were both significantly melted. It was suggested by the tech to remove the level sensor and that has created a safety issue with the headlights pointing significantly low. The level sensor or headlight leveling system and harness connection are a potential fire hazard and if the component fails, this creates an additional unsafe driving condition with the headlights aiming low.

The headlights are dangerously dim. Purchased this vehicle used. Only used in the daytime the first months. My son started working night shifts and that's when we noticed that it did not light up in front of the vehicle. It was very minimal. I drove the car on a rainy evening and was terrified. Could not see in front of me. Had to drive next to cars to make sure I was in my lane. We cleaned the headlights, it did not improve. We purchased new and brighter bulbs. It is still too dim. It only lights up immediately in front of the vehicle and it is a very dim light. Light barely reaches maybe three feet in front of the vehicle, maybe only two. It is very dangerous. I am an experienced driver and I found it frightening to drive at night. My son is recently licensed and it does not feel safe to have him operate that vehicle.

Both low beam headlights no longer work although all fuses and bulbs have been verified to work. The high beam headlights do work. This appears to be the identical issue that 2011-2013 owners were dealing with. Https://static. Nhtsa. Gov/odi/tsbs/2019/mc-10159259-0001. Pdf. In this instance, the headlight connectors required replacement and kia extended the warranty to cover that work. Kia will not extend the warranty to 2015 model owners who are having the same problem and the dealership quotes a price of $1880 for just the parts alone.

Snow pearl white paint is chipping at various areas of the front portion of the vehicle. I was driving in heavy rain and then noticed a huge chunk just chipped off. Several owners with this paint color have complained of an issue this similar. Headlights are too dim at night. We have family who lives in the country with limited street light and we are forced to use our high beam lights to even see down the road. I turn on my fog lights to add extra light but it’s still hard to see further down the road.

The running lights on the front and rear drivers side work half of the time, the plate light seems to turn off when they do. They'll come on for a split second and then go out, or on a good day they'll stay on. Seems like a short in the wiring. It could be a safety issue at night!!!.

Upon accelerating causes a lot of exhaust smoke and bogs down so I can’t get out of the way and others behind me cannot see a thing. Two kia dealerships refused assistance. The first after I called 12/3 to report that my vehicle issue made additional hazard involving a semi (thank goodness no one wreaked) and it was still smoking and smelled as if something was burning. The other telling me it would be six months at least. The warning dashboard lights did not trigger during or after incidents. The only light that came on ever was the oil light the prior weekend. I had the oil changed, filters replaced as well as the headlights for the third time. Around 44k miles when issues started and escalated quickly. Other problems reported to arapaho kia a few years ago consisted of back passenger door not latching. Someone flagged me down on the highway as I had my daughter in her car seat on that side. No warning lights triggered, dealership unable to duplicate issue. Steering control keys controlling opposite functions or not working intermittently. Was told steering control harness needed replacement. Think that was at 18k miles but not sure. Did not have replaced at that time as it mainly affected radio functions hands free calling did stop working. I usually didn’t make calls in the car anyway. I was left with no other choice but to trade the vehicle in before something really bad happened or it self destructed leaving me without out a car still paying on. I could not be without a car for six months as peak kia quoted timeframe. Untimely fixing of recall on vehicle likely manifesting these other issues and causing additional damage to vehicle.

My low beam lives are so . Com at nite. It is very hard to see. I replaced with others. But they are dim and kept blowing out. Took to kia dealer for problem. They said I needed to purchase there factory bulbs. I had them replace both. And still they are to dim to drive at night. It is a very bad safety issue. Especially if it is raining out.

Low beam headlights are dangerously too dim on my 2015 kia Sorento lx. This is a well known reported issue by many owners. All drivers in my family had many close calls due to poor visibility when driving in the night. Yes I have changed lightbulbs several times, made sure that lenses and reflectors are clean and ground wire is not corroded. A simple search on the internet will tell you the extent of this problem. Many have reached to dealers and kia but they are told -this is normal. Well it is absolutely not normal. It’s dangerous. Feeling helpless. Lx trim level don’t have fog lights too. Do something please.

Headlights keep burning out. I've replaced the driver's side low-beam bulb seven times in the last year and the passenger side twice. Both are currently blown out again.

Head light low beams keep burning out on a frequent basis. Have to replace couple times a year. Have tried led lamps but no after market led lamps seem to fit correctly. Have not found any suitable led lamps to use. Halogens continue to burn out. Sometimes one light goes out and then will come back on. But always will eventually burn out before they should.

Vehicle has low visibility on low beam, even with aftermarket leds there is still low visibility with the low beams, car need to be driven on high beam and it is illegal to drive with high beams as you blind cars driving on opposite direction, and a fine could be impose as well.

The contact owns a 2015 kia Sorento. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle at night, the low-beam headlights were extremely dim, creating a visibility hazard for the driver. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who examined the vehicle but found no issues with the vehicle. The low-beam headlights were replaced however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 87,000.