general problems of the 2016 Kia Motor Sorento - part 1

Dear sir or madam, I am submitting a formal safety complaint to the national highway traffic safety administration regarding my kia Sorento. Over the past six months, this vehicle has required replacement of the engine, transmission control module (tcm), and the entire transmission. Although the engine and transmission were replaced at no cost to me, the extent of these major repairs within such a short period raises serious concerns about the vehicle’s overall safety and reliability. In mid-January, shortly after picking up the vehicle from the dealership following the transmission replacement, the vehicle suddenly stalled while I was driving through an intersection. The engine lost power without warning, leaving me stopped in active traffic. To get the vehicle moving again, I had to shift into park, turn the engine completely off, and then restart it before it would drive again. This unexpected loss of power in the middle of an intersection created a dangerous situation with oncoming traffic approaching. Thankfully, my children were not in the vehicle at the time. After repeated major component failures and this stalling incident, I no longer feel safe driving this vehicle. A vehicle that loses power without warning poses a serious risk to the driver, passengers, and other motorists. I respectfully request a thorough investigation into this matter, including whether there are known defects, recalls, or related complaints involving this model. I am prepared to provide repair records and documentation upon request. Sincerely, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Our 2016 kia Sorento had 96k miles on it, my 2. 4 liter, v4 gdi engine. I was driving it to my house on the streets, when the vehicle it completes died on me in the middle of the streets, it won't turn on, had it tow to my house. Made an appointment to take it to body shop on 2/12/2026, when it died while driving it to the auto shop, won't turn on, had it tow to auto shop. It has been burning oil for quite a while, keep putting engine oil very often. Auto shop confirmed vehicle found no codes, inspect engine oil, engine oil is very dark, manually rotated engine crankshaft, found engine seized. Vehicle has internal engine damage, possible connecting to the rods and bearings damage. Estimated repair is 9k. It is available for inspection.

2016 kia sorrento ex paint is coming off in panels and different areas of car. I called kia and they cant do anything about it.

The shifter is not working have to use shift lock release.

I was leaving my home and was pulling out of my driveway when my vehicle suddenly caught fire. I was able to exit the vehicle with no injuries and called the fire department to put out the fire. The vehicle was a total loss. There were no warning signs, the car just caught on fire in the engine and spread fast.

On [xxx], our 2016 kia Sorento (VIN: [xxx] ) caught fire while being driven on a public highway in houston, texas. The vehicle had been operating normally and displayed no warning lights, alerts, or diagnostic trouble codes prior to the incident. The driver was forced to pull over immediately for safety. The fire caused catastrophic damage and resulted in a total loss of the vehicle. Law enforcement authorized towing and impound. Photographs and third-party documentation confirm extensive fire damage. Prior to this incident, the vehicle had a clean title with no accident, fire, or salvage history. The 2016 kia Sorento model year has been subject to multiple safety recalls, including recalls that acknowledge fire risk related to electrical and fuel system components. A vehicle igniting during normal operation without warning presents a serious safety risk and warrants investigation. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Head gasket leaking, yes causes engine to overheat. Radiator looses coolant and backs up into overflow. Makes heat and ac flow coolant fumes into vehicle. No longer clear air. Not yet. Still researching. Independent mechanics shop. No there was no warning when the vehicle overheated.

Paint is bubbling and peeling off. Been to the dealership and they don’t seem to want to help. I have an extended warranty on the paint until 12/29/2025. They’re giving me the runaround.

For about 23,000 miles our mechanic has mentioned that the engine is burning oil. The exhaust pipe is covered in black soot. I monitor the oil level and it is always low even after oil changes with no oil leak. This has been provided to kia with no remedy. Recently our Sorento was in a busy highway and the check engine, oil and battery lights came on and the car went into limp mode. We had the vehicle towed to kia chula vista and the engine will be replaced by them. My concern is that the catalytic converter will soon fail and the engine issues need to be addressed for all of these makes/models before someone gets seriously hurt or killed.

Shifter lock is engaged and would not shift from park unless I bypass the lock by pressing the release. It was a recall item, I had it replaced, but if failed a few days later. I called the dealership, I told them about the problem. They told me they replaced it and I could bring it in for a $200 diagnoses fee, but it would not be covered as it was replaced already. I was made to feel like I was the one that was causing it to fail. I have the paperwork but am not sure on the accurate date.

I now believe I've had a lemon. Since I purchased my car in 2016 they have been trying to diagnose a smell from the exhaust and started replacing parts, this was in miami. Then for a few years in vegas the car spent months at the dealership trying to fix a burning oil issue which I've been told there is a known problem with the turbo still isn't fixed. From the first year I had paint peeling on my snow white pearl color which has numerous forums about kia/Hyundai paint issues especially with my color. I had them repaint the hood which took twice after the bad job the first time. I saw little bumps in the paint which I thought was over-spray from that incident and now I have peeling from one of those spots which is how they form from what I read. My car is 2016 but only has 65k miles. The spot now is getting bigger by the week, the rain isn't helping. There are other spots around the edges and a big spot on the roof and others I've already filled in with a paint pen which looks ugly. If you see my car, inside and out it looks pretty close to new from the way I've taken care of the car. The paint started in August of 2016 but most recently 2025. The engine issues were day one but most recently 2024 they fixed a cylinder that got a hole in it after consuming all the oil and it seems to be headed down that path with the remedy they are offering at kia. The engine and paint should be convered under a class action lawsuit or recall to hold them accountable and fix the issues.

My traction control light is on along with my abs sensor light and another light indication red figure with like a stop sign only when someone in passenger seat as well as a exhaust issue my vehicle sounds loud driving out of no where.

Paint peeling everywhere an innocent burning excessive oil.

I was driving my Sorento sxl on a highway, at approximately 50 mph. With no warning, the engine began to run rough. The check engine light immediately began flashing. I was able to drive the car approximately three more miles to an auto service center. The engine ran very rough the entire time, wanting to stall when slowing down. The mechanic determined that my car’s oil reservoir was 4 quarts low, yet no engine oil light ever illuminated on the dashboard. It holds 6. 2 quarts, and had only 2. 2 quarts in it. Again, there was no illuminated light whatsoever telling me my car was dangerously low on oil. Because of this low oil condition, one of my timing chains skipped, and the cam rotated approximately 62° out of center. That’s what caused it to run rough. It appears my only options now are to have the engine apart, and hope no real damage was done, or replace it entirely. The engine for my car has been discontinued, with seemingly no suitable replacement from kia. This could have been completely avoided if my car had alerted me to a low oil condition sometime before. This is very dangerous and it seems it is a common ailment among some kia cars like mine. A low oil light would have informed me immediately that my car was in need of oil, a critical fluid for proper and safe operation. If I were towing a trailer when this happened, or on a winding stretch of road in snow or ice, this could have been catastrophic.

My 2016 kia Sorento has a paint peeling on the hood and roof. I have reached out to corporate but they will not help due to expired warranty. Learned on fb group chat that the paint is defective also the same color paint white pearl. Have you had any other complaints?any idea on what I need to do? thanks.

Driving on the frwy when car started loosing power/acceleration, no warning lights or indicators on dashboard. Safely able to merge off the frwy. Turned off vehicle, engine would not turn back on. But all the dash lights came up as warning including engine light. Started to smell like burnt. Open the hood and it smelled like burning oil. Towed my vehicle & under the vehicle a pool of engine oil. Dealer confirmed engine seized. When repairs began water pump was damaged & engine mounts due to engine seizing.

Car paint peeling.

As I was driving on the highway, my car began to lose speed. I attempted to accelerate but nothing happened when I pushed the gas pedal. There were no weird noises or rpm changes as if revving. I pulled onto the shoulder and slowed to a stop. If there had been more traffic on the highway I would not have been able to get to the shoulder without causing an accident. There were no warning signs or indicator lights before the loss of ability to accelerate. When I restarted the car, an "engine control" system warning appeared on the screen. I continued driving, staying in the right lane with hazard lights. The same thing happened a few more times on my drive home. I would lose the ability to accelerate, pull over, turn off the car, wait a moment, turn it back on and drive until it happened again. The car has not been expected yet but I have noticed small oil puddles when parked, which hadn't happened before this incident.

The rear camera on my 2016 kia Sorento no longer works. Over the past year, the camera images have been getting blurry and smaller. Now, there is no indication or warning of cars or people behind my vehicle, which is a safety concern. I found online that there is a recall on the rear camera for this model, but the dealership claims they haven't been informed. I'm worried about the safety risks this presents.

Unknown.

I was pulled over by the state police. He said I had a few lights out including a brake light out. I got out to check. This was correct. I had just had my vehicle inspected so I was surprised. I went to leave I couldn't put it in gear at all. I had to over ride the shifter and use a pen to push in the tow button everytime I want to use my vehicle. I have to check my lights and make sure no bulbs are blown out again. This is a $1200 fix. It's recalled on certain 2016 kia Sorentos but not on all of them when it is happening to all of us. Also I went to open my rear hatch and that to is now not opening at all. So that is also not a recall. I have a back hatch that won't open and I have to climb through my back seats and open it from the lever in the door frame and the shifter doesn't work. Please help us!! we need these recalls! if there is an accident it would be nice to open the back up from the key to grab things and run. Or to shift fast and hurry to get away from a robber. Or to just have my vehicle back again and stop doing this when there are recalls for vehicles south different VIN numbers but not mine so I have to pay so some one else can get it for free that's not fair kia corporate.

Headlights turn off by themselves at night.

White paint chipping fast.

I want to report the incident occurred on July 30, 2024 when I turned on the ignition. I pressed the brake to shift the transmission to the drive/reverse mode from park mode. The shift stick was stuck at one position park and did not move. I searched on line and found that I could manually shift the car and get the car moving at least by removing the cap next to the shift stick and insert a screw driver to press it inside. This allowed me to change the gear and move the car temporarily. Since, my car is parked and I am not driving it fearing it would stop instantly on my putting my life and others in danger. The vehicle has not been troubleshooted by kia dealership or mechanic. I would like NHTSA that this vehicles be recalled for safety concerns and fix the issue without any charge to the owners.

The snow white pearl paint is coming off of the vehicle due to issue of the paint is not adhering to the sealant coat on the car. This is causing big chunks of paint being removed when it rains heavily. Kia knows about this issue, when I talked to a manager at their body shop he informed me that this is a ongoing issue with this paint color. Kia doesn't want to take ownership of the problem.

The paint on my car is peeling off. Attached is pictures of the top of the back door window(in back of the driver’s seat)and the flap on top of the back window. The paint is snow white.

In April 2022, I received a letter dated April 7, 2022, informing me of an extended warranty coverage for the oil pressure switch leak in 2014-2018 Sorento vehicles equipped with the 3. 3l gdi engine, extending from 5 years/60,000 miles to 15 years/150,000 miles. Additionally, I was notified of an important safety recall (NHTSA recall number: 22v612) indicating a defect that could lead to vehicle rollaway, significantly increasing the risk of a crash and injury. The letter assured me that kia would inspect and, if necessary, replace the shift lock lever and holder at no cost. I took the vehicle in for inspection in may and the vehicle has not been returned to me yet. The vehicle has been at the dealership with no indication on when the issues would be remedied. The vehicle is used for services to minority and low income youth and it appears that the company does not care about bipoc safety.

My 2016 kia seronto was fine wasn’t throwing any codes not even the code that tells me my oil is low. But always kept it changed and maintained never had a problem with it only the code that says 02 sensor then I started having an exhaust leak near my engine it was getting so hot to the point it was catching my carpet inside my car on fire so I had to pull up the carpet that never bother me or made an issue for the car I was driving and it started knocking like a rod knock I check the oil and there’s oil in it with no metal shavings or a creamy color to it. Car still starts gets louder when the rpms go up so I’m just a bit confused to what happened when I kept my oil changed and my car never warned me of any problems and only thru a code for the O2 sensor I seen the recall for different kia for the rod knock sensor detection so could that have happened to my kia since it just messed up without any time of warning please let me know at 8289251610.

I keep having problems with the brake lights and all of the back lights, have fixed or replaced them 7 to 8 times in the last 2 years, and my passenger door will not lock, know another person that has a kia that has the same problem.

The gear post has been stuck in park for at least 3 days. I have to keep using the screwdriver method jut to get it in reverse. Everytime I make a stop and get back in the car have to use the screwdriver. I've had the car since January 16th never had this problem.

The engine (I think engine) stalls out, and several times the engine has completely died. Almost causing me and the other car involved a very serious accident. The vehicle stalls when sitting at the traffic light and I go to turn to accelerate and it stalls and after pushing/tapping the gas pedal repeatedly it will eventually stop and I'm able to then drive on. Also the car does not shift properly at all, it winds up and seems the get stuck and have to try accelerate before it shift. I keep getting errors on my dash saying "possible engine condition, please press schedule service" and then I run the diagnostic report and this is what it says category (2) powertrain p0456 evaporative emission system - leak detected (very small leak) possible condition(s) with your engine control system has been detected. Kla recommends a full system check when convenient. To schedule an appointment with a kia dealer, select schedule service on the screen. P0303 cylinder 3 - misfire detected possible condition(s) with your engine control system has been detected. Kia recommends a full system check soon. To schedule an appointment with a kia dealer, select schedule service on the screen. Request appointment I have taken my vehicle in the kia service center twice and have given them the errors and described the issues I am having along with several other issues. The kia service department has failed to provide me with a resolution to the problem stated above or any other issues I reported. They didn't even check oil as I requested. They advised me the oil levels were "fine" but once I checked it myself it was actually low, proofing they did not do any type inspection on the vehicle as requested. The advised me that there was nothing they could do about the stalling of the vehicle or the engine shutting down because they couldn't duplicate it. I'm not sure exactly what they are meaning by the statement. I then called kia corporate number and the representative submitted a case onveh.

Paint peeling and bubbling. Started at 45,000 miles and is now very bad on good, above windshield this makes my car look terrible I see many other pearl white ones with this issue. Kia stated paint is not in warranty. I feel they should honor the quality of their paint on cars.

Steering on car felt sticky or as if power steering was not working. It seems to be an intermittent problem occurring mostly at highway speeds of approximately 60 mph. It seems to be a safety issue because steering feels unresponsive to feel of steering wheel. Dealer says that I will have to bring it in where they can diagnose to confirm. If problem continues I will take it in to be checked. Vehicle has not given any warnings or indications of problems/service needed. The problem was first noticed on 02/12/2024 and then again on 02/23/2024.

The shift suddenly locked when put in park. . . Need to use the shift lock release to unlock it.

The had the same oil leakage recall fixed two times by a dealership which it is still leaking bad! that was said to be an oil pressure switch. My trunk also will not open.