Three problems related to front seat belt buckle assembly have been reported for the 1996 Kia Motor Sportage. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
The driver-side seat belt fastener will not work. I have contacted kia, but they say that this item is not covered by warranty. I have not abused this piece of equipment and I have never had a seat belt fail (in any other car-- nor heard of this) because it comes unlatched. I am really concerned about this as it seems I will need to pay for the new seat belt fastener. Ts.
While driving, seat belt detaches. When driving more than 35-40 mph consumer has to depress brakes harder than usual. Consumer states there was an accident and that there were problems with the belts detaching 2-3 months prior to the accident, one person was injured in the accident, consumer did not list the cause of the accident.
Shortly after purchasing the vehicle, consumer noticed that upon leaning forward the set belt latch came undone. This happened twice. Consumer was involved in an automobile accident in March. Another auto hit consumer pushing the vehicle into a tree. The seat belt unlatched and consumer was thrown into the passenger side windshield. Consumer suffered head, neck and shoulder injuries.
| Front Seat Belt Anchorage problems | |
| Front Seat Belt Buckle Assembly problems | |
| Rear Seat Belt problems |