general problems of the 2018 Kia Motor Sportage

Took my car for the theft recall and had it performed, my vehicle was stolen last night and the theft used a usb charging cable to steal it, the recall did not fix this.

This vehicle has a safety issue with the headlights. Basically, the low beams for both, driver and passenger sides are not functioning at all. Several diagnostic have been done to repair the existing issue such as replacing new light bulbs, new oem turn signal switch, replacing whole new headlight assembly for both driver/ passenger sides, checking the relay, replacing new fuses, though, the issue still exists to date and the vehicle is undrivable in the dark. On a side not, only high beam works and turn signals, that is basically it. Several auto service centers have advised me to submit a report as a safety issues since all options have been exhausted. With that said, this safety issue concerning headlight should be addressed with the manufacturer. Thank you for taking this matter seriously!.

My 2018 kia Sportage (VIN [xxx] ) experienced complete engine failure due to low compression/internal combustion chamber failure. The vehicle lost power while driving on sept 30, 2025, and had to be towed to [xxx] kia in dayton, OH. This same dealership previously performed an oil retention test in Aug 2024 which failed, identifying a defective engine. Kia was aware of the issue but declined to replace the engine at that time. The failure pattern matches kia’s known engine defect. Kia consumer affairs (case #25572677) has denied goodwill assistance despite this safety-related engine failure and prior diagnostic documentation. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Driver power window regulator stopped working. It is available for inspection upon request. My safety is at risk because it can hinder my ability to exit the car in an emergency. In addition, it is exposing the car's interior and possibly interior electrical parts to the weather elements, and potentially leaving me vulnerable to theft or intrusion. The problem was intermittent at first, and I reported it to the dealer, but at that time of service, they were unable to reproduce the failure. The service department told me this is a fairly common problem with my model of car. The component has not been inspected by kia, the police, insurance representatives, or others. The symptoms were intermittent at first prior to the total failure. The full failure happened at 101,500 miles, which is past the 100,000 mile warranty expiration.

The contact owned a 2018 kia Sportage. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted into first gear. While attempting to accelerate, the vehicle jerked and briefly lost motive power before slamming into gear. No warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that an abnormal burning odor was coming from under the hood and entered the vehicle through the a/c vents. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, no cause for the failure was found. The thermostat and the electric switch on the driver’s side window were replaced. The contact stated that while driving uphill or going downhill, the rpm fluctuated, and the engine revved abnormally. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Wiring harness that goes to the battery and alternator had melted plastic, fried battery and alternator.

On 1/26/2024 approximately 9am, my husband had been driving on the highway for about 2 hours and pulled over to shut his eyes for a few minutes. He shut off the engine, closed his eyes and immediately smelled smoke. Black smoke began coming from under the hood and quickly got worse. He quickly got out of the car and walked away. He heard a loud pop sound and the engine area was engulfed in flames. He called 911. It took about 10 min for the fire dept to arrive and by then, the fire was being fed by the gas in the tank. They tried to put out the fire but the car burnt completely due to the gasoline. No one was hurt, thank goodness. There were no active lawsuits that I could find to get some compensation for this loss. We had to pay our high deductible and lost personal belongings in the car. This car did have an ongoing oil consumption issue. We had to replace the oil more frequently than normally required and it used much more oil than normal. We were told we had to wait for engine failure to get any kind of resolution.

The plugs for the engine cooling fan and wiring harness were damaged from overheating. No fuses blew, plugs were melted and wiring was discolored from overheating. Estimate for repair was: parts (cooling fan assembly, and wiring harness)- $2430. 19 plus tax, labor 8hrs @ $175. 00/hr- $1400, total cost to replace the cooling fan and wiring harness- $3830. 19 plus tax. Overheating of the wiring harness poses a significant risk of a short circuit and potential engine fire. The problem was identified by the kia dealer. No warning lamps, blown fuses, or messages warning of the problem. We smelled smoke on a couple of occasions. Unable to afford the repairs, we traded the vehicle in at a Honda dealer.

The contact owned a 2018 kia Sportage. The contact stated that the vehicle was stolen while parked in front of her residence. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously taken to a dealer and the anti-theft logic and sticker upgrade per NHTSA id number: 10233650 (electrical system) was performed. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2018 kia Sportage. The contact stated that he received a notification for NHTSA campaign number: 22v703000 (trailer hitches) however, the part was not available to complete the recall. The contact stated that the manufacturer was notified of the issue however no remedy timeframe was available. The contact stated that the manufacturer has exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall remedy. The contact has not experienced a failure. The contact was concerned that he had to park the vehicle outside as he had heard reports of vehicles being stolen by the use of a usb cord. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

My car was stolen from the kia challenge.

The tow hitch can apparently start a fire. I can not afford to rent a car & must use mine as I am disabled & have a mother with dementia, so I need my vehicle. Kia still has not resolved this issue. This recall has been open since September, 10 months! this is the third recall for this vehicle, one has a current lawsuit.

Electrical system keeps on shortening out the brake lights.

Kia motors is at it again, my disabled husband took car in twice to dealer, who is licensed to sell and fix your vehicles , promised loaner car, on fixed income, fighting cancer, see attached documents, emails from kia, been going on 7 years, first soul now Sportage. Courtesy kia of brandon , months back came to our home and allegedly did the latest recall on fuses, thought that was done, courtesy kia of brandon told my husband no outstanding recalls, now kia writes and states needs to be done? who is keeping records. We had ksds put on couple years ago, then car went into limp mode almost got my husband killed. Kia had our car towed, brought loaner. We cannot afford rental. That was halfway repair with ext on wiring harness???, now lights on dash going on and off. See attached, kia could care less and now, we were lied to? the person they sent didn't repair the fuses? kia paid the government a fortune in fines but the defective car owners are always in danger and always getting the run around. Sara mcshane, mr. Butiedge, plz excuse spelling. Even mike from safety organization says these cars need to be off the road. Our car is malfunctioning, and we were blatantly lied to is recall on fuses? repair. Senator rubio helped with this, we need someone to step up. Joseph mraz jr and julie mraz, see all documents going back to 2015.

I was driving and the radio went out along with navigation screen, then power steering went out along with headlights, tail lights. Engine was still running but would not rev up. All kinds of warning lights went off, had a harder time steering vehicle out of the road way. Engine eventually shut off. My dealer said my starter had a continuous draw on my battery and drained it. This was on 11/10/21. They replaced the starter and the battery. Got vehicle back on 11/10. Last night 11/18/21 I was driving my vehicle again at night and the same thing happened again, no lights, no power steering, no electronics in the vehicle worked. Got someone to jump my vehicle, we let it charge from the jumper and got the vehicle started again. Drove 4 miles down the road, same thing again. Had my wife come there and we again put jumper cables on for 20 minutes, was able to drive the vehicle home, did notice this time I had a check engine light. Have scheduled an appointment with my dealer again. I feel that on a dark country road with limited areas to pull over with no headlights or tail lights or 4 way flashers I could have easily been rear ended. I did have cars pass me and blow their horn at me, did finally make it to a cross road with a street light and got off the main road. The dealer has not set an appointment yet, vehicle would be available for inspection, if needed.

Kia knowing that they are selling nothing but junk to consumers are refusing to provide any assistance to customers whom pay 25+k for their trash called vechicles. Kia has recalled my vechicle 2× now for motor and ecu problems and now my vechicle is having electrical problems and had to be towed to a dealership to be looked at. This dealership is not looking to find out where the electrician problem is coming from and when I contact kia America they are refusing any assistance to help me get their 25k piece of trash back on the road. When is the nthsa going to do something and hold these car companies responsible for the junk they are selling!!!.

Car dash lights will go dim and when I drive I feel like I'm not getting enough power and when I drive my car will pull.

According to kia which they posted at their website, electrical circuit within hecu may experience excessive current, thereby increasing the risk of an engine compartment fire. Took the car to dealer, had no parts, as of 4/12/21 no kia dealer has this part. Called kia, they supposedly going to ship parts end of April. They have no concern about public safety, despite I told them I can rent a car but you have to pay for it, that declined. Question is, why they haven't informed public and send the hecu parts to their dealers sooner? taking risk to drive a car which has potential to cut fire seems not safe and displays kia negligence.

While driving at low speed the engine cuts off. Also while trying to start the engine nothing happens . Totally dead,no warning ligths come on . Have battery check,no problem found,jump start every thing seems to be normal. This happen in several occasions.

When you turn off the car via push button the car engine won’t shut off. The computer system shuts down but the engine continues to run. I’ve taken to the dealership three times to repair and it is still an issue. Engine isn’t diesel’ing as the gas pedal still works with the car off. When this happens the vehicles computer system itself is fully off. Kia roadside won’t dispatch in this situation as they say “they aren’t mechanics”. The only thing you can do to shut the car off no matter how many times you attempt to restart is to go inside the engine compartment and pull the fuel pump fuse and starve the engine. There is no difference in engine sound between the on and off computer state, car is quiet so it could be easily missed by someone not paying attention. The car doors will not lock in this situation. Originally when this happened the car would throw tons of codes (I have it on video) now after the supposed fix (aka the computer update for the recall that was supposed to fix my issue) it no longer throws any codes. Now when the issue happens the vehicle appears to actually shut down fully except you can hear the engine not shutting down but not a single code registers. Shifter is completely locked out in this situation and will not re-engage until the engine has been choked out.

The entire car caught fire. All electric wires caught fire and the car it was park in my house .

All electrical malfunction and loss of steering and brakes resulting in heading crash.