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2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 3 of 61 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 23 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 21 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

2 crash reports1 fire reports4 injury reports

Power Train complaints

12 reports
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Mileage unknown · Feb 22, 2026
Electrical SystemEnginePower Train

The vehicle shows a Driver Assistance System Warning randomly. Then the vehicle is unable to accelerate past ~30MPH. We almost got hit when this happened. The warning does not show up in notifications nor does it show up in diagnostics. It gets reverts back to normal when the vehicle is turned off then turned back on. It seems t…

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The vehicle shows a Driver Assistance System Warning randomly. Then the vehicle is unable to accelerate past ~30MPH. We almost got hit when this happened. The warning does not show up in notifications nor does it show up in diagnostics. It gets reverts back to normal when the vehicle is turned off then turned back on. It seems to reset.

NHTSA ODI #11719729

3,000 miles · Nov 6, 2025
Power TrainVehicle Speed Control

The contact owns a 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle hesitated before accelerating while depressing the accelerator pedal. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was able to duplicate the failure; however, the vehicle was…

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The contact owns a 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle hesitated before accelerating while depressing the accelerator pedal. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was able to duplicate the failure; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed, and the cause of the failure was not yet determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ODI #11697908

Mileage unknown · Oct 2, 2025
Electrical SystemFuel/propulsion SystemPower Train

When the vehicle is idling, the battery refuses to charge, therefore, the car suddenly dies and makes it unsafe to pull over and dyes while driving, very dangerous and transmission doesn’t shift properly.

NHTSA ODI #11691088

Mileage unknown · Aug 27, 2025
EnginePower TrainVehicle Speed Control

The hybrid car intermittently switches into EV mode after coming to a complete stop (e.g., at a traffic signal or after briefly stopping to pick up my child). When this happens, the vehicle does not accelerate properly once back on the road and feels stuck in EV mode, unable to accelerate beyond ~45 mph. This creates a safety co…

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The hybrid car intermittently switches into EV mode after coming to a complete stop (e.g., at a traffic signal or after briefly stopping to pick up my child). When this happens, the vehicle does not accelerate properly once back on the road and feels stuck in EV mode, unable to accelerate beyond ~45 mph. This creates a safety concern when merging or crossing intersections.

NHTSA ODI #11683507

Mileage unknown · May 9, 2025
Power TrainVehicle Speed Control

The Kia Carnival Hybrid wouldn't allow me to accelerate, topping out at 30/31 MPH despite me fully pressing down on the accelerator. It has happened twice now (a few days apart) and can only be resolved by turning the car off and then back on. Compared to similar complaints logged on the NHTSA website, the difference is that thi…

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The Kia Carnival Hybrid wouldn't allow me to accelerate, topping out at 30/31 MPH despite me fully pressing down on the accelerator. It has happened twice now (a few days apart) and can only be resolved by turning the car off and then back on. Compared to similar complaints logged on the NHTSA website, the difference is that this happened when it was roughly 50-60 degrees outside--not during extremely low temperatures as the other examples have described.

NHTSA ODI #11659865

Mileage unknown · Apr 5, 2025
Fuel/propulsion SystemPower Train

Vehicle lost power and would not accelerate past 30 mph even when fully pressing down on the accelerator. After a few minutes a warning flashed to check vehicle hybrid system. Pulling over to the shoulder and restarting the car returned the car to normal operation.

NHTSA ODI #11652939

Mileage unknown · Mar 9, 2025
Power Train

The shifter would indicate it's in neutral but the car would think it's in drive. The car was immobilized and could not be moved when hitting the accelerator. This happened in the middle of Baltimore. I had to 'reboot' the car to get it to work, 3-4 times, while sitting in traffic. Problem has surfaced multiple times and is cu…

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The shifter would indicate it's in neutral but the car would think it's in drive. The car was immobilized and could not be moved when hitting the accelerator. This happened in the middle of Baltimore. I had to 'reboot' the car to get it to work, 3-4 times, while sitting in traffic. Problem has surfaced multiple times and is currently at the dealer for this issue. Was recreatable at the dealer. This was after some issue with the hybrid system on the highway where the electrical part of the drive train was inoperable and I had put it in park at a stop light to to try and see if that would fix it. I know the electrical part was inoperable because of how sluggish the car was and the car itself was saying Regen options were not available and the hybrid battery was drained to 0.

NHTSA ODI #11647191

Mileage unknown · Feb 28, 2025
Power TrainVehicle Speed Control

I own a 2025 Kia Carnival SX Prestige Hybrid, and the vehicle intermittently fails to exceed 31 mph when the outside temperature is cold, typically in the single digits or low teens. This issue occurs when I use the remote start system and get into the car to leave for work around 6:50 to 7 am. I have not attempted to replicate …

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I own a 2025 Kia Carnival SX Prestige Hybrid, and the vehicle intermittently fails to exceed 31 mph when the outside temperature is cold, typically in the single digits or low teens. This issue occurs when I use the remote start system and get into the car to leave for work around 6:50 to 7 am. I have not attempted to replicate this without using the remote start. I have taken the vehicle to the dealership, and they are aware of the problem. They have attempted to recreate the issue but were unable to do so. I have also provided them with a video of the situation and have multiple videos documenting the occurrence.

NHTSA ODI #11645673

Mileage unknown · Feb 24, 2025
Power Train

When driving the vehicle it would not accelerate beyond 31 mph. We were in traffic so not being able to drive the speed limit posed a risk of other vehicles hitting us. Also when merging into highway speed traffic this was very unsafe. No warning limits or check engine lights came on and the dealer can not replicate the issue no…

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When driving the vehicle it would not accelerate beyond 31 mph. We were in traffic so not being able to drive the speed limit posed a risk of other vehicles hitting us. Also when merging into highway speed traffic this was very unsafe. No warning limits or check engine lights came on and the dealer can not replicate the issue nor can they tell us why this happened.

NHTSA ODI #11644663

Mileage unknown · Feb 20, 2025
Power Train

While driving in the cold the hybrid vehicle will not go over 31 miles an hour. I was turning on to a road that is 45mph and unable to reach a safe speed with traffic. This has happened twice to me now. The dealer can not make it repeat the issue at this time and no warning lights come on.

NHTSA ODI #11643993

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.