IllustrationMy car was hit in an accident & my air bag light popped on but they didn’t deploy. The light is still on and that was over 2 months ago.
2014 Kia Forte
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Forte years
Owner complaints for the 2014 Kia Forte are substantially higher than the model-year median of 141.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Forte years →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
420–25K
2325–50K
5350–75K
5475–100K
64100–150K
26150K+
262 reports with mileage · 178 unknown
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.
- Engine. Review the 214 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 62 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
32 crash reports36 fire reports23 injury reports
Air Bags complaints
62 reportsUnknown had the car only 2 years and the air bag light came on and they have never has been deployed
My Kia Forte when I put it in reverse it will jerk back then pause and hardly push itself backwards I have no control same as putting the car into Drive. I also consistently hear water in the bottom of my car swishing around.
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who reset the air bag warning light; however, the warning light immediately returned. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and i…
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The contact owns a 2014 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who reset the air bag warning light; however, the warning light immediately returned. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed her that there were no recalls on the VIN. The contact was then referred to the NHTSA for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.
Airbag light stays on all the time. Brake lights constantly burning out breaking system system will skidvover grates at bumps. Car will scrape over roads. All steering wheel functions not working
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Forte. The contact stated that her vehicle hydroplaned while driving at 65 MPH, which caused her to lose control of vehicle. The contact hit the right guardrail three times on the passenger side of her vehicle. The air bags did not deploy after multiple impacts. The contact nor her passenger needed m…
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The contact owns a 2014 Kia Forte. The contact stated that her vehicle hydroplaned while driving at 65 MPH, which caused her to lose control of vehicle. The contact hit the right guardrail three times on the passenger side of her vehicle. The air bags did not deploy after multiple impacts. The contact nor her passenger needed medical assistance; however, they did both suffer minor scrapes and soreness. A police report was filed. The vehicle was initially towed to an independent tow yard but was then towed to the contact's home where it remained in her possession. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be deemed destroyed. The failure mileage was approximately 119,000.
In May 2021 my daughter was in a bad car accident while driving my 2014 Kia Forte. The airbags did not go off and the seatbelts never tightened. Fortunately her and her passenger were not seriously injured and only received bruises on their knees and sore necks. There was so much damage to the front end of the car it was totaled…
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In May 2021 my daughter was in a bad car accident while driving my 2014 Kia Forte. The airbags did not go off and the seatbelts never tightened. Fortunately her and her passenger were not seriously injured and only received bruises on their knees and sore necks. There was so much damage to the front end of the car it was totaled by our insurance company. No warning lights were seen that day or even prior to the accident showing that the airbags weren't working properly. My car was not part of 6/18/18 Kia Forte recall#SC165 for airbags and seatbelts. The recall was for Kia Forte 2010-2013. While my Kia was a 2014, I did take possess of it in 2013. Starting in January 2014 I brought the car back to the dealership many times because of all the electric issues I was having with it. Since the dealership could not replicate the codes while the car was there Kia refused to look into or fix the problems. Electrical issues included doors not unlocking, doors not being able to be opened from inside or outside, windows not opening, headlights coming on while the car was parked, emergency flashers turning on without pushing the button, while driving traction/anti-slide light came on without a reason.
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Forte. The contact stated while driving at 55 MPH, the air bags warning light illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure but the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 125,000.
I received a letter of a recall on the airbag. I contacted coughlin kia. They state there in no recall. The airbag light is on like the recall stated.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 KIA FORTE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAGS AND CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT EXCEED 40 MPH WITH THE SPEEDOMETER INOPERABLE. THE CONTACT ACTIVATED THE HAZARD LIGHTS AND DROVE SLOWLY UNTIL THE VEHICLE REGAINED NORMAL FUNCTIONALITY. THE C…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 KIA FORTE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAGS AND CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT EXCEED 40 MPH WITH THE SPEEDOMETER INOPERABLE. THE CONTACT ACTIVATED THE HAZARD LIGHTS AND DROVE SLOWLY UNTIL THE VEHICLE REGAINED NORMAL FUNCTIONALITY. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO RAY BRANDT KIA (1884 WESTBANK EXPY, HARVEY, LA 70058, (504) 356-7072) WHERE THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 20V750000 (ENGINE) HOWEVER, THE WARNING LIGHTS REMAINED ILLUMINATED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 90,000.
Official recalls
320V750000 · Engine
Dec 2, 2020
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2012-2013 Sorento, 2012-2015 Forte and Forte Koup, 2011-2013 Optima Hybrid, 2014-2015 Soul, and 2012 Sportage vehicles. An engine compartment fire can occur while driving.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An engine compartment fire increases the risk of injury.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the engine compartment for fuel and/or engine oil leaks, perform an engine test and make any repairs, including engine replacement, as necessary, free of charge. In addition, Kia dealers will update the Knock Sensor Detection System (KSDS) software, free of charge. The recall began January 27, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC200.
17V773000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:pedals And Linkages
Dec 1, 2017
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2012-2014 Forte and Forte Koup vehicles. The brake pedal stopper pad can deteriorate allowing the brake light switch plunger to remain extended when the brake pedal is released. This will allow the brake lights to remain illuminated continuously. It can also allow the shift lever to be moved without depressing the brake pedal, or activate the engine management brake pedal override feature.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the brake light switch plunger does not retract as it should when the brake pedal is not being pressed, the brake lights may stay illuminated preventing accurate communication to following vehicles that the vehicle is slowing or stopping. Additionally, if the brake switch plunger is not retracted, then the transmission can be shifted out of PARK without depressing the brake pedal. Either condition increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake pedal stopper pad, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 30, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC158.
15V015000 · Electrical System
Jan 16, 2015
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2014 Kia Forte vehicles manufactured December 5, 2012, to April 17, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the cooling fan resistor may overheat and melt.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the cooling fan resistor overheats and melts, there is an increased risk of a vehicle fire.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and for vehicles produced from December 5, 2012 to January 27, 2014, dealers will replace the cooling fan resistor and multi-fuse unit. For vehicles produced from January 28, 2014 to April 17, 2014, dealers will replace the multi-fuse unit only. Owners of vehicles with a 1.8L engine will also have the engine control unit software updated. The recall began on February 20, 2015. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC113.
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
1EA21003 · Engine Fires
Opened Dec 22, 2021 · Closed Feb 5, 2024
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine
On March 29, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened two Preliminary Evaluations (PE19-003 on Hyundai and PE19-004 on Kia) to broadly investigate incidents of non-crash fires (regardless of origin or operational status of the vehicle) on various model year Hyundai and Kia vehicles. During the PE investigations, Hyundai and Kia issued several recalls to address vehicle fires, including those due to engine failures involving various engine types. The remedies for the engine failure recalls typically involve engine inspection (to detect existing damage), and if necessary, engine replacement. Additionally, both manufacturers have been installing an engine control software modification known as Knock Sensor Detection Software (KSDS) which is intended to detect impending engine failure, alert the driver, and limit engine power (to lessen likelihood of engine failure).KSDS is being installed under recalls and non-safety field actions, and both companies have extended limited engine warranties (see recall files). On December 22, 2021, ODI upgraded PE19-003 and PE19-004 to this Engineering Analysis (EA21-003, covering both Hyundai and Kia) to evaluate the scope of the prior recalls related to engine failures/fires and the efficacy of the recall remedies for the recalls, as well as the long-term viability of related programs and non-safety field actions being conducted by Hyundai and Kia. The former issue involved approximately 550,000 MY 2013 Hyundai Elantra, MY 2011 Kia Sorento, and MY 2012-2015 Kia Rio. The latter issue involved approximately 2.5 million recalled vehicles, which have been identified as displaying potential remedy concerns: Hyundai recalls 15V-568, 17V-226, 20V-746, and 21V-727; and Kia recalls 17V-224, 19V-120, 20V-750, and 21V-844. Regarding the recall scope issue, among all of the scope vehicles identified at EA opening, ODI found only the MY 2011 Kia Sorento vehicles equipped with both the Theta II 2.4L 4-cylinder Multi-Point Injection (MPI) and the Lambda II 3.5L 6-cylinder MPI engines experienced relatively high rates of reported fires. In December 2023, Kia issued recall 23V-877 that will cover about 80,000 MY 2011 Kia Sorento vehicles equipped with the Theta II 2.4L MPI engines. The remedy will involve an inspection, and if necessary, a replacement of the engine, as well as the installation of KSDS. It should be noted that in 2021 these vehicles were included in a KSDS product improvement campaign with warranty extension. For the MY 2011 Sorento vehicles equipped with the Lambda II 3.5L engines, ODI believes that future engine failures/fires involving these vehicles will likely be due to a lax in adhering to the proper or scheduled engine maintenance (regular engine oil changes), rather than a design or manufacturing engine issue. Regarding the issue of the efficacy of the recall remedies, ODI found the majority of the recalled Hyundai and Kia vehicles, by model, experienced lower reported fire rates after the remedies were applied. Furthermore, ODI found that for most vehicles that did not receive the recall remedies, by model, experienced relatively high fire rates. To address this problem, Hyundai informed ODI in December 2023, that it will renotify all of its owners covered by the Hyundai recalls of engine failures/fires every 8 months for the next 3 years. In December 2023, Kia stated that it will renotify the majority of its owners every 8 months for the next 3 years.Several previously recalled Kia models are excluded from the renotification due to their lower reported rates of engine fires. Overall, the renotification actions will help to increase the recall completion rates, thus reduce the frequency of engine fires in the future. In view of the recall action being taken by Kia and renotification actions being taken by both Kia and Hyundai, ODI is closing this Engineering Analysis. Also, both companies have been released from the 2020-iniated Consent Orders (Kia since November 2022 and Hyundai since November 2023). The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.