My car has gone in twice to the dealer for “engine missfire” both times coils were replaced under warranty, now the car just hit 60212 milles and engine missfire code again, this time not covered under warranty. Car has a bad shake at start up and moderate speeds. Third time in the past year.
2017 Kia Forte
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Forte years
Owner complaints for the 2017 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
135 reports with mileage · 166 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 144 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 46 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Exterior Lighting. Review the 43 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
301 reportsThe contact owns a 2017 KIA Forte. The contact stated while driving 55 mph, the vehicle started losing motive power with an abnormal clicking sound coming from the engine. The vehicle eventually stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and coast to the side of the highw…
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The contact owns a 2017 KIA Forte. The contact stated while driving 55 mph, the vehicle started losing motive power with an abnormal clicking sound coming from the engine. The vehicle eventually stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and coast to the side of the highway as the engine ceased. Upon inspection of the vehicle, the contact saw oil leaking in the engine compartment. The contact left the vehicle on the highway and walked home. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. Two weeks later, the vehicle was initially towed to her grandfather's home where he discovered debris in the oil pump which he linked to the vehicle failure. The vehicle was then towed to a dealer where they informed her that her vehicle was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V260000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle remained in the possession of the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.
My vehicle is at 60,116 miles. While driving down the interstate, it started making a slight rattling noise. Then not even 5 minutes later it made this awful sound, smoke was going everywhere and it was pouring oil out. The traction control light, engine light, and oil light all came on. It had thrown a rod through the engine. …
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My vehicle is at 60,116 miles. While driving down the interstate, it started making a slight rattling noise. Then not even 5 minutes later it made this awful sound, smoke was going everywhere and it was pouring oil out. The traction control light, engine light, and oil light all came on. It had thrown a rod through the engine. Prior to this, there were no issues at all. No engine light. No rattling. Nothing. It just happened all at once within 5 minutes.
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Forte. The contact stated while driving at 70 mph, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with the engine needing to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was relating the f…
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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Forte. The contact stated while driving at 70 mph, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with the engine needing to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was relating the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 21V260000 (Engine and engine cooling). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure and informed the contact that the issue falls on the driver due to improper maintenance. The failure mileage was approximately 82,000.
The car keeps giving a misfire code. Kia says the only recall is for the coil boots. They replaced the coil boots and the car is still giving the misfire code. I see lots of people having to replace the coils to fix the problem. I asked kia about this and they say there is no problem with my coils. At this point my car isnt usab…
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The car keeps giving a misfire code. Kia says the only recall is for the coil boots. They replaced the coil boots and the car is still giving the misfire code. I see lots of people having to replace the coils to fix the problem. I asked kia about this and they say there is no problem with my coils. At this point my car isnt usable and kia says theres nothing they can do. The car loses power and stalls while driving along. It also does the same thing while at an idle.
2017 KIA FORTE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED ON AND WAS HEADING TO MECHANIC. WHILE DRIVING THE CAR COMPLETELY DIED WHILE DRIVING AND ALL WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. OIL PAN FLASHED ON SO OIL CHANGE WAS DONE ON SPOT. THE CAR DROVE FINE THEN DAYS LATER SAME ISSUE OCCURRED. GOT CAR TOWED TO A MECHANIC FOR THE MECHANIC TO TELL ME THERE WERE…
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2017 KIA FORTE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED ON AND WAS HEADING TO MECHANIC. WHILE DRIVING THE CAR COMPLETELY DIED WHILE DRIVING AND ALL WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. OIL PAN FLASHED ON SO OIL CHANGE WAS DONE ON SPOT. THE CAR DROVE FINE THEN DAYS LATER SAME ISSUE OCCURRED. GOT CAR TOWED TO A MECHANIC FOR THE MECHANIC TO TELL ME THERE WERE FOREIGN PARTICLES STUCK IN BOTH THE OIL PUMP AND OIL PAN THAT LED TO ENGINE DAMAGE NOW NEEDING A NEW ENGINE. TAKE MY CAR TO KIA DEALERSHIP FOR THE RECALL THAT I SEEN ONLINE FOR POSSIBLE ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO FAULTY OIL PUMP AND KIA IS NOT HONORING THE RECALL SINCE IT HAS A DATE POSTED FOR LATER THIS YEAR IN JUNE.
THE HEADLIGHTS KEEP BURNING OUT. I'VE HAD THE CAR FOR A LITTLE OVER A YEAR NOW AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE HEADLIGHTS 3 TIMES. I WAS DRIVING ONE NIGHT A COUPLE MONTHS AGO AND BOTH LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT. THAT WAS VERY DANGEROUS. THAT WAS MY SECOND SET OF HEADLIGHTS NOW I'M ON MY 3RD SET AND THE DRIVERS SIDE WENT OUT. I PAI…
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THE HEADLIGHTS KEEP BURNING OUT. I'VE HAD THE CAR FOR A LITTLE OVER A YEAR NOW AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE HEADLIGHTS 3 TIMES. I WAS DRIVING ONE NIGHT A COUPLE MONTHS AGO AND BOTH LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT. THAT WAS VERY DANGEROUS. THAT WAS MY SECOND SET OF HEADLIGHTS NOW I'M ON MY 3RD SET AND THE DRIVERS SIDE WENT OUT. I PAID EXTRA FOR THE BEST SET OF HEADLIGHTS AUTOZONE HAD TO OFFER AT THE TIME AS I WAS IN DESPERATE NEED SO I COULD DRIVE HOME AND IT STILL LASTED THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME, PURCHASED ON 1/22/2021. ALSO, THEY'RE ALWAYS DIM. FOR THE MOST EXPENSIVE SET OF LIGHTS I EXPECTED MORE. I DID A LITTLE RESEARCH AND SEEN THAT THIS IS VERY COMMON FOR THIS VEHICLE. WHY IS THIS ALLOWED TO CONTINUE? SOMEONE IS GOING TO GET HURT. PLEASE RESEARCH THIS AND SEE WHAT COULD BE DONE. HEADLIGHTS ARE VERY EXPENSIVE. I HAVE TWO OTHER VEHICLES. A 2017 DODGE JOURNEY THAT HAS NEVER NEEDED A HEADLIGHT CHANGE AND A 2007 FORD ESCAPE THAT HAS ONLY NEEDED A FEW HEADLIGHTS IN ITS ENTIRE EXISTENCE. THIS IS NOT RIGHT. THE DATE LISTED BELOW IS THE MOST RECENT INCIDENT.
I ALREADY FILED A COMPLAINT ON THIS PREVIOUSLY, HOWEVER IN 2020 MY ENGINE FAILED STOP WORKING. AND I WAS UNABLE TO DRIVE IT OR FIX IT. I LOST MY JOB, I HAD TO GET A RENTAL CAR. THE CAR LOST SPEED WHILE DRIVING AND WOULD NOT GO ANYMORE..
AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY IN VEHICLE CRASH AT ABOVE 30 MPH
I WAS DRIVING DOWN 84TH ST AND CAME TO THE LIGHT ON 84TH AND PACIFIC AVE AND THE ENGINE WANTED TO DIE OUT AND PUT MY FOOT ON THE GAS PEDAL TO KEEP IT RUNNING AND THEN TURNED RIGHT ONTO PACIFIC AVE AND WENT TO 80TH AND PACIFIC AVE AND THE CAR DIED OUT TOWED IT TO THE HOUSE AND CHECKED THE OIL AND EVERYTHING AND THERE WAS NO OIL T…
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I WAS DRIVING DOWN 84TH ST AND CAME TO THE LIGHT ON 84TH AND PACIFIC AVE AND THE ENGINE WANTED TO DIE OUT AND PUT MY FOOT ON THE GAS PEDAL TO KEEP IT RUNNING AND THEN TURNED RIGHT ONTO PACIFIC AVE AND WENT TO 80TH AND PACIFIC AVE AND THE CAR DIED OUT TOWED IT TO THE HOUSE AND CHECKED THE OIL AND EVERYTHING AND THERE WAS NO OIL THE OIL INDICATOR LIGHT DID NOT TURN ON AT ANY POINT OF TIME SO I ADDED OIL AND STARTED THE ENGINE BACK UP AND NOW IT HAS A ENGINE KNOCK LIKE THE ROD BEARING WENT OUT I AM GOING TO CONTACT THE KIA DEALER IN THE MORNING AND SEE WHAT'S THE PROBLEM AND EVERYTHING AND EVERYTHING HAPPENED ON CITY STREETS
Official recalls
322V031000 · Air Bags
Jan 25, 2022
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.
21V622000 · Latches/locks/linkages:trunk Lid:latch
Aug 9, 2021
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Forte 4-door, Forte Koup 2-door, and 2018-2019 Rio 4-door vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 401, "Internal Trunk Release."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: A person inside the trunk compartment may become trapped, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the trunk latch assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC216.
21V260000 · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:oil/lubrication:pump
Apr 13, 2021
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Forte vehicles equipped with a 2.0L Nu MPI engine. Foreign particles may stick inside the oil pump, which may cause an oil pump failure and engine damage.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: A damaged engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the oil pan, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed August 16, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC210.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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