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: 9 of 38 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.
Engine. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Power Train. Review the 8 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Electrical System. Review the 7 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 reports3 fire reports2 injury reports
What owners actually said
38 reports
Mileage unknown · Oct 31, 2023
Power Train
The contact owns a 2020 Kia Niro. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V534000 (Power Train) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded…
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The contact owns a 2020 Kia Niro. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V534000 (Power Train) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
NHTSA ODI #11552803
Mileage unknown · May 24, 2023
Unknown Or OtherFire
I have been a Lyft driver for over 2 years, and because of the mileage I put on mile personal vehicle. I had to result to renting a vehicle from Lyft Flex Drive Rental, located at 2214 Century Center Blvd Irving, TX 75062. 0n 05/15/2023 at approximately 8:15 p.m. Right after dropping off passenger, and on my way to pick up anoth…
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I have been a Lyft driver for over 2 years, and because of the mileage I put on mile personal vehicle. I had to result to renting a vehicle from Lyft Flex Drive Rental, located at 2214 Century Center Blvd Irving, TX 75062. 0n 05/15/2023 at approximately 8:15 p.m. Right after dropping off passenger, and on my way to pick up another one. The vehicle mentioned hereof suddenly blew up out of no where. My personal property in the vehicle was destroyed , and almost loss my life! However, Lyft is suggesting I pay over a thousand dollars. When it wasn't my fault the car blew up. Moreover, their stagnating me from getting back to work, and not allowing me to rent a car from Lyft Fleet . Because supposedly the car hasn't been totaled out yet. Despite it as been weeks since the incident occurred. I also took my vehicle to Lyft Flex shop for a check up the previous week before the incident occurred. My Please see photos attached! THE INSURANCE COMPANY HANDLING THE MATTER IS LIBERTY MUTUAL CLAIM # 241398210 / Phone Number: 888.638.3564
NHTSA ODI #11523754
Mileage unknown · Nov 8, 2022
Unknown Or OtherFire
I first bought the car brand new from the car dealership and the first problem was a check engine light came on when I bought it. I took it to the car dealership and could not find the problem. I bought the car in December 2020. And off and on the check engine light comes and goes. And they could not find the error. Lastly about…
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I first bought the car brand new from the car dealership and the first problem was a check engine light came on when I bought it. I took it to the car dealership and could not find the problem. I bought the car in December 2020. And off and on the check engine light comes and goes. And they could not find the error. Lastly about two weeks before the car caught on fire. It was service for oil change and a catalytic converter replacement. After that while I was driving on the parkway in New Jersey I heard a loud bang in the engine and I pulled over and I saw a fire starting underneath the engine. The whole car is consumed in fire. The fire department came and put it out.
NHTSA ODI #11492683
Mileage unknown · Sep 18, 2022
EngineUnknown Or Other
My Niro has been having issues with sputtering, jerking, chugging, and feeling like it’s about to stall. Sometimes it happens right when I start the car and sometimes it happens while I am driving. The check engine light just started coming on yesterday. I believe the transmission is faulty and have spoken to or taken it to the …
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My Niro has been having issues with sputtering, jerking, chugging, and feeling like it’s about to stall. Sometimes it happens right when I start the car and sometimes it happens while I am driving. The check engine light just started coming on yesterday. I believe the transmission is faulty and have spoken to or taken it to the dealer with this same issue multiple times as it is covered under warranty. They keep telling me that’s just how the car drives but in the 8 cars I’ve owned in my life, I have never had a car that behaves this way before. An internet search of “Kia niro transmission problems” proves that this is a common and known issue with this car that Kia is doing nothing to resolve. I have a daily 20 mile commute to work and feel incredibly unsafe driving my car and letting my teenage daughter drive it.
NHTSA ODI #11485034
46,000 miles · Sep 14, 2022
Service Brakes
The contact’s wife owns a 2020 Kia Niro. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated. The contact stated that during the failure the regenerative brake warning light illuminated. The contact stated that his wife was able to coast into a parking lot. The vehicl…
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The contact’s wife owns a 2020 Kia Niro. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated. The contact stated that during the failure the regenerative brake warning light illuminated. The contact stated that his wife was able to coast into a parking lot. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure could not be duplicated. The manufacture was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was covered under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 46,000.
NHTSA ODI #11484418
Mileage unknown · Mar 4, 2022
Unknown Or Other
I've had my Kia Niro EV approximately 1yr. I'm the only owner so far was brand new but it had set for a year or so. (Purchase Date: March 2021). I noticed about 6 mo./8k miles that listening the same thing that my 2012 Kia Sorento that was involved in the class action lawsuit was having. When I pressed the gas pedal my RPMs go …
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I've had my Kia Niro EV approximately 1yr. I'm the only owner so far was brand new but it had set for a year or so. (Purchase Date: March 2021). I noticed about 6 mo./8k miles that listening the same thing that my 2012 Kia Sorento that was involved in the class action lawsuit was having. When I pressed the gas pedal my RPMs go up to five to seven but the car doesn't really go it's like it's barely even going 10 miles an hour. This to me is a huge safety concern considering what if you were trying to get out of the way of a semi and you have the gas pressed all the way to the floor in your car is not going fast enough this really worries me considering how much I spent on the car I bought it new and traded in my old one that was having the crankshaft issue that would stall out no matter what speed you were going numerous times a day so that way I would be safe. Now here I am with a 20/20 vehicle and experiencing the same issues. Then the other day we are now March of 2022 and I start up my car and it says service vehicle immediately take it to your nearest dealership try to take a picture then this message disappears so then I turn off the car turn it back on to see if the message would reappear and it says service car in 20 something days but yeah I'm still having the same problem so then I'd use my new my UVO diagnostic thing button and it tells me there's no issues with the vehicle. I drove the vehicle every day and it doesn't do it all the time but this is exactly how my Sorrento started out too I would sit there and tell my husband that I couldn't get enough power and the vehicle wasn't going shifting gears it's something with the gears I can feel it underneath the vehicle it's almost like something's blocking it or something's not connecting this could be a very serious issue and I feel like that you guys really do need to investigate this to prevent casualties 1 report of the issue should open an investigation. Not once innocent ppl get injured/die
NHTSA ODI #11455280
Mileage unknown · Feb 4, 2022
Air BagsForward Collision AvoidanceCrashInjury
I was involved in a collision 11/2021. I had just left a stop sign and was starting to go when a semi hit my front end and spun my vehicle around. I do not understand why my air bags did not deploy and I feel like emergency braking did not work. I have had it work when someone get close to my bumper in the past.
NHTSA ODI #11450471
958 miles · Aug 3, 2020
Engine
THE SERVICE ENGINE VALVE WITH "CHECK ACTIVE AIR FLAP SYSTEM" ERROR MESSAGE IS DISPLAYED. THE DIAGNOSTIC ERROR THAT COMES UP IS AAF - P059F. ACCORDING TO THE DEALER AIR COMPRESSION TEST WERE COMPLETED AND PROPERLY FUNCTIONING. I HAVE SUBMITTED 3 PICTURES WITH THE SAME ERROR MESSAGE CODE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATE NOT ALL SA…
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THE SERVICE ENGINE VALVE WITH "CHECK ACTIVE AIR FLAP SYSTEM" ERROR MESSAGE IS DISPLAYED. THE DIAGNOSTIC ERROR THAT COMES UP IS AAF - P059F. ACCORDING TO THE DEALER AIR COMPRESSION TEST WERE COMPLETED AND PROPERLY FUNCTIONING. I HAVE SUBMITTED 3 PICTURES WITH THE SAME ERROR MESSAGE CODE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATE NOT ALL SAVED IN THE CAR'S ECM. THE LIGHTS CAME ON WHEN STARTING AS WELL AS WHILE DRIVING. NOTICED THAT THE CAR TAKES LONGER TO CHANGE GEARS OR GO INTO EV MODE.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2022 Niro and 2018-2022 Niro Plug-in Hybrid vehicles. Fluid may leak into the printed circuit board inside the hydraulic clutch actuator, which can result in an engine compartment fire.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: A fire increases the risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the hydraulic clutch actuator as necessary and install a new fuse, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 29, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC276.
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
1
DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
2020 Kia Niro Problems, Complaints & Recalls | Skip That Year