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2006 Kia Rio

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2006 Kia Rio do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 38.5.

About this comparison →
74Owner complaints

Model-year median: 38.5

1Recall campaigns

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0Investigations

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
74
200338
200436
200574
200646
200746
200839
2009
Compare all Rio years →

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

What owners reported most

Air Bags
50Engine And Engine Cooling
6Steering
4Unknown Or Other
4Electrical System
3
All reported categories
Structure
3Engine
2Equipment
2Fuel System, Gasoline
2Power Train
2Service Brakes, Hydraulic
2Exterior Lighting
1Fuel System, Other
1Seat Belts
1Seats
1Service Brakes
1Suspension
1Tires
1Vehicle Speed Control
1

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

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

55 reports with mileage · 19 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.

  • Air Bags. Review the 50 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 6 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 4 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

12 crash reports0 fire reports11 injury reports

Seat Belts complaints

1 reports
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10,000 miles · Sep 28, 2006
Air BagsSeat Belts

BOUGHT CAR IN 01-06 STARTED TO GET AN AIR BAG LIGHT ON DRIVER SIDE IN 05-06. FIRST TIME WAS DUE TO MALFUNCTION SEAT BELT PRETENSIONER ORDERED. WENT BACK 06-21 REPLACED WITH SEAT BELT RETRACTOR. SECOND TIME ON 07-18 AIRBAG LIGHT REMAINED ON WAS TOLD DUE TO SEAT COVERS. AIRBAG WAS RESET, WAS TOLD NO SEAT COVERS. HI-DESERT KIA SEL…

Read full complaint

BOUGHT CAR IN 01-06 STARTED TO GET AN AIR BAG LIGHT ON DRIVER SIDE IN 05-06. FIRST TIME WAS DUE TO MALFUNCTION SEAT BELT PRETENSIONER ORDERED. WENT BACK 06-21 REPLACED WITH SEAT BELT RETRACTOR. SECOND TIME ON 07-18 AIRBAG LIGHT REMAINED ON WAS TOLD DUE TO SEAT COVERS. AIRBAG WAS RESET, WAS TOLD NO SEAT COVERS. HI-DESERT KIA SELLS SEAT COVERS FOR 2006 RIO. THIRD TIME 07-06 WAS TOLD AIRBAG SYSTEM CONNECTION WAS KNOCKED LOOSE DUE TO ITEMS UNDER PASSENGER SEAT, DO NOT PUT ITEMS UNDER SEATS. AIR BAG SYSTEM WAS RESET. FOURTH TIME 08-06 WAS TOLD AIR BAG CONTROL UNIT NEEDS REPLACEMENT. WAITING FOR PART TO ARRIVE 09-06. *JB

NHTSA ODI #10169555

Official recalls

1

12V244000 · Air Bags:frontal:sensor/control MODULE-INACTIVE

May 31, 2012

KIA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006-2008 RIO VEHICLES, MANUFACTURED FROM FEBRUARY 20, 2005, THROUGH DECEMBER 9, 2007. THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OCCUPANT SENSOR MAT CAN EXPERIENCE FATIGUE CRACKING. IF SUFFICIENT CRACKING OCCURS, THE OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (OCS) WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION SUCH THAT THE SYSTEM WILL NOT BE ABLE TO DETECT WHETHER A CHILD PASSENGER IS IN THE SEAT AND THE AIRBAG WILL DEPLOY DURING A CRASH NECESSITATING DEPLOYMENT.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT WITH A CHILD IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE SEAT INCREASES THE RISK OF INJURY TO THAT CHILD.

Remedy: KIA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE OCS SEAT SENSOR MAT, FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 26, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT KIA CONSUMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-333-4542.

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.