← New search

2016 Kia Sedona

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Sedona years

Owner complaints for the 2016 Kia Sedona are substantially higher than the model-year median of 120.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

100 reports with mileage · 195 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 146 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 37 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

10 crash reports14 fire reports9 injury reports

Electrical System complaints

46 reports
Clear category filter
Mileage unknown · Aug 18, 2024
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other

The turn signals do not work properly. Has I attempt to turn left my right blinker turns on, otherwise none of the blinkers work and blowing my rear light bulbs. I addressed this to the dealer however any dealer or mechanic wants to charge me to look into this. As I was reviewing my cars history it has been noted as a manufactu…

Read full complaint

The turn signals do not work properly. Has I attempt to turn left my right blinker turns on, otherwise none of the blinkers work and blowing my rear light bulbs. I addressed this to the dealer however any dealer or mechanic wants to charge me to look into this. As I was reviewing my cars history it has been noted as a manufacturing issues and failure to repair this defect. I purchased this Kia sadoma without being told this was an issue. It seems that the transmission gear li lage issue was not addressed or repaired on my car either. I was not made aware of this issue either. After a year of ownership I only knew of this after reviewing my car history through a database. Now I am very mad and unhappy with the fact that I am driving a vehicle not working properly and everyone wants to charge me a ton of money knowing this is a manufacturing fault issue.

NHTSA ODI #11609278

138,231 miles · Mar 11, 2024
Electrical SystemEngineFire

No lights on the dash, no maintenance or check engine lights. The van began making noises under the hood and then blowing white smoke from the exhaust. The electrical connectors to the fan were melted and hot. To the cooling fan, radiator, etc. The fan connector caused the car to over heat.

NHTSA ODI #11576715

Mileage unknown · Jun 23, 2023
Electrical SystemEngineStructure

Our Kia Sedona had the cooling fan harness negative Cable melt and caused making our engine overheat. When we took our vehicle to get serviced they told us that the cooling fan harness melted and then it's a common problem with kias. They fixed the pigtail cooling fan harness but are cooling fan does not turn on anymore and they…

Read full complaint

Our Kia Sedona had the cooling fan harness negative Cable melt and caused making our engine overheat. When we took our vehicle to get serviced they told us that the cooling fan harness melted and then it's a common problem with kias. They fixed the pigtail cooling fan harness but are cooling fan does not turn on anymore and they said that it is now an electrical issue and this was from a Kia dealership in Dodge City Kansas. They recently did a recall on sliding doors because they weren't shutting all the way and it worked for exactly one day after the recall and now it's back to not shutting and making a really loud noise when it attempts to shut. When this happens we can't lock our doors because the doors won't lock when doors open and we have to constantly shut off our interior lights so that they don't stay on because the doors don't shut. We've notified the Kia dealership that have done our recall on it and told them that it didn't fix it but they refuse to make it right. We only have 106,000 MI I've got a new cooling fan resistor and put it in and a new pigtail harness and put it in but the cooling fan is still not turning on the low speed and the air conditioner doesn't work either. Our engine constantly smells very hot but it doesn't indicate that it's overheating. We haven't had this vehicle for very long and because of all the problems we've had with it are considering on getting another vehicle and we're considering a carnival but are afraid to because of the way Kia handles their issues.

NHTSA ODI #11528614

Mileage unknown · Jun 16, 2023
Electrical System

Both automatic passenger sliding doors do not shut completely after last recall was completed to fix them.

NHTSA ODI #11527363

Mileage unknown · Mar 14, 2023
Electrical SystemExterior Lighting

Headlights will shut off while driving. This sometimes will occur on its own, other times, it appears to be caused when using the turn signal lever. The lights will come back on by touching/moving the lever. This is dangerous and could lead to an accident.

NHTSA ODI #11511884

Mileage unknown · Jul 13, 2021
Electrical System

The passenger-side door from day one of purchasing the kia sedon LX doesn't shut properly. When using the button to close the door, the door will shut and then slightly ajar. The car dash will then tell me that not all doors are secure. I have contacted KIA several times. They have replaced the motor first and this didn't fix th…

Read full complaint

The passenger-side door from day one of purchasing the kia sedon LX doesn't shut properly. When using the button to close the door, the door will shut and then slightly ajar. The car dash will then tell me that not all doors are secure. I have contacted KIA several times. They have replaced the motor first and this didn't fix the issue so they replaced the latches. This also didn't fix the issue. Unless I turn off the power doors and manually shut the doors myself the problem still persists.

NHTSA ODI #11424602

Mileage unknown · Jul 6, 2021
Electrical System

Frequently, the turn signal will blink on the right when the turn signal switch is set to the left. This is a safety concern for myself and other drivers as they will expect the vehicle to go to the right when it is actually going to the left. I had this repaired at a dealership. This had been an issue for about a year, when …

Read full complaint

Frequently, the turn signal will blink on the right when the turn signal switch is set to the left. This is a safety concern for myself and other drivers as they will expect the vehicle to go to the right when it is actually going to the left. I had this repaired at a dealership. This had been an issue for about a year, when I finally had it repaired.

NHTSA ODI #11423537

150,000 miles · Jun 29, 2021
Electrical System

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated while driving at low speeds, while stopped at a traffic light, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the battery post shim needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the fai…

Read full complaint

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated while driving at low speeds, while stopped at a traffic light, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the battery post shim needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

NHTSA ODI #11422815

54,000 miles · Mar 24, 2021
Electrical SystemCrash

ABOUT 1917 THE POWER SLIDING DOORS STOPPED WORKING CORRECTLY. THE DOORS MAKE A LOUD SCREACHING SOUND WHEN CLOSING WHEN STOPPED. & IN MOTION. DOORS DO NOT CLOSE AND LOCK COMPLETELY AND HAVE TO BE CLOSE BY PUSHING IN THE BACK WHERE AND FRAM MEETS. GOT A RECALL ON SLIDING DOORS. WENT 3/22/21 AND ALL THAT WAS DONE WAS TO REPROGRAM T…

Read full complaint

ABOUT 1917 THE POWER SLIDING DOORS STOPPED WORKING CORRECTLY. THE DOORS MAKE A LOUD SCREACHING SOUND WHEN CLOSING WHEN STOPPED. & IN MOTION. DOORS DO NOT CLOSE AND LOCK COMPLETELY AND HAVE TO BE CLOSE BY PUSHING IN THE BACK WHERE AND FRAM MEETS. GOT A RECALL ON SLIDING DOORS. WENT 3/22/21 AND ALL THAT WAS DONE WAS TO REPROGRAM THE COMPUTER. THIS DIDN T FIX THE PROBLEM AT ALL. CALL KIA AND WAS TOLD , HAVE TO FIX ON OWN. DID CALL ABOUT ISSUE IN 2017 TOLD IT WOULD COST OVER $1000.00, COULDN'T AFFORD. ALSO ASKED ABOUT WHY AIR BAG LIGHT COMES ON AND STAYS ON AND THAT THE GAS DOOR BUTTON DOESN T OPEN. HAVE TO GET OUT AND HIT GAS DOOR TO OPEN. THOUGHT THAT 100000 WARRENTY WAS TO COVER ANYTHING BUMPER TO BUMPER. WHY PAY THE EXTRA FOR NOTHING.

NHTSA ODI #11404698

180,000 miles · Dec 26, 2020
Air BagsElectrical SystemExterior Lighting

WHEN YOU USE YOUR BLINKERS TO CHANGE LANES AT NIGHT THE HEADLIGHTS GO OFF TILL I MOVE THE BLINKER NOB BACK TO THE MIDDLE THIS HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE GOING DOWN THE ROAD AND IS DANGEROUS NEEDS TO RECALLED ASAP BEFORE SOMEONE GET HURT

NHTSA ODI #11384972

Official recalls

4

22V612000 · Power Train:automatic Transmission:lever And Linkage:column Shift

Aug 10, 2022

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2016 Sedona and Sorento vehicles. The vehicles may have been manufactured with faulty automatic transmission shift lever assembly components, preventing the shift lever from locking, which can allow the vehicle to rollaway.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A vehicle rollaway increases the risk of a crash and injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the automatic transmission shift lever assembly components, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 7, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC246.

21V725000 · Electrical System:software; Exterior Lighting:turn Signal

Sep 17, 2021

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Sedona vehicles. The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A turn signal activating in the opposite direction of what was intended by the driver increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will update the SJB software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 12, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC217.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Electrical System:software

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Sedona vehicles. The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.

Consequence: A turn signal activating in the opposite direction of what was intended by the driver increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will update the SJB software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 12, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC217.

Exterior Lighting:turn Signal

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Sedona vehicles. The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.

Consequence: A turn signal activating in the opposite direction of what was intended by the driver increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will update the SJB software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 12, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC217.

19V109000 · Electrical System:wiring

Feb 19, 2019

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Sedona vehicles equipped with manually-adjusted front passenger seats. Over time, the Occupant Detection System (ODS) wiring harness located underneath the front passenger seat may break from the seat being occupied.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If a child is in a child seat in the front seat, a broken ODS wiring harness will not prevent the front passenger air bag from deploying in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the child.

Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will remove the wire harness clip to prevent the wiring harness from breaking. If the harness is found damaged, the front passenger seat cushion will be replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began March 19, 2019. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC175.

18V338000 · Electrical System:software; Structure:body:door

May 23, 2018

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Kia Sedona vehicles equipped with a power sliding door (PSD). The PSD may not auto-reverse when its closing is obstructed.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the door closes on an occupant, there is an increased risk of an injury.

Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the PSD module software, free of charge. The recall began on June 18, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC164.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Electrical System:software

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Kia Sedona vehicles equipped with a power sliding door (PSD). The PSD may not auto-reverse when its closing is obstructed.

Consequence: If the door closes on an occupant, there is an increased risk of an injury.

Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the PSD module software, free of charge. The recall began on June 18, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC164.

Structure:body:door

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Kia Sedona vehicles equipped with a power sliding door (PSD). The PSD may not auto-reverse when its closing is obstructed.

Consequence: If the door closes on an occupant, there is an increased risk of an injury.

Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the PSD module software, free of charge. The recall began on June 18, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC164.

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

DP24002 · 3.3L Engine Loss Of Motive Power (lomp)

Opened Feb 27, 2024 · Closed Mar 5, 2024

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a petition on February 20, 2024, requesting the opening of an investigation into an alleged defect of the "engine" on the following vehicle model stated by the petitioner: 2016 Kia Sedona vehicles equipped with the 3.3L V-Shaped GDI Lambda-II engine. The petitioner raised the issue of a Loss of Motive Power. On November 13, 2023, ODI opened PE23-019 to address allegations of loss of motive power, on the 3.3L V6 Lambda-II engine for 2016-2017 Kia Sorento and included the 2016 Kia Sedona as a peer vehicle. This investigation is ongoing and addresses the potential safety-related defect raised by the petitioner.  In view of the open Investigation, PE23-019, ODI considers the petition moot and is closing this action.  The closing of the petition does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.  The Agency reserves the right to make that determination at the close of PE23-019.