Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
180–25K
1825–50K
2250–75K
1475–100K
17100–150K
11150K+
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
What owners actually said
295 reports
Mileage unknown · Feb 12, 2026
Engine
I was driving my car, all of a sudden there was a loud knocking sound. The car suddenly wouldn’t accelerate. I was in the middle of a busy intersection with kids! I am 95 pounds, I can’t push the van! After being hit. I managed to get it moved with help. My van only had 108,000 miles on it! Took it to a mechanic, said needed an …
Read full complaint
I was driving my car, all of a sudden there was a loud knocking sound. The car suddenly wouldn’t accelerate. I was in the middle of a busy intersection with kids! I am 95 pounds, I can’t push the van! After being hit. I managed to get it moved with help. My van only had 108,000 miles on it! Took it to a mechanic, said needed an engine as there was no oil in it. How is that possible? We just changed it a month prior. It’s out of warranty by 8000 miles so Kia will not do anything! I’m sorry, but there are numerous complaints about this, yet nothing is being done! Now I’m having to pay 5000+ to replace an engine because Kia is just terrible!
NHTSA ODI #11717582
Mileage unknown · Feb 11, 2026
Engine
My family and I were all driving in the car. We were at a stoplight, and fully stopped as it was a red light. All of a sudden, we heard a weird noise, and all of the dash lights on our car appeared, and then the car fully turned off. We could not get the car back on, and it would not start. Prior to this, it was driving totally …
Read full complaint
My family and I were all driving in the car. We were at a stoplight, and fully stopped as it was a red light. All of a sudden, we heard a weird noise, and all of the dash lights on our car appeared, and then the car fully turned off. We could not get the car back on, and it would not start. Prior to this, it was driving totally fine, and we had no lights on our dashboard indicating something was wrong. Just stopped out of nowhere. If we were on the freeway, and our car just immediately turned off, we could have been in a major, life-threatening accident. After 2-3 times of trying to restart the car, we were able to turn it on, and at least get it into neutral so we could move it off the side of the road. We were able to get it towed to a Kia dealership in which they diagnosed it as engine failure and said we would need to replace the whole engine. This car is around 10 years old and has less than 130,000 miles. It has been meticulously maintained according to Kia standards, and there should be no reason that a well maintained car should need a new engine at this point. We had frequent oil changes, and even had an oil leak that we had to repair just a couple months ago.
NHTSA ODI #11717253
Mileage unknown · Jan 10, 2026
Engine
Motor Blew
NHTSA ODI #11710095
96,000 miles · Jan 8, 2026
Electrical SystemExterior LightingCrashInjury
The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while her nephew was driving, the nephew made a left-hand turn, and the vehicle was hit on the front right quarter panel. The contact stated that her nephew had turned on the left-hand signal and was halfway through making the left turn when the accident occurred. The …
Read full complaint
The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while her nephew was driving, the nephew made a left-hand turn, and the vehicle was hit on the front right quarter panel. The contact stated that her nephew had turned on the left-hand signal and was halfway through making the left turn when the accident occurred. The other vehicle drove on the opposite side and stated that the left-hand turn signal was not on. The contact's nephew was unsure if any warning lights were illuminated. The driver-side and passenger-side air bags were deployed. The contact's nephew had minor injuries and had a bruise on the right arm and chest that did not require medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a towing yard. The contact then had the vehicle towed to the residence and no longer driven. The insurance company was contacted, and the results are pending. Upon further investigation, the contact discovered that the vehicle had an open recall pending: NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V725000 (EXTERIOR LIGHTING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). The contact stated that there was a passenger in the vehicle. The passenger was sitting on the front passenger seat and was not injured. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.
NHTSA ODI #11709756
Mileage unknown · Jan 7, 2026
Seats
The front passenger seat, occupant detection system wiring harness was never repaired by the dealer I had taken the vehicle to the dealer several years ago and he gave me a $8000 estimate to replace the electrical system!
NHTSA ODI #11709403
Mileage unknown · Dec 29, 2025
EngineFuel/propulsion System
Kia service dealer diagnosed high oil consumption on my car with heavy sounds. They recommend to replace whole engine but it's out of warranty. It has only 106k miles on it. I am afraid the car is posing safety issue as well and it has less miles on it. I filed complain with kia consumer corporate a case has been generated …
Read full complaint
Kia service dealer diagnosed high oil consumption on my car with heavy sounds. They recommend to replace whole engine but it's out of warranty. It has only 106k miles on it. I am afraid the car is posing safety issue as well and it has less miles on it. I filed complain with kia consumer corporate a case has been generated on their system [XXX] but no one had contacted me yet. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA ODI #11707644
Mileage unknown · Dec 19, 2025
Engine
2016 KIA Sedona. I was driving on the highway when the Engine started knocking and smoking. I had to cut cars off on the highway to get to the shoulder. The car was towed to a local mechanic who told us there were holes blown through the engine and it would need replaced. This was after a year and a half of driving it so we stil…
Read full complaint
2016 KIA Sedona. I was driving on the highway when the Engine started knocking and smoking. I had to cut cars off on the highway to get to the shoulder. The car was towed to a local mechanic who told us there were holes blown through the engine and it would need replaced. This was after a year and a half of driving it so we still had a loan on the car that we couldn't afford to just scrap the car. We had to get a new engine put in the car. Insurance would not help since we did not hit anything and it was a manufacturer defect. Mechanic checked oil level and viscosity and did not see any issues with it. No warning lamps indicated there was anything wrong with the vehicle before the engine ripped itself apart. Thankfully none of our 3 kids were in the vehicle at the time. This was 2 months that we did not have our family van during the winter holidays and it was a very difficult time for the family.
NHTSA ODI #11706073
Mileage unknown · Dec 14, 2025
Engine
I was at an intersection & was turning left. In the middle of the turn the car started knocking noise and vibrating and turned off in the middle of the intersection. It did not crank for several tries while I was panicking with a car full of kids in a busy intersection. When I got it to crank again it turned off again. Some good…
Read full complaint
I was at an intersection & was turning left. In the middle of the turn the car started knocking noise and vibrating and turned off in the middle of the intersection. It did not crank for several tries while I was panicking with a car full of kids in a busy intersection. When I got it to crank again it turned off again. Some good Samaritans then helped by holding traffic and pushing us out of harms way in a church parking lot. I kept trying to crank it and when it did, I tried to put it in drive and it started the violent knocking and vibrating like it was going to blow up. I had it towed later when I had gotten paid. I had it towed to Keffer Kia where they told me total engine failure at 88,000 miles. I still pay $300 monthly for the car and have 5 kids that I have to shuffle in my mother in laws 4 door car.
NHTSA ODI #11704943
Mileage unknown · Dec 5, 2025
Engine
The Sedona just stopped in traffic with out warning with my kids in the van. No type or warning lights came on. I had recently got an oil change and tune up. I almost caused an accident. It was extremely scary. I am thankful no one was hurt. I had to pay for a tow and come to find out the engine is locked . The machine started …
Read full complaint
The Sedona just stopped in traffic with out warning with my kids in the van. No type or warning lights came on. I had recently got an oil change and tune up. I almost caused an accident. It was extremely scary. I am thankful no one was hurt. I had to pay for a tow and come to find out the engine is locked . The machine started it had very low oil. Which makes no sense since it hadn’t even been 7 days since my oil was changed .
NHTSA ODI #11703358
Mileage unknown · Dec 4, 2025
Engine
2016 Kia Sedona SX-L (VIN: [XXX]) equipped with 3.3L Lambda II GDI engine. This is the second engine failure — first engine failed due to head bolt studs separating from the block, second (mechanic sourced) engine began heavy smoking and nearly caught fire due to possible oil starvation/rod bearing failure. Vehicle is parked and…
Read full complaint
2016 Kia Sedona SX-L (VIN: [XXX]) equipped with 3.3L Lambda II GDI engine. This is the second engine failure — first engine failed due to head bolt studs separating from the block, second (mechanic sourced) engine began heavy smoking and nearly caught fire due to possible oil starvation/rod bearing failure. Vehicle is parked and unsafe to operate. Temperature gauge at time of incident was going towards above average operating temperature. This is the exact defect covered under multiple NHTSA investigations into Lambda 3.3L engine seizing/fire hazard (including PE23-019 for similar Kia Sorento models with the same engine, and defect petition DP24-002 specifically for 2016 Kia Sedona). Kia has extended the warranty on these engines to 15 years/150,000 miles for bearing damage in some cases, but no full recall exists yet. Requesting immediate investigation and inclusion in an engine fire recall similar to those for Theta engines. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
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.
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.
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.
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.
2016 Kia Sedona Problems, Complaints & Recalls | Skip That Year