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2017 Kia Soul

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2017 Kia Soul do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 225.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

117 reports with mileage · 154 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 190 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

17 crash reports14 fire reports13 injury reports

What owners actually said

271 reports
Mileage unknown · Nov 18, 2025
Unknown Or Other

The car lurches/judders upon startup and at low speeds. It has been serviced eight times for this issue by two authorized Kia dealers with no resolve.

NHTSA ODI #11700034

51,986 miles · Nov 18, 2025
Power Train

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, there was a judder coming from the transmission. Additionally, while decelerating to come to a stop, the vehicle shook abnormally before accelerating while continuing to drive. The failure was intermittent. There were no warning lights illumina…

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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, there was a judder coming from the transmission. Additionally, while decelerating to come to a stop, the vehicle shook abnormally before accelerating while continuing to drive. The failure was intermittent. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who recommended that the transmission be replaced after completing several judder tests. The vehicle was not repaired, and the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Beyer Kia (1125 W Broad St, Falls Church, VA 22046); to be diagnosed, and the failure was duplicated; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 51,986.

NHTSA ODI #11700026

Mileage unknown · Oct 8, 2025
Engine

Engine Failed Mid Drive. Started with knocking sound then went into limp mode and then shut off and did not want to start. Car failed in the middle of traffic and could of injured me and others. I've read of other failures of the same models but for some reason the 2017 model isn't eligible for the settlement even though the sam…

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Engine Failed Mid Drive. Started with knocking sound then went into limp mode and then shut off and did not want to start. Car failed in the middle of traffic and could of injured me and others. I've read of other failures of the same models but for some reason the 2017 model isn't eligible for the settlement even though the same issues are present in the 2017 Kia Soul Models. Had to have my vehicle towed home.

NHTSA ODI #11692078

Mileage unknown · Sep 27, 2025
Engine

To Whom It May Concern, I am submitting this complaint to report that a Kia dealership of garden grove, ca falsely recorded a safety recall as “completed” on my 2019 Kia Soul Upon review from another kia dealer, I discovered that the recall repair — essential to prevent engine failure — was never actually performed. My engine…

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To Whom It May Concern, I am submitting this complaint to report that a Kia dealership of garden grove, ca falsely recorded a safety recall as “completed” on my 2019 Kia Soul Upon review from another kia dealer, I discovered that the recall repair — essential to prevent engine failure — was never actually performed. My engine has now failed catastrophically (broken connecting rod at 128,600 miles), consistent with the known risks that recall was meant to address. This misrepresentation by the dealership not only endangered my safety but also undermines the recall process intended to protect consumers. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate this matter and ensure accountability for the dealer and manufacturer. To answer your questions more directly. : 1.Connecting rod exploded out of engine. Kia is aware of thier faulty torque on said part. 2 My wife was driving on the free way with her kid at the time and could have caused a major accident. 3.yes they had a class action lawsuit against the recall. 4. The car is waiting at kia dealer. I was told that the update they didnt do that was put out in 2022 was not done when bought and brought to said dealer in January 2024 and that another recall was said to be done but was not done . 5. There was a knocking or shaking but when asking the mechanics hired by the dealer they said it was the rotors . We replace the rotors and a week later the connecting rod shot out of the engine.

NHTSA ODI #11690051

103,000 miles · Sep 25, 2025
Engine And Engine Cooling

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for routine maintenance, the mechanic detected a knocking sound coming from the engine, and the vehicle was diagnosed with engine rod bearing and camshaft failures. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The veh…

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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for routine maintenance, the mechanic detected a knocking sound coming from the engine, and the vehicle was diagnosed with engine rod bearing and camshaft failures. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 103,000.

NHTSA ODI #11689724

Mileage unknown · Sep 23, 2025
Engine

Perform check engine light diagnosis. Heard knocking noise at any speed even at idle. Added 2 quarts of oil. P0420 catalyst system efficiency below threshold Bank 1. The engine is consuming too much oil and has a noise coming from the valve train. Also, a slight rod bearing knock. Our auto mechanic had told us to check with Kia…

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Perform check engine light diagnosis. Heard knocking noise at any speed even at idle. Added 2 quarts of oil. P0420 catalyst system efficiency below threshold Bank 1. The engine is consuming too much oil and has a noise coming from the valve train. Also, a slight rod bearing knock. Our auto mechanic had told us to check with Kia Dealership because it is a known issue on this vehicle. But the Kia declined to repair.

NHTSA ODI #11689064

Mileage unknown · Aug 25, 2025
Engine

While driving on June 30, 2025, the engine gave a loud clunking noise, shuttered and shut down. I was able to pull over to the side of the road safely and not impede traffic, however this happened on a public roadway and had the potential of causing different results. I had no warning lights on the dash, no check engine lights c…

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While driving on June 30, 2025, the engine gave a loud clunking noise, shuttered and shut down. I was able to pull over to the side of the road safely and not impede traffic, however this happened on a public roadway and had the potential of causing different results. I had no warning lights on the dash, no check engine lights came on, no LOW OIl light and/or no other warning signals appeared. I was able to restart the vehicle and it shuttered but was able to drive it at a low reduced speed to get it into a more safer place. The vehicle was towed to the dealership the following morning. The dealership was able to inspect the vehicle and confirmed it was a total engine failure. The dealership has done all the service maintenance since the date of purchase as a new car, with the exception of 3 oil changes throughout the past 8 years. The documentation show all maintenance was done in an approved licensed facility and in the prefered time frames requested by the manufacture. The vehicle has a 150,000 mi warranty and at the time of the incident the mileage was 74,000. Kia is denying the claim and is refusing to replace the engine. I am uncertain of the next steps to take at this point, referring to the Attorney General in my state for advise for product liability claim to hold the manufacture responsible for it's defective engine which has been an issue for this make and model.

NHTSA ODI #11682829

Mileage unknown · Aug 24, 2025
Engine

I was driving and all a sudden my engine light came on and the car started like stuttering with no power very scarey. The mechanic said the 3 power train warranties on my car would not fix he said I need a new engine and I still owe like 12000 ugg.

NHTSA ODI #11682647

70,000 miles · Aug 15, 2025
Engine

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The contact also became aware of excessive oil consumption. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed, and it was determined that…

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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The contact also became aware of excessive oil consumption. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed, and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the costs. The contact related the failure to an unknown recall; however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

NHTSA ODI #11680837

60,000 miles · Aug 11, 2025
Engine

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of automotive power. No warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that after an independent mechanic started the vehicle, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle w…

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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of automotive power. No warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that after an independent mechanic started the vehicle, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer, where it was deemed unrepairable due to insufficient engine oil records. The contact stated that the failure was related to an undisclosed recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

NHTSA ODI #11679883

Official recalls

1

22V031000 · 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.

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.