Model year record

2010 Kia Sorento recalls & problems

The 2010 Kia Sorento has 2 safety recalls and 3 owner complaints on file with NHTSA. The most-reported problem area is air bags (1 complaint).

Recalls2safety recalls

Complaints3filed by owners

Crashes · fires2 · 0reported in complaints

Injuries · deaths1 · 0reported in complaints

Safety recalls

Exterior lightingApr 1, 2013

Brake lights › Switch

Recall 13V114000980,377 vehicles

Problem: Kia Motors Corporation (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2007-2010 Rondo, model year 2007-2011 Sedona, Sorento and Sportage, model year 2010-2011 Soul, model year 2008-2011 Optima, model year 2010 Forte, model year 2007-2009 Amanti, and model year 2009 Borrego vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Kia recalled 623,658 model year 2007-2010 Rondo and Sportage, model year 2007-2011 Sorento, model year 2007 Sedona, model year 2010-2011 Soul, and model year 2011 Optima vehicles. In September 2013, Kia informed the agency that it was adding an additional 356,719 vehicles to this campaign. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 980,377. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake-transmission shift interlock feature preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of PARK without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Kia will send an interim notification to owners in May 2013. When parts are available, owners will receive a second notification and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. Owners may contact Kia at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's recall campaign number is SC098.

EquipmentOct 6, 2011

Equipment

Recall 11E0410002,398 vehicles

Problem: CURT MANUFACTURING IS RECALLING CERTAIN TOW PACKAGE WIRING HARNESSES, PART NUMBER 56024, THAT CONNECT TOW VEHICLE LIGHTING CIRCUITS TO TRAILER LIGHTING CIRCUITS SOLD FOR USE ON CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2009 THROUGH 2011 HYUNDAI VERACRUZ AND KIA SORENTO VEHICLES. THE UNITS ARE NOT WATER-TIGHT AND MOISTURE CAN SEEP INTO THE CONVERTER MODULE AND DEFEAT THE MODULE'S INTERNAL CIRCUIT PROTECTION.
Risk: WITHOUT THE CIRCUIT PROTECTION, THE MODULE CAN OVERHEAT POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A FIRE.
Fix: CURT MANUFACTURING WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE TOW PACKAGE WIRING HARNESS. THE REMEDY WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 17, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CURT MANUFACTURING AT 1-715 831-8713.

Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. A recall listed here may already have been fixed on a particular car: enter its 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see open recalls.

What owners report

Problem area	Complaints	Crashes	Injuries	Typical mileage*
Air bags	1	1	0	—
Engine	1	1	1	—
Suspension	1	0	0	—

*Median odometer reading when the problem happened, where owners gave one. One complaint can name several problem areas.

Recent owner complaints

Suspension
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 KIA SORENTO. WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED, THE VEHICLE PULLED TO THE RIGHT WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO RE-BALANCED THE TIRES AND RE-ALIGNED THE WHEELS, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE CONTACT NOTIFIED TWO KIA DEALERS ABOUT THE FAILURE. BOTH DEALERS WERE UNAWARE OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT THERE WERE NO RECALLS AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS NOT A KNOWN ISSUE AND ADVISED THE CONTACT TO VISIT A LOCAL DEALER. THE FAILURE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 24,000.
Aug 1, 2013 · 24,000 miles
EngineCrash1 injury
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 KIA SOUL. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE OIL NOTIFICATION SYSTEM FAILED TO INDICATE THAT THE ENGINE OIL WAS EMPTY, CAUSING THE CONTACT TO CRASH INTO A CURB BEFORE THE ENGINE STALLED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED INJURIES TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF HER BODY. A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER, WHO CONFIRMED THAT THE ENGINE FAILED DUE TO PREMATURE OIL CONSUMPTION AND CAUSED THE ENGINE TO SEIZE. AS A RESULT, THE ENGINE WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 52,000. MAILED OUT 01/13/15*LJ
Dec 7, 2013 · 52,000 miles
Air bagsCrash
I HAD AN ACCIDENT WHILE GETTING OFF HIGHWAY THE PERSON IN FRONT OF ME SUDDENLY STOPPED AND I REAR ENDED HER CAR. MY CAR WAS PUSHED IN FROM FRONT AND AIR BAGS DID NOT POP OUT. IT CONCERNS ME. AT WHAT SPEED SHOULD THEY DEPLOYED? *TR
Jan 5, 2012 · 40 miles

Owner complaints are submitted to NHTSA by the public and are not verified. Shown as filed (NHTSA removes personal details); long reports are shortened.

NHTSA defect investigations

Throttle control system vulnerabilitiesClosed
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a petition letter dated October 10, 2021, requesting an investigation of possible defects in the electronic throttle control (ETC) system on certain Kia vehicles resulting in the opening of DP21-003. Accordingly, Model Year (MY) 2005-2016 Kia Optima/K5, MY 2006-2015 Kia Sorento, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Elantra, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Santa Fe, MY 2006-2015 Hyundai Sonatas are all part of the subject population. The petition was originally filed as a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire that can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under reference (ODI) number 11439675.On November 12, 2021, ODI opened Defect Petition DP21-003 to evaluate the petitioner?s request. ODI performed trend analyses of the VOQs related to vehicle speed control issues for all the subject vehicles and found that none of the 52…
DP21003 · opened Nov 12, 2021 · closed Jun 20, 2023