Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | |||
| 11/05/2012 | 25000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated that while depressing the brakes and reversing from a residential driveway at approximately 5 mph, the vehicle suddenly accelerated into a busy street without warning. the vehicle abnormally accelerated to approximately 70 mph and came to a stop after crashing into another vehicle. the police were contacted and a report was filed. the driver sustained minor injuries to various parts of her body and later was transported to the hospital. the driver of the second vehicle was transported to the hospital via ambulance for treatment of unknown injuries. the vehicle was later towed to an independent mechanic and was pending an investigation. the manufacturer was contacted and advised the contact that once the vehicle was repaired, they would perform a warranty check. the failure and current mileages were approximately 25,000. the vin was unavailable. kmj | |||
| 10/03/2012 | 15000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated while driving 25 mph the vehicle began to accelerate independently. the contact attempted to stop the vehicle by shifting in the park position but she was unsuccessful. the vehicle was finally able to be put into the park position and then became stuck in that position. the dealer was called and informed the contact over the phone that her brake lamp switch was likely the cause of the failure. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for a more complete diagnosis and the brake lamp switch was repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. the failure and current mileage was 15,000. pmb | |||
| 10/03/2012 | 15000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated while driving 25 mph the vehicle began to accelerate independently. the contact attempted to stop the vehicle by putting the vehicle in the park position but she was unsuccessful. she continued to apply the brakes while she called a tow truck. finally with the assistance of her passenger they both applied the brake and allowed the tow truck driver to enter the vehicle. the vehicle was finally able to be put into the park position and then became stuck in that position. the dealer was called and informed the contact over the phone that her brake lamp switch was likely the cause of the failure. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for a more complete diagnosis and the brake lamp switch was repaired. the manufacturer was notified but offered no assistance. the failure and current mileages were 15,000. dt | |||
| 09/25/2012 | 24000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated while driving 60 mph the accelerator failed. the contact steered the vehicle to the side of the road as it slowed to a stop. once the vehicle was restarted the accelerator responded as designed. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis and the throttle body was replaced. the contact mentioned that it was the second time the throttle body had to be replaced. the failure and current mileage was 24,000. pmb | |||
| 09/25/2012 | 24000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated while driving 60 mph the accelerator failed. the contact steered the vehicle to the side of the road as it slowed to a stop. once the vehicle was restarted the accelerator responded as designed. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis and the throttle body was replaced. it was the second time the throttle body had to be replaced. the failure and current mileages were 24,000. dt | |||
| 08/31/2010 | 75 | 1 | |
| When acceleration from a stop or slow speed the engine will occasionally bog down or hesitate and almost die. very dangerous when attempting to pull out in traffic esp onto a highway from a side street. *tr | |||
| 07/22/2012 | 1 | 06/01/2012 | |
| 2011 kia sorento. consumer states unintended acceleration *tgw the consumer stated as he was driving down his driveway, he began to slow down, as he approached the road. there was a slight shifting motion and the vehicle suddenly accelerated to the max of 8000 rpm's. he depressed the brake, but the vehicle continued to move, so he placed the transmission in neutral and turned off the engine. he then re-started the engine and everything seemed normal. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. however, they were unable to duplicate the incident. | |||
| 08/31/2010 | 75 | 1 | |
| When acceleration from a stop or slow speed the engine will occasionally bog down or hesitate and almost die. very dangerous when attempting to pull out in traffic esp onto a highway from a side street. *tr | |||
| 07/22/2012 | 1 | 06/01/2012 | |
| 2011 kia sorento. consumer states unintended acceleration *tgw the consumer stated as he was driving down his driveway, he began to slow down, as he approached the road. there was a slight shifting motion and the vehicle suddenly accelerated to the max of 8000 rpm's. he depressed the brake, but the vehicle continued to move, so he placed the transmission in neutral and turned off the engine. he then re-started the engine and everything seemed normal. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. however, they were unable to duplicate the incident. | |||
| 08/31/2010 | 75 | 1 | |
| When acceleration from a stop or slow speed the engine will occasionally bog down or hesitate and almost die. very dangerous when attempting to pull out in traffic esp onto a highway from a side street. *tr | |||
| 07/22/2012 | 1 | 06/01/2012 | |
| 2011 kia sorento. consumer states unintended acceleration *tgw the consumer stated as he was driving down his driveway, he began to slow down, as he approached the road. there was a slight shifting motion and the vehicle suddenly accelerated to the max of 8000 rpm's. he depressed the brake, but the vehicle continued to move, so he placed the transmission in neutral and turned off the engine. he then re-started the engine and everything seemed normal. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. however, they were unable to duplicate the incident. | |||
| 01/23/2012 | 13951 | 1 | |
| Engine stalls while driving, last time was almost in accident 1/23/12 @40 mph, 3/06/12 @ 50 mph, 5/24/12 @35 mph, 9/4/12 @55 mph. have dealership service records for first three incidents. new throttle body installed 3/06/1 in florida at sunset kia in venice. per matt jarvis bald hill kia in warwick ri, the replacement throttle body was defective (kia got a bad lot of throttle bodies for a while.] replaced again 9/6/12. dealership had knowledge of possible defective part before last stalling. i was driving at 55 mph on rt 24 in middletown ri in the passing lane when the car stalled, gas peddle unresponsive. i was almost rear ended and had to weave though traffic to get through the driving lane then on to the grass. it was a miracle that i made it to safety. why did dealership not recall defective throttle bodies. *tr | |||
| 01/23/2012 | 13951 | ||
| Engine stalls while driving, last time was almost in accident 1/23/12 @4o mph, 3/o6/12 @ 50 mph, 5/24/12 @35 mph, 9/4/12 @55 mph. have dealership service records for first three incidents. new throttle body installed 3/06/1 in florida at sunset kia in venice. per matt jarvis bald hill kia in warwick ri, the replacement throttle body was defective (kia got a bad lot of throttle bodies for a while.] replaced again 9/6/12. dealership had knowledge of possible defective part before last stalling. i was driving at 55 mph on rt 24 in middletown ri in the passing lane when the car stalled, gas peddle unresponsive. i was almost rear ended and had to weave though traffic to get through the driving lane then on to the grass. it was a miracle that i made it to safety. why did dealership not recall defective throttle bodies. | |||
| 08/19/2012 | 48000 | 1 | |
| On 9/19/2012 at 12:17 pm i took a frantic call from my wife. she had just stopped to fill up with gas, got back on the interstate and set the cruise control at around 75 mph. shortly afterwards the front end started shaking and the vehicle started to lose speed. she shut off the cruise and was looking for a place to pull over when the vehicle started to accelerate on its own. it was already going over 80 mph when she called. i told her to stand on the brakes-no effect. i told her to put her foot on the brake and to push and hold the start button for 10 seconds-nothing (that is the override to get the car started when the brake switch malfunctions-we had just had it replaced at the dealership 2 weeks prior). i told her to shift it into neutral-the shifter is locked in drive. i told her to shift to a lower gear-it won't move. after 4 minutes the car was going over 85 mph-i told her to hang up & call 911 as she could tell them where she was much better than i could. a few minutes later i received a call from the highway patrol-they had 2 cruisers on the interstate with her trying to clear traffic ahead of her. i asked if they could get a cruiser ahead of her and let her nose up behind it and then use the cruiser to stop her. evidently they didn't like that idea or it is against policy because they never did try that. the dispatcher had to hang up to concentrate on the situation at hand. i now had the dispatcher's number so i could call her back. at one point i called back and suggested that she engage the cruise control and try to slow the car with it. my wife does not remember ever trying this. this went on for about 45 minutes at speeds up to 119 mph. at the end one of the officers told her to put her left foot on the brake and pull up on the accelerator with her right foot at the same time. she went from over 100 mph to under 50 mph instantly, let go of the pedals. *tr | |||
| 01/23/2012 | 13951 | ||
| Engine stalls while driving, last time was almost in accident 1/23/12 @4o mph, 3/o6/12 @ 50 mph, 5/24/12 @35 mph, 9/4/12 @55 mph. have dealership service records for first three incidents. new throttle body installed 3/06/1 in florida at sunset kia in venice. per matt jarvis bald hill kia in warwick ri, the replacement throttle body was defective (kia got a bad lot of throttle bodies for a while.] replaced again 9/6/12. dealership had knowledge of possible defective part before last stalling. i was driving at 55 mph on rt 24 in middletown ri in the passing lane when the car stalled, gas peddle unresponsive. i was almost rear ended and had to weave though traffic to get through the driving lane then on to the grass. it was a miracle that i made it to safety. why did dealership not recall defective throttle bodies. | |||
| 08/19/2012 | 48000 | 1 | |
| On 9/19/2012 at 12:17 pm i took a frantic call from my wife. she had just stopped to fill up with gas, got back on the interstate and set the cruise control at around 75 mph. shortly afterwards the front end started shaking and the vehicle started to lose speed. she shut off the cruise and was looking for a place to pull over when the vehicle started to accelerate on its own. it was already going over 80 mph when she called. i told her to stand on the brakes-no effect. i told her to put her foot on the brake and to push and hold the start button for 10 seconds-nothing (that is the override to get the car started when the brake switch malfunctions-we had just had it replaced at the dealership 2 weeks prior). i told her to shift it into neutral-the shifter is locked in drive. i told her to shift to a lower gear-it won't move. after 4 minutes the car was going over 85 mph-i told her to hang up & call 911 as she could tell them where she was much better than i could. a few minutes later i received a call from the highway patrol-they had 2 cruisers on the interstate with her trying to clear traffic ahead of her. i asked if they could get a cruiser ahead of her and let her nose up behind it and then use the cruiser to stop her. evidently they didn't like that idea or it is against policy because they never did try that. the dispatcher had to hang up to concentrate on the situation at hand. i now had the dispatcher's number so i could call her back. at one point i called back and suggested that she engage the cruise control and try to slow the car with it. my wife does not remember ever trying this. this went on for about 45 minutes at speeds up to 119 mph. at the end one of the officers told her to put her left foot on the brake and pull up on the accelerator with her right foot at the same time. she went from over 100 mph to under 50 mph instantly, let go of the pedals. *tr | |||
| 08/19/2012 | 48000 | ||
| On 9/19/2012 at 12:17 pm i took a frantic call from my wife. she had just stopped to fill up with gas, got back on the interstate and set the cruise control at around 75 mph. shortly afterwards the front end started shaking and the vehicle started to lose speed. she shut off the cruise and was looking for a place to pull over when the vehicle started to accelerate on its own. it was already going over 80 mph when she called. i told her to stand on the brakes-no effect. i told her to put her foot on the brake and to push and hold the start button for 10 seconds-nothing (that is the override to get the car started when the brake switch malfunctions-we had just had it replaced at the dealership 2 weeks prior). i told her to shift it into neutral-the shifter is locked in drive. i told her to shift to a lower gear-it won't move. after 4 minutes the car was going over 85 mph-i told her to hang up & call 911 as she could tell them where she was much better than i could. a few minutes later i received a call from the highway patrol-they had 2 cruisers on the interstate with her trying to clear traffic ahead of her. i asked if they could get a cruiser ahead of her and let her nose up behind it and then use the cruiser to stop her. evidently they didn't like that idea or it is against policy because they never did try that. the dispatcher had to hang up to concentrate on the situation at hand. i now had the dispatcher's number so i could call her back. at one point i called back and suggested that she engage the cruise control and try to slow the car with it. my wife does not remember ever trying this. this went on for about 45 minutes at speeds up to 119 mph. at the end one of the officers told her to put her left foot on the brake and pull up on the accelerator with her right foot at the same time. she went from over 100 mph to under 50 mph instantly, let go of the pedals and | |||
| 08/01/2012 | 34000 | 1 | |
| My husband was on private property. he got in the car, put the car in reverse and backed up. he heard a loud pop. he put the car in drive, and his foot was still on the brake. the car began to accelerate on its own with his foot on the brake until the vehicle got up to 60 miles per hour. trying not to hit the house, or the person outside of the property he maneuvered the car into the back yard. the car was steadily picking up speed and his foot was on the brake the entire time. he could not get the gear to shift or the brakes to work. the vehicle struck a tree and that impeded the movement of the vehicle. he turned the car off and got out of it. *tr | |||
| 08/01/2012 | 34000 | ||
| My husband was on private property. he got in the car, put the car in reverse and backed up. he heard a loud pop. he put the car in drive, and his foot was still on the brake. the car began to accelerate on its own with his foot on the brake until the vehicle got up to 60 miles per hour. trying not to hit the house, or the person outside of the property he manuevered the car into the back yard. the car was steadily picking up speed and his foot was on the brake the entire time. he could not get the gear to shift or the brakes to work. the vehicle struck a tree and that impeded the movement of the vehicle. he turned the car off and got out of it. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 5000 | 1 | |
| The date above is the first date there was a indication of a problem. the actual speed of travel has varied. the issue is random and has affected most systems at one time or the other. it has normally been a headache more than safety always going away after shutting the car down and restarting. to me it became a safety issue when about two months ago i heard a loud bang like i hit something and then my rpms increased and the transmission would not shift out of the lower gears. i pulled into a safe parking area, shut the car down and called the dealer. after restarting the car the problem went away, just as it has every time no matter what system has been affected. the issues have ranged from a cruise control refusing to activate, the cruise control having erratic behavior (often kicking in the passing gear when not required), total electronic panel shutdown (including radio), to doors locking on their own when open, to headlights not being turned off when they should have been after 2-30 seconds. the transmission issue has been the most serious. the car should have already been serviced under a similar recall. i have noted similar complaints including a similar transmission compliant on kia forums. kia itself refused to give the go ahead for a computer reset/upgrade. my dealer did this on his own for me after i made it clear this has gone too far. a personal conversation with kia was negative and was nothing short of talking in circles. i understand the issue of trying to traced random problems, but not the failure to start an investigation into, for instance, possible computer shielding issues making outside interference a possibility. it remains to be seen if the computer update works, but it is a issue when a transmission shuts totally or partly down. the dealer has never been able to verify my complaints. *tr | |||
| 04/25/2012 | 24300 | ||
| My wife was driving my our 2011 kia sorrento at around 55 mph entering the highway when she suddenly lost power. she tried to use both the brakes and accelerator and found that neither of them worked. the car slowed to about 5-10mph before eventually stopping in the middle of the road, as she had been unable to pull the car to the side of the road. after several minutes of trying, she was eventually able to get the car restarted and drive the rest of the way home. she does recall that the driver side window appeared to be working. the car was brought to the dealership immediately the day after this happened. however, they were unable to reproduce what happened to the car. they did update the electronic control module software. will continue to monitor situation closely | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 3000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated that the vehicle hesitated while attempting to accelerate. the contact mentioned that once the vehicle responded, the vehicle lunged forward abnormally. the vehicle was taken to the dealer several times. the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure, but replaced the accelerator pedal assembly as a temporary remedy. the remedy failed to repair the failure. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who lodged a complaint and advised the contact that they would contact him at a later date. the vehicle was not further repaired. the failure mileage was 3,000 and the current mileage was 15,000. kmj | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 3000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated that while trying to pull off the vehicle hesitated although the accelerator pedal was depress. the contact mentioned that once it engaged the vehicle lunge forward. the vehicle was taken to the dealer several of times who was not able to duplicate the failure but decided to replaced the accelerator assembly as a temporary fix. the remedy failed to repaired the failure. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who filed a report and stated that they would contact him back at a later date. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 3,000 and current mileage was 15,000. pm | |||
| 10/18/2011 | 7410 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact was driving approximately 5 mph in reverse and the vehicle unexpectedly increased acceleration and circled around the sidewalk and then uncontrollably traveled onto the lawn, crashing through a plastic fence. there was no personal injury or damage to the vehicle. a police report was not filed. the contact planned to have the vehicle towed to the dealer for diagnosis. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 7,410. kmj | |||
| 10/18/2011 | 7410 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact was driving approximately 5 mph in reverse and the vehicle unexpectedly increased acceleration and circled around the sidewalk and then uncontrollably traveled onto the lawn crashing through a plastic fence. there was no personal injury or damage to the vehicle. a police report was not filed. the contact planned to have the vehicle towed to the dealer for diagnosis. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 7,410. js | |||
| 07/24/2011 | |||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated that while driving at low speeds she noticed that the esc and the dbc lights had illuminated on the intrumental panel. when she tried to apply the brakes the vehicle reved up and accelerated and crashed into a tree. the driver nor the passenger were injured. the police were not contacted and no report was available. the vehicle was towed to a independent mechanic and was pending an investigation. the manufacturer was contacted and they advised her that the engineer would be down to look over the vehicle. the failure and current mileages were unknown. tb | |||
| 04/03/2011 | 1627 | ||
| Driving from palm springs to los angeles on highway 10, a very loud clunk heard beneath the drivers seat and vehicle lost power but continued to rev. slowly recovered. about 10 minutes later, at speed of 65 in traffic on highway, another loud grinding clunk heard somewhere beneath driver's seat. vehicle again lost power but continued to rev. best way to describe is that it felt like the car was suddenly dropping from 5th gear to 1st gear. but the gear shift was not touched. this happened in traffic on a major highway. i see there are dozens of similar complaints registered on this site. please take action before someone is hurt. | |||
| 03/26/2011 | 17000 | ||
| Cruise control broken for 3rd time. cruise control does not work, has already had cruise control switch replaced once. taking into dealer for third time and ironically, the day we picked 2011 kia sorento up to have the cruise control fixed for the second time, it did not work with dealer stating could not duplicate customer's concern. what if we all did our job that way? is this site, payed for by us citizens, just for blogging or does the national highway traffic and safety administration have any teeth? its about time for a recall on the 2011 kia sorento for transmission, sudden accelaration, cruise control, steering - pulling to the right, and other problems the 2011 kia sorento has that are dangers to the public at large. | |||
| 01/18/2011 | 16347 | ||
| After completeing the second nhtsa complaint #10377110 last evening on our 2011 kia sorento, my spouse came home from driving the 2011 kia sorento (with two previous transmission complaints) and informed myself the vehicle now accelerates on its own!!! my spouse stated the engine started reving all by itself so i hit the brakes. she stated the vehicle's brakes did in fact stop the vehicle and she was able to drive home safely with no further incidence. please do something about the kia sorento before someone is hurt. we will no longer drive the vehicle for any reason. | |||
| 10/23/2010 | 0 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sedona lx. the contact stated while the vehicle sits in traffic for a few moments when the accelerator was depressed the vehicle was very slow to accelerate and at other times the vehicle accelerated faster than normal. the contact experienced the failure numerous times. the vehicle was taken to two kia dealers whom advised the vehicle was operating normal, because the throttle control was electrical. the failure mileage was 0 and the current mileage was 4,700. li | |||
| 09/27/2010 | 14 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2011 kia sorento. the contact stated sometimes the vehicle lunges forward when it is started. the vehicle has a keyless start, so even if your foot is on the brake, the vehicle lunges forward. this has started to occur more and more over time. the vehicle was being inspected at the time of the complaint. the failure mileage was 14 and the current mileage was 2100.rl | |||
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - ACCELERATOR PEDAL | |||
| 02/01/2011 | 7 | ||
| 2011 kia sorento. consumer writes regarding problems with vehicle within the first 2 months of purchase *tgw the consumer stated the stalled while driving on the highway. it would down shift unexpectedly and then jerk and jolt. there were times when the consumer applied the accelerator and the vehicle would not respond for a short period before the vehicle revved up and accelerated. the vehicle also pulled to the right and there was a bad grinding/rubbing sound coming from the front drivers side of the vehicle, along with spongy brakes which was a problem from the start. the consumer stated when she started the vehicle, there was a knocking noise coming from the engine. the interior lights went out, the drivers side window switch was faulty and the back-up camera stopped working. *jb | |||