2023 Kia Sorento UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
I am reporting a vehicle fire that occurred in June 2025 involving my Kia vehicle. On the day of the incident, I started my car and immediately noticed excessive smoke coming out of the air vents, along with a strong burning smell. I drove only a short distance and pulled into a gas station across the street to stop and check what was wrong. While stopped, my children in the back seat alerted me that there was a fire coming from the rear AC vent area. I known it was fire because I saw flames inside the AC vent located in the back seat area of the vehicle. I immediately got my children out of the car and ran inside the store to ask for help. When I walked back outside moments later, my entire vehicle was engulfed in flames. The vehicle was a total loss. At the time of the incident, there was no recall issued for my vehicle. However, in November 2025, I received a recall notice from Kia by mail that appears to be related to the cause of the fire. I purchased this vehicle from Toyota Cavender in October 2024. Since the fire, I have contacted Kia multiple times seeking assistance and resolution, but I am still waiting for a response. This fire occurred without warning and put my children and me in immediate danger.
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? —-The radiator How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? ——possible fire and engine damage Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? —— dealer stated rock chip damage. Contesting as manufacturer defect. They should be a plate to protect from this. Advertisement show vehicles off road so how can a normal highway driving cause this type of alleged damage. Is there No manufacturer design to prevent this flaw. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? ——no Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? —— yes, warning message on 3/21/26
Automatic lift gate closed and injured child. Was placing groceries in vehicle. Closed lift gate with button on lift gate, child was next to me, but hand was behind him. Liftgate closed and would not reopen. Child was injured.
Moonroof unexpectedly shattered, like a bomb had gone off, sending thousands of pieces of glass into the interior and on the vehicle occupants (including 3 children [XXX] ) INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
While I was driving on an interstate road(with no vehicles around) the sun roof of my 2023 Kia Sorento exploded and the glass completely shattered and caused pieces of the broken glass to fly off. Thankfully I had the visor up so none of the glass fell onto me, otherwise myself and my two kids (3 year old and 6 month old) could have gotten seriously injured. With nearly 80% of the glass sunroof panel above the driver area popping off, that much glass falling onto me could have caused a serious distraction and caused me to run into another vehicle or lose control of the vehicle. At the time the sunroof shattered, there was nobody on the road or any external debris that could have caused the sunroof to shatter like that. I suddenly head a loud explosion that sounded almost like a shotgun being shot and was instantly startled, and when I realized we were all okay in the vehicle I heard the sound of glass sliding off the roof of my Sorento. I then began to see chunks of glass falling on the road behind me which posed as a risk to other vehicles that were behind me and caused other drivers to swerve to avoid being hit by the glass. Since this has happened, I have contacted Kia and taken it in to my local service department. The service manager (when he inspected the sunroof) stated the glass is tempered glass and should not explode when cracked or shattered. Other reports of this exact issue is prevalent online and poses a great risk to consumers, families, and other drivers on the road.
Safety concern. Vehicle suddenly could not maintain highway speed; vehicle unexpectedly decelerated. We were forced to pull over on the shoulder of the freeway. We called 911 and officers came. Officer confirmed being stopped on the shoulder of a major freeway was a very dangerous situation. We had 3 adults and two sleeping children in the car. No warning signals in the vehicle prior to the incident.
I was driving down the highway when the sunroof randomly exploded, there was no debris that hit the roof or damages to the roof prior.
The car overheated while driving and my wife and daughter had to pull over to side of road. Engine Coolant was spilling everywhere. Car was towed to Raceway Kia in Freehold NJ. The dealer advised my wife that the radiator needs to be replaced and it was NOT covered under warranty. They claim that debris from the road must have damaged the radiator and therefore it was "third party damage". I searched the web for incidents and found that this ios a design problem in the Kia Sorrento. Their design causes the vulnerability to get damage to readaitor due to leaks. This should be recalled and redesigned before someone gets seriously injured as a result.
I was Driving the car and the sunroof exploded out of the blue.
Mounting bracket for the backup camera failed and caused the camera to dangle from the car. This caused me to not be able to use the camera to view objects and surroundings directly behind the vehicle. A dealer said they fixed the part back when it was originally recalled, but the new bracket broke and the dealer is refusing to fix the issue. They said the initial recall was completed and the part is now out of warranty and therefore they will not fix it, even though the exact part that was recalled originally has now failed again.
I was cleaning my Kia and I was wiping the back-up camera, the camera housing clip broke and I didnt even put any pressure.
Driving my vehicle my sunroof glass shatter, now it has a big hole in the middle. The car is at kia in laurel Maryland.
On 6/6/2023, the sunroof shattered while driving. No rock/debris collided at this time with the sunroof and I believe this is a security malfunction due to the glass overheating. This incident isn't the result of mishandling on our (the consumer's) behalf. The car dealership (VANGUARD KIA of Arlington) has denied responsibility in the defect of this car part. As such, I'm filing on for our situation and warning of others who are at risk. Additionally, no warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem were present prior to the failure.
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Quick Summary
The 2023 Kia Sorento has 13 UNKNOWN OR OTHER complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.