NHTSA recalls, safety ratings, and consumer complaints for the 2025 Kia Sportage.
| Overall Rating | |
| Frontal Crash | |
| Side Crash | |
| Rollover |
| Overall Rating | |
| Frontal Crash |
Component: TRAILER HITCHES
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Sportage Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV) and 2024-2025 Sportage vehicles equipped with a 4.2" screen and a Genuine Kia tow hitch harness accessory. Due to a software error, the instrument panel screen may fail. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 101, "Controls and Displays."
Consequence: An instrument panel screen that fails to display critical safety information, such as the speedometer or warning lights, can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the tow hitch harness control module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 13, 2026. Owners may contact Kia Customer Service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC359. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning December 31, 2025.
Oil was being diluted by fuel seeping in from the injectors and the high pressure fuel pump. Vehicle was brought in twice to fix the problem. During the 24-27 Feb 26 repair the high pressure fuel pump was diagnosed and replaced. On 16 Mar 26 I noticed the oil level had risen on the dip stick (after driving ~300 miles) about 5 mm and brought the car back to the Kia dealer for diagnosis and repair. The high pressure fuel pump was diagnosed again as bad and replaced as were all four fuel injectors after they were also determined to be leaking fuel.
Driving with no other cars around us and no debris anywhere and the moonroof suddenly shattered with a loud noise.
The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that the rear-view camera had become inoperable. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was initially unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was later diagnosed, and it was determined that the failure was with the radio and the camera. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was opened. The manufacturer denied the buyback request. The failure mileage was approximately 10.
The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sportage. There was no indication that there was an issue while test-driving the vehicle. The vehicle was cleaned by the seller before purchase. The contact stated that while driving for twenty minutes, they noticed there was an abnormal burning /chemical smell detected. The occupants /the contact, and her husband sustained nasal, eye, headaches, dizziness, and irritation occurred, and medical attention was provided. The contact attempted to ventilate the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the contact had a (Certified Pre-0wned) CPO warranty. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and opened a case. Additional letters and emails were sent to Kia, but there was no response. A loaner vehicle was not provided. The failure mileage was approximately 262,000.
The 2025 Kia Sportage has 1 NHTSA recall and 39 consumer complaints on file. It received an overall safety rating of 5 out of 5 stars in NHTSA crash testing. For the most detailed information about a specific vehicle, decode its VIN using our free decoder above.
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| Side Crash |
| Rollover |
3 times my car has been in for rotors my car is not even a year old 10/25 resurfaced rotors 1/26 brand new rotors 3/26 rotors warped having to resurface the new rotors this shouldn’t be happening on a new car I don’t ride my breaks I have had new cars all my life never had break issues
On Thursday, February 26, 2026, at 11:48am, the rear panel of my panoramic sunroof exploded. I didn’t see or hear anything fall on top of the sunroof, or any part of the car. I didn’t hear a loud noise that sounded similar to a “boom” sound or thud. As soon as I got in my car, I heard a cracking sound coming from the sunroof panel.
My sunroof shattered. No other vehicles were near me and after hearing a very loud bang, I pulled over to check to see of something hit my car. All looked fine, but I did not look at the top of my car until about a week later due to hearing wind sounds. I then assumed something must have fell out of the sky. Dealership said that they do not fix sunroofs in-house and towed it to a body shop near them. I was then quoted $8700 to fix! A friend suggested I check for recalls and found issues noted online.
The windshield creates layers of frost if it is really cold.. While the above might be unrelated but the other day I was rolling my front passenger window up in the cold weather and the window just shattered - it just exploded, even though it stayed intact it shattered into a thousand pieces
I HAVE HAD THIS TRUCK TO kIA IN cLEARWATER 4 X FOR PANEL GOING BLACK. NO LIGHTS, AIR COMES ON AND OFF BY ITSELF. nO BACK UP CAMERA. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING ON THIS TRUCK SINCE I BOUGHT IT. THE MGR. WADE THINKS I AM CRAZY. THERE IS A RECALL FOR THE PANEL BUT NOT FOR MY TRUCK, WHY? NO ONE WILL FIX THIS TRUCK. I AM VERY DISAPOINTED WITH KIA. I HAD A SOUL AND TRADED UP FOR THESE SAME REASONS. 3 BATTEIES IN 4 MONTHS. IS THERE ANY RECOURSE? [XXX] [XXX] I [XXX] ANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Navigation screen began blinking (glitching) and suddenly went black and would not come back on. Called the dealership and they said it was not a recall and that it was no longer covered under warranty. This problem has persisted intermittently and I am noticing a pattern. When the temperature is cold outside the screen works fine, however if it is 60+° outside this happens. I’ve read online that this is a known issue however I’m being told there is no recall.
Immediately after delivery, the instrument/infotainment display malfunctioned, froze, and became unresponsive. Apple CarPlay failed, and phone calls distorted or dropped. After reporting the issue, I discovered that this VIN is subject to Safety Recall SC359B, with a recall date of December 17, 2025, and a status of RECALL INCOMPLETE / NO REMEDY AVAILABLE. This recall existed prior to the sale. The recall is confirmed by the Kia owner app, Kia/NHTSA VIN lookup, and the dealer’s internal campaign report. Despite this, the dealer stated in writing that there were “no open recalls” and refused to unwind the sale, mischaracterizing the defect as an “audio panel” issue. I am submitting this to document a retail delivery of a new motor vehicle under an open, VIN-specific safety recall with no available remedy, which constitutes a violation of federal motor vehicle safety law (49 U.S.C. §§ 30112 and 30120). I request review by the Office of Defects Investigation and Recall Management Division.
While driving this car, I have experienced the car's auto-braking system. While driving on I-94, the traffic was slowing down due to activity ahead of me. Apparently, I did not slow down enough for the car's sensor, as the auto brakes engaged and "slammed" onto the brakes. The car behind me barely had time to react due to the auto-braking so hard on the brakes. Another instance of these auto brakes engaging dangerously, as I am backing out of my driveway ( My home faces a corner and is a 3 way stop intersection) I am halfway out of my driveway when the car picks up there is a car behind me, however the vehicle is NOT behind me it is at the corner stop sign on the opposite side of the road. The brakes once again engaged in a very aggressive manner, throwing everything in the car onto the seats to the floor. I almost got T boned by a car because they had no clue what "I" was doing, or where I was going. Although this function is designed to assist drivers, it is a casualty waiting to happen. I'd rather drive my own car and brake myself than have a car do it for me. Especially in the manner this is engaging. There is no easing onto the brake; it's quite harsh and aggressive. This can lead to you being rear-ended in the long run.
The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the engine experienced difficulty cranking. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission failed to properly shift gear. The contact stated that the engine revved up, but the transmission failed to properly shift gear. The Auto START/STOP light was orange. The contact was concerned about a possible disintegration of the transmission after a friend alerted him of a similar failure. The contact called the local dealer and left a message. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18,000.
On Monday, Dec 15 at approximately 3:30 pm I was pulling into my parking spot in front of my house. The vehicle suddenly revved loudly and shot forward striking a tree in my front yard. If not for the tree would have ended up in the kitchen. When parking I do not have to apply gas once I enter the lot as I can drift into the spot. I barely have to brake to stop the vehicle. The steering wheel airbag deployed, fortunately no serious injuries. The passenger front end was pretty much gone and two big branches were sheared off at ground level. Police responded, report #XXX [XXX] Sheriff office. Vehicle is due to get to the body shop today or tomorrow. Fortunately this happened where it did as if it had been in traffic or around people it could have been very serious. This was also reported to Kia. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
I have documented the following issues: -84 instances of "Keep Hands on the Wheel" when my hands were on the 10/2 or 9/3 position. This dates back to March 2025 and has continued into December. -12 instances of the ER braking engaging with "Collision Alert" when no other vehicles/object/danger were around. The ER braking is the sudden, full force stopping of the vehicle staring in April 2025 and as most recently as 12/06/2025. -3 instances of the vehicle being in "drive" but not moving forward; only the engine revving. This started in August and occurred again in October and on 12/06/2025. -1 instance of the vehicle randomly shutting off while driving very slow into the garage on 12/06/2025.
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