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2021 Kia Sorento Recalls & Complaints

4

open safety recalls on record

Critical

350 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.07 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Critical21V519000

Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Hoses, Lines/Piping, And Fittings

fuel leak raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will inspect and tighten, or replace the fuel pipe as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 21, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC214.

Kia Motor America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021 Sorento and 2021-2022 K5 vehicles equipped with 2.5L turbocharged engines. Fuel may leak at the pipe connection between the high-pressure fuel pump and fuel rail.

Critical22V703000 Park outside

Trailer Hitches

fire while parked or driving can raises the risk of injury.

Remedy & full details

Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will inspect the vehicle, and, as necessary, replace the fuse and/or tow hitch harness module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC249.

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Sorento, 2021-2022 Sorento Hybrid (HEV), 2022-2023 Sorento Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV), and 2017-2022 Sportage vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.

Critical25V649000

Electrical System:Wiring:Fuses And Circuit Breakers

fire raises the risk of injury.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will replace the wiring harness and blower motor resistor, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 23, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC351. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning October 9, 2025.

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Sorento vehicles. The heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) blower motor wiring harness may be inadequate, which can result in a fire.

Serious22V760000

Power Train:Automatic Transmission

Loss of drive power raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will inspect and replace the transmission, as necessary. Dealers will also update the transmission control unit software. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 9, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC250.

Kia Motors, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Sorento and 2021-2023 K5 vehicles. The vehicle's "fail-safe" limited-mobility drive mode may be impaired, when prompted by a transmission oil pump malfunction, which can result in a complete loss of drive power.

Complaint volume

350 this model-year 7 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

9Crashes
1Fires
1Injuries
0Deaths

Across 350 complaints. Severity Index 0.07.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Power Train123 · 35%Engine61 · 17%Electrical System44 · 13%Unknown Or Other37 · 11%Fuel/Propulsion System21 · 6%Vehicle Speed Control11 · 3%Forward Collision Avoidan…7Steering5
  1. Power Train — 123 reports
  2. Engine — 61 reports
  3. Electrical System — 44 reports
  4. Unknown Or Other — 37 reports
  5. Fuel/Propulsion System — 21 reports
  6. Vehicle Speed Control — 11 reports
  7. Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings — 7 reports
  8. Steering — 5 reports
  9. Structure:Body — 5 reports
  10. Visibility/Wiper — 4 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

2003 (1) · 2004 · 2005 · 2006 (1) · 2007 (4) · 2008 (3) · 2009 (3) · 2010 (2) · 2011 (8) · 2012 (5) · 2013 (5) · 2014 (6) · 2015 (3) · 2016 (8) · 2017 (4) · 2018 (3) · 2019 (2) · 2020 (1) · 2021 · 2022 (6) · 2023 (3) · 2024 (2) · 2025 (3) · 2026 (2)

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.