RecallRadar

Home → Kia → Soul → 2020

2020 Kia Soul Recalls & Complaints

1

open safety recall on record

Critical

493 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.48 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Critical21V259000

Engine

damaged engine may stall, raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine, free of charge. In addition, Kia will deploy Piston Ring Noise Sensing System (PNSS) software. The recall began June 11, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC209.

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Soul, and 2021 Seltos vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines. The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which may result in engine damage.

Complaint volume

493 this model-year 6 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

12Crashes
9Fires
7Injuries
16Deaths

Across 493 complaints. Severity Index 0.48.

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

Engine227 · 46%Power Train85 · 17%Unknown Or Other50 · 10%Electrical System27 · 5%Steering16 · 3%Fuel/Propulsion System15 · 3%Vehicle Speed Control12Service Brakes10
  1. Engine — 227 reports
  2. Power Train — 85 reports
  3. Unknown Or Other — 50 reports
  4. Electrical System — 27 reports
  5. Steering — 16 reports
  6. Fuel/Propulsion System — 15 reports
  7. Vehicle Speed Control — 12 reports
  8. Service Brakes — 10 reports
  9. Structure:Body — 8 reports
  10. Engine And Engine Cooling — 8 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

2010 (3) · 2011 (3) · 2012 (3) · 2013 (3) · 2014 (5) · 2015 (4) · 2016 (2) · 2017 (1) · 2018 (1) · 2019 (1) · 2020 · 2021 (2) · 2022 (1) · 2023 (4) · 2024 · 2025

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.

From the same data desk

Independent sites, same maintainer, same open-data standards.

TireFit
Is that tyre actually right for your car?
2,808 fitment guides
FuelFacts
What that trip really costs in fuel
Live consumption data
CostCompare
What things cost, city by city
2,123 comparisons