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2022 Kia Sportage Recalls & Complaints

1

open safety recall on record

Critical

67 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.45 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

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.

Complaint volume

67 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

10Crashes
2Fires
1Injuries
0Deaths

Across 67 complaints. Severity Index 0.45.

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

Engine20 · 30%Electrical System7 · 10%Forward Collision Avoidan…5 · 7%Trailer Hitches4 · 6%Unknown Or Other4 · 6%Forward Collision Avoidan…3 · 4%Fuel/Propulsion System3 · 4%Visibility · Sun/Moon Roo…3 · 4%
  1. Engine — 20 reports
  2. Electrical System — 7 reports
  3. Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings — 5 reports
  4. Trailer Hitches — 4 reports
  5. Unknown Or Other — 4 reports
  6. Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking — 3 reports
  7. Fuel/Propulsion System — 3 reports
  8. Visibility:Sun/Moon Roof Assembly — 3 reports
  9. Power Train — 3 reports
  10. Air Bags — 2 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

1995 (2) · 1996 (3) · 1997 (3) · 1998 (5) · 1999 (5) · 2000 (4) · 2001 (2) · 2002 (3) · 2003 · 2005 (3) · 2006 (1) · 2007 (2) · 2008 (3) · 2009 (3) · 2010 (2) · 2011 (6) · 2012 (5) · 2013 (3) · 2014 (3) · 2015 (2) · 2016 (2) · 2017 (4) · 2018 (3) · 2019 (2) · 2020 (2) · 2021 (2) · 2022 · 2023 (6) · 2024 (3) · 2025 (1) · 2026 (1)

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.

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