2026 Kia EV9 Owner Complaints

The OEM Hankook iON tires (285/45R21) on my 2026 Kia EV9 GT Line experienced acoustic foam delamination — the sound-dampening foam bonded to the interior liner of the tire separated and is moving freely inside the tire at highway speeds. At speeds above 55mph the steering wheel and car start to vibrate. At 70mph the vehicle becomes undrivable and feels as though the wheels may detach. This creates a serious and immediate safety risk to myself. I have largely avoided highway driving since the onset of this issue due to safety concerns. The problem was confirmed by the Kia dealership service advisor who performed a road force balance on June 15, 2026 — the technician confirmed the front two tires were off balance and needed replacement (but didn't save the report, their mistake). The road force balance did not resolve the issue. The service advisor also verbally confirmed that multiple other EV9 customers at the same dealership are experiencing the identical issue with no resolution, and that one customer has been waiting over three months while driving a loaner vehicle. The vehicle was inspected by the Kia dealership on June 12 and June 15, 2026. Kia Consumer Affairs was contacted and a case was opened on June 22, 2026 (Case #26202152). The assigned case manager never contacted me despite three follow up calls over three weeks. Kia Consumer Affairs ultimately directed me to contact Hankook — however Hankook's own published warranty process requires claims to be filed through authorized dealers, not consumers. There were no warning lamps or messages prior to onset. The vibration appeared suddenly at approximately 7,400 miles. The vehicle drove normally for several months prior to this onset with no vibration at any speed. The sudden onset after months of normal operation confirms this is a defect, not a vehicle characteristic. The issue has persisted since first appearing. *Video documentation of the vibration at highway speed is available upon request*

NHTSA ID

11753347

Incident

Jun 1, 2026

Beginning at approximately 104 miles (shortly after delivery at 75 miles), this vehicle exhibits a persistent vibration felt through the steering wheel, seat, and floorboard at highway speeds — specifically beginning around 55 mph, again at 61–63 mph, and most noticeably between 68–74 mph. A second defect involves rear-end instability where the rear of the vehicle feels loose and sways side to side over bumps and at higher speeds. Five repair attempts across two authorized Kia dealerships have failed to resolve either concern. A Kia Field Technical Specialist attributed the vibration in writing to the vehicle’s design (center console and floor-mounted captain seats). An independent inspector arranged by BBB Auto Line confirmed both defects on July 2, 2026. This appears to be a platform-level issue affecting multiple 2026 EV9 vehicles based on owner reports.

NHTSA ID

11752849

Incident

Mar 21, 2026

Since taking delivery on June 20, 2025, this vehicle has exhibited a vibration at highway speeds, most severe at approximately 72 mph. The steering wheel visibly shakes and the vibration is felt through the steering column. It is fatiguing over long drives and I have become unwilling to use the vehicle for family highway travel. I reported it to the selling dealer within days of delivery. Authorized Kia dealers have attempted repair four times over thirteen months, including tire replacement, multiple road force balances, and alignments. The dealer has now tested the vehicle with the original factory wheels and tires, an aftermarket set, and a known-good set of wheels and tires from another EV9, and confirmed in writing that the vibration is still present in all three configurations. The dealer has additionally found excessive road force on the original factory tires on two separate occasions. The dealer has advised me that Kia may consider this a normal characteristic of the model and that no further repair is expected. No crash or injury has occurred.

NHTSA ID

11750444

Incident

Jun 20, 2025

I was driving down the freeway driving at the speed of traffic. My vehicle started beeping aggressively, a red indicator started flashing over the frunk area of the vehicle representation in the dash and my vehicle entered red turtle mode. This red turtle mode severely reduced the vehicle's speed and ability to maneuver on the freeway. I was almost struck by numerous vehicles while attempting to get to the side of the road. I had been driving in the number 3 lane of a 5 lane freeway where lane 1 was an exit only offramp. Once I got to the side of the road, I power cycled the vehicle. when that didn't revolve the red turtle issue. I pressed the frunk open button. I heard the opening mechanism actuate. I then reseated the frunk latch and closed the frunk. Once the vehicle was turned back on, all issues were resolved and the vehicle behaved as normal.

NHTSA ID

11748295

Incident

Jun 28, 2026

The vehicle's front windshield glass failed catastrophically from minimal, routine roadway debris on two separate occasions within a single week.While driving at normal highway speeds, a microscopic stone or pebble impacted the windshield. Instead of causing a minor, isolated cosmetic chip, the acoustic laminated glass immediately developed an expansive linear stress fracture that rapidly spread across the driver's direct line of sight within minutes. This identical failure occurred twice in the span of 20 days, indicating a severe structural vulnerability, manufacturing defect, or excessive frame tension that makes the glass highly fragile under normal driving conditions.Component Availability: The vehicle and the cracked windshield component are currently intact and available for inspection upon request.Safety Risk: The rapid propagation of the cracks across the driver's field of view creates an immediate visibility hazard while navigating at highway speeds. Furthermore, the brittle nature of the glass compromises the structural integrity of the windshield, which is a critical safety component for roof crush protection and proper passenger airbag deployment in the event of a collision.Dealer/Independent Confirmation: The vehicle is being scheduled for an inspection and full windshield replacement at an authorized automotive glass repair facility to address the structural failure.Inspections: The damage is currently being documented and inspected by my comprehensive auto insurance provider as part of the replacement claim process.Warning Symptoms: There were absolutely no warning lamps, messages, or prior symptoms. The failure occurs instantly upon the smallest impact due to what appears to be extreme built-in structural tension.

NHTSA ID

11746361

Incident

Jun 24, 2026

ICCU failure. Total and sudden loss of power. No acceleration. "Limp mode" activated for 5 miles before total shut down.

NHTSA ID

11739411

Incident

May 18, 2026

While making a left turn at a four-way intersection, the passenger side front door opened the latch failed. This vehicle is equipped with motorized door handles that retract/flush when the vehicle is in drive indicating that the doors are locked. The door handles were retracted while driving the vehicle and making the slight left turn. During the turn, the passenger side front door opened and was a jar that could be indicated on the dashboard as well. This would put anybody at risk sitting in the passenger seat or causing an accident from the malfunction and alarm of the door. The vehicle was examined by a service department of a Kia dealership and parts of the door latch and or handle were replaced according to the repair order.

NHTSA ID

11728939

Incident

Nov 7, 2025

ICCU failure, code P1A9096.

NHTSA ID

11728578

Incident

Mar 28, 2026

At 4,000 miles the car had an electrical warning failure that required Kia to replace the gear reduction unit.

NHTSA ID

11725929

Incident

Jan 25, 2026

On March 19, 2026, at approximately 1003 hours, I was traveling north on the [XXX] located in [XXX] . I was traveling in the number two lane and my speed was approximately 78 MPH when all of a sudden I had a loss acceleration power and my Kia EV9 began to decelerate rapidly and my dashboard began to flash a loss of power warning. I had no control over my accelerator and could not speed up. Due to the rapid deceleration I had to take evasive action as northbound highway traffic was flowing smoothly. My clearest path was to move to the lefthand shoulder, which required me to cross the number one lane and the carpool lane. During this time, my Kia EV9 continued to decelerate. Once I got my vehicle onto the shoulder I placed my vehicle in park at which time my dashboard highlighted the front storage compartment of my vehicle in red. I assumed that meant my frunk was open. I exited my vehicle and checked my frunk and indeed found that my frunk was open and the first stage of the two-stage latch system was disengaged. Had the second stage of the latch system been disengaged it could have resulted in catastrophic consequences due to me traveling at highway speeds on a multilane highway. To be clear, I did not touch the interior compartment frunk release button and my keys were sitting in my left cargo short pocket located on the side of my left leg. I had also been traveling for approximately five to seven minutes and had entered the highway via the northbound [XXX] . I came to a stop at approximately the [XXX] area, which is approximately two miles north of [XXX] . I am aware that electric model Kia vehicles have a safety measure in which if the frunk or trunk is open the vehicle computer system does not allow the vehicle to engage in drive or reverse mode. Since I do have an electric vehicle, a diagnostic of my vehicle computer could reveal the cause. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11725811

Incident

Mar 19, 2026

The first time I drove on a highway in this brand new car the windshield chipped. There are facebook group posts of other drivers experiencing numerous chips and cracks in the windshield. I'm not sure how this compares with other cars, but I've been driving for about 20 years and have had little rocks/pebbles hit the car windshield and never have had an issue with a chip in the windshield. I'm not sure how unsafe this is-- if the entire thing could break-- the dealership I go to is patching it for me-- but this may be a consumer issue and possibly a safety issue too.

NHTSA ID

11724016

Incident

Mar 8, 2026

ICCU failure with 12v battery drainage resulting in inability to drive car.

NHTSA ID

11722812

Incident

Jan 17, 2026

Car was driving find and suddenly check electric system message came in with a red battery indicator. The application for the car indicates an ICCU P1A9096 error code. ICCU errors seems to be common with Kia/Hyundai electric cars. Car went to limp mode and wouldn’t let drive it more than 45mph which it was dangerous in the highway. I was able to get the car into the dealer but the last mile the car was very limited in power with no more than 30mph. Radio, A/C and other accessories stop working

NHTSA ID

11721195

Incident

Feb 28, 2026

Vehicle would not accept a charge requiring it be towed 120 miles to nearest Kia dealer. Vehicle had no warning lights or messages, just would not accept a recharge of the drive battery. Dealer found 3 error messages in the ICCU, but no idea why it occurred. Messages removed and vehicle then accepted a charge.

NHTSA ID

11718984

Incident

Jan 26, 2026

vehicle would not accelerate pass 25 mph, battery light came on, stop vehicle and check power supply message also came on. had to towed to dealer. KIA app showing ICCU code P1A9096

NHTSA ID

11716099

Incident

Feb 4, 2026

EV car won't charge.

NHTSA ID

11711872

Incident

Oct 1, 2025

Instrument panel goes Black while driving. Keeps flickering on and off while driving. Took it to a dealer and they denied the flicker, even though I have 15 videos of it. Dealer just gave us the car back without fixing the issue and told us to live with it. This is extremely unsafe as we go up to a minute without seeing anything.

NHTSA ID

11711520

Incident

Dec 23, 2025

The contact owns a 2026 Kia EV9. The contact stated that while driving at 68 MPH, the sunroof made an abnormally loud banging sound. The contact pulled over to the side of the road, inspected the sunroof, and became aware that the sunroof was cracking. The contact closed the shade guard to prevent shattered glass from falling inside the vehicle. The vehicle was driven to the destination. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer the same day. The dealer confirmed that the sunroof had internally failed, and the dealer was waiting for the warranty department to approve the sunroof replacement. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 600.

NHTSA ID

11710978

Incident

Jan 14, 2026

Mileage

600 mi

I own a Kia 2026 EV9. We charged the car to 80% (we have reduced the limit to only 80%). The next morning there was no power to the car. The interior lights would not come on door handles would not work. I could not start the vehicle. I read on line of the 12v battery dying and ICCU failures. I charged the battery for 1.5 hours and was able to get the car to start. I immediately drove it to the Kia dealership on 01/05/2026. The service department stated they could charge the battery but had to further diagnose the problem. On 01/08/2026 the service department stated that the tech was "tinkering" on the car and would reload software updates and patches. On 01/09/2026 the service department informed me that the technician still does not know what is wrong with the car and the tech is off again today.

NHTSA ID

11709899

Incident

Jan 5, 2026