2016 Kia Sedona Electrical Problems

2016 Kia Sedona with power sliding doors. Both rear power sliding doors fail to completely latch upon closing. Doors make loud clicking sounds while attempting to close and require manual pushing to latch. Kia of Attleboro diagnosed and confirmed in writing that both rear door roller arm assemblies are completely missing the roller, and that this condition is contributing to the latching failure. Both power sliding door motors and rear door latches also need replacement. This is a safety hazard as the doors may appear closed but are not fully latched, posing a serious risk of doors opening while driving, particularly with children as passengers. The condition has been confirmed in writing by a Kia dealership. Kia Motors America issued Warranty Bulletin WTY019 in March 2021 specifically extending coverage for this exact latching condition on 2015-2017 Sedona vehicles to 15 years/unlimited miles. The covered components (motors and latches) have been approved for warranty replacement. However, Kia America has denied coverage for the roller arm assemblies despite their own dealer's written confirmation that these parts are directly contributing to the covered latching failure. Components are available for inspection upon request. No warning lamps appeared prior to failure. Problem developed gradually with increasing noise before doors failed to latch completely.

NHTSA ID

11755233

Incident

Jun 16, 2026

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that the climate control panel became inoperable, failing to distribute heat and air conditioning. While the middle and third-row climate systems functioned, an abnormal burning odor was detected. The fan speed adjustment button experienced an electrical short, and upon removing the climate control panel, the wiring harness was found burnt. The contact stated that the climate control panel was previously replaced. Additionally, the power sliding door was inoperable. No warning lights illuminated. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V109000 (Electrical System); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that the failure was caused by the climate control panel. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 159,259.

NHTSA ID

11749478

Incident

May 10, 2026

Mileage

159,259 mi

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 107,000. It was later discovered upon checking a Carfax Report that the mileage was 187,000.

NHTSA ID

11722402

Incident

Mar 6, 2026

Mileage

187,000 mi

The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while her nephew was driving, the nephew made a left-hand turn, and the vehicle was hit on the front right quarter panel. The contact stated that her nephew had turned on the left-hand signal and was halfway through making the left turn when the accident occurred. The other vehicle drove on the opposite side and stated that the left-hand turn signal was not on. The contact's nephew was unsure if any warning lights were illuminated. The driver-side and passenger-side air bags were deployed. The contact's nephew had minor injuries and had a bruise on the right arm and chest that did not require medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a towing yard. The contact then had the vehicle towed to the residence and no longer driven. The insurance company was contacted, and the results are pending. Upon further investigation, the contact discovered that the vehicle had an open recall pending: NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V725000 (EXTERIOR LIGHTING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). The contact stated that there was a passenger in the vehicle. The passenger was sitting on the front passenger seat and was not injured. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.

NHTSA ID

11709756

Incident

Jan 3, 2026

Mileage

96,000 mi

The hitch lifts have went bad. When you open the back hatch it goes all the way up and then immediately goes back down about half way. It’s a huge safety concern. I have been hit in the head numerous times.

NHTSA ID

11696371

Incident

Oct 1, 2022

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that after purchasing the vehicle from the dealer, the air bag warning light illuminated while driving, and the front passenger’s seat detection system failed to detect a passenger. The dealer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle had previously been repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V109000 (Electrical System). The contact was also informed that a diagnostic test was needed to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 300,000.

NHTSA ID

11693362

Incident

Aug 16, 2025

Mileage

300,000 mi

Odometer Fraud. The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that the vehicle was traded for another vehicle at the used car dealer while the mileage was 220,000; however, the used car dealer later listed the mileage as 180,000.

NHTSA ID

11681268

Incident

Aug 4, 2025

Mileage

220,000 mi

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a dealer sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was approximately 68,000 and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was approximately 104,000.

NHTSA ID

11662362

Incident

May 16, 2025

Mileage

104,000 mi

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The vehicle's engine and electrical system appear to have failed, resulting in a fire originating from the engine compartment. The vehicle is currently at a salvage yard and available for inspection upon request. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? The fire occurred while my wife was picking up our children from school. Fortunately, they were able to exit the vehicle safely, but the incident posed a significant risk to their safety and could have resulted in severe injury or death. The vehicle was completely engulfed in flames and is now unusable. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? The specific issue leading to the fire has not yet been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or service center. However, the vehicle had been previously serviced by Gilman Honda on March 12, 2024, due to a loud grinding noise and issues with the air conditioning, for which I was charged $855. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The vehicle has not yet been inspected by Kia or any other manufacturer representative. I have opened a case with Kia, and they are aware of the incident and have expressed interest in inspecting the vehicle. My insurance company has been informed, but they have not inspected the vehicle. The vehicle has not been inspected by the police. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? There were no warning lights or messages indicating a potential problem immediately before the fire. However, the vehicle had been experiencing intermittent grinding noises and air conditioning malfunctions, which were brought to the attention of the service department on March 12, 2024.

NHTSA ID

11614733

Incident

Aug 13, 2024

The turn signals do not work properly. Has I attempt to turn left my right blinker turns on, otherwise none of the blinkers work and blowing my rear light bulbs. I addressed this to the dealer however any dealer or mechanic wants to charge me to look into this. As I was reviewing my cars history it has been noted as a manufacturing issues and failure to repair this defect. I purchased this Kia sadoma without being told this was an issue. It seems that the transmission gear li lage issue was not addressed or repaired on my car either. I was not made aware of this issue either. After a year of ownership I only knew of this after reviewing my car history through a database. Now I am very mad and unhappy with the fact that I am driving a vehicle not working properly and everyone wants to charge me a ton of money knowing this is a manufacturing fault issue.

NHTSA ID

11609278

Incident

Feb 1, 2024

No lights on the dash, no maintenance or check engine lights. The van began making noises under the hood and then blowing white smoke from the exhaust. The electrical connectors to the fan were melted and hot. To the cooling fan, radiator, etc. The fan connector caused the car to over heat.

NHTSA ID

11576715

Incident

Mar 2, 2024

Mileage

138,231 mi

Our Kia Sedona had the cooling fan harness negative Cable melt and caused making our engine overheat. When we took our vehicle to get serviced they told us that the cooling fan harness melted and then it's a common problem with kias. They fixed the pigtail cooling fan harness but are cooling fan does not turn on anymore and they said that it is now an electrical issue and this was from a Kia dealership in Dodge City Kansas. They recently did a recall on sliding doors because they weren't shutting all the way and it worked for exactly one day after the recall and now it's back to not shutting and making a really loud noise when it attempts to shut. When this happens we can't lock our doors because the doors won't lock when doors open and we have to constantly shut off our interior lights so that they don't stay on because the doors don't shut. We've notified the Kia dealership that have done our recall on it and told them that it didn't fix it but they refuse to make it right. We only have 106,000 MI I've got a new cooling fan resistor and put it in and a new pigtail harness and put it in but the cooling fan is still not turning on the low speed and the air conditioner doesn't work either. Our engine constantly smells very hot but it doesn't indicate that it's overheating. We haven't had this vehicle for very long and because of all the problems we've had with it are considering on getting another vehicle and we're considering a carnival but are afraid to because of the way Kia handles their issues.

NHTSA ID

11528614

Incident

Jul 14, 2022

Both automatic passenger sliding doors do not shut completely after last recall was completed to fix them.

NHTSA ID

11527363

Incident

Jun 14, 2018

Headlights will shut off while driving. This sometimes will occur on its own, other times, it appears to be caused when using the turn signal lever. The lights will come back on by touching/moving the lever. This is dangerous and could lead to an accident.

NHTSA ID

11511884

Incident

Mar 5, 2023

The passenger-side door from day one of purchasing the kia sedon LX doesn't shut properly. When using the button to close the door, the door will shut and then slightly ajar. The car dash will then tell me that not all doors are secure. I have contacted KIA several times. They have replaced the motor first and this didn't fix the issue so they replaced the latches. This also didn't fix the issue. Unless I turn off the power doors and manually shut the doors myself the problem still persists.

NHTSA ID

11424602

Incident

Jul 1, 2018

Frequently, the turn signal will blink on the right when the turn signal switch is set to the left. This is a safety concern for myself and other drivers as they will expect the vehicle to go to the right when it is actually going to the left. I had this repaired at a dealership. This had been an issue for about a year, when I finally had it repaired.

NHTSA ID

11423537

Incident

Jul 6, 2021

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated while driving at low speeds, while stopped at a traffic light, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the battery post shim needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

NHTSA ID

11422815

Incident

Nov 1, 2020

Mileage

150,000 mi

ABOUT 1917 THE POWER SLIDING DOORS STOPPED WORKING CORRECTLY. THE DOORS MAKE A LOUD SCREACHING SOUND WHEN CLOSING WHEN STOPPED. & IN MOTION. DOORS DO NOT CLOSE AND LOCK COMPLETELY AND HAVE TO BE CLOSE BY PUSHING IN THE BACK WHERE AND FRAM MEETS. GOT A RECALL ON SLIDING DOORS. WENT 3/22/21 AND ALL THAT WAS DONE WAS TO REPROGRAM THE COMPUTER. THIS DIDN T FIX THE PROBLEM AT ALL. CALL KIA AND WAS TOLD , HAVE TO FIX ON OWN. DID CALL ABOUT ISSUE IN 2017 TOLD IT WOULD COST OVER $1000.00, COULDN'T AFFORD. ALSO ASKED ABOUT WHY AIR BAG LIGHT COMES ON AND STAYS ON AND THAT THE GAS DOOR BUTTON DOESN T OPEN. HAVE TO GET OUT AND HIT GAS DOOR TO OPEN. THOUGHT THAT 100000 WARRENTY WAS TO COVER ANYTHING BUMPER TO BUMPER. WHY PAY THE EXTRA FOR NOTHING.

NHTSA ID

11404698

Incident

Mar 20, 2017

Mileage

54,000 mi

WHEN YOU USE YOUR BLINKERS TO CHANGE LANES AT NIGHT THE HEADLIGHTS GO OFF TILL I MOVE THE BLINKER NOB BACK TO THE MIDDLE THIS HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE GOING DOWN THE ROAD AND IS DANGEROUS NEEDS TO RECALLED ASAP BEFORE SOMEONE GET HURT

NHTSA ID

11384972

Incident

Dec 25, 2020

Mileage

180,000 mi

WHILE DRIVING WHEN I USE MY TURN SIGNALS THE HEADLIGHTS WILL EITHER FLASH HIGH BEAMS OR COMPLETELY GO OUT THEN BACK ON. ALSO MY DRIVER'S SIDE SLIDING DOOR DOESN'T SHUT COMPLETELY WITH THE POWER DOOR OPTION THIS JUST STARTED AROUND THE 100K MILE MARK.

NHTSA ID

11378631

Incident

Oct 5, 2020

Mileage

100,000 mi

THE DAYTIME AND HEADLIGHTS LIGHTS WILL TURN OFF RANDOMLY. (STARTED AROUND THE 100K MILEAGE). WHEN STATIONARY, THE SLIDING DOORS DO NOT SHUT CORRECTLY. 1ST THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR BEGINS RATTLING LIKE CHANGE IS INSIDE THE DOOR. 2ND THEN THE DOOR BEGINS TAKING 2 TURNS TO CLOSE, AND THEN IT IS HIT OR MISS WHEN CLOSING. THE DOOR CLOSURE BUTTON WILL OCCASIONALLY NOT WORK, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE CAR IS OFF AND PARKED. (STARTED AROUND THE 45000 MILEAGE). THE DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT CONNECTOR OCCASIONALLY INDICATES A FAULT ERROR. ALSO THE PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELT INDICATOR WILL TURN ON WHEN 5 POUNDS OR LESS IS IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. (STARTED AROUND THE 100K MILEAGE). MY BIGGEST CONCERN: SINCE I BELIEVE THE SIDE DOORS ARE FATAL ACCIDENTS WAITING TO HAPPEN, I HAVE MY KIDS SIT IN THE 3RD ROW. ONLY ADULTS ARE ALLOWED TO SIT IN MY PASSENGER CAPTAIN CHAIRS. THE BLIND SPOT WARNING DOES NOT WORK CONSISTENTLY.

NHTSA ID

11377600

Incident

Dec 2, 2020

Mileage

45,000 mi

WHILE DRIVING DOWN AN UNLIT ROAD BY HAROLD PARKER STATE FOREST, IN MASSACHUSETTS. MY LOW BEAM HEAD LIGHTS SUDDENLY WENT OUT ( STOPPED WORKING ) AND NEVER CAME BACK ON. I USED MY HIGH BEAMS TO MAKE MY WAY HOME, MUCH TO THE DISMAY OF ON COMING TRAFFIC. I WENT TO THE LOCAL AUTO PARTS STORE THINK THAT THE BULBS BURNT OUT, BUT THAT IS NOT THE CASE. I TESTED THE FUSE AND RELAY AND EVERYTHING SEEMS FIND, SO NOW I AM MAKING AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE LOCAL KIA DEALER TO INVESTIGATE. MY WIFE INFORMED ME THAT IS HAD HAPPENED TO HER EARLIER THE SAME WEEK, BUT SHE THOUGHT IT WAS JUST HER EYES. THIS WAS A MAJOR PROBLEM GIVEN THE TIME OF NIGHT, THE INABILITY TO SEE WITHOUT BLINDING ON COMING TRAFFIC. I DID SOME LOOKING INTO THIS MATTER AND FOUND A LOT OF THE SAME COMPLAINTS ON THE WEB. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER BEFORE SOMEONE GET INJURED OR WORSE, KILLED.

NHTSA ID

11353744

Incident

Sep 5, 2020

Mileage

36,500 mi

THE FEMALE PLUG ON THE AC PIGTAIL SWITCH THAT WORKS THE FRONT A/C FAN WAS DEFECTIVE. I REPLACED THE PLUG AND THE PIGTAIL. I THINK YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT THE FEMALE PLUG WAS SHORTED OUT AND BURNED. IT WAS LIKE THIS WHEN I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE 07072020. THE UNSAFE CONDITION WAS THE BURNED FEMALE PLUG WHICH COULD HAVE RESULTED IN A DASH FIRE.

NHTSA ID

11343028

Incident

Jul 7, 2020

Mileage

168,620 mi

THE TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR RANDOMLY FAILS TO ACTIVE THE LEFT TURN SIGNAL. WHEN SIGNALING RIGHT IT ALWAYS WORKS, WHEN SIGNALING LEFT IT IS HIT OR MISS. IT HAS BECOME MORE OFTEN OVER THE LAST YEAR. THIS CREATES PROBLEM WHEN I SIGNAL LEFT AND START TO MOVE THEN REALIZE THE LEFT SIGNAL DID NOT COME ON I HAVE HAD TO JERK BACK INTO LANE TO AVOID ACCIDENT.

NHTSA ID

11342930

Incident

Jul 31, 2020

Mileage

41,000 mi

THE DRIVER SIDE AUTOMATIC SLIDING DOOR MOTOR SEEMS TO BE FAILING AND WILL NOT LATCH COMPLETELY WHICH CAUSES THE DOOR NOT TO CLOSE ALL THE WAY.

NHTSA ID

11341108

Incident

Jul 7, 2020