2022 Kia Sorento PHEV

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.

On August 8, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Recall Query (RQ) based on 3 incidents alleging front seat belt pretensioners that may rupture during deployment, on model year (MY) 2020-2022 of various Hyundai and Kia Models, resulting in 3 injuries (note: one incident occurred outside the U.S. and its territories).Between October 2021 and March 2023, Hyundai and Kia have filed the following 11 safety recalls for pretensioner rupture: NHTSA Recall No. 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-123, 22V-127, 22V-218, 22V-354, 22V-447, 22V-458, 22V-816, 23V-094, and 23V-210.Hyundai/Kia have stated that the abnormal deployment of the pretensioners is due to over-pressurization of the pretensioner pipe that can cause metal fragments to enter the vehicle occupant compartment, which can result in injury to vehicle occupants.The various makes/models covered by the above recalls include approximately 405,900 certain 2020-2022 Hyundai Accent, 2021-2022 Hyundai Elantra and Elantra HEV, 2021-2022 Hyundai Santa Fe HEV, 2022-2023 Hyundai Santa Fe PHEV, 2020-2022 Hyundai Venue, 2021-2023 Genesis G80, 2023 Genesis G80 EV, 2023 Genesis G90, 2023 Genesis GV60 EV, 2022-2023 Genesis GV70, 2021-2023 Genesis GV80, 2021-2022 Kia Sorento HEV, and 2022 Kia Sorento PHEV.In response to ODI's investigation, in December 2022, Hyundai notified ODI that they would be conducting testing to validate subject vehicle seat belt pretensioners. This evaluation included sled testing and software testing which was performed by Hyundai and its suppliers. The tests were intended to evaluate pretensioner deployment characteristics based on the unique deployment signature of the subject and peer vehicles. ODI met with representatives from Hyundai on several occasions during the investigation to discuss testing progress and data. As a result of the testing, Hyundai was able to simulate the pretensioner failures. It was determined by Hyundai during testing, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment in the event of a crash which can cause metal fragments to enter the vehicle occupant compartment.Hyundai thus notified ODI of their decision to proceed with a safety recall, to expand the scope of the previous safety actions.In view of the recall actions taken by Hyundai and Kia, ODI concerns have been addressed. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances.

On XXX, during a 13 hour return trip from [XXX], while traveling at speeds of approximately 80 mph on the interstate in mountainous terrain with my family in the vehicle, the instrument cluster displayed a message instructing me to stop driving and take the vehicle to service due to a battery problem. After the message cleared, a warning light remained illuminated until the vehicle was shut off and restarted. This occurred three separate times during that trip, beginning approximately five hours from home. I attempted to reach a Kia dealership in [XXX], and was unable to get anyone on the phone. Having no alternative, I continued driving home. On XXX, during a two and a half hour highway drive on flat terrain, the vehicle displayed "Battery system hot: switching to HEV mode." Separately, and for several months, charging at home on a Level 1 charger repeatedly stops approximately ten minutes into the session. A check engine light appears and clears after two restarts. The vehicle was at an authorized Kia dealership from XXX, for fifteen days. Their scan at 90,776 miles found diagnostic trouble code P1B9700, High Voltage Battery Temperature Deviation, stored in the Battery Management System with freeze frame data captured. The dealership drove the vehicle 387 miles, primarily in EV mode in 40 mile increments, and returned it with the notation "no repairs attempted at this time, unable to duplicate concern at this time." No Kia Techline case was opened and no field technical specialist was involved. The freeze frame data has not been provided to me despite written requests. The dealership described its procedure as clearing the history code before attempting to duplicate the concern. No repair has been performed. The vehicle remains in daily use by my wife. Kia Consumer Affairs case 26352951 is open. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11762127

Incident

Aug 1, 2026

Engine wiring is covered in soy based products which attract rodents as a source of food. Rodents then chew various wires and damage the electrical system. The check engine light has popped on twice in one year with both times requiring service repair for the chewed wires. There is a potential for electrical fires or other various failures due to rodents chewing through the wires. Kia has known about this problem for over a decade and continues to use soy based coverings in their engine without any mitigation for rodents.

NHTSA ID

11742016

Incident

May 30, 2026

The drive train and motor slow to a near stop in traffic when trying to clear a lane and makes it very dangerouos for other traffic to have to wait for me to clear a lane. There is something wrong and we complained about this before the warranty ran out, but they could not find anything. The car stops in traffic unexpectedly. I am not sure if sensors are causing this or what, but it has put me in danger of collision many times. We have to plan an exceedingly long time to pull into traffic so we don't get run over. Anti slip also doesn't turn off even though it says it is off. The car will slip a little bit and then shut the motor down to a crawl making it very dangerous in traffic. The 4x4 doesn't seem to work as we turn it on to try to eleminate slipping. The slipping mostly occurs because of the motor becoming doggedly slow and then decides to speed up. The 4x4 on and the turning of the anti-slip do not work because it still slips and shuts down. The other tires don't seem to slip or do anything. Please help!!!

NHTSA ID

11723548

Incident

Mar 11, 2026

My Sorento PHEV popped a P0c4e code and now the car is gutless on electric power. Kia cleared the code in an attempt to fix it but now the code is gone and it’s still weak. When I let off the brake it rolls when it used to have the power to hold it. I used to be able to get on the freeway and now I can’t get up to speed in town (35mph). It’s running in some sort of limp mode and Kia can’t see any codes. It’s loud, too. Each gear whines. It whines when I hit the brake and it regenerates electricity. It regens so little now that it doesn’t hardly slow me down anymore until I stand on them and use the brake pads. Kia said that it might be a sensor in the electric motor but it’s not replaceable and you have to replace the whole motor. Even though it’s under warranty, it’s 15 hours labor to replace it. I have family with the same car and theirs has done the same thing in the past and had to be replaced. My dealer said that they have seen a bunch of these throw that same code and have to have the motor replaced. She said she is expecting Kia to start replacing them for free or possibly recall them because of how many she has seen all doing the same thing.

NHTSA ID

11678045

Incident

Jul 29, 2025

I have gotten the notice Refill Inverter Coolant and Hybrid System Failure and lost acceleration and the all power. The first time this happened was in Dec 2024 with about 60,000 miles on the car. Dealer flushed system and it worked fine until April 2025 at about 71000 miles Hybrid system failure alert again, barely able to accelerate from stop light, made to a parking space just as I lost power steering. After about 2 hours to cool off car started and could be driven home. Got Refill inverter coolant alert.

NHTSA ID

11662012

Incident

Dec 12, 2024

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Sorento PHEV. The contact stated that while reversing the vehicle, the rearview camera failed to display a clear image, and the grid lines were not properly aligned. The contact crashed the vehicle into his mailbox. There were no injuries sustained and no police report was filed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V610000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 22,500.

NHTSA ID

11641051

Incident

Jan 11, 2025

Mileage

22,500 mi

Several times over the past 12 months, the car has applied emergency braking when a car approaches me from behind in the lane to my left. The dealer was not able to replicate the problem but I have captured it twice on my dash cam. I was only able to intentionally replicate the problem once on my own but it has happened 15-20 times. If I do not press the accelerator, the car will come to a stop without me pushing the brake. When the emergency brake is applied, the warning sound is heard in the car and the dash lights up with the emergency braking icon and emphasizes the left rear of the vehicle. I have been to the dealer twice for this issue. The first time they told me it was due to a faulty camera mount under recall. It was replaced but the issue continued. The second time they told me they decreased the sensitivity of some sensor. The issue continued.

NHTSA ID

11638383

Incident

Jan 24, 2025

While driving down the highway the EV side of my PHEV wouldn't switch to gas. The car wouldn't accelerate past 40-50 mph and drained the remaining battery till my car shut off and forced me to the side of the road. Been to the dealer multiple times (over 4) for the same issue. They claim they recreate it and no resolution has been done.

NHTSA ID

11627399

Incident

Nov 21, 2024

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: PARTIAL REPAIR – ELECTRICAL A/C COMPRESSOR - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information regarding the partial repair of the Air Conditioning (A/C) compressor assembly on some 2011MY~ Optima Hybrid (TF HEV, JF HEV/PHEV), 2015MY~ Soul EV (PS EV), 2017MY~ Niro (DE HEV/PHEV/EV), 2022MY~ EV6 (CV), 2021MY~ Sorento (MQ4 HEV/PHEV), 2023MY~ Sportage (NQ5 HEV/PHEV), and 2023MY~ Niro (SG2 EV/HEV/PHEV) vehicles.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM SOFTWARE UPDATE USING UPDATE.KIA.COM - This bulletin provides information and service procedures for updating the infotainment systems on applicable Kia vehicles using the Kia Navigation Updater available at update.kia.com. The software update may improve system performance, enhance existing features, and apply the latest operating software for supported vehicles (2021-2026MY All Models).

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SOFTWARE UPDATE PROCEDURE - This bulletin provides information on the process for downloading infotainment software updates and preparing USB for installation on applicable Kia vehicles. The software downloads and USB preparation process is similar across all supported platforms; however, in‑vehicle installation procedures vary by head unit type.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (WTY042) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn assembly in certain 2021-2025 MY Sorento, 2021-2025 MY Sorento Hybrid (HEV), and 2022-2025 MY Sorento Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV) vehicles from 5 years / 60,000 miles to 10 years / 120,000 miles, whichever comes first, starting from the date the vehicle was first put into service. This warranty extension is to address a horn sound malfunction condition free of charge at no cost to the customer.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: AVN5.0W DTC P17A000 DAIGNOSTIC PROCEDURE - This bulletin provides information regarding a potential illuminated Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL) accompanied by DTC P17A000 on some 2022-2025MY Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) and Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) equipped with AVN5.0Wide head units listed below. This condition occurs when the Global Positioning System (GPS) module within the Audio Video Navigation (AVN) head unit, sends an inaccurate signal to the Hybrid Power Control Unit (HPCU), causing the DTC to set. There are no drivability symptoms associated with this condition.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS & SERVICE MANAGER MEMO (WTY042) - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Service managers advising that Kia is is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn assembly for eligible vehicles, from 5 years / 60,000 miles to 10 years / 120,000 miles, whichever comes first, from the date the vehicle was first put into service. This warranty extension is to address a horn sound malfunction condition on 2021-2025 MY Sorento vehicles manufactured from September 10, 2020, through June 3, 2025, 2021-2025 MY Sorento Hybrid (HEV) vehicles manufactured from September 2, 2020, through January 24, 2025, and 2022-2025 MY Sorento Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) vehicles manufactured from June 29, 2021, through January 20, 2025.