2025 Kia Sorento Engine Problems

The engine sputters several times in a single trip, and is available upon request. The engine sputtered and the vehicle stopped in the middle of the road as I was trying to cross 2 lanes of traffic. It has sputtered so bad, I almost rear ended the vehicle in front of me. Yes, the dealership confirmed via text on 7/13/2026. The dealership confirmed it occurred then insisted on my picking up the vehicle despite of that. No effort to fix or determine why that was happening. I was told “the vehicle is learning how I drive, the road was bumpy, and the manufacturer would need more than to cover it” The dealerships invoice to the manufacturer stated “no sputtering” even after acknowledging in writing that it occurred and refused to change the paperwork. The dealership also reset the data and that it “could” resolve everything. If there’s nothing wrong with the vehicle, why would it need to be reset? The manufacturer has been called twice regarding the sputtering issue. No warning lights. Started in 10/2025 the dealership was made aware several times with several appointments and refused to look at the vehicle until the manufacturer contacted them in July.

NHTSA ID

11754281

Incident

Oct 1, 2025

My wife was pulling in spot and car took off at high rate of speed and hit parking pole . Kia corporate after 2 months tells me nothing wrong with vehicle . i found on kia of Manahawkin they have a page on this issue forced acceleration and cause so how they can tell me no it doesn't happen also goggle searches show this a reported issue , and recently friend of my women in Florida her car did the same thing .

NHTSA ID

11736475

Incident

Jan 8, 2026

I am reporting a loss of propulsion event in a 2025 Kia Sorento S AWD. The vehicle experienced a sudden loss of drive power when pressing the accelerator. The engine did not respond normally and the vehicle entered a reduced power (limp mode) condition. Stopping in the middle of major intersections, [XXX] and then [XXX] and [XXX] at 4:30 pm. This vehicle is subject to Recall 25V548 involving engine connecting rod bolts, which warns of possible engine damage and loss of propulsion. The dealership (Gettel Kia of Bradenton, FL) stated they were unable to duplicate the issue. The recall language states that engine damage or loss of propulsion may occur and could create a safety hazard. This event occurred at approximately moving from a stop position to ? mph on [XXX]] with approximately 1,936 miles on the vehicle. As I drove it home it would disengage and reengage. I am concerned about the safety of continued operation given the recall notice and the propulsion failure experienced. VIN: [XXX] Please advise. [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11721574

Incident

Feb 3, 2026

While driving the engine stops running and only runs on battery power. The only remedy that is partially successful is to stop and restart the vehicle. Problem often repeats itself and makes driving unsafe as the battery cannot fully power the engine. Upon restart the check engine light will be on and report this error: "Powertrain P112000 A possible condition with your Engine Control System has been detected. A full system check is recommended to be done when convenient. Please contact your local dealership to schedule an appointment." This is the 3rd time this has happened since December. Has been at dealership twice and they essentially just reset the error condition, only for it to happen again after a couple weeks of driving. Most recent occurrence was yesterday morning.

NHTSA ID

11718287

Incident

Feb 15, 2026

My vehicle has an ongoing acceleration problem that feels like the engine and transmission are not communicating correctly. There are times when the vehicle will not accelerate even though the RPMs increase. Instead of picking up speed, it feels like the engine is pulling the vehicle back. This creates hesitation and uncertainty about whether the car will respond when I press the accelerator. This happens most noticeably at lower speeds (around 30–40 mph, often near 30 mph), where the RPMs may rise on their own even if I am maintaining steady pressure on the gas pedal. It also occurs when I need to accelerate quickly — such as merging onto the freeway or joining the flow of traffic — and the vehicle feels like it resists gaining speed. Even when I press the pedal gradually and correctly, the vehicle struggles to accelerate and the engine revs without the car moving forward as it should. I reported this to the dealership. They ran diagnostics and told me no issues were detected. They also stated they cannot take action unless they can re-create the problem themselves. Because this does not happen every time, recreating it on command is very unlikely, leaving me without a solution. This is a safety concern because hesitation or failure to accelerate properly during merging or crossing traffic increases the risk of collisions. The problem remains unresolved.

NHTSA ID

11702095

Incident

Nov 28, 2025

Fourth time we've had the car go into limp mode. Now at the dealer for third time. Driver was driving and the car went into limp mode after activating the cruise control follow function. Husband was behind in our Toyota Tacoma truck and was able to pick her up with California Highway Patrol to get off the highway into a parking lot to tow her. No warnings, no messages on the dash. She was unable to accelerate to highway speeds and was capped, and felt that there was very little to no predictable responsiveness in the car's acceleration. Car now at dealership.

NHTSA ID

11698449

Incident

Nov 9, 2025

The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving on the highway at 60-65 MPH, the vehicle unexpectedly decelerated to 20 MPH and the vehicle went into LIMP Mode. The contact stated that the message “Vehicle Speed Restricted to 20 MPH” was displayed. The failure had occurred four times while driving. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to identify or duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 4,000.

NHTSA ID

11696726

Incident

Oct 30, 2025

Mileage

4,000 mi

While driving at speeds below 25 mph, my transmission seems to get caught between gears. When I press the accelerator, the engine revs, but the car doesn’t accelerate as it should. It feels like the power just drops out. There were no warning lights or indicators on the dashboard. The exact same thing happened again the very next day, at low speed, in the same general area. Both times, the car suddenly lost power in traffic, leaving me unable to move normally. This is extremely dangerous — other drivers have no idea that my vehicle isn’t responding, which puts me and everyone around me at risk. It’s clear there’s a serious issue with the transmission malfunctioning.

NHTSA ID

11694539

Incident

Sep 2, 2025

The inverter radiator is punctured during typical road use by road debris. This results in a total loss of circulating coolant in the inverter/electric motor cooling system. This renders the car undrivable, with a concern for electric motor overheating, given that the hydrid mode and electric power can not be turned off. This is available for inspection. It is unclear whether the electric motor will shut down when overheated, but seizing of the motor or fire seems possible. Reproducibility: There are many examples online of this occurring during normal road use of Kia electric and hybrid vehicles. There is a warning 'Check drive motor cooling system' in this model. This appeared during driving and reamined on while the coolant was depleted. Refilling coolant turned the light off but with coolant being actively sprayed out of the pin hole in the radiator at all times (the pump does not turn off when the engine is cold) resulting in rapid coolant loss.

NHTSA ID

11694496

Incident

Oct 18, 2025

On 10/3 driving at roughly 60mph on the freeway, when going to accelerate, the vehicle would not accelerate with no power going to the engine. The gas motor was not engaging, and the car rapidly decelerated to around 20mph in an incredibly unsafe situation. Coasting it off the freeway, it was towed to the local Kia dealership. No warning lights or any indicators went off during that event. 10/9/2025, I picked up the vehicle after they replaced the high-pressure fuel pump and high-pressure fuel line, I noticed the battery was very low and thought it would charge while driving. As I left the dealership, the vehicle did not engage the gas engine and quickly avoided acceleration - no power was going to the engine. The battery reached a catastrophic low, and the engine failed in a busy intersection - creating another extremely unsafe situation - as I was turning around to return to the dealership. This time the hybrid system warning system went off and the battery and oil lights went on. While waiting for the tow truck, the vehicle would not turn off. It is currently with the dealership, 41k miles on vehicle, 1 year old.

NHTSA ID

11692328

Incident

Oct 9, 2025

My Sorento has a transmission issue or something similar. It slips, it dies down and sometimes when I come to a stop and try to move, it won’t move. I have to put it back in park and then put it in drive. I have had several near miss accidents due to all these issues. It has been repaired twice but it has never fixed the issue and the dealer claims there is nothing wrong.

NHTSA ID

11691069

Incident

Oct 1, 2025

August 18, 2025 at 3pm PT; My 2025 Kia Sorento X-Line was parked in my driveway facing the street. I had the engine on, and in Park mode, AC on, back hatch door open. No one was in the vehicle. I was standing behind the vehicle when it then started to go in reverse, then stopped for 2 seconds. It then proceeded to go into reverse again. The garage door was open. The vehicle pushed me into the blades of our lawn mower (it is stored in the garage on its end, so the blades face the garage door), and continued to push me and the lawn mower into our gardening tool supply rack. I did all I could to stop the vehicle with my body and yell for help. I was trapped. The vehicle eventually stopped because the back hatch door was open and caught on the upper part of the garage frame. I got myself unstuck and got out to the right, and went straight to the passenger front door to check out the gear shift. It was still in Park mode. All was captured on our Ring camera. I called Kia corporate customer service and received a case number (25476533) and was told I would hear back in 10 business days. This was after calling the dealership twice directly (Elk Grove Kia) leaving a detailed message with no response.

NHTSA ID

11682241

Incident

Aug 18, 2025

NHTSA Complaint – Kia Sorento Vehicle: 2025 Kia Sorento Component/System: Engine, Fuel/Propulsion System, Power Train Date of Incident: [XXX] Location: [XXX] , southbound Description of the Problem: While driving my 2025 Kia Sorento southbound on [XXX] , the accelerator did not respond properly both on a flat road and while going uphill. The engine failed to provide adequate power, creating a serious safety risk on the highway. The vehicle is currently at the dealer for inspection, which will take place on Monday. However, I am extremely frustrated that I have not been provided a loaner or rental vehicle, even though I need transportation immediately. Additionally, as a U.S. citizen, I feel I am being treated unfairly and receiving discriminatory service compared to others in similar situations. No warning lights or messages appeared before the incident. The dealer has not confirmed or fixed the issue yet. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives. I am reporting this issue to document the safety risk, service denial, and potential discrimination, and to seek proper investigation. Inspection Availability: UNKNOWN – vehicle can be inspected upon request. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11681130

Incident

Aug 15, 2025

On [XXX], while driving home at highway speeds, I attempted to accelerate and the vehicle bucked and sputtered violently. The check engine light came on, and my OBD scanner showed multiple misfires in Cylinder 1. I have also experienced suspected transmission slipping from a full stop and during highway driving—RPMs will spike (up to ~5,500) with little or no increase in speed, sometimes after releasing the accelerator. These issues have occurred multiple times prior to [XXX]. On [XXX], while traveling 80–85 mph, I released the accelerator and the RPMs again spiked to ~5,500 while the vehicle rapidly lost speed and barely moved. Starting mileage at first occurrence is unknown, but Kia should have this documented from a prior service visit. The condition is ongoing and worsening, creating a serious safety risk by causing loss of acceleration and unpredictable power surges while in traffic. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11680817

Incident

Aug 15, 2025

It feels like the engine is starting to cut out and as soon as that happens, the electronics in the car seem to start fighting each other. They adaptive steering and the lane assist it feels like they don’t work together anymore and I’m always fighting it or it won’t stay in the right lane and the car jerks from line to line. If I turned the lane assist off then it drives OK but the engine still is doing something funny.

NHTSA ID

11676436

Incident

Jul 20, 2025

Have had an issue of losing power while on an interstate traveling back from work twice now. After the second time I reported to my local dealership. While driving home, my vehicle lost power and was extremely slow and unresponsive. Check engine light came on but when checked under the diagnostics of the entertainment system, showed no issues present. Light turn off but still was having issues with responsiveness. When arriving home connected my personal ODB scanner tool to the vehicle and showed 1 code P0301Cylinder 1 Misfire. Had take. Pics of the code and of my OBD tool and cleared the code. Car started functioning correctly again. But still took to dealership for analysis. Dealership could not find any issues or codes, probably cause I cleared the code which allowed the vehicle to run normally again.

NHTSA ID

11670142

Incident

Jun 5, 2025

While traveling to VA from TX, [XXX] and on [XXX] the vehicle hesitated to accelerate multiple times. Some were from a complete stop, and other times it occurred when accelerating to merge on the highway. On [XXX], I pulled out of a driveway onto a very busy road and upon increasing pressure on the gas, the vehicle shook (similar to the behavior of a manual when letting up off the clutch and not applying even pressure to the gas. Due to the vehicle's hesitation, I as almost hit by a large truck traveling on my exact path. This was the sole instance that warranted a call to Kia Corporate, as I feel the issue is a significant safety concern. I placed the vehicle in service 11-12 JUN and the attached receipt highlights that the dealer was unable to replicate the issue. As of 16 JUN, the vehicle is still exhibiting the same issue intermittently, along with the break pedal popping when ascending or descending on a hill/ramp. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11667226

Incident

Jun 10, 2025

The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while her husband was driving 50 MPH, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. Due to the failure, the contact's husband coasted the vehicle off to the shoulder of the highway. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure persisted. The contact called the dealer and made an appointment to have the vehicle serviced. The contact drove the vehicle without failure. The dealer performed a diagnostic test, but no fault was found with vehicle. The contact was instructed to pick up the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The vehicle was not repaired and remained with the dealer. The failure mileage was 213.

NHTSA ID

11661904

Incident

May 17, 2025

Mileage

213 mi