2003 Kia Sportage Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2003 Kia Sportage, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Fuel system266.7%
- Engine133.3%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Fuel system
Reports naming fuel storage or delivery — tanks, pumps, lines, injectors and fuel leaks.
From owner reports, verbatim
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 KIA SORRENTO EX (NA). WHILE THE CONTACT DISPENSED FUEL INTO THE FUEL TANK, FUEL WOULD SPRAY OUT ONTO THE GROUND AND CLOTHING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS AND REPAIR. THE FAILURE CONTINUED TO OCCUR AFTER THE REPAIR. THE DEALER WAS NOTIFIED AND RECOMMENDED THE VEHICLE BE DIAGNOSED TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE DEFECT. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150,000.
APRIL 11, 2011 TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN, THIS LETTER IS TO OFFICIALLY SUBMIT A COMPLAINT ABOUT THE SAFETY OF OUR 2003 KIA SORENTO WITH MILEAGE OF 109209 MY HUSBAND AND I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE BEFORE THE BIRTH OF OUR BABY BACK IN MAY 2010, BECAUSE WE NEEDED THE EXTRA SPACE. UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVE SOME CONCERNS ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE. AFTER MUCH RESEARCH WE FOUND THAT THIS PARTICULAR COMPLAINT ALONG WITH OTHER FUEL PUMP COMPLAINTS ARE COMMON AMONG OTHER KIA OWNERS. I AM ASKING THE PERSON OR DEPARTMENT IN CHARGED TO PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER AND TAKE THE PROPER ACTION. OUR COMPLAINTS ARE AS FOLLOWS. THE MAIN PROBLEM AND CONCERN IS WITH THE FUEL TANK, EVERY TIME WE PUMP GAS THE GAS SHOOTS BACK AND SPRAYS ME OR MY HUSBAND AND IT RUNS DOWN THE SIDE OF THE CAR. WE HAVE TO CONSTANTLY STOP PUMPING GAS EVERY 10 SECONDS TO PREVENT THE SPRAYING OF GAS. ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS THE GAS HAS ALMOST SPRAYED ME ON MY EYES, AND JUST RECENTLY IT SPRAYED ME IN BOTH ARMS, AND BURNED MY SKIN. I HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL EVERY TIME I PUMP GAS, I'M AFRAID THIS IS GOING TO SPRAY ME IN MY FACE OR WORST YET HARM MY CHILD! OUR SECOND COMPLAINT IS THAT THE KIA NEEDS CONSTANT ANTI-FREEZE BECAUSE THE HEAT THERMOMETER SHOWS THE VEHICLE OVERHEATS ABOUT EVERY 3 MONTHS. WE HAVE TAKEN OUR VEHICLE TO VARIOUS MECHANICS, AND TWICE TO THE KIA DEALERSHIPS, HOWEVER THEY CAN NOT FIND A PROBLEM, ON BOTH OF THE ISSUES LISTED ABOVE. THE KIA IS THE MAIN VEHICLE WE USE TO GET AROUND, HOWEVER LATELY I HAVE BEEN VERY CONCERN ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THE CAR. PLEASE TAKE THIS LETTER AS OUR OFFICIAL COMPLAINT, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING AN OFFICIAL RESPONSE BACK. I?M CONCERN ABOUT OUR SAFETY, BUT ALSO THE SAFETY OF OTHER DRIVERS WITH THE SAME KIA MODEL. PLEASE LOOK INTO THE MATTER, AND I TRUST THE RIGHT THING WILL BE DONE TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Engine
Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.
From owner reports, verbatim
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 KIA SPORTAGE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THE BLADES ON HIS COOLING FAN BEGAN TO COME OFF, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO OVERHEAT. THE DEALER COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE RECENTLY RECEIVED RECALL NOTICE # 07V161000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM:FAN). THE PURCHASE DATE AND FAILURE MILEAGE WERE UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 93,314.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .