2017 Kia Sorento
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 804 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 6th highest complaint count among 23 Sorento model years with reports.
Of the 2017 reports, 13 involved a crash and 32 involved a fire. 17 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Trailer hitchesPark outsideSep 19, 2022
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Sorento, 2021-2022 Sorento Hybrid (HEV), 2022-2023 Sorento Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV), and 2017-2022 Sportage vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will inspect the vehicle, and, as necessary, replace the fuse and/or tow hitch harness module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC249.
Campaign 22V703000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, hoses, lines/piping, and fittingsDec 19, 2018
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2011-2017 Optima, 2012-2017 Sorento and 2011-2018 Sportage vehicles that previously received an engine replacement under recall number 17V-224, warranty, or the Knock Sensor Detection System (KSDS) Product Improvement Campaign. The high pressure fuel pipe that connects to the fuel pump outlet may have been damaged, misaligned or improperly torqued during the engine replacement procedure, possibly causing a fuel leak.
A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.
Kia has notified owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the fuel pipe, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 17, 2019. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC172.
Campaign 18V907000 on NHTSA.gov
Engine and engine cooling, engineSep 21, 2017
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017 Sorento vehicles equipped with 3.3L engines. The engine crankshaft may have been improperly heat treated and may fail.
If the crankshaft fails, the engine will stall, increasing the risk of a crash. A failed crankshaft also increases the risk of a fire.
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the crankshaft, and, as necessary, replace the engine sub assembly, free of charge. The recall began November 6, 2017. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC153.
Campaign 17V586000 on NHTSA.gov
Trailer hitchesNov 30, 2016
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Sorento vehicles manufactured October 27, 2014, to August 25, 2016, and 2017 Sportage vehicles manufactured December 10, 2015, to August 26, 2016. The affected vehicles are equipped with an accessory trailer hitch wiring harness that, due to a malfunction of the tow hitch module, may result in the trailer brake lights being constantly illuminated. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, " Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
If the trailer brake lights stay illuminated while being used, other drivers may be confused, increasing the risk of a crash.
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the trailer tow hitch harness, free of charge. The recall began January 18, 2017. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC142.
Campaign 16V862000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
804 reports, newest first.
Engine, Sep 9, 2022
On Friday September 2nd 2022, the oil light on my 2017 Kia Sorento came on for a brief moment then quickly went off. Once I arrived at my destination, I checked my oil & found there to be little to no oil in the vehicle. I had to add several quarts of oil to the vehicle to even get a reading on the dip stick. The vehicle has had regular oil changes & there has been no indication of an issue with the oil prior to this. Upon further inspection there is a large amount of carbon buildup on the tailpipe indicating the vehicle is burning oil. I have left several messages with the service center at the Kia dealership where the vehicle was purchased & all service was completed to advise of the issue/bring the vehicle in, but have received no call back to date. I have also reached out to Kia corporate regarding the issue with no response.
Exterior lighting, Sep 8, 2022
Headlight Switch is faulty when in Auto. Lights shut off randomly while driving at night and when your car is parked and turned off all the lights will come on and drain your battery. I have had the lights shut off on me a dozen times roughly and had to replace a $300 battery because of the lights turning on and draining it. I have been stuck in bad situations with the battery dead and driving down dark roads at night when headlight failure occurs. I see hundreds of complaints from others online. I cannot understand how this safety hazard has not be addressed or corrected by KIA.
Electrical system, Exterior lighting, Sep 6, 2022
Headlights go off without warning while in auto driving at night . Has occurred 2 in the month of August 2022. Can be turned back on by twisting the control nob to on. Poses a dangerous situation on the dark county roads that we drive if not quick enough to manually turn back on.
Electrical system, Exterior lighting, Sep 5, 2022
The "auto" headlight function keeps malfunctioning. It will randomly shut off the headlights and not turn back on. Numerous forums have reported the issue. This is extremely dangerous when driving at night.
Exterior lighting, Sep 4, 2022
Multiple times when driving at night, all of the vehicle's exterior lights sudden turn off. We have been able to get the lights working again by turning the headlight switch on and off several times. Obviously, this is an extremely hazardous situation leaving us with no visibility in the dark and other vehicles cannot see us wither. We have not had this issue investigated by a dealership yet, but have found many accounts online of this occurring to others. There are no warning lights or any indications of a problem.
Engine, Forward collision avoidance, Aug 31, 2022
Oil consumption is horrible, also there is never a warning light that tells you that the oil is low, you’ll just be driving and then the check engine light will come on and the car with start driving funny. It’s a dangerous situation because at any time your car could be out of oil and your engine could blow cause if harm or death to everyone in the vehicle and could possibly cause an accident.
Steering, Aug 29, 2022
I was picking up my daughter from school. I drove there a considerable distance. I parked because I got there early. Once it was time to get my daughter I put my car in reverse and it made a loud clanking sound and the wheel became hard to maneuver. As soon as it made the sound a steering wheel with an exclamation point red light came on. I looked it up on Google and found that there was a technical bulletin issued for my year car regarding the MDPS/EPS system extending the warranty to 15 years on 01/05/2022-01/07/2022. When I took my vehicle to Kia of Hollywood service center in Hollywood FL, they were able to reproduce the problem. However after looking at the bulletin and parts covered under that particular bulletin, they told me that the issue that is causing the noise was not covered by that technical bulletin for the MDPS warning light and the actual cause of the noise in my vehicle was my car needed a new rack and pinion. Once they told me the repair would not be covered by the extended warranty I asked for the price. Kia is selling the rack and pinion for $3280. The same part after market is $339. I of course took my vehicle to a different mechanic and did not pay the total cost of parts and labor that they quoted me which was $4460. I believe Kia is aware that this particular part is defective and are taking advantage of some sort of loop hole. Maybe not enough consumers knowing they can file complaints. There's a reason why they are selling this particular part 10 times its after market value. The part was also readily available and wasn't back ordered which means they have plenty in stock probably due to demand. I was not able to control my steering wheel which is a danger while driving. My car has had previous structural damage but nothing that affected the power steering in my vehicle at any time. This problem just came out of nowhere.
Exterior lighting, Aug 29, 2022
While driving with headlights in “Auto” switch mode, the lights turned off. This occurred during dark goes while driving in a dark area at around 55mph. Switching from “Auto” to “On” turned the headlights and tail lights back on. This seems to be a more common problem when I read about similar issues at https://sorentoforums.com/threads/lights-shutting-off-in-auto-mode.16/ Currently there is no recall for this safety issue.
Power train, Aug 25, 2022
The 4 wheel drive coupling assembly is leaking oil covering the rear differential actuator motor. Kia TSB #086 November 2019 spells out the situation.
Engine, Aug 20, 2022
Engine failure at approx. 94755 miles. Motor lost compression in no.3 cylinder while on interstate. Car was inspected by dealer.KIA customer service car was not eligible for warranty repair. Car was under warranty limits. Purchased car new
Exterior lighting, Aug 18, 2022
My KIA has issues with the headlights -- they randomly go off as you drive down the street. I thought I was hitting something but last night I had both hands on the wheel -- and the lights went off going down a busy highway -- thankfully I was familiar with area and it was well lit. They were out 5-10 seconds and they came back on. This also happened to me travelling to Syracuse New York in the mountains which was very dark -- it was very scary and could have been very deadly. I was a bit shook up. I called KIA and they said they don't have enough complaints to do anything. Seriously -- someone could die.
Engine, Aug 15, 2022
The KIA turned off while driving in traffic going to Louisiana. It just turned off while I was slowing down. The vehicle turned back on a few minutes later and continued to Louisiana. The steering wheel locked up while in Baton Rouge, LA and the red warning light came on after that. There were no warning lights prior to the vehicle turning off while driving nor when the power steering locked up. I took it to O’Reilly’s Auto Parts to have them put some power steering fluid in it. They could not do it because apparently it has an electric power steering system. The car would not start after that. All the warning lights came on. The rep at O'Reilly's said that since it is electrical, I would need to take it to the dealership because I should not be having these issues since I only had the vehicle for almost 3 months. The codes that came on when the rep put the machine on were: battery, starter, alternator, power steering. The oil had been changed on Tuesday, 08.09.2022. I already had to buy 2 tires as the tire shop stated the inside of the tires were already going bald. Which should not be happening either. The vehicle was left in Baton Rouge, LA as it was not drivable to return to Houston, Texas. I am going to make arrangements with CARMAX to tow the vehicle to their location in Baton Rouge, LA. According to CARMAX, there were no known issues when the vehicle was purchased nor were there any recalls. If there were no known issues, why am I having these issues now?
Engine, Aug 10, 2022
My car burns oil, like at least a quart or 2 per week, so much so that I had my oil changed and the engine blew not even 2 months later.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Aug 8, 2022
I think there is something wrong with engine I just changed oil with sythitic oil and drove it around at least 100miles and its done 3 quarts and there is no visuable leaks anywhere and also the radio does not work on any station
Other or unspecified, Aug 8, 2022
Window regulator cables are failing. Talked to Auto glass repair shop he has had numerous KIA Sorento's in for failed regulator, he had one just in with only 1 window that worked. There is no stock available & as of right now they cannot even give an estimated delivery date on the ones due-in.
Engine, Aug 7, 2022
On June 15th, before our 2017 Sorento was due for an oil change, it completely ran out of oil and we were stranded on the side of the road. Our mechanic completely changed and filled the oil. I reached out to Kia Corporate twice, but they were of no assistance. Yesterday, on August 6th, the car was again low on oil. We have an appointment with Kia on Wednesday, August 10th to attempt to address this issue.
Engine, Aug 5, 2022
This engine in the vehicle has had excessive oil consumption between oil changes. It uses 3 quarts of oil between oil changes at every 3000 miles. Why even do an oil change if I’m putting 3 quarts in it every 3000 miles I could just swap filters and be done with it.
Engine, Aug 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving approximately 75 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and started to decelerate. Additionally, the vehicle was shaking abnormally. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the roadway and park the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact restarted the vehicle after a while and drove to the nearest dealer for the vehicle to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,500.
Engine, Jul 28, 2022
The component that failed is the engine and yes it is available for inspection and has already been inspected by Geico insurance. The vehicle started losing power on a major highway and four adult lives were at risk when this occurred. We took an exit as the car was failing and it stopped completely in traffic on the exit ramp. Yes, the problem has been confirmed by Matthews Kia. Yes, the vehicle has been inspected by Geico insurance. Yes, the vehicle suddenly began to shake, and made very loud noises, we then rapidly lost power and the car stopped dead in the middle of traffic.
Engine, Jul 27, 2022
All my oil keep leaving out of my engine I only had the car since March I got the dealer oil change in May and I had to add oil twice in July I also had a Kia Sorento Pryor to this one and had the same problem there is ovisiouly some wrong with those engines I have seen other people complain about the same thing with the same vehicle in a Google search on that problem
Electrical system, Jul 26, 2022
My headlights are randomly turning on and off while I drive. Also when the car is parked and off for hours, the headlights turn on by themselves.
Electrical system, Exterior lighting, Jul 20, 2022
When driving down the the interstate at night, my headlights just turn off while driving. They are on Auto. This has happened multiple times while driving. I have not took it to be looked at yet. There is no warning light or anything else that lets you know that there is a malfunction. The lights just go off. For them to come back on, I have to manually turn it off and back on again, and they will come back on.
Engine, Jul 14, 2022
Heavy oil consumption. I just changed my oil 3,500 miles ago and it burned through the whole thing. I am on a group on facebook where hundreds of kia and hyundai drivers have the same issue with a very similar engine. Many have even had big engine fires as a result. This is not a safe care to take your family in. My engine seized up as a result, so I am only a year into my car payments and it is a total loss. I am on a teacher's salary so I can't afford to fix it or get another car.
Engine, Jul 14, 2022
The engine was consuming a lot of oil. Lost 2-3 quarts in between oil changes. Kia did an oil consumption test and supposedly fixed the problem by cleaning out the gaskets. Kia told me that if this did not fix the problem they may need to replace the engine. I was told that the cleaning fixed the oil problem. Few months after, car started to loose oil again. Almost dry on oil change. Way before an oil change was due, car engine started shaking on the Highway. Brought it to closest oil changed shop and oil was completely dry. Mechanics at Kia told me that it was the spark plug. After they fixed the spark plug, they told me that there was a dead cylinder misfire and an internal engine failure. Since car had 72000 miles. It was not under warranty anymore. Engine needs to be replaced. Kia is not covering it.
Engine, Jul 14, 2022
Car was running fine no indicators on at all. Got on highway started shaking again no indicators on thought I was driving in uneven pavement at the time. Car started driving ok engine light then came on car started shaking and then stalled. Started it and luckily made it home. Car dealer said the engine was needing to be replaced. Extended warranty stated due to carbon deposit build up caused valve to burn so it will not be covered. This is a 2017 car under 100,000 miles and for the engine to go like this with me owning it for under 50k miles is absurd concerning and frustrating. I still have a loan and am out a car one that I thought would run longer!