2018 Kia Soul
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 218 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 9th highest complaint count among 16 Soul model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 14 involved a crash and 14 involved a fire. 12 people were injured and 1 person died.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bagsJan 25, 2022
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.
Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.
Campaign 22V031000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
218 reports, newest first.
Engine, Apr 13, 2023
I was driving down the interstate at 72mph on my way to a funeral when I suddenly lost power. Cars began to swerve around me while I tried to make my way to the emergency lane. Once the car died, it would not restart. It had to be towed to a dealer where it has sat for over 5 weeks. They are claiming the engine has completely failed in spite of the fact it has been regularly maintenance and was, in fact, running low on oil and was having to have oil replaced every 1000 miles and had the oil changed just days before the failure.
Electrical system, Apr 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle sputtered and stalled without warning. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The contact vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the vehicle was consuming an abnormal amount of engine oil. The mechanic performed an oil consumption test and determined that the coil packs, spark plugs, and battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was returned to the dealer and the dealer decided to not conduct another oil consumption test. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 59,000.
Engine, Mar 27, 2023
Engine is consuming excessive amounts of oil. The oil light will come on before the next scheduled oil change. Took to dealer and did a engine oil consumption test. The engine consumed 3/4 of a quart after 985 miles. The dealer said this is normal and within limits allowed. This issue started to occur at 40000 miles.
Power train, Feb 26, 2023
Code P0507 Keep causing engine light to turn on. Replaced air filter, MAP sensor, and had throttle body relearned. Also, Alternator was said to not be working after car stalled. Alternator is not working again 1 month after proper replacement of alternator and serpentine belt. Put at risk due to stalling. Available for inspection upon request Vehicle has not been inspected at the dealership due to no appointment slots available until may 2023 No warning prior to engine light coming on and incident happened multiple times prior to engine light coming on.
Engine and engine cooling, Engine, Feb 13, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Soul. The contact stated that after the vehicle received an oil change by an independent mechanic, his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, and the vehicle lost motive power with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that a connecting rod had gone through the engine block and fallen out underneath the vehicle. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle remained with the independent mechanic awaiting the repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.
Engine, Feb 10, 2023
The contact’s fiancé owns a 2018 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle was idling at a stop light, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact’s fiancé then depressed the accelerator pedal and the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that he pushed the vehicle to a nearby parking lot where it was towed to an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the vehicle was included in an unknown engine recall and that the engine rod bearings needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the customer was responsible for keeping contact information up to date, but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.
Engine, Jan 27, 2023
I have a 2018 Kia Soul that I bought from a car rental place. When I bought it, it had 30,000 miles on it. It has always burned oil and each year I had my oil changed at least twice a year. I had my oil changed about two months ago and last week my oil light started flicking. I topped off the oil and brought it to my mechanice who told me that the engine is about to fail. He did another oil change and told me to call the Kia dearlership to see if they will do an oil consumption test. They stated that I would have to pay for it. I should note that I did have the Knock Sensor Software Update done and that extends my engine warranty for 150,000 miles. The dealership said that they cannot help me as I have to wait for the engine to fail before they could do anything. I do not feel safe driving a car that is definitely going to have an engine fail soon.
Engine, Jan 24, 2023
While driving down the highway, the engine began misfiring and making a grinding noise. The car started to die in the center of the highway and was losing engine power. This was incredibly dangerous as it was in the middle of the highway during a busy commute. The Kia dealership inspected it and said it was a defect with the engine, but they couldn't do it under a recall because they didn't update the firmware on the engine first. There were no warning signs, the car just died out of no where. The car had great engine upkeep before then.
Engine, Jan 24, 2023
While driving down the highway, the engine began misfiring and making a grinding noise. The car started to die in the center of the highway and was losing engine power. This was incredibly dangerous as it was in the middle of the highway during a busy commute. The Kia dealership inspected it and said it was a defect with the engine, but they couldn't do it under a recall because they didn't update the firmware on the engine first. There were no warning signs, the car just died out of no where. The car had great engine upkeep before then.
Engine, Jan 17, 2023
We were driving the car along the highway at 70 MPH when the engine started making an odd sound and this went on for about 3 minutes before we found the nearest exit and pulled into a rest stop and as soon as we pulled onto the rest stop exit ramp the engine seized and the car shut down. The rod bearing failed. It is available for inspection upon request as it is currently sitting in a dealership repair shop waiting for repairs. Yes, my safety and the safety of others was put at risk. There was absolutely no warning that the engine was about to seize (no safety lights) and if we hadn't pulled over then the engine could have seized while we were going 70 MPH and we could have gotten hit by a truck and caused a horrible accident. The vehicle has only been inspected by the dealership service shop. No, there were NO warning lamps, messages, or ANY symptoms before the engine completely seized.
Engine, Jan 10, 2023
In early October of 2022, the engine failed in our 2018 Soul. We deposited the vehicle at the dealership service center and we’re told the engine failure was due to a recall issue. They placed an order to replace our engine and to this day, the engine has still not arrived, nor can the dealership inform us on when the engine is due to arrive. We have been passed around from department to department with Kia Consumer Affairs, and we cannot get any assistance. We cannot afford a rental and we are still financially responsible for our Soul.
Engine, Jan 3, 2023
In august on 2022 I noticed my oil light started to flicker while breaking. I took my car to Jiffy Lube as I always have and they said it was very little oil. So I got an oil change even though it was not time to get one. Sept of 2022 Samething happened again. I took my car in again and they stayed again that it had very little oil. The did a top off for free because it was under 3k miles. This has happened every month since August. On December 2, 2022 I got an oil change and by December 19 I had to get a top off ( 2 quarts) because the light came on again. On 12/31/2022 the light came on again so I had to buy 2 quarts of oil and put in car. I check dealer recall with my vin number and there are no recalls list for my car.
Engine, Dec 6, 2022
Yellow check engine light came on. Next day was not on. Next day on again. Brought to local repair shop for diagnostic. They reported engine was completely empty of oil and a knocking sound was a chain. Said engine needed to be replaced. This is at 74k miles. No oil light was ever on. Safety inspection was completed three months prior when the car was purchased used from a dealership. Then took it to a Kia dealership after putting some oil in the engine. While driving there it stalled at every red light. Kia service inspected. Reported engine needs to be replaced and not covered under Powertrain warranty.
Air bags, Dec 1, 2022
There is a recall on the airbag sensor or something. Since I was notified earlier this year, NONE of the KIA dealers are trying to correct the problem. I have been getting the run around about them fixing the problem. Excuses ranges from a 6 month wait to make an appt. to we don't have the part and when it comes in we will schedule an appt. but it has been 11 months and the RECALL hasn't been fixed on my car to this date. Called the manufacturer and they never called me back after waiting on hold for an hour.
Engine, Nov 23, 2022
car began knocking noise on highway, heard a loud boom, and coasted to the shoulder. the repair facility determined there was a hole in my engine that was caused by the knocking.
Engine, Nov 21, 2022
Driving down Interstate 5 @60mph, w/out the engine light coming on, my Kia Soul starts to shake, turns off, and luckily as I was able to glide it safely to the right shoulder as I was in the slow lane. I restart the car, engine light now comes on and the car itself shakes. I managed to get it to work and after having a co-worker look at it, the oil was low/dry. It didn't make sense because the oil was topped off 2 weeks earlier. Granted I have 132k miles on it, oil changed it consistently, for the most part, a great commuter, but it doesn't account for the fact that the engine light didn't come on and where did all the oil go. After taking it to Kia, I was told there was a burnt valve on piston #1 and there was no way of me knowing it was burnt. I wasn't given a response as to why the engine light didn't turn on other than, "check the service that was provided on date xxxx as that may have caused it and the excessive oil may have been played a part in it" I was quoted for a new engine, 6750.00. My power train warranty had expired and I was told the Kia Lifetime Warranty on the engine was not covered because it was not a low bearing.
Engine, Nov 15, 2022
Vehicle is using a large amount of oil, have to continually add about 2 quarts per 1000 miles. I have maintained the vehicle and have diligently changed the oil and filter. This started at about 100,000 miles and continues to get worse. I have seen class action is being brought against Kia for this issue. This could lead to engine failure, fire and serious injury. I feel a recall is in order for the safety of the road.
Engine, Nov 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the engine made abnormal ticking sounds. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that he turned off and restarted the vehicle however, the failure persisted. The contact stated he was able to drive the vehicle, however, the engine was making abnormal loud knocking sounds. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring more increasingly. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under TSB Number: PI2107 as the original owner of the vehicle failed to complete an unknown software update on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.
Engine, Nov 2, 2022
Engine started to die while on the highway after a loud knocking started. While braking , engine completely stalled in driving lanes. Defect seemed to be a duplicate of the sequence of events reported from a recall for 2014-2016 of the same engine.
Engine, Oct 24, 2022, fire
On 10/6/22, my 2018 KIA Soul's engine seized. The oil was shiny orange and the engine itself was incredibly hot and engulfed in smoke. I had my car towed to a KIA dealership, where the service manager determined that my engine had metal shavings and there was a connecting rod bearing failure. I was told that there was a recall to my airbags and update to the engine that they also performed. I knew about the airbag recall, but knew nothing about an engine update. I was told by the service manager that there was an update to KIA engines in regard to the connecting rod bearing and that if I had brought my car in for the update prior to the engine failure, that this would have been covered by extended warranty from KIA. Therefore, due to my financial situation I am forced to sell the car for a near measly amount due to a non-functioning engine and take on monthly car payments from the purchase of a new car. I was one of the 3.7 million involved in the “product improvement campaign” to enhance safety features, where I would have been warned if my engine would catch fire. A warning prior to engine failure, and fire? How is this a safety performance measure preventing crash, injury, and death? My entire engine was smoking and possibly on fire when I was driving through a busy city and could have been seriously injured or involved in a multi-vehicle crash. NHTSA reported that the automaker had provided inaccurate information about the problems, and there were owner complaints of more than 3,100 fires, 103 injuries, and one death. In September 2021, KIA sent out a letter urging 485,000 owners to park their vehicles outside because fires could start even after vehicles were turned off. With the knowledge that non-crash fires are affecting 3 million KIA vehicles, why wasn’t a recall done on every KIA model with a GDI engine and instead only a “product improvement campaign”, where one letter was sent out and not one ounce of information can be found on KIA website.
Power train, Engine, Sep 27, 2022
My vehicle randomly started making a knocking noise. We took it to our local mechanic who stated he has seen a lot of these come from the Kia line lately. the knocking noise comes from the rods. He said the cost to get this repaired would be $4,000-$5,000, since the bottom portion of the engine would need to be replaced. This car is not driveable. We are the 2nd owners and the car only has $65,000 miles on it. We bought the car from carmax in November 2021, and they did a full investigation and found no fault with the car. The rod knock started in March 2022. We are hoping there would be a recall on this, as we see from forums, we are not alone. The check engine light did not come on at any point.
Power train, Engine, Sep 26, 2022
Driving on Route 79 on Labor Day weekend, at 70mph in the passing lane, my 2018 Kia Soul+ with 77574 miles refused to accelerate and then the engine completely stopped. We were able to get to the side of the road unharmed but the engine was completely dead. We called triple A and has it towed to a local garage I called Kia corporate because the car is not yet 5 years old and the garage thought it might be under warranty. The Kia consumer line 800-333-4KIA took 5 hours to reach a human but gave me a claim number and the representative said it had to be seen at a dealer but that I was likely covered. I advised I was the second owner and that when I was trying to find their number I tripped upon an optional product improvement campaign I was not made aware of. I was very suspicious and surprised. I asked repeatedly what happened if it was towed and not covered. And they said to call back but I should be ok. Kia towed it to the dealership. The dealer took 2 weeks to look at it and make a determination. They are stating that because I did not have the improvement campaign completed that they will not cover the engine. I was told to call back Kia corporate which I did and after 3 hours of waiting I was informed that there was nothing they can do that I was out of warranty because the improvement campaign that I was never notified of had not been completed on my car. They state that they sent a letter in November of 2021 but I did not receive it. I'm now being charged diagnostic fees by the dealership and they still want $11,000 and 4 to 6 weeks to do the necessary repairs. I still have a loan on the vehicle for $12, 321.46. I called Kia corporate back they will do nothing to assist me because it is out of warranty and I did not have the campaign improvement done because it was never sent as notification to me via email or phone and I did not receive the document they claim to have mailed. The supervisor I spoke with told me that there is nothing that KIA can do.
Engine, Sep 24, 2022
We bought this car from Carmax this year back in January for my daughters birthday. It had 63000 miles on it. Thought it was covered up to 100,000. We were driving down the interstate when the engine started knocking and loss of power. Pulled over and checked the oil, it was good but you could see a lot of shiney small metal shavings in the oil. Plenty of oil though and oil was changed a couple weeks before. There were no lights on the dash panel to warn you even as it sits there and knocks. Just got told by several mechanics the engine needs replaced but the warranty is out because I’m the second owner and it has over 60,000 miles on it so therefore it’s not covered under warranty. This seems to be a constant issue as I’m reading the same problem happening. Hoping Kia will work with me since I have 2- 2018 Kia Souls.
Engine, Sep 19, 2022
My catalytic converter is going out on my car and i bought it last year in march
Other or unspecified, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Sep 14, 2022
Oil consumption issues Not normal Don’t understand why Kia knows about this issue but won’t fix it Over a year with this issue Place in poteau Cavanal Tire said it should be addressed By Kia not when my motor locks up! Kia says let pour gunk in your car to patch the issue they know about That should be addressed on why they have not fixed it.