2021 Kia Sorento Complaint Log

Car jumps when going into reverse, going into a stop and coming off a stop. Hesitates off of stops. Feels like it goes into neutral when going around bends. When I’m park, it rocks back and forth and rpm’s go down. It’s been happening since I bought the car a year ago.

Purchased vehicle new on 4/7/21 Had an issue on 4/15/21(NHTSA CLAIM# 11408325) - Sons Kia advised that it was just a loose battery terminal cable. Pleaded with them to replace cable for possible short to no avail. On 6/6/21 - the car wouldnt open with key or UVO application - called KIA Roadside Assistance twice and couldnt get anyone. After a couple of hours, the car finally had power and let me in. While driving home, on the interstate, I was going 60 mph. I tried to speed up, but the car wouldnt let me and the RPM stayed at 2(2000). When I got off the exit, I slowed down to turn. When I went to push gas, it didnt want to accelerate. It finally accelerated after a couple tries. Additionally, I noticed when speeding up and slowing down - I hear clicks when the gears change. I dropped the automobile off at Calavan Kia in Lithia Springs, GA. Waiting on a service advisor to call.

We have been having a few issues with our sorento. 1. There will be times when the car wont accelerate or go past the current speed. The first time this happened, we were traveling on the highway and it was difficult to pull over to safely pull over. We had to restart the car completely and let it rest then restart it. The second time this happened, was right after it was "fixed" by the dealership and I was able to safely pull over and restart the car. 2. The second issue is the car will jerk violently when shifting in reverse or down shifting to a stop while driving in automatic. When we originally took the car in for this issue (not even a full year after purchase), a transmission leak was said to be the problem and fixed. This worked for a few months then the issues started to gradually return. The car will also jerk forward and back while sitting in park. While this issue isnt as dangerous, the hesitation in the movement of the car could put myself or my family at risk if the car will no accelerate or decelerate in time. No warning light or problem indication is given when this problem arises. .\

Vehicle is not shifting properly. The vehicle is hesitating on shifting up and have a very hard down shift. When vehicle was brand new this was mentioned to the dealer and they said it was "normal" for these "new" transmissions. This issue has now since gotten way worse. When sitting at a stop sign and needing to accelerate to get out onto the roadway and wheel is slightly turned on "dry" roads the traction control light will come on and vehicle will not accelerate. This is a very BIG safety concern as myself and my kids use this car daily! This problem has been made aware to dealer but only to be told its "NORMAL" this is not normal its a big risk of possibly getting myself or others into an accident. The vehicle is going to be relooked at with another dealer 8/30/22 as it has gotten worse and im concerned of the safety of myself that this vehicle may malfunction causing as accident. I have also looked at other reports of these 2021 Sorentos and seeing a pattern with the transmission issues of them.

On Wednesday June 2, 2021 around 12:15pm I was leaving a teacher summer workshop and I started the car as usual, no issues, and proceeded to leave the parking lot to make a right turn onto the street. I was about a mile away from home. As I proceeded to hit the gas the car moved forward into the street then failed to shift into the next gear, which left me stranded with traffic quickly coming up behind me. I turned the wheel really hard to get as close to the curb as possible. I proceeded to press the gas pedal all the way to the floor and nothing happened except high rpms around 3-4k. I looked at the dash to see if there were any warning lights, at the same time I am pressing the gas pedal trying to get the car to move forward. It suddenly moved forward so I merged over to the left lane, with traffic coming up behind me, and it happened again. It failed to shift into the next gear and seemed to be stuck. I am moving forward about 1-2 mph. I stop in traffic and within 15 seconds it caught second gear and moved forward and I was able to make it to the middle lane. The Sorento started to act normal, shifting gears and moving forward, so I proceeded towards the light to make a left-hand turn. I waited until all the oncoming traffic passed by to make my left-hand turn, then I hit the accelerator and it lurched forward and wouldn’t shift into the next gear, it just continued to rev to 4k. I’m coasting along at about 1-2mph trying to get through the intersection so I don’t get hit by another car. I move the shifter into a different gear to see if it would catch and it didn’t. I continue pressing the gas pedal and it all of a sudden lurched forward and started acting like normal. I was about a half mile from home at this point. The car acted like normal and I was watching the dash to see if any warning lights were illuminated, no lights every appeared on the dash. Dealer can't replicate issue.

The vehicle has a dual clutch transmission which causes the vehicle to lunge forward at idle. The transmission also "slips" at times during hard acceleration and results in very slow acceleration when entering a highway on a ramp or making way across an intersection. The transmission also shifts extremely hard when coming to a stop and then lunges requiring additional braking. This presents a safety issue when crossing an intersection or coming to a sudden stop in stop and go traffic. The vehicle has 10,000 miles was inspected (and reproduced) at the Kia dealership where I purchased it, and the service department states that the transmission is working as designed, which I believe since there are numerous complaints about the same issue on line and Kia forums. The newest issue (about 2 months old) is that there is a whining noise that appears to be coming from the transmission during acceleration until the transmission shifts into another gear. There are no warning lamps - the issue has been occurring since purchased in May 2021. It appears that this issue is with the dual clutch 2.5 turbo models across the Kia line.

KIA's manual gives instructions on two different ways (having two is a bit odd) to disengage their adaptive cruise control (KIA's name for it is Smart Cruise Control). Neither works. It is not possible to disengage SCC and use regular cruise control. This has been brought to the attention of the dealer from where the car was purchased (who has been working with us non-stop) as well as by me to KIA via their website. The dealer's service department has inspected it and cannot find a way to disengage the SCC. (Other safety features built into the car can be turned off). KIA is balking at finding a fix. I cannot use cruise control in this car without also accepting the SCC feature. I find it dangerous unless it is what I want engaged. I prefer to be in control of my vehicle and do not want the car adjusting my speed for me. If I'm approaching a vehicle and signal to pass, but first get to close to the vehicle I wish to pass according to the vehicle's software, the car slows down as I move into a passing lane. Even if I have plenty of room for someone who may already be in that lane, my vehicle slowing down until the camera and software determine it's 'safe' again poses a problem. I can give other examples, but am sure you get the idea. Suffice to say, other brands of vehicles have a way to disengage adaptive cruise control features. KIA's manual states it can be disengaged, but as stated, those directions do not work. KIA needs to make this right. Since I need to give a date next, please realize this has been ongoing since our purchase on April 30, 2021.

The transmission failed entirely after 3,738 miles, disabling the car. Fortunately, the vehicle was parked when the transmission failed. Loss of power while actively driving could result in serious risk, crashes or death. Upon completion of repairs, Kia Van Nuys self-reported to me that at least 4-5 2021 Kia Sorrento were currently in for repair with the same issue of transmission failure after only 3,000 - 4,000 miles.

ONLY HAD CAR 8 DAYS WITH 500 MILES. WENT TO PULL AWAY FROM STOP SIGN AND CAR CUT OFF. WHEN ATTEMPTED TO RESTART, CAR ADVISED TO PLACE IN PARK FIRST. ONCE PLACED IN PARK AND PRESSED START BUTTON - ALL SYSTEMS WENT DEAD. SPARKS CAME FROM GROUNDING CABLE UNDER HOOD. WHEN GROUNDING CABLE WAS ADJUSTED, CAR STARTED TURNING ON AND OFF RANDOMLY. AFTER WAITING TWO HOURS FOR TOW TRUCK, WAS ABLE TO ADJUST GROUND CABLES WELL ENOUGH TO DRIVE HOME. SUBSENQUENTLY, CAR WAS TOWED TO DEALERSHIP.

Transmission down shifts hard when coming to a stop or putting it in reverse. Car has been to the Kia dealership were we where told this normal. We had a expert look at the car and his diagnosis was there is something wrong with it. You can here the Transmission making a clunky sound when coming to the stop. People in parking lots have noticed this as well.

Rough idle when waiting on intersection due to red light. possible knocking sounds each and every time engine turns off due to stop & go feature or when I turn the key off. It's been happening since middle of March..

I'VE HAD VEHICLE FOR APPROXIMATELY TWO MONTHS AND TWO DAYS. INTERMITTENT ISSUE WHERE VEHICLE FAILS TO ACCELERATE WHEN MAKING A TURN AFTER STOPPING (NO VEHICLE IN FRONT) OR ACCELERATING FORWARD AFTER A STOP (STOP LIGHT WITH VEHICLE IN FRONT). ISSUE OCCURRED FIRST ON 20 FEB 21 AND AGAIN ON 23 MAR 23. VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED 23 JAN 21. ISSUE SO FAR APPEARS TO OCCUR MONTHLY AROUND THE SAME TIME OF THE MONTH. ISSUE NOT EASY TO REPLICATE. CONCERNED THAT ISSUE COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT AS VEHICLE LITERALLY ACCELERATES ABOUT 1-2MPH AND WHEN OUT OF "DANGER ZONE" ACCELERATION PICKS UP. VERY SCARY. REFER TO THIS FORUM THREAD - IT APPEARS A COUPLE OTHER PEOPLE MAY BE HAVING A SIMILAR ISSUE. HTTPS://WWW.KIA-FORUMS.COM/THREADS/SPORADIC-ISSUE-NO-ACCELERATION-FROM-STOP.350565/

HAD CAR FOR 5 DAYS AND WINDSHIELD IS CRACKED ON PASSENGER SIDE NO INDICATION OF ANYTHING HITTING WINDSHIELD. DIDN'T NOTICE TELL AFTER BEING HOME AND SHOWING FRIENDS THE NEW CAR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2021 KIA SORENTO. THE CONTACT STATED THAT UPON PARKING HIS VEHICLE IN A PARKING LOT, THE FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE WARNING ACTIVATED WITHOUT ANOTHER VEHICLE BEING IN THE VICINITY. UPON INSPECTION, THE CONTACT DISCOVERED THAT THE FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE SENSOR HAD DETACHED FROM THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE BUMPER AND RESTED ON THE BUMPER BY THE CONNECTING WIRES. THE CONTACT THEN TOOK THE VEHICLE TO COURTESY KIA OF BRANDON (9205 E ADAMO DR, TAMPA, FL 33619) WHERE THEY CONFIRMED THE FAILURE AND INFORMED HIM THAT A NEW BUMPER HAD TO BE ORDERED TO FIX THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND WAS UNABLE TO PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. THE VEHICLE HAD YET TO BE REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 500.*DT*JB