Driving on a busy 4 lane highway where everyone was going over 70mph. Car began to shudder in the transmission and lost most of its power. Rpms went up to 3 or 4 thousand when stepping on gas to pull out out fast traffic and wouldn't go above 35 mph. Had to slowly pull out of traffic with hazards on at 30mph with cars flying by in both sides. Finally got to breakdown lane after a mile and tried to use sport shift mode to try other gears. Car wouldn't go above 30 mph and rpms went up to 4000. Luckily there was a rest area 500 feet off the highway. Pulled in there to look at transmission oil dipstick but couldn't find it. Spent over 2 hours trying to get Kia roadside assistance towed to a LOCAL Kia dealer but none had loaners to give so had to use my AAA to tow it to my dealer where I bought it. Hopefully I will get reimbursed for the tow I had to pay for. Still waiting for my service department to fix it. They tried to drive it and confirmed the transmission is gone. The car ONLY has 6500 MILES ON IT!!!!!! No warning light came on to know problems were present. Very dangerous.... Kia needs to have a transmission oil cooler or a warning light installed so this can't happen again!!!!
2021 Kia Seltos complaints
Owner reports filed with NHTSA about this vehicle, newest first and reproduced as filed. They are unverified accounts: one proves nothing, and a pattern across many is the thing worth reading. Back to the full 2021 record →
The contact owns a 2021 Kia Seltos. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V259000 (engine) however when attempting to schedule the recall repair appointment with the local dealer they were not attempting to schedule the repair appointment in a timely manner. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The local dealer and the manufacturer were made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
I’m making a complaint because a Driver hit the front side of my vehicle on the drivers side, and gave me all there information. No police was called because the damage to my vehicle wasn’t bad. So the driver knew it was their fault and gave there information. When it was time to call there insurance company, the driver of the other vehicle change their story and said that my car hit there vehicle and now the insurance company is saying that they are not allowable for the damages. They also noted that since there were no witnesses and no cameras or police report, then it’s just “he” says “she” says kind of issue. If this driver knew it wasn’t their fault then why did they give all their private information to a total stranger if they didn’t cause the accident.
While driving on the local street prior to entering the freeway, the vehicle completely stalled without any notice. Attempted to step on the brake pedal, however, there was no response. Had to use the emergency brake to stop to a safe spot. Had I been driving on the freeway, the end result would have resulted in possibly a fatal crash. While the vehicle stalled, I noticed 3 light indicators were lit: Charging System Warning Light, Engine Oil Pressure Warning Light, Malfunction (Engine Malfunction) Indicator Lamp. Keep in mind, all maintenance and services were up to date including oil change, which had been performed at KIA dealership service. The gears were then changed from "drive" to "park" and attempted to restart the engine. Engine turned back on without any light indicators on the dashboard and assumed that it might have been a minor electrical issue. Attempted to drive back onto the road and then the engine completely stalled again, however, this time the brake pedals responded. Not to mention, there were consistent rumbling sounds coming from the engine after the initial engine stall. Called KIA's roadside services for tow services and after 6 hours, the car was towed to a local KIA dealership to Valley-Hi KIA located in Victorville, CA. Received a call today from the dealership (June 4th, 2021) this morning and was informed that there was no oil in the vehicle and was charged $44.99 for the oil fill. Was told that there was no evidence of oil leakage and was advised
Driving on highway, water truck lost its load. 2 thousand gallon water tank slammed into side of Kia Side airbag did not deploy
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2021 KIA SELTOS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN SHE TOOK HER VEHICLE IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE, SHE WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS NO OIL IN THE ENGINE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS LEAKING OIL AND THERE WAS A LOUD KNOCKING SOUND COMING FROM THE ENGINE. THE CONTACT STATED NO WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALER TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT NOTHING NEEDING TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT WAS RELATING THE ISSUE TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 21V259000 (ENGINE) HOWEVER, THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED. THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 10,122.
ON 05/03/21 APPROX. 2:40 PM CT I WAS EXCELLING TO ENTER HIGHWAY MOPAC NORTH; AUSTIN, TX; WHEN MY CAR BECAME SLUGGISH; I PULLED OVER, TO SHOULDER, IRONICALLY TX ROADSIDE ASSITANCE PULLED IN BEHIND ME - WE COULDN'T DETERMINE THE ISSUE - I WAS EXITING THE NEXT EXIT DRIVING TO JIFFY LUBE ON ANDERSON/SPICEWOOD; DIALOGUE SCREEN STATING ISSUE RE: DIAGNOSTIC COMPUTER; GAVE TWO OPTIONS SCHEDULE APPT. OR CALL ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE. TURNING INTO JIFFY LUBE, THE CAR BECAME SLUGGISH, THE CAR WOULDN'T REVERSE FROM THE JIFFY LUBE BAY. JIFFY LUBE MECHANIC RAN A DIAGNOSTIC. I CONTACTED KIA, PROVIDED: P0601 INTERNAL CONTROL, MODULE MEMORY. VEHICLE TOWED TO KIA. NO INFORMATION FROM KIA ON 05/03/2021. WHEN I CALLED ON 05/04/2021 I WAS INFORMED "THERE'S A RECALL FOR THE TRANSMISSION COMPUTER"; I MENTIONED I HADN'T RECEIVED ANYTHING; SHAWN KIA SERVICE SAID 'OH, NO...WE WOULD CHECK IT WHEN YOU COME IN FOR SERVICE"...CRAZY THOUGHT I WAS ON MY WAY TO DENVER, CO...HUMM...POSSIBILITY OF BEING STRANDED ON A CO PASS... CALLED ON 05/05/21 NEED TO GET A NEW COMPUTER TO SEE IF THE PROBLEM IS MY COMPUTER; WON'T BE FOR 2 DAYS; ONLY 1 SELTOS COMPUTER AVAILABLE IN THE US. 05/10/21 CALL KIA TO FIND OUT THAT IT WASN'T THE COMPUTER; MAYBE THE CLUTCH, PULLING TRANSMISSION NOW; DON'T HAVE A LOANER AND CAN'T PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. THEY SHOULD KNOW SOMETHING BY 05/13/21..NO CALL ON WED. 05/13/21; UNABLE TO REACH SHAWN IN SERVICE AND BEN, GM ON 05/13/21. I MADE 2 CALLS PER DAY TO KIA; THE SYSTEM WILL ONLY ALLOW ME TO UP
THE CAR IS UNABLE TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE OR PARK. IT TAKES RELEASING THE SHIFT LOCK TO MAKE IT GET INTO REVERSE OR NEUTRAL AND A VERY SPECIFIC SEQUENCE TO ACCIDENTALLY GET IT INTO PARK. AFTER TRYING TO PARALLEL PARK INTO A SPOT, THE CAR BECAME STUCK IN REVERSE AND COULD NOT BE MANEUVERED. IT WAS ONLY ABLE TO ROLL DOWNHILL IN NEUTRAL OR REVERSE WITH POWER, BOTH OF WHICH WOULD HAVE LED TO A COLLISION. THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY ON THE CITY STREET AND BLOCKED TRAFFIC, ESPECIALLY PROBLEMATIC DURING THE SNOW STORM. I RECEIVED THE CAR BACK FROM THE DEALER 3 DAYS PRIOR FROM A TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT AND SEEMS TO BE A PROBLEM IN THE SAME VEIN.
THE DRIVER SIDE MIRROR IS DISTORTED. I DROVE IT HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP AFTER HAVING THE DEALER REPLACE THE MIRROR BEFORE WE LEFT THE LOT (WE NOTICED IT WHEN BEFORE DROVE OFF THE LOT) THEN JUST DROVE AND IT WAS STILL WARPED. I WAS SCARED TO SWITCH LANES. THE DISTORTION HAPPENS WHEN THE CAR IS BOTH STATIONARY AND IN MOTION, ON HIGHWAY AND ON THE STREETS.
THE FIRST TIME I TOOK MY CAR OUT A ROCK HIT THE WINDSHIELD AND CHIPPED IT. BEFORE I COULD MAKE IT HOME THE CHIP HAD CRACKED MY WINDSHIELD AND SPREAD TO BEYOND REPAIR. THE CAR HAS UNDER 100 MILES ON IT AND ALREADY NEEDS A NEW WINDSHIELD. VEHICLE WAS MOVING APPROX. 65 MPH ON A 4 LANE HIGHWAY.
MY KIA SELTOS HAS TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS WITH ONLY A LITTLE OVER 6,000 MILES. IT NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION WHICH WON'T BE AVAILABLE UNTIL AT LEAST FEBRUARY 11TH
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE. ON A ROAD WHERE THE SPEED LIMIT WAS 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STOPPED ACCELERATING AT 55 MPH SUDDENLY AND CAUSED DISRUPTION IN THE TRAFFIC UNTIL I COULD CRUISE TO THE SHOULDER IN NEUTRAL. IT WAS A SCARY SITUATION WHERE MULTIPLE ACCIDENTS WERE NARROWLY AVOIDED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP WHERE THE TRANSMISSION WAS IDENTIFIED TO HAVE A BROKEN TRANSMISSION WITH 3000 MILES ON IT.
NO MATTER WHAT SPEED, CAR WILL RANDOMLY JERK FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, FEELING LIKE DEATH WOBBLE. AT HIGHER SPEEDS MORE THAN 45MPH THE CAR WILL VIOLENTLY JERK FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, FEELING OUT OF CONTROL. KIA DEALERSHIP ON CENTRAL AVE IN ALBANY NY USA NOTIFIED, SAID THE ALIGNMENT WAS OFF AND PASS REAR CAMBER BOLT IS BENT. STATED THEY DID AN ALIGNMENT FOR THE FRONT TWO AND THE LEFT REAR BUT NOT THE RIGHT REAR, PROBLEM IS NOT FIXED.
AT 5,800 MILES, MY SELTOS SUDDENLY STOPPED ACCELERATING WHILE IN MOTION. RPMS SHOT UP TO 7 AND 8, AND THE CAR WOULD NOT GO ABOVE 35 MPH. THE ENGINE WAS GRINDING. I GOT THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. I WAS ALSO TOLD THERE IS NO TRANSMISSION IN THE COUNTRY SO ONE HAS BEEN ORDERED.
THIS VEHICLE HAS A HUGE FLAW. THE DESIGN ANGLE OF THE WIND SHIELD PICKS UP A GLARE FROM THE DASH WHICH COVERS THE ENTIRE VIEWING ANGLE FROM CENTER WIND SHIELD TO THE RIGHT. ONLY REALLY VISIBLE WHEN THE SUN IS OUT. KIA CONSUMER AFFAIRS HAS ADMITTED VIA EMAIL AND CASE STATEMENT THAT IT IS A DESIGN ISSUE AND NOTHING CAN BE DONE. PHOTO SHOWS DASH GLARE. ANYTHING THAT IS PLACED ON THE DASH IS REFLECTED ON THE WINDOW SHIELD.
GOING ON A SLIGHT INCLINE MY ENGINE FELT LIKE IT WAS SURGING SLIGHTLY AND AFTER 5 MIN THE ENGINE WAS REALLY SURGING AND THE NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU PRESSED ON THE ACCELERATOR THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD MAX OUT AT 65. AND THEN AFTER 10 MIN NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU PRESSED ON THE ACCELERATOR THERE WOULD BE ABOUT A 5 SECOND DELAY IN THE RPMS. WHICH WOULD GO FROM 1 TO 8 MAX. AND IT FINALLY DIED ON THE FREEWAY. WHEN I FINALLY GOT IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THEY SAID THE TRANSMISSION BLEW ON IT AND TO GET A NEW ONE THEY WOULD HAVE TO ORDER IT FROM KOREA. I WILL BE WITHOUT A CAR FOR ALMOST 2 FULL MONTHS.
THERE IS A CONSTANT RATTLING NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR AREA. IT SOUNDS AT BOTHS LOW AND HIGH SPEED. NOT SURE IF IS FROM THE SUSPENSION OR SOMETHING INSIDE THE TRUNK AREA. MY VEHICLE HAS LESS THAN 600 MILES.
IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC THE TRANSMISSION TEMPERATURE TOO HOT WARNING CAME ON. EVENTUALLY GOT INTO THE RED ZONE, HAD TO PULL OVER AND KEEP FOOT ON BRAKE TO DISENGAGED DUAL CLUTCH SYSTEM TO HELP DISSIPATE HEAT. EVENTUALLY WENT BACK DOWN TO NORMAL RANGE OF TEMPERATURE. DEALER STATED FOUND NO ARTICLES OR RESOURCES FOR THIS ISSUE.
CAR HAS 3000 MILES,CAR HAD BEEN SURGING WHEN ACCELERATING, IT REVVED UP WHEN IN DRIVE, WOULDN'T GO AS I WAS EXITING OFF OF INTERSTATE. WAS TOWED TO DEALER, THEY COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG, SENT ME HOME. I MADE IT 47 MILES WHEN IT STOPPED ACCELERATING AND STOPPED GOING. WAS TOWED BACK TO DEALER, WHERE IT HAS BEEN FOR OVER 2 WEEKS. THEY ARE PUTTING IN A NEW TRANSMISSION.
VEHICLE WAS HAVING DIFFICULTY SHIFTING BETWEEN GEARS, UNTIL ONE TIME IT DID NOT SWITCH FROM AUTOMATIC OFF AT STOPLIGHT BACK INTO GEAR. HAD TO TURN CAR OFF/ON TO GET IT INTO GEAR. LATER ON THE HIGHWAY AT ~60MPH, AS IT WAS TRYING TO DOWNSHIFT TO GO UP A HILL, IT FAILED TO ENGAGE A GEAR. ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND HAD TO COAST INTO SHOULDER TO AWAIT IT BEING TOWED. DEALERSHIP SAID IT NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION, WAS BAD FROM FACTORY - CAR HAS ~2K MILES ON IT. TECHNICIAN SAID IT'S NOT THE FIRST HE'S SEEN LIKE THIS.
HVAC BLOWER WOULD NOT BLOW. DEALER FOUND MELTED RELAYS. ONE WEEK AFTER REPLACING THE ENTIRE ENGINE WIRING HARNESS I STARTED TO GET A BURNT ELECTRICAL SMELL THROUGH THE VENTS. I LOOKED IN THE ENGINE FUSE BOX AND THERE WERE MELTED RELAYS AGAIN.
VEHICLE WILL NOT PROPERLY SHIFT GEARS AND WILL STALL RANDOMLY AT TRAFFIC STOPS.
I BELIEVE KIA IS MANUFACTURING / OR SOURCING VERY BAD QUALITY WINDSHIELD FOR THEIR VEHICLES. I WAS DRIVING MY KIA SELTOS AT 55 MPH ON A CITY ROAD WHEN A SMALL CHIP HIT MY SCREEN WHICH DIDN'T EVEN CREATE ANY STRIKING SOUND AND THE NEXT SECOND I KNOW MY WINDSCREEN DEVELOPED THIS HUGE CRACK. MY CAR WAS APPROXIMATELY 40 DAYS OLD. RIGHT AFTER THAT I TOLD MY DEALERSHIP AND THEIR RESPONSE WAS VERY COLD. THEY EVEN DIDN'T TAKE ANY PICTURES TO CONSULT KIA CONSUMER AFFAIRS. THEY SAID IT WAS AN OUTSIDE INFLUENCE AND THEY WON'T CONSIDER TO COVER IT UNDER ANY WARRANTY. THEN I WENT ON VARIOUS CAR FORUMS TO FIND OUT THAT KIA TELLURIDE BUYERS HAVE FREQUENTLY COMPLAINED ABOUT THE ISSUE AND THE COMPANY REPLACED IT FOR THEM CALLING IT A "GOOD WILL GESTURE". I ALSO REACHED OUT TO VARIOUS OTHER KIA CAR BUYERS AND I WAS SURPISED TO FIND OUT THAT IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST COMMON COMPLAINTS. SURPISINGLY MAJORITY OF THESE WINDSCREENS CRACK WHEN SOMETHING HITS THE CORNERS (WHERE IT SITS ON THE FRAME). PROBABLY A PRESSURE POINT. BUT THIS NEEDS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF. I DON'T WANT TO SPEND A 1500$ AGAIN ON A WINSHIELD REPLACE AFTER EVERY 40 DAYS
CAR WAS PARKED WITH AUTO OFF FEATURE DISABLED. VEHICLE STALLED 2-3 TIMES WHILE PARKED.
WINDOW STICKER INDICATES DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHTS ON LX MODEL. MANUAL SAYS TO HAVE LIGHT SWITCH IN AUTO POSITION. WHEN MEETING THE REQUIREMENTS OUTLINED IN THE FEATURES AND OWNERS MANUAL THE DRL'S NEVER ILLUMINATE. TOWBIN KIA RESPONDED THAT THE VEHICLE IS OPERATING AS DESIGNED AND I SHOULD MOVE THE SWITCH ONE POSITION UP TO THE PARKING LIGHT POSITION IF I WANT TO USE DRL. THIS IS CONTRARY TO WHAT THE MANUAL STATES.
MY KIA SELTOS WITH ONLY 900 MILES HAS DONE THE FOLLOWING TWICE: WHEN AT A STOP AND I STEP ON THE GAS THE CAR TURNS OFF. THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED I WAS AT A STOP LIGHT AND WHEN I STEPPED ON THE GAS THE CAR TURNED OFF AND TOOK A COUPLE OF MINUTES BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO TURN THE CAR BACK ON. THE SECOND TIME IT HAPPENED I PUT THE CAR IN REVERSE AND STEPPED ON THE GAS AND IT TURNED OFF. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER THAT IT APPEARS TO BE A PROBLEM WITH THE ENGINE CONTROL UNIT. NOW MY CAR HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP FOR 15 DAYS SO FAR WITH NO KNOWLEDGE OF WHEN THE CAR WILL BE RETURNED BECAUSE THE PART IS ON "BACK ORDER". I'D LIKE TO ADD THAT WHILE AT THE CAR RENTAL PLACE I MET ANOTHER PERSON WITH THE SAME CAR AND EXACT SAME ISSUES.
TRANSMISSION DEFECT , TRANSMISSION OVER HEATS IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC , ALSO CAUSES SKIPPING OF THE GEARS. KIA KNOW THIS IS A PROBLEM AND INDICATED THAT CAR WILL SHUT DOWN ON ITS OWN BECAUSE OF THIS.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE ASSIST (FCA), RADAR SENSOR DO NOT WORK, NEVER GET ALARMS OR WARNING WHEN AN COLLISION IS EMINENT. CONTACTED KIAUSA AND DEALER, PROBLEM NOT SOLVED.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE ASSIST W/ PEDESTRIAN DETECT (FCA), SYSTEM DO NOT WORK, NEVER GET ALARMS, IN A NEAR COLLISION SITUATIONS OR A PERSON CROSSING IN FRONT OF VEHICLE. CONTACTED KIA USA CASE # 13716568), RETURN CAR TO DEALER AS INSTRUCTED, PROBLEM NEVER FIX. KIA NOT PROVIDING ANY INFORMATION OR TROUBLESHOOT, TEST OR REPLACE RADAR SENSOR TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IN THE CAR OWNER MANUAL, IT LOOK LIKE THE SYSTEM HAS MORE LIMITATIONS THAN REAL INSTANCES THAT WILL WORK. SYSTEM NOT RELIABLE AT ALL.
MAJOR SAFETY PROBLEM WITH THE NEW 2021 KIA SELTOS WITH THE DUAL CLUTCH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. IT CAN MISS 1ST, 3RD, 5TH AND 7TH GEARS. IT MISSED 1ST GEAR WHILE MY WIFE WAS TURNING LEFT FROM A STOPPED CONDITION... IT WAS NEARLY AN ACCIDENT, AND COULD HAVE BEEN A FATAL ACCIDENT SINCE THERE WAS A PASSENGER. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THIS TRANSMISSION IS ALREADY A RECALL IN SOUTH KOREA. A WEBSITE HAS A VIDEO SHOWING THE PROBLEM MY WIFE ALSO ENCOUNTERED. PLEASE SEE THIS WEBSITE: HTTPS://WHEELBHP.COM/KIA-SELTOS-DCT-PROBLEMS-3119881/ IT DOES INDICATE AN ECU RE-FLASH SHOULD FIX THE ISSUE. (THE WEBSITE INDICATES A REFLASH SHOULD REPAIR PROPER TRANSMISSION SHIFTING.) MISSED SHIFTS HAS HAPPENED TO MY WIFE MORE THAN ONCE... THE SUV "FEELS JERKY" MANY TIME WHEN DRIVING. REPORTED TO DEALER NO ACTION TAKEN BY KIA DEALER YET. *TR
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NHTSA publishes every complaint as the owner wrote it and investigates only a fraction. Spelling, capitalisation and judgement are the filer’s own. What carries weight is repetition: the same component failing the same way across many filings, and whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
Full record for the 2021 Kia Seltos → · Every Seltos year → · How the figures are calculated →