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ProblemsByVin Index / 2011-KIA-RIO / COMPLAINTS
Full complaint record · NHTSA

2011 Kia Rio owner complaints

24 complaints filed with NHTSA on this vehicle , including 4 reporting a crash, fire, injury, or fatality. Showing the 300 most recent — grouped by category for scanning.

airbags 5 complaints shown

5 total in this category · severe · avg repair $1,100 · see airbags cluster analysis →
12/17/2014 66,000 mi Crash ODI #10664814.0

My son was involved in an accident where he rear ended the car in front of him at approximately 35 to 40 MPH. The airbag in the steering wheel did not deploy!! Luckily, he was wearing his seat belt and suffered bruising on his hip and shoulder. I would like to know why the airbags did not deploy. I have viewed other reports online that reported the same thing where the bags did not deploy....updated 01/07/15 *bf

09/06/2011 14,500 mi Crash ODI #10423937.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Kia rio. While driving 70 MPH the vehicle crashed into the rear of a truck but the frontal air bags did not deploy. The front of the vehicle had extensive damage. There were no injuries. Police report #tx116x0irx001 was filed. The vehicle was towed by the insurance company. The dealer nor the manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 14,500.

07/08/2014 40,828 mi Crash ODI #10608963.0

I was in collision on 3/28. I hit another car from the back. The airbags did not deploy. I hit my head on the steering wheel. I had my seat belt on. I was sent to the hospital via ambulance. The car was a total loss. Updated 07/16/14 *bf updated 3/17/2015 *js

05/31/2012 30,000 mi ODI #10460156.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Kia rio. The contact stated that the air bag warning lamp illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the passenger seat air bag sensor was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 30,000 and the current mileage was 32,000.

04/02/2020 76,090 mi Crash ODI #11320026.0

As I was driving straight through an intersection of which I had a green light, the vehicle coming the opposite way through the intersection failed to yield and took a left turn hitting me head-on. We were each going between 30-35 miles per hour. I slammed my head on the steering wheel, shearing my brain from the inside of my skull resulting in a massive internal bleed. I also suffered a severe concussion and tore several ligaments in my neck. I currently continue to suffer from terrible migraines and have been unable to resume my previous profession as an architect. Why did my airbag not protect me from slamming my head on the steering wheel? It seems my airbag only partially deployed. I remember it touched my face but definitely did not protect me from hitting my head on the steering whe

cruise control 3 complaints shown

3 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $600 · see cruise control cluster analysis →
12/21/2022 ODI #11498472.0

It was 12/21/2022 at about 3:15 PM in the afternoon and I had just turned right into the parking lot of St. Alexius Medical Center, 1555 Barrington Rd, Hoffman Estates, IL 60169. I took a left turn, and went north about fifty feet and stopped at a stop sign. A car was stopped at the same intersection from the right facing west. As I waited for the other car to turn in front of me, my 2011 Kia Rio started to surge in speed without my foot on the accelerator. I instinctively jammed on my brake pedal to avoid hitting the car turning in front of me. Luckily, I did not hit the other vehicle, but I am concerned that this might happen again unexpectedly. The temperature at the time was about 20 degrees outside.

11/15/2019 85,000 mi ODI #11280415.0

I was driving on interstate 8 in la mesa california at approximately 70 MPH when the throttle on my vehicle stuck. I was able to shift my vehicle into neutral and pull over. The engine continued revving until I shut off the ignition. The throttle cable was stuck. I had the vehicle towed to Kia of el cajon where they diagnosed a faulty throttle cable and throttle body. The vehicle would not stop accelerating, and if there had been more traffic, there would have been a collision.

08/06/2018 66,000 mi ODI #11118042.0

Sold a car that turned out to be a 'lemon' after only a month of having it began breaking down the most recent issue being the Cadillac converter making it a little dangerous to drive because speed is affected along with toxic fuel, whenever I drive up a hill the car is loud slow to where it sometimes rolls backwards or stops and at a green light car can not reach minimum speed cause other cars anger and strong fuel order sometimes when starting car, car cut off once at red light and when turning vehicle moves entirely too slow to when oncoming cars almost make contact

brakes 3 complaints shown

3 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $450 · see brakes cluster analysis →
10/28/2013 50,400 mi ODI #10549821.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Kia rio. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel jerked from left to right when the brakes were depressed without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician stated that the brake disks needed to be turned. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 50,400.

09/13/2011 13,000 mi ODI #10425285.0

So I am going 5mph when I go to push the brakes because the car ahead of me suddenly stops. I don't stop because the car's brakes began pulsating causing me to run into the back of the car ahead of me. When I call the dealership I am told that even though I have owned it for 3 months its considered a wear and tear when I haven't put that many miles on the car yet. *tr

08/13/2017 ODI #11014958.0

Felt like I could not go speed I was attempting. The brakes started to lock up and one side was smoking, now both sides are smoking and is still locking up.

electrical 3 complaints shown

3 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $850 · see electrical cluster analysis →
09/08/2014 30,000 mi ODI #10631575.0

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Kia rio. While driving 15 MPH, the vehicle sputtered, vibrated, and the engine revved. The vehicle stalled and the check engine indicator illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred six times. The dealer stated that the factory ignition coils failed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 30,000.

09/03/2023 ODI #11542347.0

The engine and all electrical shuts down without warning. This happened three times in heavy traffic and nearly caused an accident. The engine stops running and the electrical components turn off which shuts down power steering and power brakes. Each time this has happened the electrical is disabled and the car is completely dead with zero response when the ignition key is turned; no dash lights, no starter, no power. After the first incident the plugs and coil packs were changed out. After the second incident the fuse block was changed out which was said to have been overheating. After the third incident the car was parked and has not been driven since. After the "dead" car is towed and it sits for a couple of hours it will start again and run for indeterminable amount of time befor

09/02/2015 70,000 mi ODI #10761064.0

Everything seemed okay while driving then suddenly car began to shake, sputter, and did not want to accelerate. Loses power sometimes when stopped. Check engine light flashed then stayed on. Car unsafe and unable to be driven. After 4 weeks, 2 tune ups including new plugs, coil packs checked although two were recently replaced, fuel injetors checked, fuel system flushed, and throttle body cleaned. When checked diagnostic code keeps reading random misfire. Car has been at the shop (not dealership) for 2 days when they finally figured out the problem and its relating to the technical service bulletin affecting the electrical system. This shop has done all the work and feels that since Kia is aware of the tsb they should fix the problem. However the Kia dealership that I purchased the car fro

body 2 complaints shown

12/29/2024 ODI #11632991.0

Painting peeling off the whole car. It’s going to cause the car to rust.Defect in Kia painting process.

04/19/2012 47,000 mi ODI #10455798.0

The break pedal & gas pedal are so close to each other & about the same height level that when you apply the breaks to stop or slow down instead of slowing down you speed up, this has happen several times, been lucky to avoid a crash,, but I have seen others not so lucky, the gas & break pedal needs at lease 4 inches of clearance so not to happen. *js

steering 2 complaints shown

09/08/2011 3,679 mi ODI #10424339.0

First the car was pulling to the driver side went to the local firestone shop and they told me the air was too low. It was only 25psi they fixed all my tyres and checked all the tire pressure then the car started pulling on the passenger's side suddenly. Started getting jerks on the steering wheel. Went to the dealer and told the alignment was off. This was a brand new Kia rio 2011 not even 6 months old. Also the didn't show me any indication that my drivers side front wheel has less air. The tire was at 25psi and it didn't show me any indication on my speed odometer nor the TPMS light turned one nor the low pressure light cam up. *tr

07/13/2014 62,000 mi ODI #10610218.0

Ignition switch locked up and wouldn't let the key out. Had six mechanics try to get the key unstuck and a Kia personal(over the phone), with no success. Had to tow my car 20 miles paid $165 to tow it, then Kia service center charged me another $430 to fix the problem. Got the car back with an extra set of keys. One set to open the doors and one set to start the car. Guess what else...now the car ignition dings like the keys are still in it even when no keys are in ignition and because of that I can't lock my car! Unless however I act like that fonzfrom happy days and give the steering wheel a little tap then magically the dinging stops and I'm able to lock my car. I told a Kia dealer from the same office where my car was serviced why my car had two sets of keys and he chuckled and ask w

engine 1 complaint shown

4 total in this category · moderate · avg repair $3,100 · see engine cluster analysis →
07/13/2014 89,130 mi ODI #10610220.0

I'm really not sure what's wrong with it bit this is way happened. I was driving to workfrom lunch wasn't having any problems then all of a sudden the engine light stayed flashing. In the 4 mins that followed my car started loosing power so I pulled over to a gas station once I stopped the car I heard a knocking sounds and then the car shut off. There was oil, it wasn't black, it did not have white spots and there was no smoke v of any color coming from the hood or tailpipe. What was weird was that the antifreeze reservoir was completely bone dry. I had a oil change and fluids check and topped off the two months before and had checked the fluids myself the month before after my spark plugs were change. Needless to say finding no antifreeze in the reservoir was a little bit confusing. Had 3

other 1 complaint shown

06/20/2018 60,000 mi ODI #11102870.0

My car keeps randomly turning off while I'm at a stop or waiting at a red light. The first time it happened I was waiting at a red light & then I tried to make a right turn after it turned green and in the middle of me trying to turn it turned off. Thank his there were no cars around or else something could have happened. Random pedestrians helped me push the car out of the way. & after trying to restart it for about 20 minute sit finally started. The second time it happened was the very next day. I was waiting at a red light and it just turned off. But it started back up right away. The third time & this was yesterday, I got to work and I was in the parking lot. My car was parked but still running and it turned off. It wouldn't start back up until about 15 later. Sometimes it will start b

Showing 300 of 24 total complaints. The full federal record is available at nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2011/Kia/Rio#complaints.
Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) owner complaint database. Last synced 2026-06-14. Complaints are owner-submitted and unverified — the existence of a complaint is not proof of a defect, but a pattern of complaints around the same component is a signal worth weighing. Verify any specific filing at nhtsa.gov.
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