Engine failure while driving, only 51,000 miles on the vehicle. I was driving on the interstate and fortunately was in the right lane so I could pull over immediately and it did not cause an accident. I was driving approximately 45 miles per hour to pull onto the interstate when a loud noise and engine failure occurred.The engine light and oil light came on when I heard the engine stalling. My car was taken to the dealership where they stated the engine needs to be replaced for $8200 and it’s beyond warranty. According to their recall test, it passed the recall. I’m assuming that’s for the piston oil recall, but they have been unable to provide proof or details on how it passed. I have had regular maintenance on my car and should not require a new engine at this point. Please advise.
2020 Kia Soul owner complaints
352 complaints filed with NHTSA on this vehicle . Showing the 300 most recent — grouped by category for scanning.
engine 7 complaints shown
I had transmission changed out in May of 23 and then in November the check engine lights starts blinking and now I need a new engine, prior to needing a new engine the car would cut off it was loud and it wasn’t taking off like it should.
The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was discovered that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of oil. The contact was provided an estimate for a diagnostic test to determine the cause of the oil consumption. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and the contact was provided a case number. The vehicle was not repaired and remained with the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 76,000.
The contact owns a 2020 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V259000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal, and the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled and coasted to a stop. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to the residence and then towed to a dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact was infor
The car is frying my battery. I had a Duralast Platinum that should last approx 4 years. It killed one at 26 months. I replaced it, free of charge per the warranty, and 6 months later the brand new one is testing low again. Also, at 127k miles a flashing check engine light came on, I took it for a pre-check at a local shop and the tech identified that there was 0 oil in the reservoir. I had him change the oil just so I could get it out of there and took it into the dealership a day later. After charging me $250 for a diagnostic the dealerships response was that the cylinder walls and piston rings were damaged causing excessive oil consumption and that I need to replace my engine. $9,000 for a new engine at 127,000 miles is ridiculous. Apparently just about every other model but mine was re
The engine when it heats up drives so rough. Then the car completely shuts off. This creates such a dangerous situation when on the freeway. The motor needs to be replaced. I bought car from a used dealership and have only had 2 months and the motor is gone. Recall on certain motors is garbage because this motor is suffering from the same problem as the GDIs. I have an MDI. $15,000 down the drain. Thanks
The dealership installed the knock sensor in my car in November 2022 due to recall. Yesterday 12/12/22 when I left work, my car knocked so loudly the whole car was shaking. The car slowed and the check engine light came on. The car slowed while I was in process of accelerating to get up to speed on a busy urban street. There were several cars and I was afraid I was going to get hit due to the sudden deceleration. My car was towed to a Kia dealership. I was told it would be one to two week before they could even do a diagnostic on it and they could not give me a rental. I’m paying a car payment for a car that has broken down multiple times. The dealership said they were having a lot of cars being brought in because kids were stealing them after watching a tik tok where they’re shown h
powertrain 6 complaints shown
I purchased this car new with approximately 50 miles on it. On day 34, while driving on a two lane rural road the rpms began going up and down wildly, a strong smell (which I now know is transmission) and the car would not move forward or backward. Being in an s curve with flashers on, I was almost hit by a car coming around the curve. Two more vehicles were behind the first one and stopped, helping me push the car off the road. As the night this occurred was christmas eve, it took 3 hours to get the car towed to the dealer it was purchased from. I am told the transmission will have to be replaced. The dealer states Kia corporate will send a new transmission and having that performed is my only option.
The problems with the KIa Sol began with the "check engine" light continuously coming on in January of 2025. Took it to the dealership twice and numerous repairs were made and the vehicle continues to malfunction. It sputters and has created a dangerous condition to drive. For example, my 21 year old son was on the freeway and the car started sputtering. Thank God that the truck behind him moved lanes when he saw the car was struggling or it could have ended tragically. That was incredibly scary. I took it to the dealership again. They kept for two weeks trying to find the root of the problem, I spent $4,000 to "fix" it. When I drove it around town it did the same again, which put my brother and I in danger. The dealership finally said that the car needs a catalytic converter, which
While driving along the interstate, going 70 MPH, I noticed the RPM gauge started to fluctuate. Shortly after, I started having issues maintaining the speed. I pressed the gas pedal, but the vehicle wouldn’t speed up - instead started loosing speed. I started to hear grinding noises as I pressed the gas pedal. Eventually, I kept loosing speed and there was nothing I could do to make the vehicle move. I had to pull off and coast into a parking lot to be towed.
Today while driving home. My 2020 Kia soul hit 23000 miles. Shortly after as I was on highway on way home still. My vehicle started sputtering like bad gas. Then started jerking and rpms kept revving up even thou I wasnt pushing on gas any harder.about 27miles from home rpms shot up and car started slowing down. Quickly pulled over. So I put in park the shifted to drive again tried to give lil gas but car didnt move had to get towed home.
I stopped at stop sign and the car shut off and made a ding sound but radio never disconnected. Not the usual shut off this was different. Then it started but it made an unusual ding sound. Plus, sounds like the transmission is dragging it was a recall and I took the car back for maintenance and now it's doing same thing again plus this time it was whining for about 10 seconds while I was driving.
While driving my 2020 Kia soul gt, there was a loud bang and the car lost all power. Fortunately, I was able to get it pulled to the side of the road. I was on a country road and not on a major highway where it would have caused an accident. The vehicle had to be towed to the dealer.
other 4 complaints shown
My car has been acting up almost every winter. Bought brand new and within two years would not start. Triple A had to get it started. Next winter it shook and the check engine light came on. There was a misfire. I called Kia of Queensbury and they just told me to keep the gas cap off for a bit and than drive it after putting it back on. I believe the fuel injectors were a problem at that point because at times when starting it would shake and it would lag in power. The check engine light did go off but it kept lagging and I had to put fuel in it more often. They did not diagnose it. The next winter it shook and felt like it was going to shut down. I took it in for diagnosis while it was under warranty. They denied anything was wrong. This winter it did it again. It shook and the check engi
My issue is constant engine stalling. It is a very scary experience.
The child safety seat latches are inaccessible as they are buried in tight upholstery. I can't always successfully latch the car seats into the car and when I succeed it is only with the help of someone very experienced and takes upwards of half an hour. I have reported this to Kia and was advised they will take no action until there is an accident. Similar incidents have been reported by professional reviewers: https://www.cars.com/articles/how-do-car-seats-fit-in-a-2020-Kia-soul-gt-403604. "some muscle" is an understatement. This has happened to us four times and the vehicle was always stationary.
Vehicle is equipped with auto stop/start. When at a stop light the auto stop/start engaged, and before the brake was released the auto stop/start displayed an error in the display indicating that the car needed to be shifted to p or n and restarted as the stop/start function ended and engine was completely off. Replacement of the ECM seemed to fix this. Now the same vehicle displays the same error (engine stop/start is off) as the vehicle is being parked in a parking space and before the engine is physically turned off (the brake is being engaged, and the vehicle shifted to park at the same time. This happened in both my vehicle an ex model, and a 2020 s model (rental car). My vehicle has push button start/stop, and the s model is a key start model. This began on 082919 with the ex,
cruise control 1 complaint shown
When I would come to a complete stop at a stop sign it would stall battery light and oil light would come on. I would need to put it in park then turn it off and turn it back on. It also would suck up oil like crazy I would need to replace the oil every few days otherwise it wouldn't start. I took it to the shop and 2 of the 4 pistons blew and all the timing stuff stopped working.
electrical 1 complaint shown
The vehicle stalls and turns off while stopped. The vehicle turns off quickly with all dash light sensors turned on with a front collision warning. The vehicle can only be restarted when is boosted. The battery was checked and is in good working condition.