2026 Kia K5

13 complaints on file, page 1 of 1.

1. Filed Sep 29, 2026Failure Sep 17, 2026Tucson, AZAir bagsCrash1 injured

   I was driving my 2026 Kia K5 southbound on [XXX] at approximately 40–42 mph and proceeding straight through an intersection. I was already in the intersection when another vehicle turned directly in front of me. I did not have sufficient time to avoid the collision and struck the other vehicle with the front of my vehicle. The other driver was cited for failure to yield. The collision caused substantial frontal damage to my vehicle. The vehicle was subsequently declared a total loss by my insurance company. Despite the frontal impact, none of the airbags deployed. At the moment of impact, white smoke or dust filled the passenger compartment and I heard loud popping and buzzing-type noises coming from both sides of the dashboard. I did not observe any airbag deploy. I am concerned that the airbag/SRS system may not have performed as intended during the collision and that the lack of airbag deployment placed the vehicle occupants at increased risk of injury. The vehicle has been declared a total loss and I no longer have physical possession of it. I do not currently know whether the vehicle remains available for inspection or whether it has been transferred to a salvage facility. To my knowledge, the suspected airbag/SRS non-deployment has not been inspected or confirmed by Kia or a Kia dealer. I did not observe any airbag/SRS warning light, warning message, or other indication of an airbag problem before the collision. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

   NHTSA complaint 11767890
2. Filed Sep 21, 2026Failure Sep 20, 2026Bunkerhill, WVTires

   This is the 2nd time my tire has blown out. 1st time was in Feb 2026 and now again in Sept 2026 both have been factory tires Pirrelli 235/45 R18. The 1st time was on a interstate at speeds 70 mph the 2nd time on a rural road 45 to 55 mph. Both incidents have almost caused a major accident. The dealership has made every excuse under the sun and pirreli wont even discuss the issue. I have seen multiple complaints about factory tire issues with this make and model.

   NHTSA complaint 11765747
3. Filed Aug 11, 2026Failure Aug 7, 202615,440 milesCameron, MOLatches/locks/linkages

   The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving 80 MPH, the front driver's side door independently unlatched and swung open. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The contact was informed that the door latches were being replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,440.

   NHTSA complaint 11756235
4. Filed Jul 3, 2026Failure Jun 12, 2026Laredo, TXAutomatic emergency braking, Warnings, Assist

   Submitted by [XXX], Authorized Representative for the owner. The vehicle has a physical defect in the ADAS forward-facing camera bracket caused by a dealer-concealed repair using industrial silicone adhesive. The bracket is now visibly sagging, causing misalignment that leads to intermittent Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) failure. Critically, the vehicle’s computer does NOT illuminate a warning light for this physical displacement ('silent failure'), posing a severe crash risk. An undisclosed aftermarket GPS tracker was also found installed, which is pending contract review. A third-party inspection report titled 'Repurchase Inspection (Silicon at Rearview Mirror)' confirms the non-OEM adhesive and physical sag. The dealer has refused to provide a safe replacement vehicle. This defect stems from a non-OEM repair performed prior to sale. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

   NHTSA complaint 11748152
5. Filed May 24, 2026Failure Apr 1, 2026Cassville, MOAssist, Warning, Unknown or other

   Driver awareness warning goes off frequently. There is no way to desensitize it. As a result warnings are ignored. Dealer and manufacturer says there is not way to prevent this issue.

   NHTSA complaint 11739815
6. Filed Apr 13, 2026Failure Mar 13, 2026Austin, TXElectrical system, Engine

   The display is shows a "Check Oil Level" error. It comes on then goes off regularly. I have verified that the oil level is OK. Took it into the dealer and he said that this is a common issue and a software fix is coming. The car only has less than 2K miles. I depend on the engine displaying error messages, but they need to be real ones. Online complaints indicate that this is a common error and there seems to be no fix.

   NHTSA complaint 11730905
7. Filed Mar 12, 2026Failure Mar 7, 202689 milesMaywood, CAEngine

   The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with an engine harness failure. The contact was informed that the engine harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the parts were ordered and would be delivered within a week. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the dealer would be contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 89.

   NHTSA complaint 11723870
8. Filed Mar 10, 2026Failure Mar 8, 2026Milwaukee, WIElectrical system

   Kia has a known wiring‑harness defect that causes the low engine oil sensor to trigger incorrectly. Despite this, there has been no recall, and new vehicles are still being sold with the issue. The wiring harness is now on back order, leaving me without a car for weeks or longer. The vehicle has plenty of oil, and the dealership confirmed there are no engine problems, yet the warning light keeps coming back because of the faulty harness. This happened 1 day after buying this car new from the dealership lot.

   NHTSA complaint 11723226
9. Filed Mar 5, 2026Failure Mar 5, 2026Louisville, OHElectrical system, Engine, Unknown or other

   The car only has 150 miles on it and I bought it 3 days ago and there is a LOW ENGINE OIL warning on the dash.

   NHTSA complaint 11722365
10. Filed Mar 5, 2026Failure Mar 5, 2026Rossville, GAEngine

    Low oil engine warning. Oil level is okay. Car has 80 miles on it, total.

    NHTSA complaint 11722165
11. Filed Mar 5, 2026Failure Mar 4, 2026110 milesPlainfield, ILEngine and engine cooling

    The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the engine immediately started to rev extremely high, and smoke was coming from under the hood, and the front passenger side lights failed to illuminate. There was a sizzling sound coming from the engine compartment, and the hood was very hot to the touch. The contact turned off the vehicle, and a tow truck company was contacted. The contact stated that while raising the vehicle onto the tow truck, hundreds of shards of black plastic fell from the vehicle onto the driveway along with a pink colored liquid. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. After the failure, the contact received several engine failure codes on the Phone App. No further information was available. The failure mileage was 110.

    NHTSA complaint 11722163
12. Filed Jan 19, 2026Failure Jan 17, 2026Litchfield, ILUnknown or other1 injured

    My vehicle is 3 months old with only 3300 miles on it at the time this happened. I was driving on the interstate near on Saturday, January 17th, 2026. It was reasonably cold outside, and of course I had the heater on set to 70. My panoramic moonroof glass was closed, but the shade was open. My glass randomly exploded outward leaving a major hole in the glass. Glass shattered and sprinkled inside the vehicle while I was driving. After pulling over to identify what happened, I realized that the moonroof exploded outward from the vehicle.

    NHTSA complaint 11711862
13. Filed Dec 4, 2025Failure Dec 3, 2025Edinburg, TXUnknown or other

    Had the sunroof sunshade open, and the sunroof has exploded spontaneously out of nowhere. Since i had the sunshade open, the glass pieces went all over me and my wife, it had first scared us cause it was like a gun being fired off in the car, and i could've gotten into an accident. No. the car hasn’t been seen by the dealership. Theres has been many reports about this issue, me personally im in a group and theres a few people on there that this has happened to. No warning before it happened, there was no sign of impact. looks like it just spontaneously exploded outwards.

    NHTSA complaint 11703123