2016 Kia Sorento problems & reliability
1,241 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2016 Kia Sorento, alongside 8 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
17 complaints report injuries (19 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2016 Kia Sorento vehicles were involved in 82 fatal crashes with 39 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | 690 | 56% |
| Unknown OR Other | 164 | 13% |
| Power Train | 122 | 10% |
| Structure | 107 | 9% |
| Electrical System | 106 | 9% |
| Steering | 80 | 6% |
| Exterior Lighting | 66 | 5% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 62 | 5% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 53 | 4% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 30 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 68,000 miles (middle 50% between 33,500 and 96,000 miles), based on 413 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“While I was driving, my 3.3 V6 engine on my 2016 Kia Sorento seized up with no warning. There is no visible oil on the dip stick, although I have changed my oil routinely. There has never been visible oil outside of the engine or on the ground. I never had any warning light come on. I believe the engine burns an…”
Engine · filed Jul 26, 2026
“On Saturday the 18th of July, the car was fine, on Sunday 07/19/2026 got ready to take car to regular scheduled oil change and it was making a blown engine noise, the rod had failed, Safety issues where the people at oil change could have had a rod thrown out the bottom of the engine, or my car could have failed in…”
Engine · filed Jul 23, 2026
“I have a 2016 kia sorento I was having a problem with the shifter it would not go into park and had to use the shift override button I contacted the dealer there was an active recall they refused to repair or replace the shifter because it was inspected by the dealer in 2022 and as far as they where concerned that…”
Power Train · filed Jul 19, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Loss of Motive Power
Preliminary Evaluation PE23019 · opened Nov 13, 2023 · closed Jul 23, 2024
- Loss of Motive Power
Defect Petition DP22003 · opened Sep 12, 2022 · closed Dec 12, 2023
- Engine Oil Pressure Switch Leak
Defect Petition DP21002 · opened Nov 12, 2021 · closed Jun 26, 2023
Technical service bulletins
274 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2016 Kia Sorento. The 10 most recent:
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: MULTIFUNCTION SWITCH REPAIR (WTY031) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a…
WTY031_TSB_R2 · Warranty Program/Extension · issued Jun 16, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of…
CS2312_TSB_R2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 8, 2026
VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: THETA II 2.4L GDI EMISSIONS: ECM LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SC340 REVISION 5) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are…
SC340_TSB_R5 · Emissions · issued Apr 4, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: OIL PRESSURE SWITCH (OPS) REPLACEMENT (WTY026 REVISION 2) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this…
WTY026_TSB_R2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 18, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: THETA II 2.4L GDI EMISSION SECM LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SC340 REV 4) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections…
SC340_TSB_R4 · Emissions · issued Mar 6, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of…
TSB_CS2312_R1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 19, 2026
VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (SC340 FLIGHT 103 / UM) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign to improve the emissions…
SC340_OWNR_UM103 · Emissions · issued Dec 19, 2025
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin provides information to install a Theft Deterrent Ignition Cylinder…
TSB_CS2312 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 18, 2025
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (CS2312) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is conducting Customer Satisfaction Campaign. A software upgrade that addresses the social media…
CS2312_OWNR · Other · issued Dec 17, 2025
PITSTOP: TECHNICAL OPERATIONS: EXTERNAL DAMAGE TO ULTRASONIC SENSOR: This Pitstop provides information related to Parking Distance Warning (PDW) alerts and repairs involving ultrasonic sensors. The PDW system alerts the…
PS797 · Other · issued Dec 9, 2025
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2016 Kia Sorento has 8 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2016 Kia Sorento?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 68,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.