2025 Kia Sorento problems & reliability
73 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2025 Kia Sorento, alongside 3 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Sep 21, 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 components.
3 complaints report injuries (3 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System → | 21 | 29% |
| Unknown / Other | 20 | 27% |
| Engine → | 19 | 26% |
| Power Train → | 19 | 26% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 8 | 11% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 7 | 10% |
| Service Brakes | 5 | 7% |
| Visibility/wiper | 5 | 7% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 4 | 5% |
| Back Over Prevention | 3 | 4% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 17 reported components →Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“VEHICLE: 2025 Kia Sorento (VIN: [XXX]) KIA CORPORATE CASE #: XXX SAFETY DEFECT DESCRIPTION: The central ccNC infotainment display screen suffers from recurring, thermal-induced flickering and complete blackouts while driving and parking. When the screen blackouts, the FMVSS 111 federally mandated Backup Camera…”
Electrical System · filed Aug 28, 2026
“About a minute into my drive, I heard an explosion. I looked back thinking something happened to my twin toddlers and saw nothing. I heard the sound of glass cracking and looked up to see the front glass of my moonroof shattered. I pulled over to safety and closed the sun cover for the moonroof before any more glass…”
Structure · filed Aug 27, 2026
“The contact owns a 2025 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving approximately 75 MPH, the rear windshield wiper was moving with the switch turned off. The contact turned the rear windshield wiper to high, then low, and the wiper finally turned off. The contact continued driving and the vehicle suddenly…”
Engine · filed Aug 21, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
33 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2025 Kia Sorento. The 10 most recent:
RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR DATA CONNECTIVITY (ELE413 Revision 2) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software update is designed to update the Data Connectivity Unit (DCU) logic of certain 2025 - 2026MY…
OTA_ELE413_NOTES_R2 · Over The Air · issued Jun 18, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM SOFTWARE UPDATE USING UPDATE.KIA.COM - This bulletin provides information and service procedures for updating the infotainment systems on applicable Kia vehicles using the…
TSB_ELE422 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 28, 2026
RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR DATA CONNECTIVITY (ELE413 Revision 1) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software update is designed to update the Data Connectivity Unit (DCU) logic of certain 2025 - 2026MY…
OTA_ELE413_NOTES_R1 · Over The Air · issued Apr 24, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SOFTWARE UPDATE PROCEDURE - This bulletin provides information on the process for downloading infotainment software updates and preparing USB for installation on applicable Kia…
TSB_ELE417 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 14, 2026
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER ACTION: ECU LOGIC IMPROVEMENT FOR DTC P2B59F0 (CA2516) - This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Engine Control Unit (ECU) software on certain 2024–2025MY vehicles equipped…
TSB_ENG264 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 1, 2026
WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (WTY042) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn…
WTY042_OWNR · Warranty Program/Extension · issued Mar 26, 2026
WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: HORN ASSEMBLY INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT (WTY042) - This bulletin provides information associated with the ‘Warranty Extension Program’ (WTY042) to inspect and…
WTY042_TSB · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 24, 2026
WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: REIMBURSEMENT FORM (WTY042) - This document is a Reimbursement Request form that was mailed with the customer letter advising them to submit the form if they had paid for repairs for this…
WTY042_REIMB · Warranty Program/Extension · issued Mar 24, 2026
WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: QUESTION AND ANSWER (WTY042) - This document is the Question and Answer Guide containing the most frequently asked questions regarding the Warranty Extension Campaign WTY042.
WTY042_QA · Warranty Program/Extension · issued Mar 24, 2026
WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS & SERVICE MANAGER MEMO (WTY042) - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Service managers advising that Kia is is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty…
WTY042_DPSM · Warranty Program/Extension · issued Mar 24, 2026
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 2025 Kia Sorento has 3 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 2025 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.