2019 Kia Soul engine problems
86 owner complaints filed with NHTSA name the engine on the 2019 Kia Soul — 64% of all complaints for this model year.
What owners report
“I was driving through a busy intersection when the vehicle stopped accelerating causing risk to myself and other drivers. I was able to get the vehicle through the intersection and pulled over. I turned the vehicle off and it would not restart. I had the vehicle towed to my local independent…”
filed Jul 14, 2026
“My engine has suffered a mechanical failure that makes the vehicle stall or lose power while driving, creating a massive highway safety hazard. Kia is using a software update loophole to deny fixing a physical, dangerous manufacturing defect.”
filed Jul 7, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Related service bulletins
PRODUCT IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN: OWNER RENOTIFICATION (PI2107 Flight 501) - This document is the owner renotification advising that Kia is conducting an important Product Improvement Campaign to perform a software update…
PI2107_OWNR_501 · Other · issued Apr 8, 2026
Engine problems in other Soul years
| Year | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 Soul | 4 | 14% |
| 2023 Soul | 12 | 25% |
| 2022 Soul | 51 | 58% |
| 2021 Soul | 127 | 57% |
| 2020 Soul | 227 | 62% |
| 2018 Soul | 134 | 63% |
| 2017 Soul | 190 | 70% |
| 2016 Soul | 548 | 69% |
| 2015 Soul | 627 | 70% |
| 2014 Soul | 547 | 61% |
| 2013 Soul | 282 | 43% |
| 2012 Soul | 209 | 41% |
Other reported problem areas on the 2019 Kia Soul
Counts are unique NHTSA complaints naming this component group. Complaints are unverified owner reports; mileage is computed only from complaints that included a usable odometer reading.