2012 Kia Forte: recalls and complaints
NHTSA advisory: park outsideCampaign 23V652000. NHTSA received the report on . 1,730,192 units. Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip / Control Unit/Module
Remedy of campaign 23V652000, in the NHTSA record
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will replace the HECU fuse, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed November 14, 2023. Owner notification letters were mailed March 29, 2024 through June 18, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC284.
Park-outside advisory: A mark on a recall campaign in the NHTSA recall file. This site shows the mark as NHTSA sets it.
NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for the 2012 Kia Forte. The newest campaign is 23V652000. NHTSA received the report on 25 Sep 2023. The NHTSA record gives the component Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip / Control Unit/Module. NHTSA has 292 complaints on file for this model year. 4 NHTSA investigations name this model year.
This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.
Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .
Since the last update
No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks
Recall campaigns
4 campaigns, newest first. 2,666,901 units in total.
- 23V652000Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip / Control Unit/ModuleAdvisory
- 20V750000Engine
- 18V363000Air Bags / Air Bag/Restraint Control Module
- 17V773000Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Pedals and Linkages
23V652000Received . 1,730,192 units.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip / Control Unit/ModulePark-outside advisory
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2010-2019 Borrego, 2014-2016 Cadenza, 2010-2013 Forte, Forte Koup, Sportage, 2015-2018 K900, 2011-2015 Optima, 2011-2013 Optima Hybrid, Soul, 2012-2017 Rio, 2011-2014 Sorento, and 2010-2011 Rondo vehicles. The Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU) may experience an electrical short, which can result in an engine compartment fire while parked or driving.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
An engine compartment fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will replace the HECU fuse, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed November 14, 2023. Owner notification letters were mailed March 29, 2024 through June 18, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC284.
Report filed by Kia America, Inc.. Manufacturer campaign number SC284. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
20V750000Received . 294,756 units.
Engine
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2012-2013 Sorento, 2012-2015 Forte and Forte Koup, 2011-2013 Optima Hybrid, 2014-2015 Soul, and 2012 Sportage vehicles. An engine compartment fire can occur while driving.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
An engine compartment fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the engine compartment for fuel and/or engine oil leaks, perform an engine test and make any repairs, including engine replacement, as necessary, free of charge. In addition, Kia dealers will update the Knock Sensor Detection System (KSDS) software, free of charge. The recall began January 27, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC200.
Report filed by Kia Motors America. Manufacturer campaign number SC200. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
18V363000Received . 507,587 units.
Air Bags / Air Bag/Restraint Control Module
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Kia Forte, Forte Koup, 2011-2013 Kia Optima and 2011-2012 Kia Optima Hybrid and Sedona vehicles. In the event of a crash, the air bag control unit (ACU) may short circuit, preventing the frontal air bags and seat belt pretensioners from deploying.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
If the frontal air bags and seat belt pretensioners are disabled, there is an increased risk of injury to the vehicle occupants in the event of a vehicle crash that necessitates deployment of these safety systems.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Kia will notify owners. For model year 2011 Sedona vehicles, Kia will instruct dealers to verify the ACU part number and, if necessary, install an extension wire harness kit between the ACU Connector and the Vehicle Harness Connector. For all other affected vehicles, Kia will instruct dealers to install the extension wire harness kit. The recall began September 28, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC165.
Report filed by Kia Motors America. Manufacturer campaign number SC165. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
17V773000Received . 134,366 units.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Pedals and Linkages
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2012-2014 Forte and Forte Koup vehicles. The brake pedal stopper pad can deteriorate allowing the brake light switch plunger to remain extended when the brake pedal is released. This will allow the brake lights to remain illuminated continuously. It can also allow the shift lever to be moved without depressing the brake pedal, or activate the engine management brake pedal override feature.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
If the brake light switch plunger does not retract as it should when the brake pedal is not being pressed, the brake lights may stay illuminated preventing accurate communication to following vehicles that the vehicle is slowing or stopping. Additionally, if the brake switch plunger is not retracted, then the transmission can be shifted out of PARK without depressing the brake pedal. Either condition increases the risk of a crash.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake pedal stopper pad, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 30, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC158.
Report filed by Kia Motors America. Manufacturer campaign number SC158. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.
Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.
Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.
Complaints by component
292 complaints, 407 component mentions.
A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.
- 2012 Kia Forte
- All 2012 vehicles
| Component | 2012 Forte | All 2012 vehicles | Forte, all years | Mentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine | 395.6 | 144.2 | 310 | 161 |
| Air Bags | 90.9 | 97.4 | 81.6 | 37 |
| Electrical System | 78.6 | 130.1 | 89.3 | 32 |
| Service Brakes | 73.7 | 56.2 | 43 | 30 |
| Exterior Lighting | 56.5 | 25.7 | 49 | 23 |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 51.6 | 9.1 | 17.1 | 21 |
| Unknown or Other | 49.1 | 69.3 | 89 | 20 |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 34.4 | 34 | 30.6 | 14 |
| Power Train | 27 | 108.9 | 59.5 | 11 |
| Structure | 22.1 | 40 | 22.3 | 9 |
The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 26.
- Complaints that report a crash
- 20
- Complaints that report a fire
- 23
- Injuries in the complaints
- 16
- Deaths in the complaints
- 3
- Date of the newest complaint
- 18 Sep 2026
These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.
Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.
Investigations
| Number | Type | Subject | Component | Opened | Closed | Campaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AQ23002 | Audit query | Hyundai and Kia ABS Module Fires | Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip / Control Unit/Module | 17 Nov 2023 | Open | |
| DP22003 | Defect petition | Loss of Motive Power | Engine | 12 Sep 2022 | 12 Dec 2023 | |
| EA21003 | Engineering analysis | Engine Fires | Engine | 22 Dec 2021 | 5 Feb 2024 | 23V877 |
| PE18003 | Preliminary evaluation | Air bags may be disabled during crash | Air Bags / Air Bag/Restraint Control Module | 16 Mar 2018 | 30 Aug 2019 | 18E043000 |
Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.
Other model years
The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.
A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.
Follow by RSS:Kia recallsVehicle recalls
Official channels
- NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
- NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
- NHTSA page of the 2012 Kia ForteThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.
Cite this page
Recall Register. 2012 Kia Forte: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/kia/forte/2012/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .
Sources
- Source
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
- Licence
- US government work, public domain
- Recall file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- Complaint file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- First complaint in the file
- 1 Jan 1995
- Manufacturer in the recall file
- Kia America, Inc.
The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.
Questions
- How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2012 Kia Forte?
- 2,666,901 units in 4 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
- How many recall campaigns does the Kia Forte have for all model years?
- NHTSA lists 18 recall campaigns for the Kia Forte, model years 2009 to 2024. 4 of them name the 2012 model year.
- Which component do the complaints about the 2012 Kia Forte name most often?
- Engine: 161 of 407 component mentions, or 395.6 per 1,000. For all 2012 vehicles the figure is 144.2 per 1,000.
- Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2012 Kia Forte open?
- 1 investigation has no closing date in the NHTSA file, of 4 that name this model year.