2021 Kia Sorento: recalls and complaints
NHTSA advisory: park outsideCampaign 22V703000. NHTSA received the report on . 70,887 units. Trailer Hitches
Remedy of campaign 22V703000, in the NHTSA record
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will inspect the vehicle, and, as necessary, replace the fuse and/or tow hitch harness module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC249.
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 2021 Kia Sorento. The newest campaign is 25V649000. NHTSA received the report on 25 Sep 2025. The NHTSA record gives the component Visibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System / Fan/Motor. NHTSA has 250 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names 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.
Remedy of the newest campaign, 25V649000, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the wiring harness and blower motor resistor, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 23, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC351. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning October 9, 2025.
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. 201,036 units in total.
- 25V649000Visibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System / Fan/Motor
- 22V760000Power Train / Automatic Transmission
- 22V703000Trailer HitchesAdvisory
- 21V519000Fuel System, Gasoline / Delivery / Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings
25V649000Received . 39,536 units.
Visibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System / Fan/Motor
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Sorento vehicles. The heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) blower motor wiring harness may be inadequate, which can result in a fire.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
A fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the wiring harness and blower motor resistor, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 23, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC351. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning October 9, 2025.
Report filed by Kia America, Inc.. Manufacturer campaign number SC351. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
22V760000Received . 69,038 units.
Power Train / Automatic Transmission
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia Motors, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Sorento and 2021-2023 K5 vehicles. The vehicle's "fail-safe" limited-mobility drive mode may be impaired, when prompted by a transmission oil pump malfunction, which can result in a complete loss of drive power.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Loss of drive power increases the risk of a crash.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will inspect and replace the transmission, as necessary. Dealers will also update the transmission control unit software. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 9, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC250.
Report filed by Kia America, Inc.. Manufacturer campaign number SC250. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
22V703000Received . 70,887 units.
Trailer HitchesPark-outside advisory
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Sorento, 2021-2022 Sorento Hybrid (HEV), 2022-2023 Sorento Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV), and 2017-2022 Sportage vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
A 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 inspect the vehicle, and, as necessary, replace the fuse and/or tow hitch harness module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC249.
Report filed by Kia America, Inc.. Manufacturer campaign number SC249. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
21V519000Received . 21,575 units.
Fuel System, Gasoline / Delivery / Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Kia Motor America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021 Sorento and 2021-2022 K5 vehicles equipped with 2.5L turbocharged engines. Fuel may leak at the pipe connection between the high-pressure fuel pump and fuel rail.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
A fuel leak increases the risk of a fire.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will inspect and tighten, or replace the fuel pipe as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 21, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC214.
Report filed by Kia Motors America. Manufacturer campaign number SC214. 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
250 complaints, 379 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.
- 2021 Kia Sorento
- All 2021 vehicles
| Component | 2021 Sorento | All 2021 vehicles | Sorento, all years | Mentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Train | 369.4 | 104 | 83.9 | 140 |
| Engine | 176.8 | 137.9 | 272.3 | 67 |
| Electrical System | 124 | 131.6 | 98.9 | 47 |
| Unknown or Other | 102.9 | 100.7 | 91.3 | 39 |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 60.7 | 46.3 | 29 | 23 |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 31.7 | 28.2 | 28.3 | 12 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 26.4 | 92.8 | 9 | 10 |
| Visibility | 21.1 | 10.8 | 10.2 | 8 |
| Steering | 15.8 | 40.7 | 38.7 | 6 |
| Structure | 13.2 | 30.1 | 66.8 | 5 |
The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 19.
- Complaints that report a crash
- 5
- Complaints that report a fire
- 1
- Injuries in the complaints
- 2
- Deaths in the complaints
- 0
- Date of the newest complaint
- 30 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DP22003 | Defect petition | Loss of Motive Power | Engine | 12 Sep 2022 | 12 Dec 2023 |
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.
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 2021 Kia SorentoThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.
Cite this page
Recall Register. 2021 Kia Sorento: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/kia/sorento/2021/. 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 2021 Kia Sorento?
- 201,036 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 Sorento have for all model years?
- NHTSA lists 40 recall campaigns for the Kia Sorento, model years 2003 to 2026. 4 of them name the 2021 model year.
- Which component do the complaints about the 2021 Kia Sorento name most often?
- Power Train: 140 of 379 component mentions, or 369.4 per 1,000. For all 2021 vehicles the figure is 104 per 1,000.
- Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2021 Kia Sorento open?
- No. The 1 investigation that names this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.