2018 Kia Sorento — Known Issues & Recalls

Your 2018 Sorento has experienced repeated engine misfires and required multiple repairs including head gasket and piston replacement, along with persistent oil issues. The car broke down twice in two years, requiring towing over 200 miles each time, with only the check engine light as warning. Kia issued a recall for a potential rod bearing failure and initially said they would replace the engine if it failed—and it did—but then refused to cover the cost, claiming you were misinformed about the recall coverage.

Your engine developed a serious internal problem at around 127,000 miles where a piston failed, causing the engine to shake, run rough, hesitate during acceleration, and lose power. The piston failure sprayed oil forcefully enough to damage your catalytic converter. The dealer was unable to repair the engine.

While driving on the highway, your engine suddenly revved and lost power, eventually shutting off completely and leaving you stranded on the roadway. Two independent mechanics confirmed a broken valve in cylinder 4 and severe internal engine damage that requires full engine replacement at a cost of approximately $9,600. The repair will involve removing and replacing the entire long block engine assembly.

Your 2018 Sorento's engine failed and stopped working entirely. The problem was covered under a class action lawsuit, and you had an extended warranty that was still active, but the warranty company discouraged you from pursuing the repair by stating you'd have to pay if carbon buildup was found. You decided not to have it fixed, and the engine eventually failed completely. Both Kia and the extended warranty company refused to help, despite this being a known defect. The fix would likely require engine replacement or major internal engine repairs.

Your engine is burning through oil at an abnormal rate, causing black soot to come out of the exhaust. You've noticed engine knocking sounds, and your spark plugs keep getting fouled up with carbon buildup even after replacement. A Kia mechanic diagnosed damage to the pistons and determined your engine needs to be replaced, which may be covered under a class action recall for this engine type.

Your engine suddenly lost all power while you were driving on the highway without any warning, forcing you to pull over and get the car towed. This unexpected failure created a dangerous situation on the roadway. The repair will likely involve a full engine diagnostic to identify what caused the sudden power loss.

Your engine is consuming an excessive amount of oil between service intervals. You may need to top off your oil more frequently than normal or notice the oil level dropping quickly on the dipstick. This could indicate internal engine wear or a leak that needs investigation. The fix may involve engine inspection, oil leak repair, or potential engine rebuilding depending on the root cause.

Your engine is burning about one quart of oil per week, and you've noticed shaking while driving. Your check engine light is on with a code indicating cylinder 3 is misfiring. This combination suggests an internal engine problem that needs diagnosis to determine if it's a valve seal leak, piston ring wear, or ignition issue.

Your 2018 Kia Sorento is showing no oil on the dipstick despite regular oil changes, and the dealership says you need a complete engine replacement at under 100,000 miles. You were told by a Kia settlement representative that your VIN qualified for coverage at no charge, but the dealership later refused to honor this and demanded payment instead. The oil warning light comes back on immediately after leaving the service lot, with no visible leaks.

While driving at 35 MPH, your car suddenly lost power and wouldn't accelerate, forcing you to pull off the road immediately. The engine then shut off completely and wouldn't restart for several minutes, with the check engine light coming on. Your dealer diagnosed a faulty high-pressure fuel pump and replaced it, after which the car operated normally. The fix involves replacing the high-pressure fuel pump with a new unit.

Your 2018 Kia Sorento was involved in a front-end collision at 40 MPH when another vehicle merged into your lane, but the airbags failed to deploy despite the impact being significant enough to total the vehicle. You were injured and required medical attention for neck and hand pain. The airbag system should have activated during this crash but did not. This will require a full airbag system diagnostic and replacement of the airbag control module and sensors.

Your 2018 Kia Sorento's engine was replaced in February 2025 due to excessive oil burning, but within 4,000 miles it began misfiring, losing power, and struggling on hills. The check engine light kept returning, and the vehicle eventually stalled on a highway exit ramp. Dealers later discovered that both the exhaust manifold catalytic converter and underbody catalytic converter were heavily clogged with carbon and oil deposits from the original oil-burning problem, causing dangerously high exhaust temperatures and engine shutdown risk. The repair will require replacing the clogged catalytic converters and potentially addressing internal engine damage caused by the excessive backpressure.

Your power steering suddenly failed while driving, making the steering wheel extremely difficult to turn. You heard a loud clunking noise when turning the wheel, and your dashboard lights for power steering and traction flickered on and off. The dealership identified a power steering recall but says your car's April build date falls outside the June start date, and they're now saying you need a new steering column instead—though you believe this is an electrical issue related to other problems you've had with the vehicle. A repair will likely involve replacing the power steering pump, steering column components, and investigating the underlying electrical system that may be causing dashboard light failures and excessive bulb burnout.

Your 2018 Kia Sorento is producing heavy white smoke from the exhaust when started, and you may notice oil leaking from the engine onto the spark plugs. While driving at highway speeds, your vehicle may shake and display a check engine warning light, and it may not restart immediately. The dealer found oil leaks in multiple cylinders, suggesting a serious engine problem that may require engine replacement or major repairs.

Your sunroof started closing very slowly after you restarted the car with it open, and technicians haven't been able to fix it by resetting the system. You've experienced this same issue on a previous Kia vehicle and are concerned about safety risks if the sunroof gets stuck closed or open. Fixing this will likely require diagnostic testing of the sunroof motor and control module, and possibly replacement of the sunroof assembly or its electrical components.

After your car had a recall service done to install an ignition cylinder protector in January 2026, your ignition key became hard to turn and your car started having trouble starting. You're also experiencing intermittent failures with your infotainment screen, air conditioning, and windshield wipers shutting off randomly while driving, which creates safety concerns since you may lose visibility and climate control. The dealership confirmed the ignition key cylinder is sticking. The fix will likely involve inspecting the ignition cylinder installation from the recall service and either adjusting or replacing the protector and cylinder as needed.

Your car's engine lost significant power on the highway starting around 65,000 miles, making it difficult to keep up with traffic. Since then, you've been adding oil weekly due to rapid oil loss, and your mechanic found an engine oil leak causing burning and smoke from the engine. The power loss has returned, and while similar turbo engines have recalls, yours wasn't included.

Your speedometer is giving false readings—it jumped from 0 to 20 mph while parked, and later jumped from 25 mph to 55 mph while driving. Your mechanic found that all four wheel speed sensors were faulty and not measuring your speed correctly. Additionally, your headlights turn on by themselves in auto mode even after you've shut off the car and confirmed they're off. Fixing this will require replacing the faulty wheel speed sensors and diagnosing the headlight auto mode electrical circuit.

Your high beams black out at night when you toggle them, and you have to jiggle the lever to get them working again. Additionally, your HECU (Hybrid Electronic Control Unit) assembly has failed, causing about 7 warning lights to appear on your dashboard. This will likely require replacement of the HECU assembly and diagnosis of the headlight control circuit.

Your car's paint is peeling on the roof near the windshield. You haven't been in any accidents or incidents—this appears to be a manufacturing defect with how the paint was applied or bonded to the roof.