2023 Kia Soul — Known Issues & Recalls

While driving, your engine experienced catastrophic internal failure with pistons ejecting from the engine block. You may also notice oil mixing into your coolant system. This indicates severe internal engine damage that requires complete engine replacement or major overhaul.

Your 2023 Kia Soul experienced rumbling and ticking sounds from the engine, followed by a message telling you to turn off and restart the vehicle at 45 MPH with an alarm sound. Your engine shut off three separate times with no warning lights showing. A dealer diagnostic found a pinhole in the oil filter, which required a complete engine replacement. Kia denied warranty coverage despite the low mileage of 20,000 miles.

Your engine failed shortly after you had the dealership perform your first oil change at 5,800 miles. The exact cause of the failure isn't clear from your complaint, but this timing suggests the oil change procedure may have been related. You'll likely need the engine inspected or replaced by a Kia dealer to determine what went wrong.

Your car's horn has stopped working completely and won't produce any sound at any speed or situation. This problem started in early December 2025, and you noticed it when you needed to alert another driver to a safety hazard. The dealership has an appointment scheduled to diagnose and repair the issue.

Your car's radio and UVO infotainment system may stop working or become unresponsive. This issue is subject to a recall that Kia has announced for 2025 model year vehicles. The radio and touchscreen controls may need to be repaired or replaced to restore full functionality.

The owner reports experiencing clarity and dive problems with their 2023 Kia Soul LX. The complaint lacks specific details about what these issues involve or when they occur. A dealer inspection would be needed to identify the exact cause and determine what repairs are necessary.

Your 2023 Kia Soul has been shutting down unexpectedly while driving without warning lights, including while stopped at traffic lights and in motion, creating dangerous situations. The dealership discovered the battery was failing and draining power, requiring a $400 replacement. The fix involves replacing the vehicle battery with a new one.

Your instrument panel went completely blank while you were driving, making it impossible to see your speed, fuel level, or other dashboard information. The dealer was unable to diagnose or fix the problem. This issue occurred at around 45,000 miles and may require electrical system diagnostics or instrument cluster replacement.

Your car suddenly accelerated with extreme force, pulling sharply to the right, and you were unable to stop it despite applying the brakes. The car jumped over a sidewalk before finally stopping. This happened without any warning and caused you significant distress. You're bringing the car to the dealer for inspection to determine if there's any hidden damage underneath.

Your steering wheel airbag deployed dangerously during a minor collision under 20 mph—it exploded rather than deploying normally and failed to make proper contact with the driver. No other airbags deployed during the impact. The dealership refused to investigate the faulty deployment, and the manufacturer dropped the case without completing their investigation despite receiving photos and a full report. This is particularly concerning because your vehicle had recalls issued for side airbags, suggesting a pattern of airbag issues Kia may have missed. Addressing this will likely require a complete airbag system inspection and steering wheel airbag replacement by the manufacturer.

While backing up in an alley, your car unexpectedly accelerated even though your foot was on the brake. When you shifted to drive, the car accelerated again despite continued braking, resulting in a crash into a garage door and parked vehicle. The automatic emergency braking system did not activate during either acceleration event.

Your car rolled backward down your driveway while parked with the engine off, even though you had pulled the keys from the ignition and the transmission was in Park. You were unable to stop it manually and had to use the emergency brake while your legs were caught between the car and door, resulting in serious bruising. The vehicle only stopped when it hit a curb across the street, and there were no warning signs before this happened.

Your car's exterior lights may not be functioning properly. This could affect visibility for you and other drivers on the road. Having the lighting system inspected and repaired is important for safe driving.

Your car's forward collision avoidance system is activating unexpectedly, causing your vehicle to brake on its own and turning on your brake and hazard lights even when there's no actual collision risk. This happens most often when you accelerate from a stopped position at traffic lights, and the warning lights disappear after restarting the car, but the problem keeps recurring. The issue likely involves recalibrating or updating the collision avoidance sensors and software.

After your dealer replaced the electric oil pump controller as part of a recall repair, you've experienced multiple issues: cruise control activates on its own, Lane Keep Assist turns on intermittently without you activating it, and your fuel gauge takes 30-40 minutes to accurately show a full tank after refueling. The dealer confirmed the recall work was completed but hasn't diagnosed these new problems. Fixing these issues will likely require the dealer to reprogram or replace the vehicle's computer modules and sensors that control cruise control, lane assist, and fuel level detection.

Your steering wheel jerks toward oncoming traffic when a car approaches from the opposite lane on two-lane roads, forcing you to fight to keep the car straight. Additionally, your driver's side door speaker cuts in and out with static, the passenger window sometimes won't roll up from the driver's controls, and your horn and key fob lock beep have stopped working. These electrical and steering issues began around the same time and may indicate a deeper electrical problem. The dealer should diagnose the steering system's lane-keeping assist feature and perform a comprehensive electrical system inspection to identify any loose connections or faulty modules.

Your car is displaying multiple warning lights including front camera safety alerts, rear camera safety alerts, and an ABS/skid control warning (orange triangle with exclamation point) on your dashboard. When these warnings flash together, your car enters limp mode and won't drive normally—restarting the car after about 10 minutes temporarily clears the warnings, but the problem keeps recurring. The dealer hasn't been able to identify or fix the underlying issue, which likely involves the camera sensors, ABS system, and their interconnected wiring or control modules.

Your rear windshield shattered on its own while the car was parked and off, with no apparent impact from outside objects. All the glass fell outward rather than into the vehicle, suggesting the glass spontaneously failed. You'll need to have the rear windshield replaced, which typically involves removal of the old glass and installation of a new rear window unit.

Your car's safety systems—including forward collision warning, lane keeping assist, speed limit recognition, high beam assist, and driver attention monitoring—are triggering false alerts with warning lights and sounds multiple times daily. These alerts cycle through repeatedly and can last up to 16 minutes before stopping, and the affected systems temporarily stop working while the warnings are active. The dealership has replaced the camera once but hasn't resolved the issue despite five service visits, with some visits resulting in no repair attempt.

Your FM radio display shows a black screen instead of functioning normally. The radio may need to be repaired or replaced to restore the display and FM radio functionality.