2021 Kia SoulProblems: Top Complaints, Recalls & Failures (NHTSA)
Every owner complaint and safety recall the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has on file for the 2021 Kia Soul, ranked by the component that failed most.
Complaints on file
238
Recalls issued
2
Crashes reported
12
Fires reported
3
What breaks most
- Engine138 complaints · 58%
- Engine And Engine Cooling47 complaints · 19.7%
- Power Train26 complaints · 10.9%
- Electrical System15 complaints · 6.3%
- Fuel/Propulsion System10 complaints · 4.2%
Recalls on this model year
- Engine
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Soul, and 2021 Seltos vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines. The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which may result in engine damage.
Campaign 21V259000 · reported 13/04/2021 · recall work is free at any franchised dealer
- Engine And Engine Cooling › Engine › Hard Parts Internal/Mechanical
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Seltos and Soul vehicles. The piston oil rings may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in engine damage.
Campaign 25V099000 · reported 17/02/2025 · recall work is free at any franchised dealer
What owners report
Engine
- My kia's soul was part of a major safety recall for oil piston ring. The reason it's not showing on a recall list is because they claim to have fixed the issue. And it was removed. The issue is still
- The car was constantly burning through large amounts of oil. One night I was driving and the car started slowing down and lost power completely. This put my safety at Risk because I was on the freewa
- Burning oil and piston failure in my 2021 Kia soul. But it’s not the 1 percent under recall. More than just the 1 percent
Engine And Engine Cooling
- The contact owns a 2021 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving 5 MPH, the vehicle stalled and failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact associated the fai
- The contact owns a 2021 Kia Soul. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact stated that the high oil consumption might cause a fire in the engine
- The contact owns a 2021 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted but continued to stall each time the vehicle was stopped
Power Train
- I am filing this complaint regarding my 2021 Kia Soul due to repeated engine and powertrain failures and concerns about the quality and safety of the repairs. While my vehicle was under Kia's 100,000
- Cv joint and axle causing car to stall when turunning
- took to kia of jackson for recall sc209a they said they would not do recall because i was a dealer ,called customer service and they said do to the fact that i was a dealer it would not be covered
Electrical System
- Mi carro hay veces que prende la luz de la engine, lo lleve a checar y salió en la computadora que era un problema de Power Train system, que era secondary DTCs P1C28 Y P1C28000, lo busque en Google y
- The entire car is dead from the engine to the key function completely dead. The car broke down 3 time in the middle of the street which could've caused a serious crash putting my safety and others at
- Auto Start Stop Issue - Vehicle will stall and not start when waiting at a red light after you let go of break. All warning lights would turn on and stall.
Fuel/Propulsion System
- What component or system failed or malfunctioned? The engine (piston rings) and catalytic converter failed. The catalytic converter is available for inspection upon request. How was safety put at ri
- Owner was driving home at the normal posted speed limit when the car stalled out. The check engine light was on along with the oil Light, the car cranked back up in time before owner was rear ended. N
- Contact Information: •Name: [XXX] •Contact: Phone: [XXX] Email: [XXX] •Location: Hawaii Vehicle Information: •Year / Make / Model: 2021 Kia Soul S •VIN: [XXX] •Mileage: 133,000 miles Recall Re
Excerpts are anonymized owner complaints as filed with NHTSA, trimmed to 200 characters.
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