2021 Kia K5
6 recalls and 164 owner complaints on record for this model year.
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Decode a VIN6 recalls and 164 owner complaints on record for this model year.
This page describes the model. To see how one particular car is equipped, and whether its identifier is valid, decode its VIN.
Decode a VINAlmost all of this describes the model year, not the individual car. Nothing here can tell you about this vehicle’s mileage, accidents or ownership — no identifier encodes those.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2024 K5 vehicles. A damaged check valve can allow air to enter the fuel tank, causing it to expand and contact hot exhaust components, melting the tank.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the check valve. The fuel tank will be inspected for damage and replaced as necessary. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 16, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC356. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning December 1, 2025.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 K5 vehicles. The side curtain air bags may have been installed incorrectly, causing them not to deploy properly in the event of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and reinstall the side curtain air bags, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 7, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC263.
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.
Remedy: 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.
While on her way from work, my mother was involved in an accident in her 2021 Kia K5 LXS where she was rear ended at a high speed by a driver not paying attention to the road and she ended up hitting the car in front of her. During the accident NONE OF THE AIRBAGS DEVELOPED. My mother was hospitalized for a month and do to the SEVERITY OF HER MAJOR INJURIES (rib fractures, a closed fracture of her T7-T8 with loss of sensation and mobility of lower half of body) she passed away from “Effects Of Blunt Spinal And Rib Cage Trauma.” No recalls were noted for this particular model and year until March of 2023 which was way too late.
I was rearended into another vehicle at a speed of about 50mph, then rearended again by and SUV, not one of my 9 airbags deployed.
I WAS TRAVELING 45 MPH IN MY 2021 K5 GT LINE WHEN AN OLDER TOYOTA CAMRY CROSSED MY PATH. I APPLIED BRAKES BUT THERE WAS NO AVOIDING THE COLLISION. I BROADSIDED THE CAMRY AT SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 30 AND 35 MPH. I SUSTAINED INJURIES TO BOTH KNEES, NECK AND BACK. AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. POLICE, WRECKER DRIVER AND BODY SHOP (IN THIER PREVIOUS EXPERIENCES) ALL SAY THEY ARE SURPRISED THE AIR BAGS WERE NOT TRIGGERED BEING THE FACT IT WAS A FRONTAL COLLISION. ANOTHER CONCERN IS THE FOLDING SEAT BEHIND THE DRIVER'S SIDE BROKE FREE OF THE LATCH AND FOLDED ITSELF DOWN. THAT SEAT HAS NEVER BEEN FOLDED DOWN OR EVEN SAT IN FOR THAT MATTER, SO I KNOW FOR A FACT IT WAS LATCHED. SAD TO SAY MY BEAUTIFUL BRAND NEW K5 THAT I HAVE HAD FOR 2 MONTHS NOW HAS CLOSE TO $13,000 DAMAGE. MOST IMPORTANTLY, I AM NOW SCARED TO DRIVE THIS THING. WHAT IF THIS HAPPENS AGAIN?
I WAS TRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 40-45 MPH, ANOTHER VEHICLE CROSSED IN MY PATH, AND I BROADSIDED HIS VEHICLE. I AM NOT SURE OF MY SPEED AT IMPACT. I WOULD GUESS 30 MPH. AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE REAR DRIVERS SIDE SEAT ALSO CAME UNLATCHED, FOLDING ITSELF DOWN. THERE WERE NO OTHER PASSENGERS IN THE VEHICLE.
WAS DRIVING TO WORK ON FREEWAY AND A DEER JUMPED OUT IN FRONT OF CAR, I HIT IT BETWEEN 65-70 MPH AND NOT ONE OF THE MANY AIRBAGS INSTALLED ON THIS BRAND NEW CAR DEPLOYED . THE POLICE OFFICER AT THE SCENE SAID I'M LUCKY TO BE ALIVE.
The contact owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated while her daughter was driving 60 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine, when the gas tank expanded, and the back seat popped up. The contact stated that two teenagers were in the back seat, and one was injured. The contact's daughter pulled over and waited for a short while. The vehicle was restarted; however, the vehicle drove slowly. The vehicle was taken to a dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The vehicle was taken to another dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The contact was informed that the seat had moved two inches. The contact stated that the vehicle was not repaired because the frame of the seats could be damaged. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle remained at the dealer and had not been driven since. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.
Kia has a known issue with the HVAC blower motor circuit on this vehicle model. They have issued a warranty extension related to relocating the blower motor fuse to another circuit in the fuse box, due to potential burning of fuse(s). After executing this extended warranty fuse-relocation-procedure, our blower motor relay burned and was replaced twice by separate Kia dealers. Kia is now claiming that our entire wire harness needs to be replaced at our own cost. It is quite obvious that any wire harness issue is now very dangerous (electrical arcing and melting) and was caused by the original motor circuit issue. (The two Kia dealers agree with our assessment but are saying that Kia will not repair because original warranty extension was limited to rewiring.) Safety issues: Electrical fire hazard (already demonstrated with burning/melting fuse-box before and after extended warranty procedure was executed). No A/C in 95 degree F conditions.
VEHICLE WAS STOPPED A RED LIGHT ON A CITY STREET WHEN SUDDENLY CUT OFF. SMOKE BEGAN TO POUR OUT FROM UNDER THE HOOD. LESS THAN 1 MINUTE LATER THE VEHICLE WAS FULLY INVOLVED UNDER THE HOOD OF CAR. CAR WAS A TOTAL LOSS. VEHICLE HAD JUST BEEN DRIVEN APPROXIMATELY 25 MILES (ALL HIGHWAY) FROM HOME TOWARDS WORK WHEN INCIDENT OCCURRED.
The panoramic glass of the sunroof exploded out while driving on the freeway. A large piece of the glass exploded outwards and could not be retrieved. It was not damaged by external impact as other cars were not close enough to kick back rocks, debris, etc. The sunroof glass had no damage prior to shattering. Hazard lights were turned on to drive to the nearest exit, and subsequent accident happened when a speeding vehicle crashed into my vehicle. This happened on the freeway driving 75 mph causing a road hazard, the glass that shattered out could have hit vehicles behind my vehicle, causing damage or a crash. The vehicle has not been inspected by the dealership or insurance company as of yet. There were no warning signs or symptoms of failure.
The contact's son owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated that while her son was driving in the rain at 50 MPH, another vehicle hit her son's vehicle from behind which sent the vehicle into a concrete barrier. The vehicle was sent spinning after it hit the barrier; the vehicle was facing oncoming traffic once it came to a stop. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. The contact's son was not injured and did not seek any medical attention. The other driver fled the scene of the accident. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed independent collision center where it had yet to be inspected or repaired. The dealer nor the manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. The VIN was not available.
The contact owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at 5-10 MPH and making a turn on a road with no lanes, the steering wheel inadvertently started shuddering and became rigid, causing the contact's daughter to lose control of the vehicle. The vehicle crashed into a construction dumpster. An unknown warning message illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The contact's daughter did not sustain any injuries. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. Then, the vehicle was towed to the dealer who towed the vehicle to a collision center. The dealer informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V447000 (LANE DEPARTURE, STEERING) as the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 11,700.
The contact owned a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The failure was a recurring failure. The message "Not Emissions Ready" was displayed. The vehicle was towed. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.
I am reporting a violation of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act by Ball Kia (National City, CA). The dealer tried to deny service for recall 25V794000 (SC356) for a melted, leaking fuel tank, fabricated a false diagnostic narrative of road impact to exploit me, and tried to charge $3,000 out-of-pocket for a federally mandated free repair.My vehicle has a severe fuel leak from a compromised fuel tank. Ball Kia service refused the recall, claiming "external aesthetic factors" or "road debris impact" caused it, and pressured me to tow it away.Using my military infantry experience in mechanical damage assessment, I inspected the vehicle in the service bay. I verified there is absolutely no puncture, tear, scrape, or kinetic impact on the fuel tank assembly. The dealer pointed to a split in the fuel tank protector panel, but a professional assessment shows this is false. The plastic protector panel failed due to extreme thermal exposure; the expanding tank pressed it against the hot exhaust, causing it to melt and tear under heat/pressure, not a kinetic strike.The tank itself is structurally melted and deformed with zero signs of road impact. This physical evidence matches the exact defect mechanism in the NHTSA recall: a deteriorated check valve allows intake pressure into the fuel tank, causing it to expand, hit hot exhaust components, melt, and leak.Only after I read the exact NHTSA safety risk and remedy text verbatim did the service manager back down and open a manufacturer Tech Line.Because I had to fight a fraudulent diagnosis to get this safety mandate acknowledged, I fear internal dealership retaliation, being blacklisted, or receiving a subpar, dangerous repair. Leaving a high-risk fire defect unaddressed is a public safety hazard. Please audit Ball Kia's handling of campaign 25V794000 to ensure they are not endangering or defrauding other affected Kia K5 owners.
The contact owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V794000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The vehicle was taken to a dealer for the recall repair. The contact was struggling to receive updates on the status of the vehicle. The contact spoke with a service clerk and was informed that the repair was going well and that only one recall test remained. However, a supervisor later called and stated that the recall repair could not be completed. The vehicle could not be repaired. The vehicle was no longer functional due to a high risk of catching fire from fuel tank swelling caused by the recall defect. The contact stated that prior to the dealer visit, the vehicle had no issues but became inoperable. The vehicle was not repaired, and the dealer stated that the vehicle could not be repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 111,000.
Wiring harness has melted at the HVAC connection point.
Filed by owners of this model year and unverified by NHTSA — one person’s account, not an established fact.
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.
Remedy: 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.
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2022 K5 vehicles equipped with 2.5L T-GDI engines. The Rack-Mounted Motor Driven Power Steering (R-MDPS) system lacks the ability to diagnose communication faults. If a communication fault occurs while driving around a curve with Lane Following Assist (LFA) engaged, the steering assist level may not adjust properly, causing a sudden increase in the steering effort required.
Remedy: Dealers will update the R-MDPS software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are were mailed June 24, 2021. Owner may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC213.
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021 Telluride, K5, and Forte vehicles. The Occupant Classification and Detection System (OCS/ODS) unit may not detect the presence of a child restraint system in the front passenger seat. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the OCS/ODS unit, free of charge. The recall began March 18, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC207.
Published by model year, not by VIN — may not apply to this vehicle, or may already have been done. Confirm with a dealer.