Recall · 22V703000
Kia America recalled 4 models over trailer hitches
Park outside and away from buildings until repaired. NHTSA issues this where it considers the risk immediate, and it stands until the repair is done.
70,887
Vehicles covered
4
Models
18
Model years
September 19, 2022
Filed with NHTSA
TRAILER HITCHES
- The defect
- 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.
- What it can cause
- A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
- What the dealer does
- 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.
- NHTSA's note
- Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.
The repair is free, whatever the age or mileage of the vehicle, and whether or not you are the original owner.
Which vehicles
A recall reaches a range of VINs inside these model years, not every car built in them. Yours may not be covered even if it is listed here, and the only way to find out is NHTSA's own VIN lookup .
How this campaign compares
At 70,887 vehicles this is a bigger campaign than 90% of the 19,818 vehicle recalls filed since 1995 whose size NHTSA published. The middle campaign on file covers 472. It covers model years 2016 to 2023, so the oldest vehicles on it were 6 model years old when the defect was reported to NHTSA.
Kia vehicles have been recalled over the trailer hitches 2 times before this, most recently in August 2022 as 22V626000. That is not evidence the earlier repair failed.
This site holds the complaint record for all 18 model years the campaign names. Their owners have filed 4,253 complaints with NHTSA, 1,407 of them before this campaign was filed. 69 of those name the trailer hitches, the system this recall is about — a count of complaints, not of this defect. The earliest of them reached NHTSA in March 2015, 7 years before this filing.
The vehicles on this campaign carry 12 other recalls published here, the newest being: 25V649000 (electrical system), 23V639000 (back over prevention), 23V610000 (back over prevention), 23V027000 (fuel system, gasoline).
Check your own car
A VIN check is the only answer for a specific vehicle, and it also shows every other open recall on it, which is usually the reason it is worth doing rather than reading one campaign.
Filed by Kia America, Inc. with NHTSA on September 19, 2022 as campaign 22V703000. Every word of the defect, consequence and remedy above is NHTSA's published record of that filing, not a summary of it.
Compiled and maintained by guarledes . Data last checked 2022-09-19.
Independent developer and analyst