Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government
holds on this vehicle.
Owners have filed 272 safety complaints
about the 2017 Kia Soul with the US government. Of those, 17 describe a crash, 14 mention a fire, 19 people were injured and no death is recorded. One recall campaign is open against it, covering the air bags.
The most complained-about system is the engine,
named in 191 complaints, 70% of the total.
The typical failure was reported at 74,000 miles,
the median across the 117
complaints that gave
an odometer reading.
Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files
· Covers August 2017 to September 2026 · How this is counted
What is on file
272 complaints on file
272
Complaints
17
Describe a crash
14
Mention fire
19
People injured
0
Deaths
A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a
finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts
them.
Complaints rose 46% year on year: 35 in the twelve months to 2026-Q2, against 24 in the twelve before.
A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free.
Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can
answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a
model year.
Which system owners named
Complaints naming each system
ENGINE 191 · 70%
191 70%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 32 · 12%
32 12%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 19 · 7%
19 7%
POWER TRAIN 19 · 7%
19 7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 18 · 7%
18 7%
AIR BAGS 16 · 6%
16 6%
SERVICE BRAKES 12 · 4%
12 4%
STEERING 10 · 4%
10 4%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 9 · 3%
9 3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 8 · 3%
8 3%
STRUCTURE 4 · 1%
4 1%
SUSPENSION 4 · 1%
4 1%
077154
Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it.
One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 272.
When the complaints arrived
By the year NHTSA received them
By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures
happened. They peaked in 2022 at 46.
This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure
happened. The range runs from 2017 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program
NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what
happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2017 Kia SOUL, and it is a separate
question from what owners report going wrong later.
Test
SUV FWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover
14.7%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard
A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.
The risk
Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.
Kia Motors America · up to 410,619 vehicles across all model years covered
In owners’ own words
Quoted from the complaint file
Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the
people who filed them, not findings of fault.
AIR BAGS
3 injured · crash · towed · 50,000 miles
I WAS IN A HEAD ON COLLISION WEARING MY SEAT BELT AND HIT MY HEAD ON THE SUN VISOR AND EDGE OF WINDSHIELD. BASICALLY SCALPING ME. THE AIR BAG DEPLOYED YES BUT AFTER I WAS BLEEDING AND REACHING TO UNDO MY SEATBELT. HITTING MY HAND WHICH BROKE MY WRIST HAVING TO HAVE SURGERY TO PUT A PLATE AND PINS IN IT. ALSO HITTING ME IN THE CHEST SO HARD IT KNOCKE THE BREATH OUT OF ME. IT WAS SMOKING REALLY BAD TOO LIKE IT WAS GOING TO CATCH FIRE.
NHTSA complaint 11161067. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
2 injured · fire · towed · 80,000 miles
The contact owned a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, an abnormal, knocking noise would emit from the engine without warning. The contact notified the dealer and they informed him that the knocking noise was normal vehicle operation. The contact then stated that while driving at 60 MPH as the knocking noise persisted, the noise grew increasing louder without warning. The contact looked out of his rearview mirror and saw a cloud of white smoke coming from underneath the vehicle. As he pulled over, he inspected the hood and saw flames encroaching towards the front driver's seat. The contact instructed his girlfriend to exit the vehicle, as he went back to …
NHTSA complaint 11470607, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
2 injured · crash · towed
Severe front end damage in accident and airbags never deployed on 4/7/2022. Airbag light was never illuminated on the dash. Never received notification of recall before accident. Both driver and passenger taken to emergency room.
NHTSA complaint 11460157. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
2 injured · crash · towed
On August 20, 2022, I was driving my 2017 KIA Soul and was slammed into in the front of my car, at full speed, by a KIA sedan which had sped across my path in an attempt to make an illegal U-turn across a highway. NO AIRBAGS DEPLOYED in my KIA OR in the other errant KIA's car! I suffered physical injuries upon impact to the chest and sternum and was removed from the scene by ambulance. Since that awful crash, I have read a number of articles that KIA is in the process of issuing recalls for airbag malfunctions in their cars, beginning with the year 2017. This must be made known and corrected!
NHTSA complaint 11487073. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
This car since I had it burns alot and I mean alot of oil between oil changes i have to keep oil on hand and constantly checking the oil I have alot of friends with this car and the same issue I had my soul for over 5 years and it's still burning oil I take care of my car im still paying on it and it has less than 70,000 miles and 8m having problems with it. I'm disabled, one income. I need my car I've brought this to kua themselves they told me to...JUST KEEP WATCHING YOUR OIL LEVELS LIJE U VEEN U SHUD BE OK....ARE THEY SERIOUS. PLEASE HELP ME
NHTSA complaint 11766035. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
STRUCTURE:BODY
The paint is completely failing on this kia soul. The eroded paint is a well known issue with Kia, nothing is being done about the paint failing and chipping across the whole body of the car, which will lead to inevitable rusting. It has been inspected, they are aware of the issue, and are doing nothing to resolve it.
NHTSA complaint 11763203. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
One day I noticed my oil light flashed on and off about three times during a drive down the road, simultaneously a loud knocking started in my engine. Although I had gotten my oil changed just a couple months prior and always practiced appropriate maintenance I decided to pull over and check my oil, it was empty. No warnings, the oil light had never come on, the engine light had never come on. A modern car shouldn’t have complete engine failure due to oil starvation with no warning whatsoever. That is separate from the other problem where the car had obviously been burning oil excessively. I got my vehicle towed to the dealership and was told I don’t fall under any warranties. The cars …
NHTSA complaint 11752468, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
The engine has structural manufacturer defect causing extreme internal engine oil consumption with zero external leaks, creating a severe risk of sudden oil starvation catastrophic mechanical engine failure. The severe oil consumption problem was confirmed by a certified national corporate service center (Firestone Auto Care). An intermittent P0420 catalytic converter warning is actively appearing on the dashboard, which is a documented consequence of internal engine oil burning. When attempting to get this mechanical defect diagnosed and repaired under the class-action parameters, manufacturer dealerships (Findlay Kia and Jim Marsh Kia) declined to schedule the mandatory manufacturer …
NHTSA complaint 11750111, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
towed · 197,000 miles
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, a loud knocking sound was heard, and the vehicle's speed decreased to approximately 25 MPH. The contact was able to safely pull over into a parking lot. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 197,000
NHTSA complaint 11743757. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ENGINE
2017 Kia Soul, 1.6L Gamma GDI engine, ~82,000 miles. Vehicle exhibits excessive oil consumption consistent with the known piston ring defect addressed in Kia TSB ENG222 (covering 2012–2019 Souls with Gamma/Nu engines) and consistent with the E2 Class Action Settlement that covered the same engine in 2012–2016 model years. The oil consumption has destroyed the catalytic converter, causing the engine to stall. The vehicle is not currently drivable. Kia dealer has refused to perform the oil consumption test or evaluate engine warranty coverage until the owner pays out of pocket to replace the catalytic converters (quoted at $6,000). Requesting NHTSA expand the existing Gamma engine recall …
NHTSA complaint 11738789, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's
lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How
many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by
the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.
Complaints: NHTSA's ODI
complaint file, published October 2, 2026. One
complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.
Recalls: NHTSA's recall
campaign API, newest campaign on this vehicle filed January 25, 2022.
Investigations: NHTSA's ODI
investigation file, published October 2, 2026.
A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by
us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that
sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.
G
Compiled and maintained by guarledes Independent developer and analyst