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Kia · NHTSA safety record

2023 Kia Carnival

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 51 safety complaints about the 2023 Kia Carnival with the US government. Of those, 1 describes a crash, 7 people were injured and no death is recorded. 4 recall campaigns are open against it.

The most complained-about system is the body structure, named in 12 complaints, 24% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 32,500 miles, the median across the 8 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers July 2022 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

51 complaints on file

51

Complaints

1

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

7

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.

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
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 22 · 43%
STRUCTURE 12 · 24%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 · 12%
ENGINE 5 · 10%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 · 6%
Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness 2 · 4%
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 2 · 4%
LANE DEPARTURE 2 · 4%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 2 · 4%
SEAT BELTS 2 · 4%
STEERING 2 · 4%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 1 · 2%
0 12 23

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 51.

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 2023 at 18.

20 15 10 5
22 23 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2022 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 has not crash tested the 2023 Kia Carnival. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.

What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.

Recall campaigns

4 on file

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS

26V232000 · April 10, 2026

The defect
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2022-2026 Carnival vehicles. Fuel may leak at the pipe connection between the fuel pipe and fuel rail.
The risk
A fuel leak increases the risk of a fire.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect and tighten, or replace the fuel pipe as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 2, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC368. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov on April 24, 2026.

Kia America, Inc. · up to 141,032 vehicles across all model years covered

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS

24V025000 · January 18, 2024

The defect
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2024 Sportage and 2022-2024 Carnival vehicles. The roof molding may loosen and detach.
The risk
A detached roof molding can create a road hazard for other vehicles, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect the roof molding and replace or secure it as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 15, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC292.

Kia America, Inc. · up to 101,049 vehicles across all model years covered

STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR

23V236000 · March 31, 2023

The defect
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling all 2022 and certain 2023 Carnival vehicles. The auto-reverse feature for the power sliding doors (PSD) may not activate in all situations.
The risk
A power sliding door that does not auto-reverse can close on an occupant, increasing the risk of injury.
The remedy
Dealers will update the power sliding door control module software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 28, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC266.

Kia America, Inc. · up to 51,568 vehicles across all model years covered

TRAILER HITCHES

23V179000 · March 17, 2023

Park outside until repaired

The defect
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2022-2023 Carnival vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Water accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
The risk
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
The remedy
Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the remedy is completed. Dealers will inspect and verify whether the vehicle is equipped with a Genuine Kia accessory trailer tow hitch assembly. If equipped, dealers will install a new fuse and wire extension kit. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 16, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC265.

Kia America, Inc. · up to 3,555 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.

STRUCTURE:BODY

1 injured

Daughter presses the button on the inside of the van. She didn't move her hand soon enough out of the way for the door to close. The door closed on her hand, she had to press the button open from the door closing on her thumb. She came balling her eyes out to me. Her thumb swelled 3 x's as big. The sensor should be way more sensitive like a garage door opener.

NHTSA complaint 11471929. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY

1 injured

The door closing automation applies excessive force before the safety function engages to re-open. This poses a high risk to children and small adults with narrow limbs and/or the fingers of any aged person. On January 11, 2023, my 4 year old's hand was closed in the door without the door stopping or re-opening. This resulted in deep lacerations to his fingers and swelling necessitating emergency room medicine and imaging to eliminate potential of fracture. I tested this morning with the doors by opening and closing and inserting objects as well as my body to determine an approximation of closing force. Even with a full sized adult, the closing force is sufficient to move the trunk of an

NHTSA complaint 11501451, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY

1 injured

The side sliding (rear) doors do not stop when there is an object in between. Even when you put heavy force (this is in some angles), the door continues to close. With mild force, the door just refuses to recognize and closes out. It is a big safety concern with small children, since if the force applied by adults is not enough, then any force the child would apply is definitely not going to stop the door from closing.

NHTSA complaint 11517982. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

1 injured

The metal rails where the middle seat of the middle row is located occasionally gets too hot to touch. My daughter who was sleep had her sandals off. She woke up because her foot was hot. Shortly after her toe blistered. You won’t notice it if you have shoes on. It has happened while we were traveling and it happens when we’re just idle.

NHTSA complaint 11529374. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Fuel door actuator is electrically tied to cabin door locks with no manual release and frequently fails to open after repeatedly cycling cabin door locks. Issue is not due to bad batteries or other vehicle related electrical faults. Manufacturer has confirmed defect is present in all Kia models from 2020 until now with no after warranty support.

NHTSA complaint 11766404. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

58,425 miles

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, there was an abnormal fuel odor inside the vehicle, causing the contact’s six children to become dizzy from the odor. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V232000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE); however, the remedy failed to fix the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure occurred after the recall repair was performed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the dealer might offer a buyback of the vehicle. The manufacturer opened a case. The failure mileage was 58,425.

NHTSA complaint 11754708. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Vehicle air conditioning sends off a vinegar like aroma. Likely condensation on coils.

NHTSA complaint 11752598. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE

77,000 miles

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, the driver’s side roof molding ejected from the vehicle. The contact immediately stopped the vehicle but was unable to locate the molding. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V025000 (STRUCTURE). The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 77,000.

NHTSA complaint 11742271. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2023 KIA Carnival. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V320000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.

NHTSA complaint 11741634. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

1 injured

Our Carnival had the SC266 recall repair done on July 3rd, 2023, at 3074 miles. Then our [XXX] daughter was injured as a result of the safety function not working and the door closed without any chimes. [XXX] (my spouse) is a cardiac nurse at our local hospital, and I have combat medical training, so we took care of the minor injury. Her small hand was spared the devastation a larger one would suffer. The dealership is pretending it’s unreproducible (even though I supplied them with video evidence to the contrary), and Kia Corporate (case # XXX) doesn’t appear any more likely to help. I reported the injury when it occurred on January 13th, 2026, to the dealership. They said they were sorry

NHTSA complaint 11737829, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Kia Carnival

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2026 26 2 —
2025 124 1 —
2024 74 2 —
2022 136 6 —

Other 2023 Kia models

Telluride 207 Sportage 190 EV6 137 Sorento 120 K5 107 Sportage Hybrid 99 Forte 63 Soul 52

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Kia on this site — 181 vehicles.

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.

Where these numbers come from

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.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst