NHTSA lists 147 complaints for the 2019 Kia Forte, 11 of them mention a crash and 4 mention a fire. 5 complaints mention an injury, with 5 injuries and 0 deaths reported.
Data build 2026-10-08.
NHTSA lists this vehicle as KIA FORTE.
At a glance
Complaints
147
With crash
11
With fire
4
With injury (complaints)
5
Injuries
5
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
1,754
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
102
Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. The available sales group does not match this vehicle variant.
Where the complaints are
Top systems
System
Complaints
Share of this vehicle's complaints
POWER TRAIN
47
32.0%
ENGINE
36
24.5%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
22
15.0%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
22
15.0%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
17
11.6%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
15
10.2%
STEERING
8
5.4%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
7
4.8%
AIR BAGS
6
4.1%
LANE DEPARTURE
5
3.4%
Top subsystems
System
Subsystem
Complaints
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
WARNINGS
14
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
7
STRUCTURE
BODY
4
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
BRAKE LIGHTS
3
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
IGNITION
2
LANE DEPARTURE
BLIND SPOT DETECTION
2
LANE DEPARTURE
WARNING
2
BACK OVER PREVENTION
DISPLAY FUNCTION
1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
ENGINE
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
HEADLIGHTS
1
One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.
Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.
Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.
Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2019 Forte vehicles. The left front axle driveshaft may not have been heat-treated, which can cause it to break.
Consequence: A broken driveshaft can result in a sudden loss of drive power, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the left front axle driveshaft for a heat treatment verification code, and replace it if the code is missing, free of charge. The recall began September 2, 2020. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC195.
Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2019 Kia Forte vehicles equipped with LED headlights. The headlights may not have been manufactured with the correct low beam aiming. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Consequence: If the headlights are not properly aimed, the driver may have reduced visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the headlight aiming and replace the headlights, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 30, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC171.
Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.
Investigations
0 investigations; 0 open.
Manufacturer communications
102 manufacturer communications.
Communications by system
System
Count
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
40
POWER TRAIN
24
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
18
EQUIPMENT
14
STEERING
8
STRUCTURE
8
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY
6
VISIBILITY
6
11034003
Date: 2026-06-08. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin prov
11028908
Date: 2026-02-19. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin prov
11029037
Date: 2026-02-19. Type: Emissions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN.
VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER RENOTIFICATION (SC199 FL301) - This document is the owner renotification advising that Kia is conducting Voluntary Service Campaign to update the software programming on the Transmission Control Module (TCM) and, if necessary, replace the Intelligent Vari
11026825
Date: 2025-12-18. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: THEFT DETERRENT IGNITION CYLINDER PROTECTOR AND DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2312) - This bulletin provides information to install a Theft Deterrent Ignition Cylinder Protector on certain 2010-2022MY Kia vehicles outlined on page 19, which may not have bee
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (CS2312) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is conducting Customer Satisfaction Campaign. A software upgrade that addresses the social media theft method has been made available to owners of eligible Kia model vehicles free
11026698
Date: 2025-12-09. Type: Other. Systems: BACK OVER PREVENTION.
PITSTOP: TECHNICAL OPERATIONS: EXTERNAL DAMAGE TO ULTRASONIC SENSOR: This Pitstop provides information related to Parking Distance Warning (PDW) alerts and repairs involving ultrasonic sensors. The PDW system alerts the driver while parking, by calculating distance based on the difference in signal
11017172
Date: 2025-04-17. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: TRANSMISSION FLUID APPLICATION GUIDE - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information relating to the correct transmission fluid ty
11017109
Date: 2025-04-03. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION NU/GAMMA/THETA/KAPPA ENGINES - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information on diagnosing and/or repair
11014912
Date: 2025-02-28. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION NU/GAMMA/THETA/KAPPA ENGINES - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information on diagnosing and/or repair
11007859
Date: 2024-09-13. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: SUSPENSION.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: FRONT STRUT BEARING & SPRING PAD REPLACEMENT - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information to replace the front strut bearing an
Notes on this record
Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.