The Used Car Index

2026 Kia K5 problems

NHTSA lists 14 complaints for the 2026 Kia K5, 1 of them mention a crash and 0 mention a fire. 2 complaints mention an injury, with 2 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-08.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as KIA K5.

At a glance

Complaints
14
With crash
1
With fire
0
With injury (complaints)
2
Injuries
2
Deaths
0
Recalls
1
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
42,677
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
17

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. This model year is too recent for a sales denominator.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
UNKNOWN OR OTHER535.7%
ENGINE428.6%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM321.4%
LANE DEPARTURE214.3%
AIR BAGS17.1%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING17.1%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE17.1%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES17.1%
TIRES17.1%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
LANE DEPARTUREASSIST2
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEAUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING1
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEWARNINGS1
LANE DEPARTUREWARNING1

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
electrical electronic535.7%0.98
mechanical failure428.6%0.80
fire or overheating17.1%0.99
fluid or fuel leak17.1%0.49
restraint or airbag17.1%1.00
structural or corrosion17.1%0.73
visibility or lighting17.1%0.51
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate857.1%0.89
low535.7%0.84
high17.1%1.00

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 14 tagged complaints of 14 complaints (100.0%).

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.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

1 recalls.

26V046000

Date: 2026-01-26. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2025 Kia K4, 2025-2026 Sorento, Sorento Hybrid, Sorento Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV), 2026 Sportage, Sportage Hybrid, Sportage PHEV, K5, EV9, Carnival, and Carnival Hybrid vehicles. Due to a software error, the instrument panel display may fail. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMV (excerpt)

Consequence: An instrument panel display that fails to show critical safety information, such as the speedometer, tire pressure, or warning lights, increases the risk of a crash. (excerpt)

Remedy: The instrument panel display software will be updated over-the-air (OTA) or by a dealer, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed March 26, 2026. Owners may contact Kia Customer Service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC361. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on February 9, 2026. (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

0 investigations; 0 open.

Manufacturer communications

17 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELE7
POWER TRAIN5
ENG2
BACK OVER PREVENTION1
BOD1
ENGINE1

11033980

Date: 2026-06-18. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR DATA CONNECTIVITY (ELE413 Revision 2) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software update is designed to update the Data Connectivity Unit (DCU) logic of certain 2025 - 2026MY Carnival, EV9, K5 and Sorento vehicles. This update is designed to improve the vehicl

11033992

Date: 2026-06-02. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: BATTERY WIRING HARNESS COVERING INSPECTION / REPLACEMENT (SA645) - This bulletin provides information for inspecting the 12V battery wiring harness on certain 2025-2026 MY K5 (DL3) vehicles equipped with the Theta III 2.5L GDI engine, produced from Februar

11033217

Date: 2026-05-28. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM SOFTWARE UPDATE USING UPDATE.KIA.COM - This bulletin provides information and service procedures for updating the infotainment systems on applicable Kia vehicles using the Kia Navigation Updater available at update.kia.com. The software update may impr

11031940

Date: 2026-04-24. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR DATA CONNECTIVITY (ELE413 Revision 1) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software update is designed to update the Data Connectivity Unit (DCU) logic of certain 2025 - 2026MY Carnival, 2025 - 2026MY K5 and 2025 - 2026MY Sorento vehicles. This update is designe

11031876

Date: 2026-04-17. Type: Service Campaign. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (SC363) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Service Campaign on certain 2025-2026 MY K5 vehicles to inspect the oil level plug and automatic transmission fluid (ATF) for signs of leakage and, if necessar

11031890

Date: 2026-04-17. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OIL LEVEL PLUG (OLP) INSPECTION, AND OLP GASKET AND/OR ATF FILLER BOLT REPLACEMENT OR A/T REPLACEMENT (SC363) - This bulletin provides information to inspect the oil level plug and automatic transmission fluid (ATF) for signs of leakage and, if

11031855

Date: 2026-04-15. Type: Service Campaign. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PRINCIPAL MEMO (SC363) - This document is the announcement to the dealer principals advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Service Campaign to inspect the oil level plug and automatic transmission fluid (ATF) for signs of leakage and, if necessary, replace the

11031856

Date: 2026-04-15. Type: Service Campaign. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS AND SERVICE MANAGER MEMO (SC363) - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Service managers advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Service Campaign to inspect the oil level plug and automatic transmission fluid (ATF) for signs of leakag

11031889

Date: 2026-04-14. Type: Service Campaign. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: QUESTION AND ANSWER (SC363) - This document is the Question and Answer Guide containing the most frequently asked questions regarding the Voluntary Service Campaign SC363.

11031906

Date: 2026-04-14. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: INFOTAINMENT SOFTWARE UPDATE PROCEDURE - This bulletin provides information on the process for downloading infotainment software updates and preparing USB for installation on applicable Kia vehicles. The software downloads and USB preparation process is similar across all

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.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
K514

Same model, other years

All model years | All Kia models

Other Kia models, 2026

Sources

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