The Used Car Index

2021 Kia Sorento Hybrid problems

NHTSA lists 21 complaints for the 2021 Kia Sorento Hybrid, 0 of them mention a crash and 0 mention a fire. 0 complaints mention an injury, with 0 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-10.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as KIA SORENTO HYBRID.

At a glance

Complaints
21
With crash
0
With fire
0
With injury (complaints)
0
Injuries
0
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
1
Recall potential units (maximum)
70,887
Investigations
1
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
59

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM1047.6%
ENGINE1047.6%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER628.6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM29.5%
TRAILER HITCHES14.8%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMSOFTWARE1

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 electronic1885.7%0.86
unclear29.5%0.95
loss of control14.8%0.62
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
low1466.7%0.85
moderate733.3%0.89

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 21 tagged complaints of 21 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.

2 recalls.

22V703000

Date: 2022-09-19. Systems: TRAILER HITCHES.

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 el (excerpt)

Consequence: A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury. (excerpt)

Remedy: 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. (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: Yes.

22V447000

Date: 2022-06-23. Systems: SEAT BELTS.

Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Sorento Hybrid and 2022 Sorento Plug-in Hybrid vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioner(s) may explode upon deployment.

Consequence: An exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, striking vehicle occupants and resulting in injury.

Remedy: Dealers will secure the seat belt pretensioners with a cap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 17, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC241. This recall expands and replaces NHTSA recall number 22V-127. Vehicles already repaired under the previous recall will need to have the new remedy completed.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

1 investigations; 0 open.

DP22005

Opened: 2023-01-27. Closed: 2023-08-07.

Pedestrian alert sounds

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and ele

Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Linked campaign numbers: 22V063000.

Manufacturer communications

59 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM25
ELE11
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING11
EQUIPMENT6
POWER TRAIN5
ENG3
TRA3
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY2

11036628

Date: 2026-08-28. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, VISIBILITY/WIPER.

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: PARTIAL REPAIR a ELECTRICAL A/C COMPRESSOR - 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 regarding the partial repair of the A

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

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

11030386

Date: 2026-03-26. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (WTY042) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn assembly in certain 2021-2025 MY Sorento, 2021-2025 MY Sorento Hybrid (HEV), an

11030383

Date: 2026-03-24. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: DEALER PRINCIPAL MEMO (WTY042) - This document is the announcement to the dealer principals advising that Kia is is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn assembly for eligible vehicles, from 5 years / 60,000 m

11030385

Date: 2026-03-24. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS & SERVICE MANAGER MEMO (WTY042) - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Service managers advising that Kia is is extending the New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage, to all owners, for repairs related to the horn assembly for eligible veh

11030387

Date: 2026-03-24. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: QUESTION AND ANSWER (WTY042) - This document is the Question and Answer Guide containing the most frequently asked questions regarding the Warranty Extension Campaign WTY042.

11030388

Date: 2026-03-24. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: REIMBURSEMENT FORM (WTY042) - This document is a Reimbursement Request form that was mailed with the customer letter advising them to submit the form if they had paid for repairs for this same matter prior to the warranty extension campaign program launch.

11030389

Date: 2026-03-24. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: HORN ASSEMBLY INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT (WTY042) - This bulletin provides information associated with the a Warranty Extension Programa (WTY042) to inspect and, if necessary, replace the horn assembly on certain vehicles listed in the tabl

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

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
SORENTO HYBRID21

Same model, other years

All model years | All Kia models

Other Kia models, 2021

Sources

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