Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Niro EV, Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV), and Hybrid vehicles. The floor wiring assembly beneath the front passenger seat may become damaged, which can prevent the front air bags and seat belts from deploying...
2017-2026 · 10 model years
Kia Niro Problems by year
Owners have filed 113 complaints about the Kia Niro across 10 model years, and it has 6 recalls. The 2023 has the most complaints once its age is allowed for (44). The most reported problem area is the electrical system, followed by the transmission & drivetrain.
- Complaints
- 113
- Recalls
- 6
- Crashes
- 20
- Fires
- 0
- Injuries
- 17
- Deaths
- 0
Niro complaints by model year
Highlighted: the year with the most complaints for its age. Older vehicles have had more time to collect complaints - the Safety Index grade allows for that.
Most common Niro problems
Kia Niro recalls 6
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2022 Niro and 2018-2022 Niro Plug-in Hybrid vehicles. Fluid may leak into the printed circuit board inside the hydraulic clutch actuator, which can result in an engine compartment fire.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023 Sportage, Sportage Hybrid, Sportage Plug-in Hybrid, Niro Hybrid, Niro Plug-in Hybrid, Soul, and Telluride vehicles equipped with a digital instrument cluster containing a 4.2" LCD screen. The instrument...
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Kia Niro hybrid electric vehicles previously recalled under recall 18V-666. The Main Relay within the Power Relay Assembly (PRA) may have inadequate connections between its contacts, causing increased...
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Kia Niro hybrid electric vehicles. The Main Relay within the Power Relay Assembly (PRA) may have inadequate connections between its contacts, causing increased electrical resistance.
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017 Kia Niro vehicles. The Hydraulic Clutch Actuator (HCA) inner oil seal may leak, allowing oil to accumulate in the cap area, possibly resulting in an electrical short.
Covers2017 Kia Niro
Latest Niro complaints
I have experienced two incidents of sudden, severely reduced propulsion while driving my 2024 Kia Niro Hybrid. The incidents occurred several weeks apart. During both incidents, pressing the accelerator did not produce normal acceleration. The vehicle continued moving with very limited propulsion, but the gasoline engine remained at 0 RPM and did not engage when additional power was requested. There were no warning lights, error messages, or other indications of a malfunction on the dashboard. During both...
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incidents, I shifted to Neutral and back to Drive while safely coasting, but this did not correct the problem. After coming to a safe stop, placing the vehicle in Park, turning it completely off, and restarting it, normal acceleration and gasoline-engine operation immediately returned. After the first incident, the vehicle was scanned for diagnostic trouble codes and none were found. This failure creates a serious safety concern because the vehicle may unexpectedly be unable to accelerate when merging, crossing traffic, or otherwise attempting to avoid a collision.
My car was shifted into drive but when I press accelerate my car went backwards. I've reported this to kia numerous times and they refuse to fix it
I park the car, lock it and then later on can't open it. I use the emergency key to enter it but then can't start it even with a new battery in the key fob. It happened twice. It is an issue that needs to be fixed as soon as possible because in case of emergency you're stuck outside your car and can't use it to escape a danger or respond to an emergency. You're a sitting duck in the open, going nowhere.
My 2023 Kia Niro Hybrid has a recurring intermittent electrical defect. Warnings appear together: Check Hybrid System, Check Engine, Forward Collision, Rear Cross-Traffic, Lane Keeping, Driver Attention, ESC, Brake, Auto Hold. They appear and persist while driving, during which stability control, automatic emergency braking, lane keeping, and related safety assists are disabled. Once, the vehicle would not start and was temporarily disabled, recovering after several minutes. This creates risk from loss of all...
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electronic safety assists in traffic and from the vehicle failing to start when needed. Stored codes show lost CAN communication among multiple modules: U0101, C1611, C1693, U0111, U0164, U0293, U042B, U1341. Confirmed by two Kia dealerships over five warranty visits. V1-2 (Coughlin Kia, Dublin OH): software updates; warnings returned. V3 (Ricart Kia, Columbus OH): inspected, released OK; warnings returned. V4 (Ricart): Kia Techline case [[redacted]] opened; CAN signal confirmed out of spec at a passenger kick panel connector; dash harness replaced per Techline under warranty (2,800). V5 (current): same warnings returned within days, confirmed by the dealership; vehicle is in the dealer's possession for continued diagnosis and available for inspection. Warnings first appeared June 2026 at 58,500 miles, recurring since. Current mileage 59,700. No crash or injury. Kia Consumer Affairs case open. Note: attached RO [[redacted]] says no issues found after repair - outdated; warnings returned within days, vehicle back at dealer. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
When stopping for a traffic sign or light, the car announces that it is shifting into park and does so. The car then will not shift into drive or reverse and is essentially disabled. Turning off the car completely and turning it back on will not return it to "Ready to Drive" mode. Jump starting the car, provided it is jump started twice, will clear the problem and move the car to "Ready to Drive" mode. The car has been towed to dealers on three occasions with the technicians reporting they cannot reproduce the...
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problem and no codes are being logged. On the third occasion, the dealer replaced the 12-volt battery. The failure occurred on the dealer's lot when I arrived to retrieve my car, but the technician reported that the problem went away and no codes were logged, so I should leave with my car. Subsequent to the battery replacement and including the failure on the dealer's lot, the problem has occurred 6 times in 7 days. Prior to the 12v battery replacement, the problem occurred once every 4 to six weeks. The problem has occurred a total of 9 times between April 25th and August 31st, 2026. This is an extremely dangerous problem as failures occur in traffic and require police assistance to safely tow or jump start the car. Should this failure occur during a left turn or on a highway, the outcome could be catastrophic. The car is available for inspection upon request. There are no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure other than the announcement that the parking brake is being automatically engaged. I have opened a case with KIA Customer Care.
After sitting 2 weeks at airport parking. 12 volt Battery dead . Unsafe to repeatedly have to take out emergency key and pull handle cover off and get in car hit 12v button to start. The dealer we took it to refuses to replace the 12 volt integrated battery. It has happened multiple times. They checked battery and said it was okay. Repeated having to push 12 volt button unacceptable and unsafe.
Questions about the Kia Niro
Which Kia Niro years have the most problems?
Which Kia Niro years have the fewest complaints?
What are the most common Kia Niro problems?
Across every model year, owners report problems with the electrical system (30), transmission & drivetrain (16), engine & cooling (16) most often.
How many recalls does the Kia Niro have?
NHTSA lists 6 recalls across all Kia Niro model years. Each year's page lists the recalls for that year; check your own vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether the repair has been done.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data