Engine and engine cooling: engine: hard parts internal/mechanical
Manufacturer
Kia America, Inc.
Vehicles affected
137,256
Reported to NHTSA
2025-02-17
Owners notified
2025-04-04
Defect description
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Seltos and Soul vehicles. The piston oil rings may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in engine damage.
Safety risk
Engine damage can cause a vehicle stall or fire, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.
Manufacturer remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Dealers will also install piston-ring noise sensing system (PNSS) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 4, 2025. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC336.
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Soul, and 2021 Seltos vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines. The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which may result in engine damage.
Safety risk
A damaged engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash. In addition, oil may leak onto hot exhaust components, increasing the risk of a fire.
Manufacturer remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine, free of charge. In addition, Kia will deploy Piston Ring Noise Sensing System (PNSS) software. The recall began June 11, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC209.
Owner complaints
A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.
Engine and engine cooling: engine: oil/lubrication
1
—
Exterior lighting
1
8,261 mi
Firerelated
1
—
Fuel system, gasoline
1
2,000 mi
Fuel system, gasoline: fuel injection system
1
10,000 mi
Power train: automatic transmission: control module: software
1
—
Visibility: sun/moon roof assembly
1
51,268 mi
The 2022 model has 5 times as many complaints as this one. These figures reflect raw complaint counts, not failure rates. Higher-selling model years naturally receive more complaints.
Safety recall repairs are provided free of charge by franchised dealers, regardless of vehicle age or mileage. This page displays aggregated data for the model year. To check recall status for a specific vehicle, search its VIN at nhtsa.gov.