CarComplaints.com Notes: As long as catastrophic engine failure at under 60,000 miles is the top owner complaint, it'll be pretty hard to recommend the 2012 Sorento.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 2
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
45,956 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2012 Kia Sorento brakes problems

brakes problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2012 Kia Sorento:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2012 Kia Sorento Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #26

Oct 122020

Sorento

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Since I purchased the car on 9/14/2020 I have had to get brakes done 3 times. First bought and replaced the brakes within 30days then on 12/22/21 replaced again and on 6/24/2022 brakes rotors and calipers.

- Manning, SC, USA

problem #25

Apr 032022

Sorento

  • miles
In 2017 there was a recall on the Rear Wheel Sensor that I had already paid to have fixed in 2016. I was refunded in 2017 for the paid recall. The same issue has come up again on my car with the ABS, traction and stability control lights coming on. I will be taking it to the shop to repair again. I feel this could be another recall issue.

- Huntsville, TX, USA

problem #24

Dec 242019

Sorento

  • 106,000 miles
Driving to work this past Tuesday 12/24/2019, while driving my car did this jerk move and then all the electrical signs popped up I couldn't brake or steer my stirring wheel.its as if my car locked up on me. Luckily I was able to turn off a side road avoiding on coming traffic. And but the car in park. I was stuck for 2 hours. My check engine light was the only light that stayed on. I couldn't start the car at all. Luckily I called my cousin to see if she could try and give me a jump too see if it worked. In which it did I then took my vehicle up to auto zone where they out it on the diagnostic machine. Where my battery and alternator were fine. It was very scary for this vehicle to have shut off on me like this I am just glad I was not on the highway or it could have been a really bad outcome for me. The upload option isn't allowing me to upload the video or my picture from the say it occured.

- Chester, VA, USA

problem #23

Aug 012018

Sorento

  • 75,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sorento. While driving 45 mph, the ABS and traction warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the ABS on the rear driver's side was repaired. The contact stated that the same failure occurred on the rear passenger side. The contact called Kia of West chester (located at 326 westtown rd, West chester, pa 19382, (610) 429-3500) and informed them of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 75,000.

- West Chester, PA, USA

problem #22

Jul 032019

Sorento

  • 90,000 miles
2012 Kia Sorento, when driving at 30mph average, straight or turning, slowing down to a stop sign, or driving in parking lots, at the moment of pressing the brakes, the engine cuts off.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #21

Feb 062019

Sorento

  • 99,000 miles
I purchased this vehicle used with 98K+ miles on it from stevens creek Subaru. They did not disclose any recalls nor any issues with the vehicle. This week, I began hearing a clicking noise in the gear shift console every time I braked. Its sounds like something hitting piece of plastic. It hasn't changed the performance of the car that I can easily tell. However, this evening, my maintenance light came on and is not turning off. The dealership says the car was serviced before I drove off the lot, but given it didn't even have washer fluid, I'm not convinced it was serviced properly. I'm also noticing that the vehicle doesn't shift easily when I am needing to pick-up speed when entering the highway. The shift transition isn't smooth. Another issue is the heat feature on the driver seat does not work - it worked a week prior when I test drove the vehicle.

- Alameda, CA, USA

problem #20

Dec 122018

Sorento

  • 73,337 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sorento. While driving approximately 50 mph, the engine blew out and made a loud noise. Also, the brakes failed. The contact temporarily lost control of the vehicle, but managed to pull the vehicle over. The engine sprayed oil all over the ground. The vehicle was towed to parkside Kia (9929 parkside dr, knoxville, tn 37922, (844) 755-6461). The dealer wanted the contact to pay over $2,000 to determine who was responsible for the engine failure. The manufacturer stated that they were aware of the faulty engines that were shipped from Korea; however, there were no recalls. The failure mileage was 73,337.

- Merryville, TN, USA

problem #19

Nov 232018

Sorento

  • 132,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sorento. While driving 70 mph, the steering wheel seized without warning. The brake pedal was depressed, but took an extended amount of time to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the engine seized due to a lack of engine oil. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be repaired or replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Murray Kia (located at 1402 West ridge pike, conshohocken, pa 19428, (610) 279-3020) was informed of the failure. The vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 17V224000 (engine and engine cooling). The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 132,000.

- Perkasie, PA, USA

problem #18

Sep 202018

Sorento

  • 112,000 miles
Front headlight failed, upon inspection the harness wire to headlight burned and melted and brake lights don't work when the head light wire burned. This is major safety issue without brake lights. Went to computer and this problem is all over the internet, exact same issue happening to Kia owners of numerous models. Apparently Kia installed a odd system that controls headlights and burns out wiring. Very dangerous issue causing to vehicle to lose brake lights as well. Took car to dealership but they won't repair this safety problem creating a expensive repair for owner for a badly designed arrangement. This problem occurred when driving at night on I 95 in Delaware this is not a isolated incident but it's all over the internet happening only on Kia vechicles

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #17

Jun 302018

Sorento

  • 65,000 miles
I was driving a 2012 Kia Sorento with three other passengers and our family dog. I see smoke coming from back of my car thought it was the car passing me since my car was in mint condition with a new engine and new transmission. I look again there is no car going the opposite way and now I see a lot more smoke. Cars coming the opposite way are flashing me and waving so I figured I'm probably over heating. I steer to the right on a steep hill the brakes and emergency brake doesn't work I quickly throw it into park the gears are gone so no park. At that point we see flames shooting at us. My daughter and I open our doors the car is slowly rolling down the hill, the door hits her she goes flying the car almost runs her over. I take the car and I'm holding the 4,000 pound car back from rolling down the hill so the kids and dog in the back seat can get out. They finally figure out how to manually unlock the doors, grabbed the dog by the collar. I let go of the car it was engulfed in flames rolled down the hill and started to explode. What a horrifyingly experience.

- Enfield, CT, USA

problem #16

Feb 022018

Sorento

  • 75,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Takata recall my transmission is making a noise when I bringing it to a stop and my tires start going to the left also it has no transmission or motor light flashing but I can feel thats theres something wrong also when I park it moves a little I have to make sure the emergency brake is on so that it wont bounce into gear and move and cause an accident.

- San Bernardino, CA, USA

problem #15

Jan 192018

Sorento

  • 11,000 miles
When you are slowing down from any speed greater than 20 mph to make a stop, while pressing the break there is a clicking sound coming from gear shifter area. Every time when under appro 10 mph this clicking happens. This happens every day since the day I bought it.

- Lakebay, WA, USA

problem #14

Jul 022017

Sorento

  • 68,000 miles
As I was driving downhill on I-15 just 3 miles South of scipio, ut, I began to notice issues with the brakes and accelerator. I got into the far right line of the highway and noticed that smoke and flames came from underneath the hood. As I put the car in park, thick black smoke came through the air vent. As we got out of the vehicle, I breathed in a little bit of the thick smoke that came through the air vent, but my wife did not breathe any of the smoke. The hood area was completely engulfed in flames after we escaped from the vehicle. The fire department put out the fire about 20 minutes after this incident started. Everything from the front of the car to about half of the trunk area was destroyed.

- Springville, UT, USA

problem #13

Aug 012016

Sorento

  • 50,222 miles
Can not move shifter out of park when car is started. Can not shift car out of selected gear when motor is running. ESC lite is illuminated on dashboard and brake lites do not function when these defects occur. Symptons experienced are the same as described in NHTSA campaign 13V114000. Kia dealer replaced brake lite switch-says SUV does not fall within population of vehicles identified under Kia SC098 recall. I am of the opinion my SUV should have been covered under this Kia recall and I should have not been charged for the repairs. My 2012 SUV should be included in NHTSA campaign 13V114000 / Kia SC098.

- Dracut, MA, USA

problem #12

Mar 212017

Sorento

  • 64,000 miles
My engine seized up while in motion. The front end pops during braking, and a bolt head broke off the AWD housing.

- Milwaukee, WI, USA

problem #11

Nov 092015

Sorento

  • miles
Sorento recall. Federal motor vehicle standard no.114.requires the service brake to be depressed before the transmission can be shifted out of park. When excessive force is applied to the gear shift lever, the park position catch in the brake-shift interlock mechanism can chip or crack. This damage can cause the shift lever to be moved our of park without pressing the brake pedal thus the vehicle can roll increasing the risk of a crash and or injury especially if driver is not present.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #10

Nov 032015

Sorento

  • 13,741 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while coming the a stop, the brakes failed to respond when the brake pedal was depressed. As a result, the vehicle to crashed into a restaurant. The air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed. The contact did not sustain any injuries. The vehicle was still at the location of the crash at the time of the call. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 13,741.

- Grand Saline, TX, USA

problem #9

Sep 182015

Sorento

  • 43,000 miles
Friday 9/18/15 10:40 am, backing out of parking spot slowly into a road. Engine suddenly failed, engine light came on, and the brakes completely failed. Was able to restart the car and park it again, but brakes still failed and had to use the emergency brake and the curb and tree at curb to stop vehicle. Towed to ed voyles Kia on peachtree industrial blvd in atlanta who found no record of the incident in computer and that all diagnostics were normal and they couldn't reproduce the problem, so there was nothing they could do. I sent them this link with others experiencing similar issues and told rep about others' experiences:www.carcomplaints.com/Kia/Sorento/2012/engine/engine.shtml. then had it towed to cobb county Kia in kennessaw, ga. They maintained neglect on our part B/C oil level was at 0 (previous dealership saw no problem here), engine had major sludge and particles of metal in it, needed full engine replacement for $6500 didn't make sense with our regular oil changes and didn't explain the brake failure, though rep said it did. Had it towed to aaa car care plus in marietta. Could not reproduce the issue and said the car, including the engine, was in great shape, was full of all fluids. Mechanic also said that there were 0 records on computer and that one of dealerships likely wiped it completely clean. Have rented a car in meantime because my, my husband's, my two kids' and other drivers and pedestrians safety would be compromised. Other comments online mention problem more than once, some on the highway. Also remembered that my husband had had trouble starting the car a couple of months back, with no lights coming on at all. He got the battery checked out, and he was told it was fine. We relayed this to the mechanics too, but they seemed not to acknowledge the info. We cannnot and will not drive the car until it's resolved.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #8

Apr 032012

Sorento

  • 30,988 miles
I purchased this vehicle used on 3-25-15 with a full factory warranty. After driving the vehicle for a few days my wife and I both noticed the brake peddle drifting to the floor while stopped and the vehicle would start to crawl forward. During long stoplights the brake peddle will slowly drift to the floor and has to be pumped up. I have taken this to the Kia dealer twice and the first time was treated like I was an idiot they did a cursory inspection and said there was nothing found and returned the vehicle to me. I left and drove the vehicle for about a week and found that at almost every stoplight it would do the same thing loose breaking and begin to roll forward. I then took it to an independent mechanic "in & out auto" he stated to me there was break loss and peddle movement to the floor and recommended I return it to the dealer. I did so the next day explaining what I was told so they had a different mechanic look it over and he was able to duplicate & make the vehicle do the same thing "but" they Kia said there was no need of repair and this is normal again sending me home. This is very disconcerting especially in traffic and also I noted on reversing at a store parking lot the breaks faded when pedestrians were walking behind my vehicle. This is a safety concern for not only myself but other drivers and pedestrians. I have Kia paperwork showing both trips to their shop with nothing being done to fix this problem. Thank you for your time.

- Anchorage , AK, USA

problem #7

Apr 072014

Sorento

  • miles
I purchased car around September 2013. I started to noticed sometime later in 2013. As I pull out of my driveway, get to the end of driveway and stop to wait on traffic. I noticed this grinding like sound when I apply my brakes. However I also noticed this sound when I applied my foot from the brake to gas pedal. So when I took car in for service I asked if my brakes would be checked, they said yes. Told me brakes were fine. Continued to hear this noise. Explained the noise on one occasion at the dealership while getting service and they still said nothing was wrong. It is now January 2015 and I still here that same noise. I decided to check online to see if others were having this same issues and since I was able to find at least 2 other cases reported. I thought maybe I should report what was happening to me to and hopefully it would be looked at sooner rather than later. They called it brake hydraulic problems. I have no idea what or if any solutions are being looked at because these people reported this back in 2012 and here it is 2015 and I haven't heard anything about any recalls.

- Elgin, SC, USA

Read the next 6 complaints »

Not what you are looking for?