— A class action lawsuit alleges a Kia piston oil ring recall has left drivers with worthless 2021-2023 Kia Soul and 2021-2023 Kia Seltos vehicles.
The lawsuit was filed about three weeks after Kia recalled 137,000 of those vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines.
Hundreds of owners complained their engines stalled due to the piston oil rings that damaged the surfaces of the cylinder walls. Owners reported engine noise, illuminated oil pressure warning lights and complete engine failures.
Kia also knew of four engine fires when the recall was announced in February 2025.
Kia dealerships replaced the engines if certain diagnostic troubles codes were set. The new engines are equipped with new piston oil rings from a different supplier.
Dealers also installed piston oil ring noise sensing system software to provide early warning lights to the drivers of potential damage to the engines.
Kia Soul and Seltos owners who paid out-of-pocket for engine repairs were reimbursed by Kia.
Kia Engine Piston Oil Ring Lawsuit
The Kia piston oil ring recall lawsuit was filed by Florida plaintiff Eric Jasinski who owns a 2021 Kia Soul. The plaintiff doesn't claim his vehicle had any engine problems, but he complains there is no reason any individual engine components should fail.
The plaintiff also complains the recall will cost him "hours of his time" and the Kia piston oil ring recall "does not offer any foreseeable guarantee that the Oil Ring Defect will go away permanently."
Even though Kia replaced the engines with piston oil rings from a new supplier, the plaintiff complains "the Class Vehicles' engine will fail once again. Defendant's Recall is no more than a repeatedly ineffective waste of time."
"Transitioning back to the repair itself, at a bare minimum, this 10 to 12 hour repair time means that it will take Defendant at a minimum of 1,300,000 hours to repair the Class Vehicles. In a more comprehensible term, 1,300,000 hours amounts to a little more than 148 years." — Kia piston oil ring recall lawsuit
The plaintiff further complains about having to take "an eight-mile, 15-minute" trip to the dealership for free recall repairs. Additionally, the recall did not require towing to the dealer, but the plaintiff complains of the price to tow his vehicle to the Kia dealer.
"The average cost of towing, per mile, is $4.75 per mile. Given Plaintiff's roughly 8-mile commute, this cost amounts to $38 taken from Plaintiff for his own Class Vehicle to be safely repaired. Given the additional time it takes for a tow truck to arrive, roughly thirty minutes, Plaintiff's total time spent on his vehicle amounts to eleven to thirteen hours, unless of course one is to assume that Plaintiff drives his potentially unstoppable Class Vehicle to the dealership." — Plaintiff Eric Jasinski
The plaintiff further complains he has suffered an injury because he purchased a Kia vehicle that is "worthless."
Motion to Dismiss the Kia Piston Oil Ring Lawsuit
According to Kia, the class action lawsuit should be thrown out because the plaintiff has not suffered an injury-in-fact and any engine problems would be repaired for free.
Kia argues the plaintiff only makes hypothetical allegations by claiming the recall repairs may not fix the engine problems.
Kia told the judge the plaintiff does not allege that he has ever experienced any problems at all with his 2021 Kia Soul. Kia notes in over four years the plaintiff “has only taken the vehicle to the dealership for its routine maintenance as recommended by both the vehicle alert system" and the Kia dealer.
In addition, the plaintiff still owns and drives the vehicle and "has not experienced performance issues of any kind."
The automaker also argues the plaintiff admits Kia has recalled the vehicles “whereby dealers will replace the engine free of charge and also install piston-ring sensing noise software free of charge.” Even then, the plaintiff complains about the time involved.
And although the plaintiff complains about the alleged time and expense of towing his Kia to a dealer, the plaintiff is still driving his vehicle.
According to Kia's motion to dismiss the lawsuit, the plaintiff's theory of injury relies on the premise that he bought and paid for a defect-free vehicle, then was injured because the vehicle had a defect. Yet Kia says the class action lawsuit never alleges Kia promised him a defect-free vehicle.
"Courts have recognized that '[t]he very existence of a warranty presupposes that some defects may occur.' Thus, as a matter of law, Plaintiff’s allegation that he purchased, but did not receive, a vehicle 'free of defects,' is legally baseless and must be disregarded." — Kia
It cost $405 to file the piston oil ring class action for more than $5 million, but Kia notes again how the plaintiff never claims his Kia Soul has "actually malfunctioned.”
However, the plaintiff asserts Kia concealed the piston oil ring defects from him when he purchased his 2021 Kia Soul.
"Moreover, a fact cannot be concealed unless the defendant is aware of its existence. There are no factual allegations regarding when KA purportedly became aware of the Oil Ring Defect, let alone allegations that it knew of the issue prior to Plaintiff’s 2021 purchase. Accordingly, there are no facts supporting a conclusion that, in 2021, KA knowingly concealed the purported Oil Ring Defect from Plaintiff." — Kia's motion to dismiss
Kia also told the judge the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigated the piston oil ring recall and concluded the recall and repairs are effective and appropriate.
And Kia also argues even if the judge does not dismiss the piston oil ring recall lawsuit, the case should be transferred to the Middle District of Florida (where the plaintiff resides) or the Central District of California (where Kia resides).
The Kia engine piston oil ring recall lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Pennsylvania: Eric Jasinski v. Kia America, Inc.
The plaintiff is represented by Carpey Law, P.C.
