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2009 Kia Rio

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2009 Kia Rio do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 38.5.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

30 reports with mileage · 9 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Seats. Review the 4 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

6 crash reports0 fire reports5 injury reports

Engine complaints

7 reports
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Mileage unknown · Jul 16, 2022
Electrical SystemEngineFuel/propulsion System

Engine went out 8 months after there always been electrical issue has caused problems where it wnt accelerate causing a wreck the break light had shorts they didnt even have the radio n i went to a car lot dealership . this car left me in bad situations im just surprised its not recall I barely drive it it paid off after so many…

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Engine went out 8 months after there always been electrical issue has caused problems where it wnt accelerate causing a wreck the break light had shorts they didnt even have the radio n i went to a car lot dealership . this car left me in bad situations im just surprised its not recall I barely drive it it paid off after so many years n really only reason I have it cuz I put too much in n it n now it aint worth nuthin because of the issues that gave me

NHTSA ODI #11474311

75,000 miles · Jan 2, 2021
EngineFuel/propulsion System

MY COILS KEEP GOING OUT AFTER REPLACING ALL 4. I'VE REPLACED THE COMPLETE FUEL PUMP BUT EVERYTIME I FUEL UP MY CAR IT HESITATES TO START WHICH IS WHY I REPLACED THE PUMP TO BEGIN WITH.

NHTSA ODI #11386161

197,000 miles · Mar 15, 2020
Engine

SPARK PLUG CYLINDER HOLES FILLING WITH OIL DUE TO VALVE COVER ORING FAILURE A RECALL SHOULD BE DONE ON THIS ISSUE COULD CAUSE A ENGINE FIRE IN THE PICTURE THE WHOLE SPARED PLUG WAS COMPLETELY COVERED OVER WITH OIL IN THE ENGINE

NHTSA ODI #11318131

85,099 miles · Sep 8, 2019
Engine

REPLACED IGNITION COILS 1 AND 3 AT THE END OF 2018. COIL 1 HAD TO BE REPLACED AGAIN IN JANUARY 2019. COILS 2 AND 4 WERE BOTH REPLACED ALONG WITH ALL SPARK PLUGS FEBRUARY 2018. IN JULY 2019 COIL 2 STARTED TO FAIL AGAIN AND NOW IN AUGUST 2019 COIL 4 IS MISFIRING AS WELL. THIS IS AN ONGOING PROBLEM THAT I SEE MANY REGULAR POSTS REG…

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REPLACED IGNITION COILS 1 AND 3 AT THE END OF 2018. COIL 1 HAD TO BE REPLACED AGAIN IN JANUARY 2019. COILS 2 AND 4 WERE BOTH REPLACED ALONG WITH ALL SPARK PLUGS FEBRUARY 2018. IN JULY 2019 COIL 2 STARTED TO FAIL AGAIN AND NOW IN AUGUST 2019 COIL 4 IS MISFIRING AS WELL. THIS IS AN ONGOING PROBLEM THAT I SEE MANY REGULAR POSTS REGARDING THE SHORT LIFE SPAN OF THE IGNITION COILS FOR THIS CAR. THERE IS OBVIOUSLY AND ELECTRICAL ISSUE IF NOT SOMETHING ELSE IS OBVIOUSLY WRONG. WITH SO MANY COMPLAINTS THERE SHOULD BE AN INVESTIGATION AT LEAST AT THIS POINT AS TO WHY THE COILS FAIL SO QUICKLY IN THIS TYPE OF CAR. MULTIPLE ISSUES OF THE CAR NOT WANTING TO START, SHUTTING OFF WHILE IDLING AND I HAVE EVEN HAD AN INCIDENT ON THE HIGHWAY WHERE IT COMPLETELY FAILED AND I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO GET OFF THE HIGHWAY SAFELY .

NHTSA ODI #11253935

67,000 miles · Jul 2, 2017
Engine

AT 39,000 MILES MY CAR STARTED LURCHING AND HAD NO POWER. GOT IT TO A MECHANIC IMMEDIATELY, AND SPARK PLUGS AND COIL #1 HAD TO BE REPLACED. I JUST GOT TO 67,000 MILES, EMISSIONS CONTROL LIGHT AGAIN CAME ON, CAR HAD LOSS OF POWER AND SHAKING. AGAIN GOT TO MECHANIC IMMEDIATELY, AGAIN #1 COIL AND #2 COILS HAD TO BE REPLACED. SEEMS …

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AT 39,000 MILES MY CAR STARTED LURCHING AND HAD NO POWER. GOT IT TO A MECHANIC IMMEDIATELY, AND SPARK PLUGS AND COIL #1 HAD TO BE REPLACED. I JUST GOT TO 67,000 MILES, EMISSIONS CONTROL LIGHT AGAIN CAME ON, CAR HAD LOSS OF POWER AND SHAKING. AGAIN GOT TO MECHANIC IMMEDIATELY, AGAIN #1 COIL AND #2 COILS HAD TO BE REPLACED. SEEMS TO BE AN UNDERLYING ELECTRICAL PROBLEM THAT THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT ADDRESSED. CAN THIS PROBLEM BE PERMANENTLY FIXED? WILL A KIA DEALERSHIP BE ABLE TO FIX IT EVEN THOUGH THERE SEEMS TO BE NO RECALL.

NHTSA ODI #11002707

35,000 miles · Sep 21, 2016
Engine

IGNITION COIL RECALL. THEY KEEP GOING BAD EVERY TWO MONTHS. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON I LOSE POWER TO THE CAR. GET THE IGNITION COIL AND VALVE COVER FIXED. I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM AGAIN. WHILE I AM DRIVING IN MOTION AND STATIONARY THIS HAPPENS.

NHTSA ODI #10908474

20,000 miles · Feb 11, 2014
EngineVehicle Speed Control

WHEN CAR SITS OVER NIGHT, THE NEXT MORNING, THE ACCELERATOR PEDDLE IS HARD TO PRESS AND DISENGAGE AS TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE. THIS ALSO HAPPENS WHEN EVER THE CAR SIT FOR SOMETIME AFTER RUNNING. THIS PART WAS CHANGED UNDER WARRANTY AND NOW AT 20,000 MILES IS ACTING THE SAME WAY AND THE DEALER IN SAN JUAN PUERTO RICO DOESNOT WAN…

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WHEN CAR SITS OVER NIGHT, THE NEXT MORNING, THE ACCELERATOR PEDDLE IS HARD TO PRESS AND DISENGAGE AS TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE. THIS ALSO HAPPENS WHEN EVER THE CAR SIT FOR SOMETIME AFTER RUNNING. THIS PART WAS CHANGED UNDER WARRANTY AND NOW AT 20,000 MILES IS ACTING THE SAME WAY AND THE DEALER IN SAN JUAN PUERTO RICO DOESNOT WANT TO CHANGE IT AS A CONTINUING DEFECTIVE PART. THIS PART CONSIST OF PLASTIC AND METAL. MAYBE DUE TO HEAT AND COLD TEMP., THE CONTRACTION AND EXPLANATION CAUSES IT TO MAL FUNCTION. I BELIEVE THIS PART SHOW BE REENGINEERED TO BETTER PERFORMANCE STANDARDSAS TO NOT FAIL. FAILURE OF THIS PART COULD CAUSE AN UNEXPECTED ACCELERATION WHICH COULD CAUSE AN FATAL ACCIDENT OR BLOW UP OF ENGINE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10563853

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.