The car died, found out it was the engine. We didn’t own the car for the 2019 recall and was never told. We owed 7,000 on a dead car.
2017 Kia Soul
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2017 Kia Soul do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 225.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Soul years →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
117 reports with mileage · 154 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.
- Engine. Review the 190 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Engine complaints
190 reportsOn the day after Thanksgiving 11/26/22, I was driving this vehicle home via the interstate when it began to decelerate without any warning. I pressed to accelerator and the car began moving slower and slower. I pulled off at the nearest exit and as I was exiting the interstate, the car almost completely stalled on me, idling ver…
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On the day after Thanksgiving 11/26/22, I was driving this vehicle home via the interstate when it began to decelerate without any warning. I pressed to accelerator and the car began moving slower and slower. I pulled off at the nearest exit and as I was exiting the interstate, the car almost completely stalled on me, idling very rough at the red light. While waiting for the light to turn, the engine light illuminated and began flashing. I live a mile from the interstate but I was able to make it home. I was very nervous because the car jerked and shuddered like it was about to die on me in the middle of the road. The next morning, I took the car next door to my residence and has some diagnostics ran on it. I was told that the car needed new spark plugs and coils. After paying for this service, the car still ran poorly as describe above so I took the car back. I ended up having the car towed to the nearest dealership and it was determined that I needed a completely new engine. I thought to myself "well at least the powertrain is still under warranty since I am the original owner and have kept up with timely maintenance. My warranty was denied due to lack of one missing oil change invoice that was done at the dealership back in 2018 at 18,000 miles. Somehow this missing oil change was missing from the dealership's records as well. I am good at keeping up with the maintenance on my vehicle, especially one that i bought brand new back in 2017 that's still under warranty but somehow, it was still denied. I decided to pay out of pocket to get the car fixed. The cost was over $6300. I picked the car up today 01/12/23. After driving approximately 15 miles, the car began to make a ticking sound at which point the check engine light came on again. Obviously the car is not fixed.
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle started to hesitate then stalled. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact restarted the vehicle but was only able to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to an…
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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle started to hesitate then stalled. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact restarted the vehicle but was only able to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to an independent mechanic and was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact towed the vehicle to her residence and then towed the vehicle to the local dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 83,000.
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle started jerking abnormally. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and had the vehicle towed to the residence. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed …
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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle started jerking abnormally. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and had the vehicle towed to the residence. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be repaired or replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but offered no additional assistance. The failure mileage was 120,000.
The oil light flickers at idle.... weak oil pressure. Blowby issues. Oil consumption an usage excessive...only has 130.000 miles. taken consistent care of it on oil changes. Motor louder than normal. Ticking sounds an loud tacking. I think the engine going south. The date shows it to be 12/16 model.but the serial numbers show…
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The oil light flickers at idle.... weak oil pressure. Blowby issues. Oil consumption an usage excessive...only has 130.000 miles. taken consistent care of it on oil changes. Motor louder than normal. Ticking sounds an loud tacking. I think the engine going south. The date shows it to be 12/16 model.but the serial numbers show it to be 17/17 what's up with that.... I believe the engine was left over 16 year. The one with problems. I need this thing fixed, it's my daughter's work car!!! She's been having to drive my truck to get to work....
NO CODES KICKED BUT WHEN I SWERVED TO MISS SOMETHING IN ROAD OIL LIGHT CAME ON AND WENT RIGHT BACK OFF GOT HOME CHECKED OIL IT WAS 2 QT L0W I HAD JUST HAD THE OIL CHANGED I ADDED OIL AND SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN SHORTLY AFTER THE NEXT OIL CHANGE. THEN ON IMY WAY HOME ONE NIGHT THE ENGINE BLEW!!! ALL THIS STARTED AT BETWEEN 60 A…
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NO CODES KICKED BUT WHEN I SWERVED TO MISS SOMETHING IN ROAD OIL LIGHT CAME ON AND WENT RIGHT BACK OFF GOT HOME CHECKED OIL IT WAS 2 QT L0W I HAD JUST HAD THE OIL CHANGED I ADDED OIL AND SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN SHORTLY AFTER THE NEXT OIL CHANGE. THEN ON IMY WAY HOME ONE NIGHT THE ENGINE BLEW!!! ALL THIS STARTED AT BETWEEN 60 AND 70 THOUSAND MILES ENGINE BLOWN AT 112,000 MILES. I HAD THE ENGINE REPLACED AND HAD TO GET A NEW CATALITIC CONVERTER. WHEN THIS ENGINE REACH 70,OOO MILES IT STARTED HAPPENING AGAIN I HAVE HAD TO ADD 2 QTS OF OIL OFTEN TO KEEP IT GOING. AFTER CHECKING THIS SAME ENGINE IN THE 2011-2016 WAS RECALLED. KIA WAS ALLOWED TO KEEP PUTTING SAME DEFECTIVE ENGINE IN THE 2017 AND UP CARS WITHOUT FIXING THE PROBLEM. WHY IS THE 2017 ENGINE NOT RECALLED? 2nd ENGINE HAS NOW FAILED COMPLETELY AND CAR IS PARKED PLEASE HELP BY MAKING KIA PUT THESE CARS WITH FAULTY ENGINES ON RECALL LIST. {sorry about the all caps I did not know that this meant I was yelling not meant to be yelling Thanks for your help
I was driving down the interstate and my car made a loud noise, so I pulled over. Smoke started pouring out then it was immediately in flames. No prior issues. No injuries as I was able to get out. If fire recalls were till 2015, clearly my vehicle had issues too. What do I do?
The car will burn through almost a full 4 quarts of oil within 1000 miles. From reading online oil consumption issues are a common problem for 2014 through 2017 Kia Souls, but even some later models are having similar issues. Beyond the issue of the car burning that much oil that quick, the check oil light does not fully turn on…
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The car will burn through almost a full 4 quarts of oil within 1000 miles. From reading online oil consumption issues are a common problem for 2014 through 2017 Kia Souls, but even some later models are having similar issues. Beyond the issue of the car burning that much oil that quick, the check oil light does not fully turn on even when the car was as the dealership put it, "Bone Dry" meaning that I as the driver had no idea that my engine could have seized up or stalled out at any moment. Also due to the fact that Kia Souls have an oil pressure driven timing chain the low oil issue extends down another level making engine stalling that much more likely. Though the most recent incendent occurred at around 94000 miles ot has been an ongoing problem for around 20000 miles.
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the "low oil level" message displayed even though the engine oil had recently been changed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who serviced the engine for an oil consumption test. No additional information was available. The vehicle was…
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The contact owns a 2017 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the "low oil level" message displayed even though the engine oil had recently been changed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who serviced the engine for an oil consumption test. No additional information was available. The vehicle was retrieved but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer who had replaced the engine. On another occasion while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle started to shake and vibrate with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer who diagnosed that the catalytic converter was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 80,000.
May 2021 catalytic converter failed on vehicle. It was on back order and could not be replaced until July 2021 at 106,612 miles. At that time, I had dealership and national check for any recalls or recommended repairs. There were none. November 18, 2021, while siting at a stop light, engine suddenly began to knock loudly, I pull…
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May 2021 catalytic converter failed on vehicle. It was on back order and could not be replaced until July 2021 at 106,612 miles. At that time, I had dealership and national check for any recalls or recommended repairs. There were none. November 18, 2021, while siting at a stop light, engine suddenly began to knock loudly, I pulled over immediately and had it towed to dealership, at 118,729. Engine failure due to rod bearing failure. Engine had to be replaced. National claims there was a recall repair that was not performed before November 2021. As of oil change in October 2021, there was none. Recall repair was issued first week of November 2021. I received the mailed flyer after November 21, 2021.
Official recalls
122V031000 · Air Bags
Jan 25, 2022
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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