2011 Kia Soul problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Service Brakes, Hydraulic (32) · Air Bags (14) · Electrical System (13)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Kia Soul model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
132 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (3)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip:control Unit/Module 2023-09-25 · campaign 23V652000 · 1,730,192 vehicles ⚠ PARK OUTSIDE
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2010-2019 Borrego, 2014-2016 Cadenza, 2010-2013 Forte, Forte Koup, Sportage, 2015-2018 K900, 2011-2015 Optima, 2011-2013 Optima Hybrid, Soul, 2012-2017 Rio, 2011-2014 Sorento, and 2010-2011 Rondo vehicles. The Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU) may experience an electrical short, which can result in an engine compartment fire while parked or driving.
Risk: An engine compartment fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will replace the HECU fuse, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed November 14, 2023. Owner notification letters were mailed March 29, 2024 through June 18, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC284.
Structure:body:roof And Pillars 2014-12-29 · campaign 14V822000 · 95,314 vehicles
Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2010-2013 Kia Soul vehicles manufactured January 8, 2009, to October 2, 2013, equipped with a sun roof. A headliner plate may detach during deployment of the curtain air bag.
Risk: A detached headliner plate may increase the risk of injury to the occupant during a vehicle crash.
Fix: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will install industrial adhesive strips to secure the headliner plates, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 2, 2015. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC112.
Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch 2013-04-01 · campaign 13V114000 · 980,377 vehicles
Defect: Kia Motors Corporation (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2007-2010 Rondo, model year 2007-2011 Sedona, Sorento and Sportage, model year 2010-2011 Soul, model year 2008-2011 Optima, model year 2010 Forte, model year 2007-2009 Amanti, and model year 2009 Borrego vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Kia recalled 623,658 model year 2007-2010 Rondo and Sportage, model year 2007-2011 Sorento, model year 2007 Sedona, model year 2010-2011 Soul, and model year 2011 Optima vehicles. In September 20
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of PARK without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Kia will send an interim notification to owners in May 2013. When parts are available, owners will receive a second notification and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. Owners may contact Kia at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's recall campaign number is SC098.
Service bulletins (66)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Structure:body 2026-06-09 · CS2311_TSB_R4 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: customer satisfaction: theft deterrent ignition: cylinder protector & decal installation (cs2311) - this bulletin has been revised to include additional information. new/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. this bulletin provi
Structure:body 2025-12-19 · CS2311_OWNR_PC201 · Other
customer satisfaction campaign: postcard owner renotification (cs2311) - this document is the owner renotification advising that kia is conducting customer satisfaction campaign. kia has developed a new zinc-reinforced ignition cylinder protector hardware upgrade and can be installed at the ignition
Back Over Prevention: Warnings 2025-12-09 · PS797 · Other
pitstop: technical operations: external damage to ultrasonic sensor: this pitstop provides information related to parking distance warning (pdw) alerts and repairs involving ultrasonic sensors. the pdw system alerts the driver while parking, by calculating distance based on the difference in signal
Power Train 2025-04-17 · TSB_TRA046_R5 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: transmission fluid application guide - this bulletin has been revised to include additional information. new/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. this bulletin provides information relating to the correct transmission fluid ty
Structure:body 2024-10-18 · CS2311_TSB_R3 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: customer satisfaction: theft deterrent ignition cylinder protector & decal installation (cs2311) - this bulletin has been revised to include additional information. new/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. this bulletin provid
Power Train 2024-05-16 · TSB_TRA046_R4 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin provides information relating to the correct transmission fluid type and fill quantity requirement for each kia model. a flush is required only when a transmission is replaced.
Showing the 6 most recent of 66 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-08-27 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Clockspring/Spiral Cassette · 167,492 mi“the contact owns a 2011 kia soul. the contact stated that the airbag warning light was illuminated, indicating that the airbag system was inoperative. the vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the clock spring needed replacement. the vehicle was repaired. a certified letter was sent to the manufacturer, requesting a goodw…”
2026-03-05 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic · 154,655 mi“the contact owns a 2011 kia soul. the contact stated that while her husband was at a stop sign, the vehicle suddenly shut off. the vehicle was successfully jump-started; however, after driving approximately one mile, the vehicle began jerking and lost power again and was pushed to a residence. the contact referenced nhtsa id number: 23v652000 (serv…”
2025-06-30 · Air Bags · 💥 crash“this vehicle had just passed a inspection for me to get it licensed and kentucky. there was no light showing that the airbags would not work. unfortunately, this vehicle is not available.i had reached out to kia multiple times. my fears i have another kia the same year. …”
2024-12-11 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic“the contact owns a 2011 kia soul. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v652000 (service brakes, hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the dealer was contacted. the manufacturer was made a…”
2024-11-27 · Service Brakes · 165,000 mi · 🔥 fire“the contact owned a 2011 kia soul. the contact stated that the vehicle was parked overnight on his driveway, caught on fire, and exploded in the early morning. the fire started from the engine bay. the vehicle was unoccupied during the fire. the fire originated from the front engine bay, and soon after engulfed the entire vehicle. the vehicle was t…”
2024-10-24 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic · 152,000 mi“the contact owns a 2011 kia soul. the contact stated that the mil warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and repaired under nhtsa campaign number: 23v652000 (service brakes, hydraulic); however, the failure persisted. additionally, the contact stated while the vehicle was idling, the contact noticed an abnormal burning o…”
2024-10-07 · Vehicle Speed Control“while driving my car just started accelerating in traffic and i couldn’t get it to stop even while hitting brakes trying not to hit another vehicle. fortunately found a way to pull to side of road and throw in park and it was still revving up and didn’t stop til i turned off car completely. so terrifying. now i’m [xxx] trying figure out how i’m goi…”
2024-09-10 · Engine“engine is going excessive through oil . …”
2024-08-26 · Air Bags · 💥 crash“the contact owned a 2011 kia soul. the contact stated that while driving at 63 mph, an object hit the vehicle's front, driver-side tire which caused the contact to lose control of the vehicle. due to the failure, the contact crashed into a highway sand barrel as the vehicle flipped forward and rolled over onto the driver's side. the air bags did no…”
2024-07-05 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic“the contact owns a 2011 kia soul. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v652000 (service brakes, hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. the contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the dealer was made aware of the issue and conf…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.