2017 Kia Soul problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Engine (155) · Power Train (18) · Air Bags (12)
🧭 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
117 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (1)
Air Bags 2022-01-25 · campaign 22V031000 · 410,619 vehicles
Defect: 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.
Risk: Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: 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.
Service bulletins (102)
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.
Service Brakes 2026-08-25 · SC334_OWNR_201 · Service Campaign
voluntary service campaign: owner renotification (sc334 flight 201) - this document is the owner renotification advising that kia is conducting a voluntary service campaign to inspect and, if necessary, replace the brake line(s) in certain 2014-2019 my soul vehicles that were originally sold in or a
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
Engine 2026-04-08 · PI2107_OWNR_501 · Other
product improvement campaign: owner renotification (pi2107 flight 501) - this document is the owner renotification advising that kia is conducting an important product improvement campaign to perform a software update on 2017-2019 my kia soul vehicles equipped with 2.0-liter nu gdi engines to protec
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
Structure:body 2025-08-20 · TSB_SC334_R1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: voluntary service campaign underbody inspection & anti-corrosion material application (sc334) - 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
Showing the 6 most recent of 102 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-09-22 · Engine“this car since i had it burns alot and i mean alot of oil between oil changes i have to keep oil on hand and constantly checking the oil i have alot of friends with this car and the same issue i had my soul for over 5 years and it's still burning oil i take care of my car im still paying on it and it has less than 70,000 miles and 8m having problem…”
2026-09-09 · Structure:body“the paint is completely failing on this kia soul. the eroded paint is a well known issue with kia, nothing is being done about the paint failing and chipping across the whole body of the car, which will lead to inevitable rusting. it has been inspected, they are aware of the issue, and are doing nothing to resolve it. …”
2026-07-23 · Engine“one day i noticed my oil light flashed on and off about three times during a drive down the road, simultaneously a loud knocking started in my engine. although i had gotten my oil changed just a couple months prior and always practiced appropriate maintenance i decided to pull over and check my oil, it was empty. no warnings, the oil light had neve…”
2026-07-13 · Power Train“ the engine has structural manufacturer defect causing extreme internal engine oil consumption with zero external leaks, creating a severe risk of sudden oil starvation catastrophic mechanical engine failure. the severe oil consumption problem was confirmed by a certified national corporate service center (firestone auto care). an intermittent p04…”
2026-06-12 · Engine · 197,000 mi“the contact owns a 2017 kia soul. the contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph, a loud knocking sound was heard, and the vehicle's speed decreased to approximately 25 mph. the contact was able to safely pull over into a parking lot. the vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the m…”
2026-05-19 · Engine“2017 kia soul, 1.6l gamma gdi engine, ~82,000 miles. vehicle exhibits excessive oil consumption consistent with the known piston ring defect addressed in kia tsb eng222 (covering 2012–2019 souls with gamma/nu engines) and consistent with the e2 class action settlement that covered the same engine in 2012–2016 model years. the oil consumption has de…”
2026-05-14 · Power Train“2017 kia soul, at approximately 87,000 miles began to show intermittent oil warning lights under regular g-loads pointing to oil starvation issues.vehicle was taken to kia dealer for oil change. dealer stated that possible oil consumption would trigger a need to return to dealer before the 1000 mile marker for second round of warranty checks per ts…”
2026-05-07 · Suspension“the vehicle experiences major engine performance issues following a replacement engine installation (approximately 8,000 miles on the new engine). additionally, the catalytic converter is malfunctioning, the steering exhibits significant pulsation during braking, and the suspension system is malfunctioning. these combined defects create an unsafe d…”
2026-05-05 · Engine · 🔥 fire“i reported the issue yesterday, but we have additional information. here is a timeline of the incident as recorded by the doorbell camera: 2026-05-03 085400 car parked 101423 car is already trying to start by itself 101713 car still starting, starter slowing down 101734 starter sounds overheated …”
2026-05-04 · Electrical System · 🔥 fire“after multiple recent services at the dealership, the car caught fire while idle in the driveway. the fire was under the hood in the front part of the engine compartment, just behind the latch mechanism. fire was extinguished and verified by the local fire department. the parking spaces are close to other cars and townhouses. …”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.