KIA Sephia vs Tesla Model Y

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	KIA Sephia	Tesla Model Y
Complaints on file	3,080	7,374
Model years covered	1986–2003	2020–2026
Worst model year	1999	2023
Best model year	1994	2025
Crashes reported	299	1,104
Fires reported	118	50
Injuries reported	171	369
Deaths reported	6	22
Most complained-about part	Brakes	Driver Assist & Collision Avoidance
Share of complaints involving harm	19.3%	21%

KIA Sephia by year

3 25 104 203 375 994 749 461 158 6 2

86 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Brakes 806 26.2%

Engine & Cooling 395 12.8%

Electrical System 348 11.3%

Transmission & Drivetrain 293 9.5%

Airbags 174 5.6%

Fuel & Propulsion 164 5.3%

Body & Structure 127 4.1%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 125 4.1%

Tesla Model Y by year

487 1,987 1,581 1,987 582 193 557

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Driver Assist & Collision Avoidance 3,250 44.1%

Other & Unspecified 622 8.4%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 571 7.7%

Brakes 563 7.6%

Electrical System 529 7.2%

Steering 444 6.0%

Suspension 290 3.9%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 189 2.6%