42 of the
845 complaints filed about the KIA EV6
are about the driver-assist systems —
5% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2022.
42
Complaints
5%
Share of all complaints
15
Crashes
0
Fires
Driver Assist & Collision Avoidance complaints by model year
The contact owned a 2024 Kia EV6 and stated that while driving at 40 MPH, an elk suddenly appeared in front of the vehicle, resulting in a head-on collision that completely crushed the front end of the vehicle with no air bags deployed. The front end of the vehicle was crushed including the windshield. The vehicle continued with the elk after collision dragging it a couple yards ahead. The air bags did not apply. No waring lights were illuminated. No police report was filed. The contact was the only passenger during the collision. The contact suffered a sever neck issue and is not able to move his neck to the right, has chest pain and shoulder pain on both sides, and a head injury. Medical treatment is need but has not gotten any due to insurance issues. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 20,000.
NHTSA complaint #11740227 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving car began to decelerate and the dash lit up with a number of ABS/Brake system failure symbols. I was on the highway traveling at abt 70 mph when the issue happened. Got car to coast off hwy onto an upward sloping exit. Stopped at a light. Turned off and back on and was able to gain minor speed got approx three blocks to a gas station. Pulled off and tried restarts. The screen stated there was an update pending, but it could not complete it because the Electronic Brake System failed. I tried triggering a brake reset but it didn’t work. Car was towed back to Dealership. Two days later the Dealership mechanic confirmed the issue was a failed Electronic Brake which must be replaced. Car has now been with Dealer for 10 days. Dealer stated the EBS was on back order and they do not have a timeline for the parts to come in. They’ve provided me a rental from their fleet which they are covering in full. Hoping this is resolved soon.
NHTSA complaint #11739429 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was backing out of my driveway and backed into a vehicle parked directly behind me. The collision avoidance and emergency braking system should have stopped my car before impact but it did not. No sounds other than the normal backing up beeping. Proximity alert did not ping. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The safety feature of collision avoidance and emergency breaking did not work. No, the problem has not been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center. No, the vehicle component has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representative or other. The police were called to the scene, they just looked at the damage on both vehicles. No warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. They only appeared once on the day of the accident. I can confirm the backup collision avoidance worked after the incident since the emergency breaking stopped my car in a parking lot after the incident of the failure.
NHTSA complaint #11732922 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
The contact owns a 2022 Kia EV6. The contact stated that while driving approximately 64 MPH, the left side of the steering wheel seized, and the vehicle aggressively jerked to the left into oncoming traffic. The message “Smart Cruise Disabled” was displayed. The contact was able to quickly regain control of the vehicle. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The approximate failure mileage was 65,300.
NHTSA complaint #11727539 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I am reporting a recurring safety defect. While driving the vehicle the Integrated Charging Control unit (ICCU) failed and caused the vehicle to lose power and stop in the road. I feel strongly that this ICCU issue and subsequent failure should be made into a safety recall. Kia / Hyundai / Genesis all share the same e-gmp platform and utilize an ICCU that fails and leaves motorists in unsafe situations. The ICCU should be recalled and replaced with a unit that works. The current recall remedies are only software updates, and are insufficient to prevent this safety issue and hardware defect, posing ongoing safety risk to drivers and other motorists. The ICCU should be a permanent fix, rather than just software patches that do not fix the issue. My vehicle had all software patches and was up to date, yet those were not sufficient to prevent this hardware defect and safety situation.
NHTSA complaint #11718250 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
prior case 11708370 filed 1/2/2026 spoke with [XXX] 1/22/2026. Friday 2/6/2026 Shorkey Kia Wexford calls and tells me my EV6 is fixed I can pick it up. I go into the Kia App and still have the same 3 codes as before; P056216 VCU, C160404 FR_Radar, and C28B186 ADAS_DRV. I tell them later that day when I had time to open the app to make sure the codes were corrected, called them back and said until these codes are cleared, my vehicle is not fixed. Tuesday 2/10/2026 I get a called from same person at Shorkey Kia in Wexford, telling me my vehicle is fixed, I can pick up my vehicle, same person her name is Maggie. I told Maggie to hold while I bring up the Kia app, I still see the same 3 codes: P056216, C160404, C28B186. I told her the codes are still active, and as long as these codes are present, the car isn’t fixed. She wouldn’t tell me what was done to the car, so I don’t know if the ICCU was replaced or not. However from browsing the EV6 Owners USA group, [XXX] had the same issue, and his car was fixed per whatever Kia place that is around him. He still has the P056216 alert and was told it will go away after whatever period of time. This is what the Kia repair place told him. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11717025 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Incident took place 1/31/26. I was pulling into my driveway at approximately 5 mph. Normally, as I approach the wooden driveway gate, sensors would begin to beep and I would be prompted to stop.The car normally would stop itself if a collision was imminent. This did not take place. Instead, the car picked up speed, smashed through the gate proceeded up the driveway, smashed through the garage door and the rear wall of the garage. I was alone and uninjured, but the structure was yellow tagged and there was severe damage to the contents. Airbags were not deployed. The car was towed to Caliber body shop in Santa Monica for repairs to the body. When this has been completed it will be taken to Kia of Santa Monica for analysis of the black box and braking system.
NHTSA complaint #11716470 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Incident took place 1/31/26. I was pulling into my driveway at approximately 5 mph. Normally, as I approach the wooden driveway gate, sensors would begin to beep and I would be prompted to stop.The car normally would stop itself if a collision was imminent. This did not take place. Instead, the car picked up speed, smashed through the gate proceeded up the driveway, smashed through the garage door and the rear wall of the garage. I was alone and uninjured, but the structure was yellow tagged and there was severe damage to the contents. Airbags were not deployed. The car was towed to Caliber body shop in Santa Monica for repairs to the body. When this has been completed it will be taken to Kia of Santa Monica for analysis of the black box and braking system.
NHTSA complaint #11716470 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Most vehicles with ABS experience what I call “ABS shudder/jutter” when applying brakes across a road seam where the road surface is uneven or a rut in the road. In this particular case while applying the brakes across a long rut in the road, the “ABS shudder/jutter” was much worse. NOT SPEEDING and having plenty of distance to stop. With brake pedal to the floor several times, the vehicle continued to move forward. The last few feet before colliding with a pickup truck, although the road was completely dry, the vehicle was driving forward yet sliding forward slowly. Felt no different than being on ice. Collision aversion system did nothing to help avoid. There is also only electronic parking brake and not an emergency brake to pull a handle on to assist in stopping. Dealership wasn’t able to find anything simply by driving around and slamming on the brakes and not finding any error codes. Regional technician currently scheduled to be here the 27th of Jan. Several people online have expressed similar concerns, just haven’t hit anything. I feel that the issue lies with the ABS system specifically braking over uneven road seams or ruts in the road and my experience is being discounted.
NHTSA complaint #11713276 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
My 2022 Kia EV6 developed a serious electrical/MCU malfunction on 10/19/2025 at approximately 64,300 miles. While driving, the vehicle began to stutter during acceleration, all driver-assistance and safety systems disabled (LKAS, collision avoidance, lane keeping), and the vehicle could not accelerate normally (topping out around ~60 mph when fully pressing the pedal). The Kia Connect app displayed fault codes MCU P0A4100 and LKAS C164286. The malfunction recurred immediately after a dealer visit on 10/20/2025. The vehicle has since been inspected by Huffines Kia in Corinth, Texas, but no confirmed diagnosis has been provided, nor have they notified me of dropping/reconnecting the HV battery. On 11/18/2025, a new fault code appeared: MCU P0C1700. This failure affects the high-voltage electronics/MCU and causes sudden loss of acceleration capability and complete disabling of active safety systems while the vehicle is in motion, placing me and other drivers at risk. The issue is reproducible, continues to occur, and the vehicle remains at the dealership. I am requesting NHTSA review of this electrical/MCU malfunction as a safety-related defect.
NHTSA complaint #11700251 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Prior to midnight on 9/25/2025 I stopped at a Sheetz in Stephen"s City , Va to charge my 2022 Kia EV6. Upon pulling into the charging area I discovered construction fencing around the area with the chargers removed. I then drove to the other side of the store and parked next to the building to take advantage of the lighting as I scanned my phone app for alternative chargers in the area. SUDDENLY, within the blink of an eye, my car lunged forward at MAXIMUM speed. It came to a sudden stop , prior to hitting the glass and brick wall of the building. I was stunned. My first reaction was to try to go into reverse to back away from the building and then I noticed people coming toward me. I rolled the window down and heard them ask if I was ok , if I needed help calling 911, and then they began to insist that I climb down out of the car as they feared it would catch on fire. I did not understand what they meant initially, until I realized I was LOOKING DOWN at them. With assistance, I got out of my car and realized it was impaled upon the metal barrier post located in the middle , front of the parking space. The local sheriff dept responded and after putting me through all the DUI tests/exercises realized that I , indeed , was sober and not responsible for the incident. The deputy called Clem's Garage/Towing who arrived 30-45 min latter with a standard tow truck - I tried to explain that tugging at my car from the rear would not release it from the pole ( the rear of the car pointed toward the pavement while the front pointed toward the sky) and that continuing to tug would only do more damage (I wanted to prevent my car further damage). He eventually called another company who arrived with a large crane-like vehicle that lifted my car off the pole. The top portion of the pole was missing and apparently stuck in my car . My car was then towed to Clem's holding yard.
NHTSA complaint #11690621 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving over to walk my friends dog and I was pulling into the overflow parking area and my car just speed up and it would not stop. I went up a curb and I hit a small tree went down another curb crossed the street and then up another curb and the break would not stop the car. I finally just cut the car off
NHTSA complaint #11684498 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The instrument cluster screen went black for no reason. Cannot see speed, turn signals do not work, do not know about any instrument issues, and blind spot camera doesn't work.
NHTSA complaint #11670403 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The instrument cluster screen went black for no reason. Cannot see speed, turn signals do not work, do not know about any instrument issues, and blind spot camera doesn't work.
NHTSA complaint #11670403 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
After driving the car for a while, when the car is parked and the car is still ON, the car began displaying - Check Lane Assist warning. From that point, the Smart cruise is not working. The warning displayed for more than 20 days. It happened to me more than 5 times. I reached out to Kia and their engineer is unable to resolve it. The warnings get erased after 20+ days. In the recent visit, Kia engineer asked me to change all 4 tires, which I did along with the Wheel balancing and alignment, still I got the same issue last week.
NHTSA complaint #11657592 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
After driving the car for a while, when the car is parked and the car is still ON, the car began displaying - Check Lane Assist warning. From that point, the Smart cruise is not working. The warning displayed for more than 20 days. It happened to me more than 5 times. I reached out to Kia and their engineer is unable to resolve it. The warnings get erased after 20+ days. In the recent visit, Kia engineer asked me to change all 4 tires, which I did along with the Wheel balancing and alignment, still I got the same issue last week.
NHTSA complaint #11657592 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
After driving the car for a while, when the car is parked and the car is still ON, the car began displaying - Check Lane Assist warning. From that point, the Smart cruise is not working. The warning displayed for more than 20 days. It happened to me more than 5 times. I reached out to Kia and their engineer is unable to resolve it. The warnings get erased after 20+ days. In the recent visit, Kia engineer asked me to change all 4 tires, which I did along with the Wheel balancing and alignment, still I got the same issue last week.
NHTSA complaint #11657592 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was involved in a fatal head-on collision with a pedestrian while driving my Kia EV6. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist : The FCA system appears to have completely failed. It did not detect the pedestrian, did not provide any audible or visual warnings, and did not initiate automatic emergency braking prior to the collision. Airbag System: The system failed to deploy despite a severe head-on collision. Regarding availability for inspection: The car was impounded by the SDPD and was inspected by both the police and State Farm before being sold to SF after being rendered a total loss. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? My Safety: The failure of the airbags to deploy put me at significant risk of serious injury or death in the severe head-on collision. The Safety of Others: While the primary consequence of the FCA failure was the tragic impact with the pedestrian, the malfunction of a safety system designed to prevent or mitigate collisions inherently puts all potential road users at risk. Had the FCA functioned correctly, the collision might have been avoided entirely or the impact speed significantly reduced, potentially altering the outcome for the pedestrian. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? No not to my knowledge. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? As mentioned above, the car was impounded by the SDPD and was fully inspected by both the police and State Farm. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? None.
NHTSA complaint #11655093 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was involved in a fatal head-on collision with a pedestrian while driving my Kia EV6. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist : The FCA system appears to have completely failed. It did not detect the pedestrian, did not provide any audible or visual warnings, and did not initiate automatic emergency braking prior to the collision. Airbag System: The system failed to deploy despite a severe head-on collision. Regarding availability for inspection: The car was impounded by the SDPD and was inspected by both the police and State Farm before being sold to SF after being rendered a total loss. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? My Safety: The failure of the airbags to deploy put me at significant risk of serious injury or death in the severe head-on collision. The Safety of Others: While the primary consequence of the FCA failure was the tragic impact with the pedestrian, the malfunction of a safety system designed to prevent or mitigate collisions inherently puts all potential road users at risk. Had the FCA functioned correctly, the collision might have been avoided entirely or the impact speed significantly reduced, potentially altering the outcome for the pedestrian. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? No not to my knowledge. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? As mentioned above, the car was impounded by the SDPD and was fully inspected by both the police and State Farm. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? None.
NHTSA complaint #11655093 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On [XXX], I pulled into a parking space, and the car suddenly accelerated, jumped the curb, and hit the building. This is the second time this happened. It happened when I was parking in May 2022; the car suddenly accelerated and struck a fence. In all my time driving this car, I have never had an issue breaking or parking. There was an immediate surge in both cases, and I am confident that my foot was on the break. In both cases, I did not get any collision warning from the car or emergency braking. I know from experience driving this car that when the vehicle /system determined I was too close to something of danger, I would get a collision warning and an immediate breaking by the vehicle. I reported the issue to the KIA dealership for the first time and wrote a report; they said they had not heard of the problem but would note it. If there had been a person walking when this happened, I am sure serious, if not fatal injuries would be occur. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11644624 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.