Owners have filed 18 complaints
about the 2026 KIA K5 with NHTSA between 2025 and 2026.
The largest single group is the engine & cooling.
Across this model's run it ranks 6 of 6 worst.
The letter says how bad. This says what kind — whether this year drew
an unusual number of complaints, unusually dangerous
ones, or failures that arrived unusually early.
The dashed ring is 50 — the national norm. Further out is worse.
Complaint volume — 7
Against the median year of the KIA K5. 50 means typical for this
model; 100 means roughly double.
Severity — 29
5.6% of these complaints
involved a crash, fire, injury or death, against a national rate of
9.7%.
Early failure — not reported
Too few complaints recorded a mileage to measure this.
Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade:
A
B
C
D
F
ungraded
What breaks on a 2026 KIA K5
Every complaint is filed against a part. Follow any row for the complaints about that part alone.
Driver Assist & Collision Avoidance
527.8%
Engine & Cooling
527.8%
Median failure at 99 miles
Other & Unspecified
422.2%
Electrical System
316.7%
Doors, Latches & Locks
15.6%
Median failure at 15,440 miles
When owners complained
A spike years after the car went on sale usually means a part wearing
out on schedule across the whole fleet — the kind of pattern no single
owner can see from inside their own car.
Dec 2025peak 7Aug 2026
Complaints that involved harm
Reports where the owner recorded a crash, a fire, an injury or a death.
Litchfield, IL1 injured
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My vehicle is 3 months old with only 3300 miles on it at the time this happened. I was driving on the interstate near on Saturday, January 17th, 2026. It was reasonably cold outside, and of course I had the heater on set to 70. My panoramic moonroof glass was closed, but the shade was open. My glass randomly exploded outward leaving a major hole in the glass. Glass shattered and sprinkled inside the vehicle while I was driving. After pulling over to identify what happened, I realized that the moonroof exploded outward from the vehicle.
NHTSA complaint #11711862 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The most recent complaints
In the owners' own words, exactly as filed with NHTSA.
at 15,440 milesCameron, MO
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving 80 MPH, the front driver's side door independently unlatched and swung open. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The contact was informed that the door latches were being replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,440.
NHTSA complaint #11756235 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Laredo, TX
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Submitted by [XXX], Authorized Representative for the owner. The vehicle has a physical defect in the ADAS forward-facing camera bracket caused by a dealer-concealed repair using industrial silicone adhesive. The bracket is now visibly sagging, causing misalignment that leads to intermittent Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) failure. Critically, the vehicle’s computer does NOT illuminate a warning light for this physical displacement ('silent failure'), posing a severe crash risk. An undisclosed aftermarket GPS tracker was also found installed, which is pending contract review. A third-party inspection report titled 'Repurchase Inspection (Silicon at Rearview Mirror)' confirms the non-OEM adhesive and physical sag. The dealer has refused to provide a safe replacement vehicle. This defect stems from a non-OEM repair performed prior to sale. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11748152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Laredo, TX
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
Submitted by [XXX], Authorized Representative for the owner. The vehicle has a physical defect in the ADAS forward-facing camera bracket caused by a dealer-concealed repair using industrial silicone adhesive. The bracket is now visibly sagging, causing misalignment that leads to intermittent Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) failure. Critically, the vehicle’s computer does NOT illuminate a warning light for this physical displacement ('silent failure'), posing a severe crash risk. An undisclosed aftermarket GPS tracker was also found installed, which is pending contract review. A third-party inspection report titled 'Repurchase Inspection (Silicon at Rearview Mirror)' confirms the non-OEM adhesive and physical sag. The dealer has refused to provide a safe replacement vehicle. This defect stems from a non-OEM repair performed prior to sale. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11748152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Submitted by [XXX], Authorized Representative for the owner. The vehicle has a physical defect in the ADAS forward-facing camera bracket caused by a dealer-concealed repair using industrial silicone adhesive. The bracket is now visibly sagging, causing misalignment that leads to intermittent Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) failure. Critically, the vehicle’s computer does NOT illuminate a warning light for this physical displacement ('silent failure'), posing a severe crash risk. An undisclosed aftermarket GPS tracker was also found installed, which is pending contract review. A third-party inspection report titled 'Repurchase Inspection (Silicon at Rearview Mirror)' confirms the non-OEM adhesive and physical sag. The dealer has refused to provide a safe replacement vehicle. This defect stems from a non-OEM repair performed prior to sale. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11748152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Cassville, MO
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Driver awareness warning goes off frequently. There is no way to desensitize it. As a result warnings are ignored. Dealer and manufacturer says there is not way to prevent this issue.
NHTSA complaint #11739815 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Cassville, MO
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
Driver awareness warning goes off frequently. There is no way to desensitize it. As a result warnings are ignored. Dealer and manufacturer says there is not way to prevent this issue.
NHTSA complaint #11739815 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Cassville, MO
LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING
Driver awareness warning goes off frequently. There is no way to desensitize it. As a result warnings are ignored. Dealer and manufacturer says there is not way to prevent this issue.
NHTSA complaint #11739815 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Austin, TX
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The display is shows a "Check Oil Level" error. It comes on then goes off regularly. I have verified that the oil level is OK. Took it into the dealer and he said that this is a common issue and a software fix is coming. The car only has less than 2K miles. I depend on the engine displaying error messages, but they need to be real ones. Online complaints indicate that this is a common error and there seems to be no fix.
NHTSA complaint #11730905 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Austin, TX
ENGINE
The display is shows a "Check Oil Level" error. It comes on then goes off regularly. I have verified that the oil level is OK. Took it into the dealer and he said that this is a common issue and a software fix is coming. The car only has less than 2K miles. I depend on the engine displaying error messages, but they need to be real ones. Online complaints indicate that this is a common error and there seems to be no fix.
NHTSA complaint #11730905 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 89 milesMaywood, CA
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with an engine harness failure. The contact was informed that the engine harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the parts were ordered and would be delivered within a week. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the dealer would be contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 89.
NHTSA complaint #11723870 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Milwaukee, WI
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Kia has a known wiring‑harness defect that causes the low engine oil sensor to trigger incorrectly. Despite this, there has been no recall, and new vehicles are still being sold with the issue. The wiring harness is now on back order, leaving me without a car for weeks or longer. The vehicle has plenty of oil, and the dealership confirmed there are no engine problems, yet the warning light keeps coming back because of the faulty harness. This happened 1 day after buying this car new from the dealership lot.
NHTSA complaint #11723226 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Louisville, OH
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The car only has 150 miles on it and I bought it 3 days ago and there is a LOW ENGINE OIL warning on the dash.
NHTSA complaint #11722365 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Louisville, OH
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car only has 150 miles on it and I bought it 3 days ago and there is a LOW ENGINE OIL warning on the dash.
NHTSA complaint #11722365 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 110 milesPlainfield, IL
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2026 Kia K5. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the engine immediately started to rev extremely high, and smoke was coming from under the hood, and the front passenger side lights failed to illuminate. There was a sizzling sound coming from the engine compartment, and the hood was very hot to the touch. The contact turned off the vehicle, and a tow truck company was contacted. The contact stated that while raising the vehicle onto the tow truck, hundreds of shards of black plastic fell from the vehicle onto the driveway along with a pink colored liquid. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. After the failure, the contact received several engine failure codes on the Phone App. No further information was available. The failure mileage was 110.
NHTSA complaint #11722163 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Rossville, GA
ENGINE
Low oil engine warning. Oil level is okay. Car has 80 miles on it, total.
NHTSA complaint #11722165 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Louisville, OH
ENGINE
The car only has 150 miles on it and I bought it 3 days ago and there is a LOW ENGINE OIL warning on the dash.
NHTSA complaint #11722365 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Litchfield, IL1 injured
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My vehicle is 3 months old with only 3300 miles on it at the time this happened. I was driving on the interstate near on Saturday, January 17th, 2026. It was reasonably cold outside, and of course I had the heater on set to 70. My panoramic moonroof glass was closed, but the shade was open. My glass randomly exploded outward leaving a major hole in the glass. Glass shattered and sprinkled inside the vehicle while I was driving. After pulling over to identify what happened, I realized that the moonroof exploded outward from the vehicle.
NHTSA complaint #11711862 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Edinburg, TX
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Had the sunroof sunshade open, and the sunroof has exploded spontaneously out of nowhere. Since i had the sunshade open, the glass pieces went all over me and my wife, it had first scared us cause it was like a gun being fired off in the car, and i could've gotten into an accident. No. the car hasn’t been seen by the dealership. Theres has been many reports about this issue, me personally im in a group and theres a few people on there that this has happened to. No warning before it happened, there was no sign of impact. looks like it just spontaneously exploded outwards.
NHTSA complaint #11703123 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.