2025 Kia Carnival: battery drain or dead battery

Filed Mar 30, 2026 · Brakes, Electrical · TX

The vehicle (2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid) has suffered from a systemic parasitic 12V battery drain since the first month of ownership. The first occurrence was July 20, 2025, requiring a jump-start from Kia Roadside Assistance. On 02/26/2026, the vehicle was presented at Moritz Kia Alliance for the same issue. The dealer diagnosed the 12V battery as defective (Code R04) and replaced it under warranty. However, the defect persisted. On 03/10/2026, only 12 days later, the vehicle suffered another total electrical failure. I had to utilize Kia Roadside Assistance for a jump-start and drive the vehicle directly to the dealer without turning the engine off to ensure it could be serviced. This marked the second official repair attempt for this recurring defect. The vehicle has remained in dealer possession since March 10 (21 consecutive days). On March 11, only one day after drop-off, the Service Director threatened that the vehicle would be "impounded" after 60 days, despite the vehicle being the subject of an active Texas DMV Lemon Law Case (#26-0012638.CAF). On March 26, a critical safety failure occurred: during a start-up attempt, the Integrated Power Brake (IPB) system malfunctioned, causing the brake pedal to pulsate and physically "kick back" with significant force against my foot. I have serious concerns that this braking failure could occur while in motion, posing an unreasonable risk of high-speed collision, serious injury, or death. No root-cause diagnosis has been made. Furthermore, the main fuse box cover was left off during service, exposing critical electrical components. The vehicle is available for inspection.

Filed Jan 26, 2026 · Electrical · CA

12v Battery died 2 times first on 12/26 then on 1/25. We had to call in roadside assistance for jump start. This was reported to Kia Dublin and Kia Manteca in California. Kia Dublin ran the diagnostics and couldnt find anything. Kia Manteca later found the battery logs showing issues. But said it could have been related to the HVAC recall which is now fixed. But the problem re-occured. This is a brand new vehicle less than 1 year old, still unders warranty. Have reported this to Kia customer care as well. Kia Customer Care Case#XXX So far, we have had the following issues: 1. The front passenger seat recliner stopped working. Kia Manteca replaced the seat frame under warranty. 2. Both rear entertainment screens stopped working. Kia Dublin has ordered them under warranty. Replacement planned for 1/26. 3. Battery died 2 times, luckily car was in the garage we were not stranded anywhere outside. But its frustrating how the new car is not working as expected and stalls so frequently. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Oct 13, 2025 · Electrical · GA

12V battery drains if the car is left unused for more than 3-4 days. Car needs to be jumped to start it up again. The issue occurred in August and I jumped it first time. It started happening again September and had a service appointment with Kia. They hard reset the software but the issue occured again every time I left the car unused for more than 3-4 days.

Filed Mar 13, 2025 · Electrical · GA

The vehicle's battery drain after turning off and cannot restart. It can cause to stall the vehicle on road. Kia Connect sent "Our backend team has determined that a TSB ELE341 (Network Reset) is needed to refresh your vehicle’s connection to the Kia Connect servers. To resolve this, please contact your preferred official Kia dealership to schedule an appointment and mention TSB ELE341 for the network reset." Took the vehicle to a Kia dealer's service; they reset, but problem remains. I just received from Kia"Dear [XXX] , This is nothing that we can troubleshoot. You will have to wait for your appointment to have them handle the issue. Thank you Sincerely, Kia America INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Nov 15, 2024 · Electrical · NY

Battery went dead. Been at dealer 2 weeks. They are waiting to hear from Kia but nothing is being done.

Filed Nov 5, 2024 · Electrical · NY

There seems to be a very common problem of the 2025 Kia Carnival having a battery drain issue, leaving people stranded. I had a dead battery today with only one month and 300 miles of use. Thousands have had the same experience and have discussed this on various forums.

Filed Nov 4, 2024 · Electrical · MI

12V Vehicle battery drained. Unable to start Vehicle.

Filed Aug 26, 2024 · Electrical · CA

I purchased brand new 2025 Kia Carnival SX less than 2 months ago and it is back at the dealership for service for the second time. First time it had an airbag light stay on the dash and the battery kept reading low voltage and would not allow us to use any features on Kia Access app such as remote start and 360 view. The dealership fixed the airbag light but did not find any electrical issues with battery after testing. The car is driven daily and after sitting for approximately 16 hours the car battery is completely dead. Tried to do a quick jump and would not crank over. I am convinced it has a parasitic draw. It is currently at second service center in hopes of a resolution. So far Kia has not been very supportive.

Filed Aug 23, 2024 · Electrical, Engine · UT

Started about a couple weeks ago. Just bought my car and my battery drained 3 nights in a row. Had to jump start it Found out some fan run, when car is off, hours after it has been parked.

Filed Aug 22, 2024 · Electrical · IL

The battery on this car drains despite standard operation. Battery replacements do not work and it must be jumped. Some programming aspect clearly is wrong and drains the battery when not in use. It needs to be fixed asap for safety and to avoid stranding.

Filed Aug 16, 2024 · Electrical · NC

My bran new 2025 with 3,000 miles has a completely dead battery. The Kia roadside assistance person was unable to jump start it.

Filed Aug 13, 2024 · Electrical · NC

Battery drain which results in vehicle not starting. There have been a series of events that ended in my Carnival not starting. Purchased new on July 6, 2024. Picked up from to Dealership July 8, 2024 and drove home. The below events started Aug 2, 2024 1. Side mirrors didn’t “wake up” when I approached with key fob 2. Truck wouldn’t close (had to manually pull shut) 3. Received app notification when attempting to lock doors through app that battery was less than 40% 4. Received dashboard warning when attempting to start 5. Lights remained on for a few seconds after attempting to start 6. Vehicle wouldn’t start 7. Turn signal - Action required via app 8. Towed to Dealership 8/5/2025 a vehicle would not start