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2012 Kia Forte: check engine light

35 of the 293 complaints about the 2012 Kia Forte describe check engine light.

owner complaints
35
of this car's complaints
12%
typical mileage
109,705
recalls
1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 10 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below

Check engine light by model year

What owners say

Filed Aug 26, 2026 · Brakes · 135,000 miles · CA · fire

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed an abnormal sound for approximately five minutes, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact then became aware of a fire underneath the vehicle. The contact opened the hood and extinguished the fire using water and dirt. The vehicle was unoccupied. The contact stated that the vehicle had just been parked, and the engine was off prior to the failure. The dealer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to tow the vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test. The failure mileage was approximately 135,000.

Filed Apr 16, 2026 · Engine · 142,000 miles · AL

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle made an abnormal knocking sound, and there was a burning oil odor coming from the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 20V750000 (ENGINE); however, the contact was unable to schedule an appointment because the dealer was unreachable. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 142,000.

Filed Oct 21, 2025 · Brakes, Engine · 100,000 miles · NM

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a strong fuel odor coming from the vehicle, followed by a loss of motive power. The malfunction indicator light and ABS warning light were illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000. The VIN was not available.

Filed Jun 4, 2025 · Acceleration · CA

the VCM motor has a "coupler" that operates intake manifold runner, this coupler brakes apart , causing vehicle to loose engine power, engine light comes on, code P200. kia dealer recommends to replace the intake manifold that comes with new VCM motor, if you replace it you're self then you need to take vehicle to kia dealer to have them update software for the new VCM.

Filed Feb 26, 2025 · Engine · 100,000 miles · WA · fire

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she observed smoke emanating from the engine compartment, after which the vehicle lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted. The following day, upon starting the vehicle, the contact heard an abnormal rattling sound emanating from the engine compartment, prompting the contact to discontinue driving the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 20V750000 (Engine); the VIN was included, and parts were available. However, the dealer declined to perform the recall repair, stating that the vehicle needed to be brought in before the failure for the cost of the repair to be covered by the manufacturer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.

Filed Sep 18, 2024 · Acceleration, Engine · CA

Engine keeps turning off when driving at 65 mph it also jerks accelerate by itself loosen power it occurs occasionally, engine smells burn oil and engine light comes on. Dealer has failed to reproduce failure and now they want to charge me $185 to run a full diagnose this problem started after 8/16/2017 after dealer service

Filed Jun 13, 2024 · Brakes · 81,600 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure but confirmed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,600. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Jan 25, 2024 · Brakes, Engine · 130,000 miles · IN

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the O2 sensor had failed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The dealer had not been contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 130,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed Jan 4, 2024 · Acceleration, Brakes · 119,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to exceed 15 MPH. The ABS and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 119,000.

Filed Oct 28, 2023 · Engine · OH

So my check engine light kept coming on and my car has trouble starting. Light is now on all the time.The code says it's a intake manifold runner control. I called kia they said the part is obsolete because my car is 11 years old. It makes my engine knock and shake and kia here in parma has been no help. They originally said part was around $79 kia motors was able to find 1 but now dealer telling. Me it's $400 can't get check engine light off or my engine to stop shaking without the part but not when the price is tripled. It's been in kias shop for a recall and they didn't know what to do about the part or the knocking .

Filed Oct 4, 2023 · Engine · 109,705 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Forte. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after each failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed, and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 109,705.

Filed Jul 26, 2023 · Airbags · WA

Recall #SC165,for the airbag frontal deploy module failure was fixed but now the same problem along with the airbag malfunction indicator light is illuminating on my dash. Kia won't call me back or email me back when I asked them if this is something they will fix again since the first fix failed for this same issue? And randomly while driving I smell a electrical burn smell but no smoke? When I was leaving for work that morning and I stared my car the indicator light came on and never has gone off since that day?

Service bulletins that may apply

Related recalls

EngineReported December 2, 2020 · 294,756 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2012-2013 Sorento, 2012-2015 Forte and Forte Koup, 2011-2013 Optima Hybrid, 2014-2015 Soul, and 2012 Sportage vehicles. An engine compartment fire can occur while driving.
Risk
An engine compartment fire increases the risk of injury.
Remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the engine compartment for fuel and/or engine oil leaks, perform an engine test and make any repairs, including engine replacement, as necessary, free of charge. In addition, Kia dealers will update the Knock Sensor Detection System (KSDS) software, free of charge. The recall began January 27, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1‑800‑333‑4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC200.

Recall number 20V750000 · Recall details

Questions about the 2012 Kia Forte check engine light

Is check engine light a common problem on the 2012 Kia Forte?

35 of 293 owner complaints about the 2012 Kia Forte (12%) mention check engine light. The model year with the most reports is 2014.

Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2012 Kia Forte?

There is 1 recall and 10 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.

Other symptoms on the 2012 Kia Forte

Knocking 77Engine failure 57Fire or smoke 26Stalling 23No deployment 11Won't start 11Airbag light 10Jerking 8ABS 7Fuel smell 7Loss of power 7Headlights 6

All model years of the Kia Forte

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