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Kia Sedona check engine light comes on

176 of the 2,417 owner complaints about the Kia Sedona describe check engine light, most of them for the 2016 model year.

owner complaints
176
worst model year
2016
typical repair cost reported
$5,000
typical mileage
59,000
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

Often reported together

Engine failure 41Loss of power 26Stalling 23Misfire 14Knocking 13Oil consumption 10Fire or smoke 10Won't start 9

Trouble codes mentioned

P2106 3P0306 3P0300 3P0304 2P0302 2P0018 2P2138 1P2135 1P1295 1P0638 1

What owners say

Filed Sep 24, 2026 · Engine · WV

While driving my van I had stopped to put car in reverse to park and as I was putting van back into drive to finish parking the engine quit, I was unable to restart the vehicle, just a click sound. All the lights doors everything electric worked, still purchased a new battery in case that was the issue. There were no service engine lights, oil lights or any other warning signal on the dash. My brother assisted me and checked my oil which was depleted and gummy on the tip. I reached out to a mechanic to see about an engine replacement and after telling him the issue stated I should check with Kia because there has been some issues noted with that particular engine, I have reached out to my local Kia dealership Dutch Miller in barboursville WV, however there is no answer and I’ve left two voicemails and still have heard nothing back from them. From my research for engines it stated there was issue with the oil leaking into the coolant without any indications or lights warning due to head bolts loosening over time which was a manufactured part issue, I saw also there was a campaign concerning this and wanted to include my problems with your agency.

Filed Sep 23, 2026 · Engine · IL

In 2025 I had my camshaft replaced by Fox Valley VW of [XXX]. They completed work on my camshaft with a misfire notification of cylinders 2, 4 and 6. Most recently, our sedona had a head gasket blow resulting in it needing a full replacement of the long block assembly. This was determined by the Kia Service Center of McGraf Kia on [XXX]. My vehicle has the 3.3L Lambda engine in which Kia extended the warranty on the head bolts and head gaskets. (Kia Campaign WTY035 and [XXX]). During our ownership, my husband and I kept up with all regular maintenance; oil changes with the proper oil, measuring our fluid levels, changing brakes etc. Our coolant never needed to be topped off until our engine stalled and died on a regular drive home. Our engines internal temperature never increased beyond reasonable/expected levels even in the heat of the summer. Our check engine light came on twice during our ownership, during the initial cam shaft repair and now, the blown gasket. My husband was driving the car home from work, as normal, on Wednesday XXX. He came to a full stop, accelerated and heard a pop and the vehicle couldn’t accelerate to full speed. He was able to safely make it home, where it promptly died in our drive when he shifted to “Park”. The camshaft repair is important context because it was a warranty job, so it had to be approved by an insurance agent. The agent deemed our vehicle and engine well maintained and approved the warranty coverage. Our vehicle is now sitting at Kia in [XXX] with a $7600 repair that we, the owners, feel was no fault of our own. Please consider the current extended warranties WTY035 and WTY039 as evidence of the history of this issue and I have attached the past and current invoice and quote, including the detailed notes from the mechanics. Thank you for your consideration at this time. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Aug 6, 2026 · Engine · 146,000 miles · GA

The contact owns a 2019 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the engine overheated. The vehicle was driven to the local dealer, who diagnosed that the engine head bolts had failed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The engine was replaced. The contact stated that later while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer who diagnosed that the ignition coil had failed. The ignition coil and spark plug seals were replaced, and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 146,000.

Filed Aug 5, 2026 · Engine · CA

The check engine light illuminated with diagnostic code P0018 (crankshaft/camshaft position correlation, Bank 2), first recorded on a scan XXX. The vehicle was taken to a franchised Kia dealership in [XXX] on XXX at 88,719 miles. The dealer performed an engine teardown and provided a written diagnosis on XXX: metal debris on the exhaust camshaft position sensor, damaged camshaft phasers, a sheared camshaft pin, and metal contamination throughout the engine. The dealer states the engine requires either a major timing-system repair or complete engine replacement. This failure mode can cause sudden loss of motive power while driving. There was no crash, no injury, and no fire. The engine remains disassembled at the dealership and is available for inspection upon request. The problem was confirmed by a franchised Kia dealer in writing. the federal safety agency previously examined loss of motive power in this 3.3L V6 engine family in PE23-019, which named 2015-2021 Kia Sedona vehicles with 3.3L engines as peer vehicles. Warning prior to failure: check engine light only. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jul 15, 2026 · Engine · MI

Engine experienced mass, sudden oil consumption with no warning of any sort, resulting in significant engine damage. Oil had been changed apx 800 miles prior to incident, and vehicle showed no signs of leaks or oil consumption following the oil change. No oil leaks or wetness were found around oil filter or drain plug. Vehicle drove perfectly fine one day, and when started to leave a store it began horrendously knocking, despite operating as normal on the drive to the store. Dipstick was completely dry. No engine warning light was triggered, no low oil warning, etc. I contacted Kia America directly, as I had found examples of this same issue reported online and hoped for some cooperation, and was given a generic response to haul it to the nearest Kia dealership for diagnosis and repair, out of my own pocket.

Filed Jul 12, 2026 · Engine · KS · fire

Was driving down the road with zero issues known, no check engine light, and only 114K miles. There was a sudden noise that was quiet so I turned down the radio, and then within 2 seconds or so a loud bang occurred, followed by a lot of smoke. I looked in the side mirrors and noted flames coming from underneath the van. Pulled over and got my family out.

Filed Jul 2, 2026 · Electrical · 90,000 miles · IL

The contact owns a 2018 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that the air bag and the check engine warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle failed to start and was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with alternator failure; however, the battery was replaced. Additionally, the contact stated that after his wife had pulled into the driveway, the instrument panel turned blank, and the driver noticed smoke coming from under the hood. The driver turned off the vehicle, and the vehicle cooled down. The contact stated that upon attempting to restart the vehicle later in the evening, the vehicle failed to start. The contact opened the hood and noticed that unknown parts had melted. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who informed the contact that the battery terminals and an unknown control module had melted due to an electrical failure; however, the vehicle had not yet been diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

Filed Feb 8, 2026 · Engine · TX

My husband and I originally bought our White 2017 Kia Sedona LX on 9/12/18 from Hertz automotive sales. Since that time we had had no engine issues. We maintained our brakes, and standard upkeeps on the car. Eight years in and still our car had given us no issues. Our most recent oil change was on 9/13/25 and it was inspected during that oil change and no issues were noted. The car had since that time been driven as expected to school for kids and work for myself and activities on the weekend for family time. There was no weird smells, discolored smoke from the tail piper or anything. The car was running fine. At no time were any warning signals on, flashing or intermittently coming on and off. Then on Thursday, 1/22/26 evening I stopped by the gas station to get gas before turning into my neighborhood for home. Upon leaving the gas station, I noticed and felt the engine seemed off and vibrating with soft tremor like shaking and as I pressed on the gas for power it was soft power, and at that moment only did I see the check engine light on solid (not flashing). I called my husband and a few mins later we made it home, he came out to check the car, and saw now that the engine light was flashing over and over. We read up on what this meant and new we had a problem. We dropped the car off on Saturday to the mechanic and on Monday, 1/26/26 a diagnostic was made and was given the bad news that the engine had complete failure. $18,000 bill to fix all the issues. But here is a short synopsis: Multiple codes found in ECM Metal found in oil, oil is also 1 or more quarts low P0300 (Random misfire), P0302 (CYL #2 misfire), p0304, (CYL#4 misfire) p0306. (CYL#6 misfire) p0175, (bank 2 rich) p0018 (crank - cam correlation) Engine has internal failure, failing piston rings allowing oil in combustion chamber, causing misfire, rich condition and engine shaking This was a shock and we had to sell it for nothing to a salvage company.

Filed Jan 2, 2026 · Engine, Transmission · TN

March 2024 just before hitting 100,000 miles I started having oil consumption issues. Current milage is 137,300 About 10,000 miles ago my check engine light came on. I took it to an auto parts store and it was reading bank 1 O2 sensor. I took it for an oil change and never scheduled for the sensor replacement due to life events. I took it in for another service About 5,000 miles ago. At around 2,000 miles after the service the motor started stalling and sounded horrible. I took it to the dealership and it was 4.5 quarts low on oil. Took it back at 1,200 miles after top off and it was 2.5 quarts low. Started the new motor process which wasn't covered on the extended warranty due to manufactur defect. It cost me 500.00. Before the new motor was in my van started getting me stranded places. Motor wouldn't turn over at all. Got it started went to auto parts store and it was reading 4 bad sensors in bank 1 and 2 (O2 and air intake on the motor). Finally got it to KIA for the new motor told them about they sensors they were supposed to check/replace them when they put the new crate motor in. Picked my van up 3 days ago. I asked when they called if the engine light was off. They called me back several hours later and said yes. Picked it up at 5 pm 3 days ago. By 8am the next morning the engine light was back on. It's scheduled for 9am Monday. The van has now gotten me stranded 2 times in 3 days. Auto parts store ran the computer and the same 4 sensors are still showing bad. Sensors are in bank 1 and 2. The report on the old motor showed cylinder 1 and 2 oil fouling on the spark plugs (replaced at 100,000 miles by dealer) and excessive oil leakage in cylinder 1 and 2 into the crank case due to carbon stuck piston rings. I was told before the motor replacement that the KIA cares warranty may not cover these sensors. Even though the sensors are going out because they are gunked up with 7 quarts of oil their motor used and they didn't go out until the issue started.

Filed Nov 24, 2025 · Engine, Fuel system · SC

Check engine light came on all of a sudden. Smell of exhaust/gas coming from car. Took car to the dealership to get the cause of the check engine light coming on. Dealership said it came back 02 sensor bank 2 and exhaust gasket to header.

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Kia Sedona check engine light

Why does the check engine light come on in the Kia Sedona?

Owners who report it most often also describe engine failure, sudden loss of power and engine stalls while driving, and the codes they mention most are P2106, P0306 and P0300.

Which Kia Sedona years have check engine light problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2016 (36 complaints), 2008 (20 complaints) and 2015 (16 complaints).

How much does it cost to fix check engine light on the Kia Sedona?

Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $5,000 (median of 19 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.

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