2003 Kia Sorento: loss of power steering

Filed Mar 18, 2017 · Transmission · 989,000 miles · WI

Vehicle broke down in traffic. Froze up,stalled. Loss of steering. Had it towed to shop & was told the crank shaft sensor & related parts to the crank shaft had to be replaced. Cost for towing & repairs were over $700.

Filed Jul 31, 2016 · Engine · 88,025 miles · NY

While under motion on highway at 65+ MPH, lost power steering due to crank shaft bolt and pulley failure, resulting in complete loss of accessory functions.

Filed Dec 17, 2015 · Brakes, Engine · 114,283 miles · IN

Crankshaft bolt backed out lost power steering brakes,kia is aware of this problem from 2002 to 2009 many reports have been filed,its the manufacturing of the bolt which is to small,they are not standing by this defect,there is no permenant fix for this and kia isn't warning anyone of this problem which could lead into a fatile accident with injuries and death.going at a high rate of speed there would be no control even at slow there is no easy turning the wheel.now im stuck with this problem and a temp fix wont fix it,so now I have no vehicle or anyway to get one,no way to work,no money to temp fix it,this is unjust and this vehicle should have never passed specs to be on the road.kia should step up and honor there products,they are deceiving buyers and putting there life in danger and u don't know it till it happens,I didn't...I was taking my daughter to school I am thankful I wasn't on the highway possible resulting in my familys life or someone else on the road,with no control all because of there negligence not caring for peoples lifes but for money,its sad .if u pull up crankshaft bolt for kia it will show you all the complaints and problems and this is a manufacturing problem and a dangerous defect,because you lose control of handiling of your vehicle.

Filed Jul 21, 2015 · Engine · 83,986 miles · CA

The bolt holding the harmonic balancer pulley to the crankshaft fell out and all the engine belts and pulleys stopped turning resulting in a loss of power steering, and making the vehicle very difficult to steer. This happened at a low speed and the driver was barely able to turn off the road without an accident. At a higher speed, in heavy traffic, or on mountain roads, the result would likely have been much worse. The car was towed to a kia dealer and repaired for approximately $1,500.00, replacing the failed parts with new parts and with a warranty of 12 months/10 thousand miles. Previously, at 70 thousand miles as preventive maintenance, the timing belt was replaced by a kia dealer. Kia motors, having known of many failures of the bolt, sprocket, and pulley, should have upgraded these parts years ago and issued a recall or at least a service bulletin to avoid such dangerous failures. After our experience, we did not trust this car and traded it in for a new car from hopefully a more responsible manufacturer.

Filed Aug 26, 2014 · Engine, Steering · 96,000 miles · HI

I bought a 2003 kia sorento from my niece back in november 2013 for $2000 and not even two weeks into owning this vehicle, the crank shaft broke in half! The bolt broke off in half inside the crank shaft pulley and the other half of the bolt was inside the crank shaft case. To my understanding, this is the second time that the crank shaft needed repairing (my niece, husband who were the first and original owners to this kia sorento had it break down on him on the freeway as well, had to get it towed to kia then paid them to fix it when they owned the vehicle) but this time, when this issue happened again while I owned the vehicle, the crank shaft failed in a greater and more costly condition then the first time the crank shaft failed on them. Which then caused engine failure, loss of power steering, loss of the charging system, loss of the cooling system and loss of control of the vehicle, everything shut down, vehicle wouldn't start up after that and it could have been a very dangerous situation as it happened while on the freeway and while my husband, my daughter and my granddaughter was in the vehicle traveling. It could have jeopardize their life's as well as other!

Filed Jun 13, 2014 · Steering · NC

While driving at a safe speed (35mph) with my children in the car my power steering failed and all my dash lights came on. I was able to pull over this time out of harms way. Once I got the car to the side of the I had noticed that one of my belts came off. I got it towed to the mechanic first thing the next morning and told me a bolt came off the pulley and the pulley was off. They fixed the car and I was good up until it happened 4 more times. Luckily I was the only in the car at the time it happened the last time due to the fact I was on a highway and going 70mph. Once again I managed to get to the side of the road to safety. With this happening numerous times no one wants to fix the car anymore and I don't understand why a recall has yet to be made on something so simple. Also in my state my car is not protected under the lemon law.

Filed May 2, 2014 · Engine · 160,753 miles · WI · crash

In february this beautiful vehicle became a nightmare quick. A horrid sound came from below and I lost steering, several lights on the dashboard lit up and our was very difficult controlling the SUV. Me and my children were very afraid. I allowed the SUV to slow n it veered off and jumped the curb. After a tow, $2000 bucks plus, and several shops including kia is just sitting like hunks unless I can stuff another $2000 or so in. Kia needs to fix this!!

Filed Nov 22, 2013 · Engine · 128,000 miles · FL

I was driving along and my battery, brake lights came on. I lost power steering and brakes. I popped the hood and realized that I had lost 2-3 belts. I had it towed to a mechanic shop, national chain who said the harmonic balancer had fallen off. Upon inspection, the crankshaft bolt had broken. Many, many complaints about this problem online.

Filed Apr 15, 2013 · Engine, Steering · 57,000 miles · OH

While driving my daughter to school, vehicle lost steering in a turn causing us to narrowly miss hitting a utility pole. Vehicle had to be towed to service garage where they confirmed that the crankshaft pulley bolt had become loose causing the harmonic balancer pulley to wobble, break and cause damage to all surrounding engine components. $1700.00 repair did not work and issue recurred. After a second repair attempt, same issue occurred again this time with the crankshaft bolt having sheered off. Vehicle is a serious safety hazard, is not drivable at this time, and will this time cost minimally $3500.00 for a replacement motor....and potentially a life. It is imperative that the federal safety agency mandate a recall on these vehicles as it is ludicrous to wait for a death or multiple deaths before acting on what I am well aware is a commonly reported and potentially deadly problem. A good part of "safety" occurs in being proactive. The absence of a recall on this is mind boggling. The federal safety agency must act.

Filed Apr 29, 2012 · Engine · OH

Driving to store and heard noise. Several warning lights came on and I had no power steering. Returned home and found crank pulley and broken crank pulley bolt laying in the skid plate.

Filed Sep 2, 2011 · Engine · 120,000 miles · CA

Crankshaft bolt was replaced after recall in 2007. Crankshaft sensor was replaced in april 2011 after malfunctioning and causing car to stall out at anytime, including while doing 65 on the freeway. While driving a few days back, sudden loss of power steering and brake and battery lights came on. Had car towed to dealership where we were told that the bolt, which had been replaced per the recall, had broken, but the warranty on the replaced bolt is only 1 year. Now repair on this will cost over $300 and new bolt will still only be warrantied for one year. So this same problem with this faulty part could continue, but the part is only under warranty for one year.

Filed Nov 20, 2009 · Engine, Steering · 79,000 miles · MD

I have a 2003 kia sorento. As I left the garage at my office around 6 p.m. Monday 11/16, the car began making a horrible squealing noise. It immediately lost power steering, several warning lights came on, and it felt like the parking brake was on (it wasn't). I managed to get out of the garage to a space on the street. I turned the car off. When I tried to start it again, it wouldn't start. I had it towed to a service station, which said the car had thrown its drive belts and that it needed a new crankshaft balancer pulley, crankshaft sprocket, crankshaft pulley bolt and crankshaft pulley washer to fix the underlying cause. I called kia customer service to see if there was a recall related to those parts. There was a recall in 2007 and my car was serviced at that time as ordered by kia. Kia said tuesday that they would only consider paying for needed repairs if I had the car towed to a kia dealership. I had it towed to king kia in gaithersburg, md., at my expense. The service writer, wayne johnson, told me that the garage that had put my new timing belt on had left a bolt loose. He told me his mechanic put the three drive belts back on. He told me I needed a new battery (though the current battery was only 2 years old) because the current one wasn't holding a charge. I told him to put one on. He told me the car was running fine and ready to go. I assumed -- it now turns out, wrongly -- that the kia mechanic had tightened whatever bolt he found loose. I picked up the car wednesday night and drove it straight home. When I started it yesterday morning to leave for work, I drove it about 1.5 blocks and the steering locked up, the brake and battery warning lights came on, and it felt like the parking brake was on. This time the engine kept running. I brought it back home and called the kia garage back. Wayne now admits the mechanic never looked for an underlying cause. He simply put the old drive belts on and a new battery in. Today he says it needs a new crank pulley.