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2007 Kia Sorento airbags problems

58 complaints (38% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 10,000. 5 crashes reported.

owner complaints
58
of this car's complaints
38%
typical mileage
10,000
crashes
5
recalls
1

Which part fails

  • Frontal: sensor/control module
    14
  • Frontal
    13
  • Side/window
    1
  • Sensor: occupant classification: front passenger
    1
  • On-off switch assembly
    1

At what mileage

Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.

0k-25k
25k-50k
50k-75k
75k-100k
100k-125k
125k-150k
150k-175k
175k-200k
200k+

Kia Sorento airbags problems in other years

200320052010201520202025

Specific symptoms reported on the 2007 Kia Sorento airbags

Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.

Airbag light 25No deployment 6

Related recalls

Air bags: frontal: sensor/control module-inactiveReported September 7, 2011 · 10,631 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Kia is recalling certain model year 2007-2008 sorento passenger cars manufactured from june 15, 2006 through november 27, 2007. The front passenger air bag may be turned off when an adult is in the passenger seat. The front passenger air bag is designed to be turned off in limited circumstances including when children and small adults are seated in the front passenger seat, there is a child restraint in that seat or the seat is not occupied. The vehicle's occupant classification system (ocs), which classifies the occupant in the front passenger seat, may misclassify an adult passenger as a child or child seat and improperly turn off the passenger side air bag. When the air bag is deactivated the "passenger air bag off" light will illuminate on the center instrument panel.
Risk
The passenger side air bag is turned off when the ocs misclassifies an adult passenger. With the front passenger airbag off, the front passenger will not have the protection of the passenger air bags in some frontal collisions, thus increasing the risk of occupant injury.
Remedy
Kia will update the programming in the sorento ocs control module at no charge. The recall remedy is currently available under service campaign sc076. Owners may contact kia customer service at 1‑800‑333‑4542.

Recall number 11V473000 · Recall details

Related investigations

Air Bag Occupant Classification SystemOpened November 19, 2009, closed September 26, 2011

The Sorento's front passenger air bag may be turned off when an adult is seated in the passenger seat. The front passenger air bag is designed to be turned off in limited circumstances including when children and small adults are seated in the front passenger seat, there is a child restraint in that seat, or the seat is not occupied.But the Sorento has misclassified adults sitting in the passenger seat.This causes the passenger side frontal air bag to deactivate and the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light to illuminate. On May 12, 2009, Kia launched a Technical Service Bulletin campaign (SC076) to address this problem, installing upgraded occupant classification system (OCS) software in vehicles built prior to the 11/27/2007 production date. ODI and Kia identified 908 owner reports and 927 warranty claims related to this OCS issue.Kia also reported one crash where the passenger frontal air bag did not deploy in a frontal crash due to misclassification.Testing of Sorento vehicles built prior to December 2007 shows that misclassification can occur.As of April 2011, Kia reports that approx. 46,000 of the 57,228 vehicles have been upgraded with the revised software.On September 6, 2011, Kia submitted a defect notice and will recall the affected vehicles that have not been upgraded.Owner notification is scheduled to start in late-September 2011.The recall will upgrade the OCS software.Accordingly the investigation is closed.

EA09017

Air bag ocsOpened July 17, 2009, closed November 30, 2009

Kia reports that for vehicles built prior to the software update of 11/27/2007, the vehicles can improperly classify an adult as a child restraint seat and thus illuminate the airbag off warning light and suppress the frontal passenger airbag.on may 12, 2009, kia launched a technical service bulletin (sb076) campaign to re-flash all vehicles built prior to the 11/27/2007 production date.kia also believes that intermittent occupant movement and out of position seating contributed to the high number of complaints.905 of the 947 complaints and 1,014 of the 1,107 warranty claims were associated with the 57,228 vehicles built prior to the 11/27/2007 production date.there was one frontal passenger airbag non-deployment crash that resulted in one minor injury of a belted adult passenger occupant.this preliminary evolution is being upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea09-017) to further assess this issue for all my2007-2008 sorento vehicles built prior to the 11/27/2007 production date.

PE09034

What 2007 Kia Sorento owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Sep 27, 2023 · Airbags · FL

Passenger seat air bag sensor doesn't work.

Filed Nov 10, 2021 · Airbags · GA

With or without passengers in vehicle, passenger side air bag does not come on.

Filed Oct 15, 2020 · Airbags · 81,200 miles · PA

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 kia sorento. The contact stated that the air bag warning light illuminated as the contact sat in the seat. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 81,200.

Filed Aug 27, 2019 · Airbags · 96,000 miles · CA

Passager airbag won't turn on.

Filed May 22, 2019 · Airbags, Seats · CA

( passenger side ) airbag is not activated when a passenger is in seat. Kia replaced the the sensor and after returning home it still was not working.kla told me that sense it has been already replaced there is nothing else they would do.

Filed Mar 20, 2019 · Airbags, Electrical · 180,000 miles · VA

Takata recall. Air bag light on dash stays on at all times and "passenger air bag on/off" indicator indicates off, even when an adult is sitting in the passenger seat. Additionally, horn won't blow at times.

Filed Mar 14, 2019 · Airbags · WA

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 kia sorento. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency campaign number: 11v473000 (air bags). The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. Vancouver kia (3400 ne auto mall dr, vancouver, wa 98662, (360) 342-9104) was contacted and confirmed that the parts were not available for the recall remedy. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and was not able to confirm when the parts were to become available. The contact had not experienced a failure.

Filed Feb 9, 2018 · Airbags · IL

Front passenger airbag light is always on , I purchased this car last 2016 and when I checked for recalls said nothing pending but this issue its been always since I bought it ,sometimes light goes blinking,vehicle is in use ,called kia and they said this car was already checked for that recall .recall # sc076a

Filed Sep 21, 2017 · Airbags, Brakes · CA

Takata recall- I have change all the break pads, and when I press the break pedal I goes all the way down to the floor panel. I have all ready bleed all the line to get the air out, but it not working. Their is no brake ligth on, and on cars.com I see some recalls and the kia's recall campaign number is sc098. Please help thank you

Filed Sep 1, 2017 · Airbags · PA

I may love my kia sorento but when it comes to safety devices and faulty air bags kia could care less about ones safety. I have been parts and service director for chrysler, ford and mitsubishi ad when these companies have faulty air bag components causing life and death scenarios they do not look at warranty dates and mileage. I have the sorento that just falls out of a recall qualification by a couple months and they are refusing the repair the air bag fault saying maybe they will cover half. Well kia forces the repair to be a complete seat as they do not have repair parts for the air bag sensor. When I was at chrysler customers would call the chrysler hotline and chrysler would do a deductible copay on transmission for anywhere between 200-500 for cars out of warranty by over 20k and more than a year. When it came to safety chrysler very rarely ever charged a deductible or copay no matter what time or mileage. . . . . . .... .. Guess as much as I love my kia sorento kia does not care about ones life and safety where chrysler puts the safety as number one. Not sure I will be recommending any kia's anymore as they do not care about the life of the driver or passenger. So when the air bag does not work properly and causes a death kia will be seen in court paying out a lot of money for the death they caused. Also just for information the representative I have been speaking with is as polite as a snake and just plain arrogant saying it is my fault for the failure when there is a recall for the exact problem but my car production date is off by a month or two. This will be taken legal s the air bag is a safety issue and kia refuses to accept fault

Questions about the 2007 Kia Sorento airbags

Does the 2007 Kia Sorento have airbags problems?

Owners have filed 58 complaints about the airbags of the 2007 Kia Sorento, 38% of all its complaints, more than any other problem.

At what mileage do 2007 Kia Sorento airbags problems start?

The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 10,000 miles.

Was there a recall on the 2007 Kia Sorento airbags?

Yes, 1 recall: 11V473000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.

What year does the Kia Sorento have bad airbags?

The Kia Sorento model years with the most airbags complaints are 2011 (183 complaints), 2012 (81 complaints) and 2008 (66 complaints).

Other 2007 Kia Sorento problems

Brakes 24Electrical 21Transmission 20Driver assistance 18Engine 13Lights 13Acceleration 10Body 9Seat belts 4Tires 4Wheels 4Locks 3Steering 3Suspension 3Fuel system 2Visibility 2Seats 1

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