2012 Kia Sorento: brake failure

Filed Jun 14, 2026 · Fuel system · TX · fire

On June 6, 2026, while driving home, the vehicle suddenly began smelling strongly of gasoline and burnt rubber. Within seconds, thick black smoke became visible in the side mirrors, followed immediately by white smoke pouring from the front hood and into the passenger cabin through the air vents. ​As I attempted to pull over to safety, the vehicle completely stopped responding. The brakes failed to operate, the engine stalled, and the steering wheel locked completely. We were barely able to bring the vehicle to a stop. Immediately upon exiting, visible flames erupted from underneath the driver's side of the vehicle and out of the front hood. The engine compartment and motor burnt completely.The safety of the driver and front passenger was put at extreme risk of death or severe injury. Because the brakes and steering locked up simultaneously while the cabin filled with smoke, we almost lost the ability to safely exit a moving vehicle that was actively catching fire. Furthermore, at no moment prior to or during the failure did any warning lamps, check engine lights, or diagnostic messages illuminate on the dashboard. There was absolutely zero advance warning from the vehicle's safety systems.The fire originated from a catastrophic fuel system failure, specifically matching the known issues of the high-pressure fuel pump leak.The vehicle is a total loss and is currently located at a tow yard. It is fully available for inspection upon request.Local police responded to the scene and generated an incident log number. A corporate claim has been opened directly with KIA but as of today, no inspector from the manufacturer or insurance has been sent out.

Filed Jul 17, 2022 · Engine · IL

Was driving down the highway and went accelerate and seem my RPMS reach the top, then noticed vehicle was ‘off’ . Seemed to have no brakes or steering. It was dark and wintertime and my car died in the middle of the highway. Feel lucky to be alive with all the vehicles that nearly missed me.

Filed Aug 1, 2019 · Engine · 162,000 miles · IL

Driving on highway at 70 MPH, car suddenly goes dead, no warning no engine light. No power, no brakes no power steering. Did glide to side of road with a near miss, car behind me was able to stop in time. Had it towed to kia dealer.

Filed Dec 14, 2018 · Brakes, Engine · 73,337 miles · TN

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 kia sorento. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the engine blew out and made a loud noise. Also, the brakes failed. The contact temporarily lost control of the vehicle, but managed to pull the vehicle over. The engine sprayed oil all over the ground. The vehicle was towed to parkside kia (9929 parkside dr, knoxville, tn 37922, (844) 755-6461). The dealer wanted the contact to pay over $2,000 to determine who was responsible for the engine failure. The manufacturer stated that they were aware of the faulty engines that were shipped from korea; however, there were no recalls. The failure mileage was 73,337.

Filed Nov 3, 2015 · Airbags, Brakes · 13,741 miles · TX · crash

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 kia sorento. The contact stated that while coming the a stop, the brakes failed to respond when the brake pedal was depressed. As a result, the vehicle to crashed into a restaurant. The air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed. The contact did not sustain any injuries. The vehicle was still at the location of the crash at the time of the call. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 13,741.

Filed Sep 26, 2015 · Brakes, Electrical · 43,000 miles · GA

Friday 9/18/15 10:40 am, backing out of parking spot slowly into a road. Engine suddenly failed, engine light came on, and the brakes completely failed. Was able to restart the car and park it again, but brakes still failed and had to use the emergency brake and the curb and tree at curb to stop vehicle. Towed to ed voyles kia on peachtree industrial blvd in atlanta who found no record of the incident in computer and that all diagnostics were normal and they couldn't reproduce the problem, so there was nothing they could do. I sent them this link with others experiencing similar issues and told rep about others' experiences:http://www.carcomplaints.com/kia/sorento/2012/engine/engine.shtml. Then had it towed to cobb county kia in kennessaw, ga. They maintained neglect on our part b/c oil level was at 0 (previous dealership saw no problem here), engine had major sludge and particles of metal in it, needed full engine replacement for $6500 didn't make sense with our regular oil changes and didn't explain the brake failure, though rep said it did. Had it towed to aaa car care plus in marietta. Could not reproduce the issue and said the car, including the engine, was in great shape, was full of all fluids. Mechanic also said that there were 0 records on computer and that one of dealerships likely wiped it completely clean. Have rented a car in meantime because my, my husband's, my two kids' and other drivers and pedestrians safety would be compromised. Other comments online mention problem more than once, some on the highway. Also remembered that my husband had had trouble starting the car a couple of months back, with no lights coming on at all. He got the battery checked out, and he was told it was fine. We relayed this to the mechanics too, but they seemed not to acknowledge the info. We cannnot and will not drive the car until it's resolved.