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2016 Kia Sorento: gas smell in the cabin

10 of the 1,263 complaints about the 2016 Kia Sorento describe gas smell in the cabin.

owner complaints
10
of this car's complaints
1%
typical mileage
62,625
recalls
0
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

Gas smell in the cabin by model year

What owners say

Filed Oct 20, 2026 · Fuel system · 79,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, there was an abnormally strong fuel odor inside the vehicle. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for a scheduled service, the contact requested that the dealer inspect the issue. The vehicle was diagnosed with a low-pressure fuel pump failure. The contact was informed that the low-pressure fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

Filed Jul 1, 2026 · Engine, Fuel system · NC

Hello. I just started smelling gas fumes when my car has been running. I see no drips , etc. It happens everytime I drive it to the point where someone pointed it out to me. I had a new engine put in by KIA for my old engine "going to sleep" about 4 years ago. I have been told that this is a on going problem with the Model I have. I want to know what I should do at this point. Im [XXX] and [XXX] so I dont have the money to take it all over the place if this engine issue is covered. Could you please let me know and how to proceed? [XXX] [XXX] Cell [XXX] THANK YOU FOR ANY HELP ps....You should have record of KIA replacing the engine on file??? Is this a warranty issue since I do have a newer engine? INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jun 30, 2025 · Fuel system · AZ

Fuel pump is leaking, unsafe to drive vehicle, no check engine light just really bad smell of gas

Filed Jun 17, 2025 · Engine · 56,000 miles · ME

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of automotive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the road. However, upon further inspection, the engine oil dipstick had an abnormal fuel odor. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to a lack of maintenance records and the costs. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000.

Filed Jun 21, 2023 · Engine, Fuel system · FL · fire

Recently, while driving on a busy multi-lane highway my 2016 Kia Sorento suddenly lost power, started shaking and slowed down causing traffic safety hazard. The engine stalled after slowing down. The car needed to be towed at my expense.my check engine light came on for my KSDS, the engine went limp mode and unable to accelerate over 50 miles and hour on the highway. My engine is blown. gasoline smell fumes came through vent causing me to have an attack car started to catch fire.

Filed Dec 31, 2022 · Engine · PA

We have to constant add oil to the engine in between our 3000 mile oil changes, at least a quart or more. There are no oil leaks anywhere on the engine. The engine makes a loud "ticking" noise and doesn't have the power. The transmission also has issues shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. We have even noticed from time to time a smell of gasoline from what seems to be coming from under the vehicle, but no signs of it leaking anywhere. Also the gas pedal doesn't always have the same "feel" when pushing it

Filed Aug 25, 2022 · Engine · TX

The check oil light keeps turning on then turning off. For the last 2 oil changes which are done every 3000 miles with high mileage oil the oil has been non existent. When you pull out the oil it is dry! No leaking of oil is found anywhere even though the exhaust smells of burning oil. When I took it to the dealership I was told "this was a known problem" and all I need to do is start changing my oil every 3000 miles using synthetic high mileage oil. That's not working. The light keeps coming on and off and I've only driven 1000 miles since my last oil change in July! I took it to the dealership when I threw a code that I was told was just because I ran out of oil and my car stalled. My car should not be running out of oil!

Filed Sep 29, 2020 · Engine, Fuel system · 62,625 miles · CA

Vehicle engine broke down on highway at 62k miles with loss of power and heavy smoke. Ultimately had to get new engine installed by the dealer but literally day after they returned the vehicle, it lost power on the road again with heavy smell of gas. Dealer said they fixed the fuel injector and o-ring but once again having same issue in sep (after minimal driving for past couple months). Vehicle still with dealer because they diagnosis issue after replacing fuel injector and gasket again. Something is wrong with the v6 kia sorento engines and fuel system.

Filed May 26, 2019 · Fuel system · 39,656 miles · OH

Strong fuel smell in cabin when driving and stationary.

Filed Apr 2, 2019 · Engine · 72,000 miles · LA · fire

The car was stationary with the engine running, waiting for about 2 minutes when I smelled a strong exhaust smell. I began to drive, and within 30 seconds smoke started coming from under the hood. I pulled over and stopped the engine just as flames came out from the right side of the hood. In less than 5 minutes the engine was engulfed in flames. The fire fighters arrived a minute later and took quite some time to extinguish the fire. The entire engine and front of the car was burned completely. The car is totaled. We have filed a claim with our insurance and reported it to kia.

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the 2016 Kia Sorento fuel smell

Is gas smell in the cabin a common problem on the 2016 Kia Sorento?

10 of 1,263 owner complaints about the 2016 Kia Sorento (1%) mention gas smell in the cabin. The model year with the most reports is 2016.

Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2016 Kia Sorento?

There is no recall or service bulletin for this area of the car on record.

Other symptoms on the 2016 Kia Sorento

Engine failure 280Check engine light 184Knocking 130Oil consumption 128Stalling 105Loss of power 83Overheating 73Fire or smoke 71Headlights 54Won't shift 43Won't start 39Jerking 27Door locks 24Misfire 21Fuel pump 16Hesitation 14Warning lights 11Sunroof shattered 10Adaptive cruise 9No deployment 9Transmission failure 9Harsh shifting 8Key fob 8ABS 7Sudden acceleration 7Power steering loss 6Wipers 6Backup camera 5Fuel leak 5Shudder 5

All model years of the Kia Sorento

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