There is a distinct click when the steering wheel is center (car going straight). there is a click and a notch feeling when you turn the wheel back and forth from center. Appears to be a common problem with the Kia Souls from 2010 - 2015. (Flexible rubber steering coupler) Dealer is charging $688 to change this $12 part. Dealer also mentioned it is important to fix because as it gets worse you can potentially lose steering control of the car. This type of safety concern I think should be a recall and fixed by Kia.
2013 Kia Soul: loss of power steering
6 of the 671 complaints about the 2013 Kia Soul describe loss of power steering.
- owner complaints
- 6
- of this car's complaints
- 1%
- recalls
- 0
Loss of power steering by model year
What owners say
The Motor Driven Power Steering (MDPS) Flexible Coupling part failed. Steering is difficult and causes pull to the left/right. Appears the issue has occurred across various Kia and Hyundai models.
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel made an abnormal sound and the vehicle lost power steering assist. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where an unknown part was repaired, and the mechanic informed the contact that the vehicle was unsafe to drive. The failure recurred, and the vehicle was taken to a second independent mechanic, where an unknown repair was performed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 kia soul. While operating the vehicle, a clicking noise was present coming from the steering column when turning in either direction. While pulling into a parking space, the power steering failed and the steering wheel became very difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was taken to lakeland regal kia (1025 bartow rd, lakeland, fl) where it was diagnosed that the steering wheel flexible coupler was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 98,441.
The steering wheel of our 2013 soul is making a clunking sound. The vehicle only has 31,000 miles on it and from what I've read it seems to be the rack and pinion. I'm worried that I will lose steering while driving and the dealership I bought it from will not fix it even though all the optima's and kia souls 2014-17 have been recalled. I've seen youtube videos highlighting this defect going back to 2011 so kia was obviously aware of the issue.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 kia soul. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, the power steering failed without warning and the steering assist warning light illuminated on three different occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis but they were unable to duplicate the problem. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 850.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Owner notification
- Partial repair of c-mdps motor, ECU, worm gear and/or steering column housing
- Partial repair of c-mdps motor, ECU and/or steering column housing
- Owner letter
- Request for reimbursement form 2012-2013 my
- Attention: All Dealer Principals
- Attention: All Kia Parts & Service Managers
- Q & a: 2012-2013 my soul and 2014 my cadenza vehicles motor driven power steering (MDPS) flexible coupling...
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2013 Kia Soul power steering loss
Is loss of power steering a common problem on the 2013 Kia Soul?
6 of 671 owner complaints about the 2013 Kia Soul (1%) mention loss of power steering. The model year with the most reports is 2014.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2013 Kia Soul?
There are 0 recalls and 15 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2013 Kia Soul
Check engine light 129Knocking 74Engine failure 65Fire or smoke 59Steering noise 59Stalling 56Oil consumption 30Harsh shifting 29Overheating 26Loss of power 25Won't start 16Misfire 15No deployment 9Headlights 9Hesitation 9Steering lock-up 9ABS 8Jerking 8Warning lights 8Adaptive cruise 7Grinding brakes 6Shudder 5Won't shift 5Wipers 5
VIN decoder
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