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2023 Kia Sportage PHEV problems

The most common problem on the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV is engine and cooling. It has 1.3 times the complaints of a typical Sportage PHEV model year.

Typical year1.3x the typical complaints
Owner complaints
16
Recalls
2
Service bulletins
496 warranty
Worst area
Engine

The worst 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

  • Engine
    4
  • Acceleration
    3
  • Electrical
    3
  • Fuel system
    3
  • Body
    2

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

  • Engine
    4
  • Acceleration
    3
  • Electrical
    3
  • Fuel system
    3
  • Body
    2
  • Driver assistance
    2
  • Transmission
    2
  • Brakes
    1
  • Steering
    1
  • Visibility
    1

Recalls 2

Trailer hitchesReported December 17, 2025 · 5,046 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Sportage Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV) and 2024-2025 Sportage vehicles equipped with a 4.2" screen and a Genuine Kia tow hitch harness accessory. Due to a software error, the instrument panel screen may fail. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 101, "Controls and Displays."
Risk
An instrument panel screen that fails to display critical safety information, such as the speedometer or warning lights, can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the tow hitch harness control module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 13, 2026. Owners may contact Kia Customer Service at 1‑800‑333‑4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC359. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on beginning December 31, 2025.

Recall number 25V874000 · Recall details

Electrical system: instrument cluster/panelReported April 26, 2023 · 108,936 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023 Sportage, Sportage Hybrid, Sportage Plug-in Hybrid, Niro Hybrid, Niro Plug-in Hybrid, Soul, and Telluride vehicles equipped with a digital instrument cluster containing a 4.2" LCD screen.  The instrument cluster may fail to display any information when the vehicle is started.  As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard numbers 101, "Control and Displays," and 138, "Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems."
Risk
A blank instrument cluster display will not show critical information, such as tire pressure, warning messages, and warning lights, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will update the instrument cluster software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1‑800‑333‑4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC270.

Recall number 23V298000 · Recall details

See all 2 recalls for the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV

Technical service bulletins for the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV 49

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

See all 49 bulletins for the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV

What 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Oct 21, 2026 · Engine, Transmission · 33,325 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while coming to a complete stop, the vehicle shifted into neutral and failed to properly shift into gear. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed, and the contact was advised that the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 33,325.

Filed Jan 1, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · NV

1. Hybrid system failure And check engine light on . 2. Car jerk while driving and gone to limp mode and my speed was reduced to 10 mph at traffic putting my self and other in danger . 3. My vehicle is currently at the dealership getting inspected this is the second time my hybrid warning light came on and the first time they told me nothing was wrong with my vehicle. 4. All of these symptoms happened at the same time while driving.

Filed Oct 30, 2025 · Body, Visibility · CA

I had been driving on the freeway for about 5 minutes, and suddenly heard broken glass in my car. It was dark (around 8pm) so I looked around as I was driving and didn't see any of my visible windows broken. I then heard more glass shattering sound and realized it was my sunroof glass that had suddenly broken. The mesh cover beneath it was closed so I was not injured. When I went home and did a quick google search, several other incidents of this happening popped up. There were no warning lamps or messages or symptoms of the problem prior to failure. It has been 2 weeks of calling my local Kia as well as Kia Customer care and my car is still sitting idle with the broken glass on top.

Filed Aug 13, 2025 · Acceleration · CA

When engaging the cruise control using the steering wheel button, the speed will set itself at 110 miles an hour, and the vehicle will in fact attempt to reach that speed and accelerate. The problem has occurred at speeds as low as 30 miles an hour and as high as 70 miles an hour, it happens intermittently pressing the cruise control button does not disengage the cruise control every time sometimes it is necessary to press the brakes for the cruise control to be shut back off.

Filed Jul 25, 2025 · Steering · NC

Kia opted for Leather like material for the steering wheel cover. This material with only 14, 828 miles on the vehicle is starting to peel off causing a bad gripping scenario. The material is more like a vinyl instead of leather. I have brought the vehicle to the Dealer who is attempted a warranty submission but I believe they will maybe only replace it with the same material and it will do it again. In all my years of driving I have never seen a wheel cover peel like this material is doing. It has been slowly failing over time and not all at once.

Filed Apr 7, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · CA

PHEV vehicle: charging interrupted in the middle of the night. When attempting to reconnect the charger, a "Charging unsuccessful" message was given. A warning with "Check Hybrid System" appeared, as well as the check engine light. I cannot charge the car anymore and had to leave it at the dealership.

Filed Jan 1, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · FL

When driving, I get random flashing lights on the Dashboard with a Warning indicator: ”Check Hybrid system. Stop safely”. It happened at least on 7 occasions while driving at high speed on a highway and while stopped at a traffic light. When the issue happens, the car triggers aggressive Warning sounds forcing me to stop on the side of the road, placing the car into Park and having to turn the vehicle off. On every occasion, the vehicle appears to have corrected itself after being shutoff. In all cases while driving on a highway, the issue happened when driving on gas mode (not EV) and the RPM’s show 0.0 for more than 2 minutes. In the cases when I am stopped at a traffic light, the car is in EV mode and RPM’s are fluctuating. There should not be any RPMs when stopped. Due to theses multiples dangerous situations while driving, I took it to the dealership to get fixed ASAP. On October 5th 2024, Coral Springs Kia (dealer) accepted my car with same complaint mentioned on this letter, and they told me that this is a known issue, that another Kia owner came earlier that day with exactly the same problem. The dealer issued the service invoice# [XXX]- miles in 10636/miles out 10649-, stating: “Code 10643 Inspected the customer concern by checking the engine performance. Found the vehicle performance normal and no warning symbol came on when performing a long road test. Check for DTC and found no codes within the system, found the vehicle operating normal and was unable to duplicate customer concern”. After retrieving my car from the dealership on October 5th 2024, I continued to have the exact same scenario of Warning indicators. Since [XXX], the issue has happened at least 3 more times. This is clearly a glitch on the PHEV system and very dangerous to deal with, mostly when you are driving in a highway on high speed. A simple Google search indicates that is a known a common complaint from Kia owners. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6

Filed Oct 8, 2024 · Acceleration · IL

I have experienced a dangerous bug where cruise control shoots immediately to 110mph. I have experienced three incidents in the last 15 months. Too busy trying to disengage the accelerating vehicle to get a video, but many others have documented this bug: [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Aug 22, 2024 · Fuel system · NY

See attached document for complaint

Filed Jun 4, 2024 · Driver assistance · WA

At approximately 5:05pm today (6/4) as I was leaving a parking lot, I was reversing into the parking lot. The van directly opposite me also had their reverse lights on but was not moving. It was one of those whos-going-to-go-first situations. I had proximity warnings going off because of the cars parked around me and I started to reverse when I realized the van was waiting for me, and as I pulled back about 3 feet, the car auto braked. I looked around to make sure the car had not detected anything I hadn't seen, like a pedestrian or another car approaching from the side, and there was nothing. The van on the other side of the parking lot still had not moved as they were waiting for me to leave. The following is a letter we sent to Kia 3 months ago regarding the same issue happening multiple times with our car. They held the car under investigation, did not fix anything, and gave it back to us in terrible condition (cleanliness). I attached a copy of the letter to this submission. This is the 4th time we have had this problem. Eventually someone will get hurt or killed if this car continued to automatically brake due to faulty sensors or unvalidated software.

Compare the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV

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Questions about the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV

Is the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV reliable?

Owners have filed 16 complaints about the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV, 1.3 times a typical Sportage PHEV model year.

What is the most common problem with the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV?

Engine and cooling, with 4 complaints. Next is acceleration (3).

How many recalls does the 2023 Kia Sportage PHEV have?

2 recalls, covering trailer hitches and electrical system.

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