2015 Kia Sportage: sudden loss of power

Filed Jul 7, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · IN

I own a 2015 Kia Sportage VIN in detail. On 7-2-2026, an authorized Kia dealer completed the anti-theft ignition campaign. Within days of that repair, my daughter was driving at highway speed when the ignition moved from the ON/RUN position to ACC. The engine shut off, resulting in loss of power steering and brake assist. Fortunately, she was able to safely pull over. The servicing dealer has stated that the ignition's ability to rotate from RUN to ACC with minimal pressure is normal and that the vehicle is safe. However, because this incident occurred immediately following the anti-theft campaign and involved a loss of engine power while driving it appears there could be a casual impact.

Filed Jan 11, 2025 · Engine · NY

We were driving down the highway and without any kind of warning the car lost all power I had to move to the shoulder of the road and wait over 5 hrs for a tow truck and then get a hotel room for the night before we could get a rental car the next morning once they opened. Then, a couple weeks later we had to have the vehicle towed back home to NY since we broke down on [XXX] in PA. Then we had to have it towed to a repair shop and they told me it was rod iron knocking and was covered under the Theta II class action lawsuit according to the website when the vin# was inputted to the website. And Kia is saying it's not covered because of a recall that wasn't completed but being I never received the notification as I wasn't the 1st or 2nd owner of the vehicle. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Apr 14, 2024 · Engine · CA

I took the vehicle in to Kia due to excessive oil consumption. I was told they could not do anything and that I should continue to drive the vehicle. Kia stated that since I am the second owner (purchased at 7,800 miles) that I am not eligible for the original warranty. They stated that if anything were to happen to my engine I would need to provide documentation of oil changes from the first date the vehicle was purchased (which I don't have access to since I am not the original owner) and that Kia would assess to see if I were eligible for a new engine. They completed an oil change checked for leaks and sent me on my way. I continued to add oil every 500-1000 miles. On 4/11/24 I was driving me vehicle on the freeway at approximately 75-80 miles per hour when the vehicle lost power and would not drive over 40 miles per hour. Upon exiting the freeway the vehicle died at a red light. A tow truck driver took me to a mechanic who ran diagnostics and found codes P0300, P0302, and P0304. He stated that the 2 and 4 cylinders had no compression. Awaiting Kia inspection.

Filed Jan 3, 2023 · Transmission · 60,181 miles · NJ

The contact owns a 2015 Kia Sportage. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle would not accelerate as designed. The contact depressed the brake pedal however, the vehicle failed to stop as needed. Additionally, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The contact continued driving until the vehicle independently slowed down and she was able to shift into the park positin. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was out of warranty. No further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 60,181.

Filed Apr 1, 2022 · Engine · IL

I was passing a vehicle on a 2 lane (one lane going in each direction) highway at approximately 55mph when my car engine lost power. I had to immediately get over and pull to the side of the road towing vehicle to Webster Tire and Auto in Teutopolis, IL. They originally thought it was the alternator but they said engine was knocking and needed to be replaced. I found out that there was a lawsuit for this issue and that Kia has a service campaign. Although I had searched the NTHSA website and Carfax, because I purchased the vehicle recently the only way for me to have expected the issue was for me to have contacted Kia directly or to be notified by the person who sold me the car. I was also denied a claim on this lawsuit because I had not had the service update which would have extended the warranty on the engine and fixed the knock sensor issue. This information should be readily available to consumers and owners. I had this vehicle at Walmart for an oil change and Webster tire and auto for other maintenance prior to incident and neither of those companies were aware of this service campaign.

Filed Mar 29, 2021 · Engine · 103,000 miles · CA

On 12/24/18 my 2015 kia sportage engine seized as I was entering the highway. The car was towed towed to the dealer. The dealer informed me that the engine needed to be replaced, but it could take a couple of months before they got a new engine. I did not get my car until mid august of 2019. When I got my car back it was consuming a lot of gas. I was not aware of the high fuel consumption until I took my car on a road trip about a month after I got my car and it was only giving me only about 200 miles for a full tank of gas on the highway. I informed the dealer of the issue, but they only asked why I had waited so long. I told them it was not apparent to me because I was only driving my car for errands. They would not check my car as it was not throwing any errors. I continued complaining and they finally did a diagnostic after which they told me I needed to replace the oxygen sensors. I had the oxygen sensors replaced, but car continued to consume too much gas. A few months later I received a recall notice for "high pressure fuel pipe may leak". I took the to the car to the dealer around late may or early june of 2021 and they conducted the recall repairs. I was also reimbursed for my out of pocket expenses for replacing oxygen sensors. After the recall repairs, my car still continued to consume too much gas. Towards the end of february 2021 the check engine light came on and I started smelling exhaust fumes inside my car. The dealer did a diagnostic on 3/8/21 and told me the catalytic converter failed, but it was out of warranty so I had to pay for the repairs. My car just reached 103k miles and has been having issues since the engine seized and was replaced. I'm on a fixed income and can't afford to pay for the repairs and now I have a car I can't drive because it has lost power and smells of exhaust fumes inside my car.

Filed Oct 21, 2020 · Engine · 93,723 miles · PA

On 10/9/2020 driving south on pa. Turnpike ne extension when engine stated knocking and losing power. Pulled over on the shoulder of the road and tried to restart it but it would not turn over. Contacted roadside assistance and had it towed to the nearest service station. They could not look at it until the next day as they were very busy. When they did look at it they said the engine needed to be replaced as something went wrong internally with the engine. They said they could get it to start but that it shouldn't be driven as the knocking on the engine was getting extremely loud when you try to accelerate. The car was then towed to another service station closer to home. It sat there for a week before they could look at it. They reached the same conclusion after replacing the engine air filter, the cabin air filter, cam shaft wt solenoid - exhaust with an oem part. When replacing the solenoid they noticed metal shavings in the motor oil. They informed me that the engine should probably be replaced. The vehicle has just over 93735 miles on it.

Filed Sep 15, 2020 · Acceleration, Transmission · 70,000 miles · GA

When I accelerate sometimes the car will jerk and the engine will try to stall. The car will still go but starts to sputter and start to lose power. You have to pull over and shut the engine off and set there for a bit and restart the engine and it may do it again 2 or 3 more times and it might not do it for awhile. But very dangerous when pulling out into traffic. It will also do it when you try to speed up to pass or just gain speed

Filed Sep 13, 2017 · Engine · 43,800 miles · CA

I was driving on the freeway at 65 MPH in the slow lane when the check engine light suddenly came on, then all the service lights lit up and the car began losing power. Luckily, I was coming to an offramp and was able to make it to the end of the offramp (signal) before the car died completely. We had to push the car out of the road and around the corner to a curb as we were blocking one side of the offramp. Had I not been in the slow lane and near an offramp, the car would have died on the freeway which would have been a much more dangerous situation. Was told by kia service dept. That the engine blew because of sludge in the oil.

Filed Sep 22, 2015 · Brakes, Electrical · 2,000 miles · IL · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 kia sportage. While driving at an unknown speed, all the lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle lost power steering and braking ability. The odometer also failed to illuminate. The contact observed smoke under the hood and flames appeared. A police report was not filed and there were no injuries. The vehicle was towed to a dealer, but was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 2,000. ....updated 10-27-15