Kia Electrical System: Software

Kia is recalling about 3,714 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. Unintended vehicle movement can increase the risk of a crash.

Campaign
20V389000
Manufacturer
Kia Motors America
Reported
2 July 2020
Vehicles
3,714
Built between
Not published
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
7 August 2020
Repaired
58%
Unrepaired
1,289

Does this affect my vehicle?

The manufacturer did not publish a build-date range for this recall, so the model and year list below is the only way to tell whether your vehicle is covered.

  • 2015-2016 Kia Soul EV

Repair progress

1,289 of 3,714 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2022.

58% repaired — 2,146 of 3,714 reported

Owners not reachable
150
Scrapped or exported
129

Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.

What the defect is

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Kia Soul Electric Vehicle (EV) vehicles. The parking mechanism may become damaged if the driver moves the gear shift lever into Park 'P' before the vehicle comes to a complete stop. If the parking mechanism is damaged, unintended vehicle movement may occur when the gear shift lever is in the Park 'P' position and the parking brake is not applied.

What could happen

Unintended vehicle movement can increase the risk of a crash.

What gets fixed

Kia will notify owners, and dealers will update the electronic control unit software, free of charge. The recall began August 7, 2020.

Parts involved

  • N/aN/AN/A

Part numbers are as filed by the manufacturer and are listed for reference. Your dealer will confirm the correct part for your vehicle.

Timeline

  1. Recall reported to NHTSA2 July 2020
  2. Owners notified7 August 2020
  3. Latest repair reportQ2 2022 — 58% repaired

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 2 July 2020.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC191.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
SC191
Recalling manufacturer
Kia Motors America
Recall initiated by
MFR

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand