Problems · by component
2005 Kia Sorento engine problems
63 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2005 Kia Sorento cite engine, 21% of all 307 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
63
21% of all complaints
Crashes
2
Reported by owners
Fires
2
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the engine
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“When driving there was a clunking noise and then the steering was hard to steer and the battery light came on & had to have it towed to find out that the harmonic balancer bolt broke. There are hundreds of complaints online about this same issue happening with these engines as this is a poor design. This is a safety hazard and very dangerous since you loose the steering and should be recalled.”
“The contact owns a 2005 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while turning left, the steering wheel was very difficult to turn. The contact mentioned that all her strength was needed to turn the steering wheel. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the crankshaft bolt needed to be replace. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.”
“THE HARMONIC BALANCER MOUNTING BOLT SHEARED AND STRIPPED THE THREADS IN THE CRANKSHAFT OF MY 2005 KIA SERENTO. THE MECHANIC HAD MY CAR FOR 3 MONTHS TRYING TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. THIS IS EVIDENTLY A DESIGN ISSUE AND SHOULD HAVE A RECALL ISSUED. THIS PROBLEM COST ME A LOT OF MONEY TO FIX. (THE CAR WAS IN MOTION WHEN THE HARMONIC BALANCER FELL OFF) MY WIFE STRUGGLE TO GET THE CAR HOME DUE TO LOST OF BELTS.”
“KIA HAD A LAWSUIT INVOLVING THE CRANKSHAFT BOLT. THE LAWSUIT IS YVONNE ROBINSON VS KIA. I BOUGHT THE VEHICLE FROM SOMEONE WITH ONLY 25,000 MILES LAST YEAR 2017. MY CHILDREN WERE DRIVING BACK TO COLLEGE ON 11 AUGUST 2018. THE CRANKSHAFT BOLT BROKE WHICH CAUSES THE VEHICLE TO LOSE STEERING. MY CHILDREN WERE ALMOST IN A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT WHICH COULD HAVE COST THEM THEIR LIVES. MY SONS GO TO SCHOOL IN ATLANTA AND THE CRANKSHAFT BROKE IN NORTH CAROLINA. I HAD MY CHILDREN CALL OUR INSURANCE COMPANY FOR ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE AND THEY COULDN'T FIX IT OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE IT WAS THE CRANKSHAFT BOLT. HE GOT THEM SAFELY TO PEPBOYS AND THEY HAD TO SPEND THE NIGHT IN NORTH CAROLINA AND THE NEXT DAY PEPBOYS CONFIRMED IT WAS THE CRANKSHAFT BOLT. I FOUND OUT THERE WAS A LAWSUIT CONCERNING THE CRANKSHAFT BOLT. PEPBOYS SAID IT WOULD BE $2000 TO FIX. I CALLED KIA ON 13 AUGUST 18 AND THEY TOLD ME THEY WOULD TAKE CARE OF IT AND WOULD CALL IN A COUPLE DAYS. THEY ARE STILL GIVING ME THE RUN AROUND. THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS INVOLVED IN A LAWSUIT AND IT CONCERNS SAFETY. PLEASE HELP ME HOLD KIA ACCOUNTABLE. THEY KNOW THIS IS A DEFECTIVE PRODUCT. THE VEHICLE IS STILL IN NORTH CAROLINA…”
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 KIA SORENTO. WHILE DRIVING 10 MPH, THE CRANKSHAFT DETACHED FROM THE VEHICLE, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO COME TO A COMPETE STOP. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO CONFIRMED THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TOWED TO THE DEALER (KIA STORE CLARKSVILLE, 826 E LEWIS AND CLARK PKWY, CLARKSVILLE, IN 47129, (866) 545-2429) WHERE THE CRANKSHAFT WAS REPLACED, BUT OIL STARTED LEAKING FROM THE CAMSHAFT SEAL AFTER THE REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CALLED AND STATED THAT FURTHER REPAIRS WERE NOT COVERED UNDER THE WARRANTY. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 123,000.”
“WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE INTERSTATE THE CAR'S ENGINE CAUGHT FIRE. MELTED EVERYTHING IN ENGINE. WHEN TOLD I NEEDED A NEW ENGINE, I SOLD THE CAR TO A JUNK YARD FOR PARTS. NOW, I HEAR THIS RECALL. SO PISSED@”
Showing 6 of 63 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.