Problems · by component
2013 Kia Sorento seats problems
33 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2013 Kia Sorento cite seats, 3% of all 983 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
33
3% of all complaints
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the seats
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The paint all over the car had begun to delaminate and its only a 2013. The entire front of the hood, the side bar of the windshield on both the passenger and driver sides, and the roof along the windshield are flaking off manufacturers paint in large sheets. The back side has begun to develop small chips that will eventually match the front. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Because the loss of the protective paint on my car can and has been leading to rust issues on the metal underneath the paint. This is known to weaken the vehicle's body structure. This is especially problematic in potential areas of the car that are prone to collision, thereby compromising the vehicles safety over time, if allowed to continue to delaminate. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? All across the internet people are posting their pictures of their white Kia Sorento having the exact issue mine has. Also in the small town I live in there are at least 10 people who drive a white Kia Sorento like mine and each…”
“The contact owns a 2013 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that after having routine maintenance on the vehicle, the contact entered the vehicle, and became aware that the driver’s side seat failed to move and had fractured. The local dealer was contacted and informed the contact about re-adjusting the seat and the associated fees for the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. Additionally, the vehicle failed to start. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.”
“The heated seats were turned on high. It was cold outside. Two hours later the occupant got out of the car and discovered blisters on leg from seat heat. Several large blisters from burns. The seat should not be hot enough to burn someone and cause blisters”
“In the past two weeks the Warning lamp for front passenger seat remains lit up indicating airbag problem in that area second row seats clip areas to lift seats and allow entry to third row were very hard to operate and now malfunctioned and don't work at all to lift seats. This has been checked out by Kia dealer last year to no resolve(they were able to lift seats up with great effort), but I am not able to get the seats lifted rendering access to 3rd row impossible for use.”
“Currently The KIA described above has a right rear seat that is not safely usable. The seat back does not smoothly unlatch from the upright position. When jiggling succeeds in unlatching the seat back allowing the seat back to go to the fold down position the latch jambs in that position. This jamming prevents rear seat passengers from safely riding in this seat or making use of the seat back to secure a child care seat. A Technical Service Bulletin issued by KIA describes the safety issue. I quote the bulletin. "The bulletin provides information related to some 2011-2013MY Sorento (XMa) vehicles, produced from October 26, 2009 to November 5, 2012, which may exhibit a concern related to the second row seats being inoperative or difficult to release. It is important to note that some amount effort is required to fold the 2nd row seats. To correct this condition, follow the service procedures outlined in this TSB 093( Rev 1, 08/22/2013). I refer to the table below for detailed information on each concern and the associated service procedure". To date I have approached my area Kia dealership and contacted Kia's Customer service 800 number but my concerns have…”
“THE ENGINE HAS AN OIL LEAK AND NOW A CRACKED 4TH CYLINDER CAUSING A $638 BILL AT THE MECHANIC TO KEEP THE CAR RUNNING AT BARE MINIMUM. THE ENGINE WAS A RECALL REPLACEMENT AND I BELIEVE IT SHOULD BE PART OF THE 12/2/2020 RECALL. THIS IS CAUSING HARDSHIP FOR MY FAMILY.”
Showing 6 of 33 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.