2018 Kia Forte problems
Owners have filed 190 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Kia Forte. Engine is the most reported problem area, at 33% of complaints. Next are air bags (8%) and electrical system (8%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 190 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 33% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 20 and 4
- Injuries and deaths
- 13 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 32,000 miles 68 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 26 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 13 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 8 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 6 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 6 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 3 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 3 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 68 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 32,000 miles. For engine specifically, the median reported mileage is about 68,000 miles (20 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 20 complaints mention a crash; 4 complaints mention a fire; 13 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2018 ranks 7th most-complained-about out of 15 model years of the Kia Forte with enough data (118 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
While was driving the car Kia Forte spin out control or someone used an remote and became an hot engine but due to car getting repossession Kia saying can’t do nothing about it , my safety was put as risk due to car spinning out control and yes the car did deployed its airbags only driver side , no inspection due to Kia saying they can’t do nothing . It was 7 warnings lamps afterwards the incident , Made an report on June 3, 2021 14164508 with Kia consumers
Takata recall. I was involved in an accident and crash head on into another car. The vehicle was totaled but the airbags never deployed.
My vehicle keeps beeping and saying the doors are open. The light comes on & the dashboard shows the door opening. This is a constant issue whenever anyone I sitting in the front passenger seat. Sometimes I can't relock the door because of this. This is very scary & I've been to the dealership. I will be going back again. I have also had my passenger takes videos. It happens when turning left or right and high speeds.
While my daughter was driving this vehicle it started making a loud noise, then the motor stopped. There was no indication, ever, of an engine issue. No lights, warnings, temperature, nothing ever alerted her. We took it to two mechanics who diagnosed as total engine failure. All fluids were low, no oil. We never saw oil spots. She had the oil changed in february. We have to purchase a new engine as her warranty ran out at 60,000 miles. How convenient for kia. She has 67,000 miles.