2005 Kia Rio problems
NHTSA has received 47 complaints about the 2005 Kia Rio, and 36% of them involve engine. After that come air bags (9%) and electrical system (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 47 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 36% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 6 and 4
- Injuries and deaths
- 10 and 1
- Typical mileage
- 51,000 miles 30 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 | 7 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 4 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 7 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 4 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 5 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 3 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 30 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 51,000 miles. For engine specifically, the median reported mileage is about 53,000 miles (14 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 6 complaints mention a crash; 4 complaints mention a fire; 10 injuries reported; 1 death reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 96% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 16th most-complained-about out of 20 model years of the Kia Rio with enough data (28 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
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.
On september 30, 2005 a kia rio was involved in a roll over wreck that resulted in the death of one teenager who was ejected from the vehicle during the roll over and there were injuries to other passengers as well. On october 19, 2005, an investigating officer went to the place where the vehicle had been towed and removed the three back seat belts because he discovered that two of the back seat belts would not hold their buckle.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 kia rio. The contact stated that the driver was driving 20 MPH when she attempted to slow down but the brakes failed. The vehicle coasted into an alley. While the vehicle was coasting, the contact smelled burning wires. Smoke began to rise from the hood once the vehicle was stopped. The contact attempted to exit the vehicle, but was restrained by the seat belt and suffered neck and shoulder injuries.
Our son was driving a 2005 kia rio 15 miles south of mcminnville, or when he went off the road and flipped the car. The female part of the safety belt clasp failed which resulted in him being thrown around the cab. He ended up in the cab on the roof in the back seat. He is still very sore and has back pain.
Bought new car child safety locks failed. Driver door jammed closed could not open from inside or outside. The dealer made me drive with the problem for three weeks before they would even look at it. Than took a week and a half to fix it.
My son was driving his 2005 kia rio home from work one night when the car stalled. He was able to get it into a parking lot where one of our county sheriffs tried to give him a jump. The car would not turn over. My son took the car to the dealership on monday. He was told that the warranty had been denied due to lack of maintenance. Their definition of that was my son went over on two oil changes. I do not understand where two oil changes would cause a car to lock up.