2019 KIA RIO — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data

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N/A

Safety Rating

26

Owner Complaints

5 Crashes 2 Fires

1

Recall

ACTIVE RECALL

7

Service Bulletins

0

Investigations

Overview of the 2019 KIA RIO

The 2019 KIA RIO has received a total of 26 safety complaints filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). There have been 2 recall campaigns affecting this vehicle, covering issues with LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TRUNK LID:LATCH. 7 technical service bulletins have been issued by Kia America, Inc. for this model year. The most commonly reported problems involve the Unknown Or Other (7 complaints), Engine (6 complaints), and Air Bags (3 complaints).

Recalls for the 2019 KIA RIO

NHTSA has recorded 2 recalls for the 2019 KIA RIO, potentially affecting up to 506,148 vehicles.

Recall 21V622000 — LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TRUNK LID:LATCH

| 253,074 vehicles affected

Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Forte 4-door, Forte Koup 2-door, and 2018-2019 Rio 4-door vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 401, "Internal Trunk Release."

Consequence: A person inside the trunk compartment may become trapped, increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the trunk latch assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC216.

View full details →

Recall 21V622000 — LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TRUNK LID:LATCH

| 253,074 vehicles affected

Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Forte 4-door, Forte Koup 2-door, and 2018-2019 Rio 4-door vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 401, "Internal Trunk Release."

Consequence: A person inside the trunk compartment may become trapped, increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the trunk latch assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC216.

View full details →

Owner Complaints for the 2019 KIA RIO

26 complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2019 KIA RIO. Below is a breakdown by vehicle component.

Most Recent Complaints

#11710569 | ENGINE | | N/A miles
On the morning of October 15th, the oil light of my 2019 Kia Rio came on, immediately followed by extreme engine noise, just before the engine locked. I had the vehicle towed to a nearby service center. They checked and reported that all oil had leaked out and motor had locked. I then had vehicle towed to Kia dealer and requested a motor replacement. They not only charged me for a diagnostic test that determined the motor had locked but also refused to replace the engine without me paying $12,000. The vehicle's motor has the same problems as the motors in 2011-2019 kia Engine Defect Settlement but for some reason was allowed to be excluded from the settlement.
#11705721 | ENGINE | | N/A miles
The engine experienced a rod bearing failure resulting in internal engine damage and sudden loss of normal engine operation. The vehicle and failed engine components are currently available for inspection upon request. The engine failure occurred while the vehicle was traveling at high speed on the freeway, resulting in sudden loss of engine power. This created a significant safety risk, as loss of power at freeway speeds increases the likelihood of collision with surrounding vehicles and posed a danger to myself and other motorists. The failure was diagnosed and confirmed by a Kia dealership as rod bearing failure. The vehicle has been inspected by a Kia dealership. No inspection has been conducted by police or insurance representatives. There were no prior warning lamps, messages, or indications of engine malfunction before the failure. The only warning light present prior to the incident was the check engine light related to previous vandalism involving an attempted catalytic converter theft, which caused ongoing sensor issues unrelated to engine performance. That warning light had been present despite resets during routine maintenance and was not associated with any engine functionality issues. There were no pre existing engine performance problems, drivability issues, or warnings indicating impending failure. The engine failure was sudden and catastrophic. This failure is consistent with known Kia engine rod bearing defects that have resulted in recalls, safety campaigns, and settlements. Kia has denied assistance in this case, stating that my VIN is excluded due to manufacturing origin, despite the identical failure mode
#11694519 | Other/I am not sure | | N/A miles
360 car seat will not click lock will steady spin around
#11622905 | ENGINE | | N/A miles
The oil light flashed in the car once after an oil change, so I took the car back the very next day to the mechanic and he said there was no oil in the car at the time. He filled the car back up with oil, and by the end of the week, the car needed oil again, but no light indicated the car was low on oil. Months went by with constant oil changes and the car needing oil, so the mechanic told me to take the car to the dealership because he couldn't find a leak. Took the car to the dealership, they couldn't find a leak either. Took the car back to the main mechanic who said the car was consuming too much oil and that a new engine was needed. Spoke to the corporate office for the car company and was told that I needed to get all these tests did before I could be eligible for a new engine. I scheduled the tests, but before I could even make it to the dealership for the tests, the car gave out because there was no oil again and this time the car started burning. I called corporate again and was told that since I'm not the original owner of the car I would be denied for a new engine and that I wouldn't be offered a loaner car. I was told it was best for me to get another car, which is what I did, and now I'm stuck paying for two cars because I couldn't trade this one in because of the engine problem, even though the car is drivable. This car has put me in a lot of safety risks because there have been times when I was on the side of the road in the early morning hours because the car had no oil and was burning. The car wouldn't go over a certain speed limit when the oil was low and/or empty, so I was put at risk as well due to other drivers going the speed limit.
#11622905 | POWER TRAIN | | N/A miles
The oil light flashed in the car once after an oil change, so I took the car back the very next day to the mechanic and he said there was no oil in the car at the time. He filled the car back up with oil, and by the end of the week, the car needed oil again, but no light indicated the car was low on oil. Months went by with constant oil changes and the car needing oil, so the mechanic told me to take the car to the dealership because he couldn't find a leak. Took the car to the dealership, they couldn't find a leak either. Took the car back to the main mechanic who said the car was consuming too much oil and that a new engine was needed. Spoke to the corporate office for the car company and was told that I needed to get all these tests did before I could be eligible for a new engine. I scheduled the tests, but before I could even make it to the dealership for the tests, the car gave out because there was no oil again and this time the car started burning. I called corporate again and was told that since I'm not the original owner of the car I would be denied for a new engine and that I wouldn't be offered a loaner car. I was told it was best for me to get another car, which is what I did, and now I'm stuck paying for two cars because I couldn't trade this one in because of the engine problem, even though the car is drivable. This car has put me in a lot of safety risks because there have been times when I was on the side of the road in the early morning hours because the car had no oil and was burning. The car wouldn't go over a certain speed limit when the oil was low and/or empty, so I was put at risk as well due to other drivers going the speed limit.

View all Unknown Or Other complaints →

Safety Rating for the 2019 KIA RIO

NHTSA has not yet tested the 2019 KIA RIO in its New Car Assessment Program.

Technical Service Bulletins for the 2019 KIA RIO

Kia America, Inc. has issued 7 technical service bulletins (TSBs) for the 2019 KIA RIO. TSBs are notices sent by manufacturers to their dealers describing a known issue and the recommended repair procedure.

TSB_ENG222_R8 — ENGINE

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION NU/GAMMA/THETA/KAPPA ENGINES - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information on diagnosing and/or repairing some 2011-2024MY vehicles (refer to the table on pages...

CS2307_TSB_R6 — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: ANTI-THEFT S/W LOGIC UPGRADE & DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2307) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides the procedure to upgrade the software logic of the...

CS2307B_OWNRSC — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia has developed a software upgrade that can be installed on the vehicle to restrict the operation of the vehicle's ignition system should a locked vehicle be the subject of a break-in and theft attempt without...

CS2307_TSB_R1 — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: ANTI-THEFT S/W LOGIC UPGRADE & DECAL INSTALLATION (CS2307) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area.This bulletin provides the procedure to upgrade the software logic of the Integrated...

TSB_TRA097_R2 — POWER TRAIN

TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: IVT/CVT SW LOGIC IMPROVEMENT AND/OR IVT/CVT REPLACEMENT (SA476) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides the procedure to improve the software logic of the...

TSBENG202 — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

TSB: SERVICE ACTION: ECU LOGIC IMPROVEMENT FOR DTC P0128 (SA374) - This bulletin provides the procedure to improve the logic of the Engine Control Unit (ECU) on some 2019MY Rio (SC) vehicles, produced from August 27, 2018 through March 4, 2019, which may experience a malfunction indicator light (MIL) ON...

TSBENG202 — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARE

TSB: SERVICE ACTION: ECU LOGIC IMPROVEMENT FOR DTC P0128 (SA374) - This bulletin provides the procedure to improve the logic of the Engine Control Unit (ECU) on some 2019MY Rio (SC) vehicles, produced from August 27, 2018 through March 4, 2019, which may experience a malfunction indicator light (MIL) ON...

NHTSA Investigations for the 2019 KIA RIO

There are no NHTSA defect investigations on record for this vehicle.

Other Model Years of the KIA RIO

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Other KIA Models

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