Owners have filed 29 complaints with NHTSA about this car, most about the wheels and tires, electrical, and transmission. The 9 checks below target those problems, in the order you would do them at the car.
2025Tick items off on your phone at the car, or print it. Ticks stay on this device.
0/9 checked
2025 Kia K5: inspection sheet
Before you go, or before you touch the car0/3
Engine off, key in hand0/2
Ask the seller not to warm the car up first0/2
At least 20 minutes, with some highway0/2
These checks are specific to this model year. For tires, body panels, fluids, and the other basics every used car needs, use the general inspection guide.
Nearby years usually share most parts, so their problems are worth checking on this car too.
Worth adding to your 2025 checks
Worth adding to your 2025 checks
EPA figures for each version of the 2025 Kia K5. Use them to confirm you are looking at the version that was advertised, and as a yardstick on the test drive.
| Version | Drive | EPA rating |
|---|---|---|
| 2.5L 4-cyl | AWD, FWD | 27–30 mpg |
Owners report these failures starting around the mileages below. A car inside one of these ranges deserves a closer look at that part, or records showing it was already fixed.
Hard shifting on cold starts
250–3,000 miles
Tire sidewall bulges and blowouts
2,500–11,400 miles
NHTSA complaints for the 2025 Kia K5, grouped by the part owners named. Open a row to read what goes wrong.
Bubbles and bulges form on the sidewalls of the factory 235/45 R18 tires, sometimes on two tires at once, and some tires blow out. Reported mileages are low, from about 2,500 to 11,400 miles. Warning signs are thin. Tire pressure can read normal, though one report notes the TPMS light coming on. A shaky steering wheel came before one blowout. The tire maker and Kia point owners to each other, and warranty coverage may be denied. A sidewall failure at speed carries a real risk of losing control.
Most of these complaints are really about tires. A factory Pirelli tire's sidewall blew out at 55 mph with no puncture, at 6500 miles. The TPMS malfunction light also comes back after a dealer repair that was blamed on something left unplugged. It returned at 3125 miles. Both reports involve low-mileage cars. The sidewall failure lines up with the tire bulge and blowout complaints filed under tires.
Headlights, the instrument cluster, the radio, and climate controls shut off while driving. Some outages last under a second and others leave the driver in the dark. One report describes the headlights, brake lights, and cabin lights surging very bright, a problem that came back after dealer repairs at about 24,000 miles. A separate complaint describes the battery going dead overnight, even after the dealer replaced it. Losing headlights at night is the main safety risk here.
Hard, jarring shifts happen on the first drive of the day after the car has sat overnight, usually below 25 mph, and then stop once the car warms up. Dealers often say they cannot reproduce the problem. Other reports describe the transmission failing to upshift and holding the car to about 20 mph until a restart, and one describes total power loss at 40 mph. Problems show up early, within the first 250 to 3,000 miles. Two injuries are tied to these complaints.
Both reports involve crashes. In one, the airbags did not deploy after a hard hit to the driver's front corner that caused about $15,000 in damage. In the other, the driver had head injuries and reported screen reboots and brief power loss in the days before the crash. That report does not say the airbags failed. Only 2 complaints exist, so no clear pattern of airbag failure has emerged yet.
The panoramic sunroof shatters while driving with no sign of impact. It makes a gunshot-like bang and drops small glass pieces. Separately, the windshield wipers fail on and off, both in rain and when using the washer spray, at under 10k miles. The dealer could not reproduce the wiper fault and held off on more diagnosis. Both problems either block the driver's view or startle the driver while the car is moving.
Excerpts from complaints K5 owners filed with NHTSA, as written. Listen for the same symptoms on your test drive.
Three of the four tires, rated for 30k miles, have failed. There are 11,400 miles on the tires. Back passenger tire blew out and went immediately and audibly flat. Dealer stated this is a known issue with this brand of tire on the Kia K5. 235/45 R18 94v M+S
Filed with NHTSA, July 2025
234/45/R18 - 94V bubble developed on exterior of front, passenger side tire AND the interior of back, passenger side tire within a year of purchasing vehicle new with this tire installed. The tire had to be replaced immediately to avoid a tire blowout.
Filed with NHTSA, August 2025
While driving in the dark this morning with my eight year old in the backseat, my headlights shut off, my entire dash including my speedometer, warning lights, radio, heat, heated seat and steering wheel, lost electricity.
Filed with NHTSA, January 2026
While cruising at approximately 40 mph on a surface street, the car lost all power, completely shutting down. After rolling for two seconds it turned back on.
Filed with NHTSA, December 2024
While driving on a rural road, a cow ran in front of my vehicle and I collided with it. The car was towed to a repair shop and the estimated cost of repairs was $15,000. The impact was on the front corner of the drivers side of the vehicle. No airbags deployed. It seems to me that with the violence and location of the impact that some airbags should’ve deployed.
Filed with NHTSA, August 2024
Complaints for this year next to the average for the other model years, area by area.
The 2025 ranks fourth for owner complaints among 6 K5 years, well under the average of the others. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so compare like with like.
Recall repairs are free at any Kia dealer, but the seller may never have had them done. Check each campaign number against the VIN.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2025 K5 vehicles. The left and right rear window trim pieces may loosen and detach.
Risk: Detached trim pieces can create a road hazard for other vehicles, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the C-pillar trim assemblies, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 19, 2025. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC346.
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2025 K5 vehicles. A software error in the Power-net Domain Controller (PDC) may cause the parking lights to flicker. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment.".
Risk: Parking lights that fail to illuminate properly can reduce visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: The PDC software will be updated by a dealer or through an over-the-air (OTA) update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 24, 2025. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC341.
Cars shoppers compare with the Kia K5, with their own 2025 checklists.
2025 owner complaints, side by side
