2021 Kia Seltos: What to check before buying

Oil disappears between changes, often until the dipstick reads dry, and the engine then stalls, shakes, misfires, or loses power, frequently at highway speed. Owners describe piston noise codes, white smoke, an oil smell, and dealers calling for a new engine. Most failures land between about 38,967 and 94,000 miles. One filing describes an engine fire after a stall, and another describes an injury after a sudden stall at highway speed. Many say the car passed a dealer recall inspection but kept burning oil. Others were refused coverage over missing oil change records or an expired warranty.

Engines run low on oil, knock, and then stall or seize, sometimes in traffic and sometimes with no warning light. Two filings describe smoke or a banging noise followed by an engine fire. Most reports center on a recall repair that dealers could not perform because parts were not available. While waiting, owners keep adding oil or park the car. Some cars stalled repeatedly when slowing down. Others were refused an engine replacement because the owners lacked oil change records. One high-mileage report describes overheating and power loss that new spark plugs and coils did not fix.

Transmissions fail on some very young cars, with complete replacements reported at 6,000 and 17,700 miles after surging, warning lights, and lost reverse. Higher-mileage cars shudder into limp mode, shift poorly, or grind and clunk up front when pulling away or turning, starting around 40,000 miles. The other main pattern is oil burning, with stalls and empty dipsticks and no visible leaks. Owners report that cars passed recall testing even as consumption went on, and some say they were denied a new engine. Several have been stranded more than once.

The car shuts off while driving, often with the check engine, battery, and oil lights coming on together, and owners describe losing throttle and brake response. One filing reports a highway shutdown that ended in a crash with an injury. Another describes smoke filling the cabin with an electrical smell. Separate complaints cover batteries that go dead from an untraced drain, stop/start restarts that reset the whole electrical system, limp mode with driver-assist warnings lit, a frozen or unresponsive infotainment screen, and a dead horn. Some stalls occurred on cars with fewer than 900 miles.

Airbags do not deploy in hard collisions. All 5 complaints involve crashes, and two people were injured. Reports include a T-bone crash at about 50 mph that totaled the car, deer strikes at 60 mph that caused heavy front-end damage, and a side impact from a large water tank where the side airbag stayed stowed. Two owners also say the forward collision warning gave no alert before hitting a deer. One report notes the warning light came on only after the impact.

The car accelerates on its own with the brake pressed, or while shifting from reverse to drive. Two of these events ended in crashes with injuries, one into a tree and one into a parked car. Another owner reports the problem happening again while the car was being moved at a repair shop. Other filings describe surging and then a total loss of acceleration that led to a new transmission at 3000 miles, and a sudden stall with no brake response. In that case the driver had to use the parking brake while the charging, oil pressure, and check engine lights were on.

None of these reports describe a fault in the steering itself. Instead they describe the engine stalling at highway speed or at stops, sometimes with a clunk. Other complaints mention every warning light coming on before the car shuts off, the speedometer dropping to zero at highway speed, and the car getting stuck in park. One owner says the dealer replaced the battery but the stalling continued. Another reports the car was stolen quickly even with a steering wheel lock fitted, and blames weak theft protection.

Sputtering and shutoffs leave cars stranded, and some will not restart. In one case the eventual repair was a new fuel injector, and the mechanic reported cylinder scoring. Other owners smell gasoline in and around the car and need a new fuel pump and seals. Some have a check engine light that keeps returning after oxygen sensor and spark plug replacements. One filing describes the transmission hesitating and shuddering at low speeds, especially in turns, and overheating in stop-and-go traffic.

Buckles and warnings misbehave. The front passenger buckle is hard to latch and may come undone by itself. Some owners say the seat belt warning flashes and beeps while the belt is fastened, and unbuckling does not always clear it. In the back seat, the belt can catch in the backrest latch when the seat is folded down and raised again, which damages the belt. One owner in this group also reports the forward collision system braking hard on the highway with no cars nearby.