The 2006 Kia Sorento has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 139,844 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 382 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine. Last updated July 5, 2026.
HUYNDAI-KIA IS RECALLING 139,844 MY 2006-2007- SEDONA, SPORTAGE, SORENTO AND MY RONDO AND AMANTI VEHICLES. THE STOP LAMP SWITCH IN THE AFFECTED VEHICLES MAY MALFUNCTION. A MALFUNCTIONING STOP LAMP SWITCH MAY CAUSE THE BRAKE LIGHTS TO NOT ILLUMINATE WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS DEPRESSED OR MAY CAUSE THE BRAKE LIGHTS TO…
Consequence
ANY OF THESE MALFUNCTIONS, ALONE OR IN COMBINATION, MAY LEAD TO A CRASH.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STOP LAMP SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 17, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT KIA'S CONSUMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-333-4542.
Complaints by component
ENGINE
67
3crashes3fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
52
1crashes1fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
49
1fires
STEERING
33
1crashes
POWER TRAIN
27
AIR BAGS
18
5crashes1fires7injuries
SERVICE BRAKES
16
1crashes
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
13
SUSPENSION
9
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
9
2fires1injuries
Total complaints382
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The contact owns a 2006 kia sorento. The contact stated that he purchased the vehicle with the passenger's side air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the passenger's side seat sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not…”
“The contact owns a 2006 kia sorento. The contact stated that the brake lights failed to illuminate as needed. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact became aware of nhtsa campaign number: 09v130000 (exterior lighting) and associated the recall with the failure. The contact contacted…”
“The contact owned a 2006 kia sorento. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, an unknown person alerted the contact that her vehicle had caught fire. The fire started in the engine compartment. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. Police and fire department reports…”
“My vehicle was sitting for 4 hours and suddenly caught on fire…drivers side.”
“The contact owned a 2006 kia sorento. The contact stated that while driving at 15 - 20 mph, the steering wheel seized and the brakes failed when depressed which caused the vehicle to fall over a 25 ft. Cliff and flip 3 times after hitting the ground. All of the air bags failed to deploy. The…”
“When fueling I am unable to put the fuel hose in all the way and lock in place. I have to hold the fuel hose and pump very slowly. If I pump too fast the fuel will not go in tank. I was told it’s the ball in the fuel tank that is screwed up. I was also told there was a recall but I never…”
“Rear end rusted to were it could of called a wreck this is unsafe and they should have kia recall these at once there are going thousands of reports of this this just about caused my wife to wreck it is the federal place to recall these at once”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2006 kia sorento. The contact stated that while driving, the vehicle suddenly began to violently shake and rattle before stalling. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer sterling kia located at 125 s. City parkway, lafayette la 70503 who diagnosed that the engine crank…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationDP21003 Opened 2021-11-12 · closed 2023-06-20
Throttle control system vulnerabilities
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a petition letter dated October 10, 2021, requesting an investigation of possible defects in the electronic throttle control (ETC) system on certain Kia vehicles resulting in the opening of DP21-003.…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2006 Kia Sorento as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.