RecallRepo

2018 Kia Soul Ev Recalls

Recalls on record Updated July 2026

The 2018 Kia Soul Ev has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 419,570 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 4 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.

Recall campaigns

POWER TRAIN 23V724000 2023-10-26 6,262 affected
Defect

Kia America, Inc. (KIA) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Soul EV vehicles. The parking mechanism may be damaged, which can result in unintended vehicle movement when the gear shift lever is in the Park 'P' position and the parking brake is not applied while the vehicle is powered on.

Consequence

Unintended vehicle movement can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will update the electronic control unit software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 21, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC287. This recall expands and replaces recall number 20V-389. Vehicles previously…

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 23V218000 2023-03-29 2,689 affected
Defect

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Soul EV vehicles equipped with an E400 battery. The high-voltage battery pack may experience an electrical short-circuit while driving.

Consequence

A battery electrical short-circuit increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy

Dealers will update and/or replace the battery management system and software, as necessary, free of charge. The new software will illuminate the EV warning light, limit charging capacity, and reduce vehicle power if abnormal voltage is detected. If this occurs, the battery will be replaced, free of charge. Owner…

AIR BAGS 22V031000 2022-01-25 410,619 affected
Defect

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not…

Consequence

Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.

Complaints by component

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
2
ENGINE
1
POWER TRAIN
1
1crashes
Total complaints4

What owners report

Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.

“The contact owns a 2018 kia soul ev. The contact stated that the electrical system had experienced power fluctuations, which reduced the charging capacity of the battery to only 8 percent. The ev warning light remained illuminated. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact was…”

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM · reported 2023-09-01

“This is for 2018 kia soul ev. I stopped, placed the car in park and got out. Car then rolled down a hill with no one in the car. Causing an accident.”

POWER TRAIN · reported 2023-08-04

“My 2018 kia soul ev has had a significantly decreased range, inconsistent charging, and a check ev light illuminating periodically. All of these are symptoms of the recall. Kia is not only not giving a timeline to diagnose and repair the problem, they are also charging me a "diagnostic" fee for…”

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM · reported 2023-05-29

“My 2018 kia soul ev has had a significantly decreased range, inconsistent charging, and a check ev light illuminating periodically. All of these are symptoms of the recall. Kia is not only not giving a timeline to diagnose and repair the problem, they are also charging me a "diagnostic" fee for…”

ENGINE · reported 2023-05-29

Defect investigations

Investigation DP22005 Opened 2023-01-27 · closed 2023-08-07

Pedestrian alert sounds

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for…

Investigation RQ23005 Opened 2023-09-10 · closed 2024-01-16

Vehicle Rollaway

On July 2, 2020, Kia America Inc. (Kia) filed safety recall 20V-389 for model year (MY) 2015-2016 Kia Soul EV vehicles. This recall was in response to allegations of unintended vehicle movement while in Park and provided updated electronic control unit software for the electronic parking brake logic as the remedy.…

Sources & methodology

Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2018 Kia Soul Ev as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.