2008 Kia Spectra5 Recalls
No NHTSA recalls on record for the 2008 Kia Spectra5. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 24 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Complaints by component
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“There is absolutely no anti slip resistance on the pedals at all. There has been numerous of times, where my mother or my foot would slip off the brake onto the gas causing us to move forward towards the object in front of us. It finally got me and I hit the side of my highschool which damaged my…”
“Sudden unintended acceleration (sua): cruise control (cc) set to ~85 mph, sudden lurching red-line acceleration occurred, cc would not disengage. Had to fight my vehicle (pull e-brake) to get safely to freeway shoulder then turn ignition off. Car continued to try to red line after ignition killed,…”
“Sudden unintended acceleration (sua): cruise control (cc) set to ~85 mph, sudden lurching red-line acceleration occurred, cc would not disengage. Had to fight my vehicle (pull e-brake) to get safely to freeway shoulder then turn ignition off. Car continued to try to red line after ignition killed,…”
“Sudden unintended acceleration (sua): cruise control (cc) set to ~85 mph, sudden lurching red-line acceleration occurred, cc would not disengage. Had to fight my vehicle (pull e-brake) to get safely to freeway shoulder then turn ignition off. Car continued to try to red line after ignition killed,…”
“Purchased a 2008 kia spectra 5 in 2009. For 3 years it was a good commuter car. Then weird things started happening out of the blue. First, the car wouldn't allow us access by use of the key fob. It would unlock then lock. The vehicle flip the door unlock lever back and forth like a ghost was…”
“Purchased a 2008 kia spectra 5 in 2009. For 3 years it was a good commuter car. Then weird things started happening out of the blue. First, the car wouldn't allow us access by use of the key fob. It would unlock then lock. The vehicle flip the door unlock lever back and forth like a ghost was…”
“Purchased a 2008 kia spectra 5 in 2009. For 3 years it was a good commuter car. Then weird things started happening out of the blue. First, the car wouldn't allow us access by use of the key fob. It would unlock then lock. The vehicle flip the door unlock lever back and forth like a ghost was…”
“I was in a car accident on june 19, 2017. A vehicle hit my kia at a speed of 30 - 40 mph in the front driver's wheel base. None of the airbags deployed. I was making a left turn out of a shopping center, moving less than 10 mph.”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2008 Kia Spectra5 as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.