Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Kia Sedona owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
We have a detached garage, at 4:00 am our dog woke us up to her barking. She could hear the van horn blowing. When I took her out, I saw the van lights flashing and the horn was blowing. I could not stop the horn with the keyless remote. I woke up my husband, when he opened the door the dashboard was all melted, windshield was cracked, the A/C unit going up the driver's door was all melted. He finally found a place to open the hood to disconnect the battery. The mechanism to open the hood was all melted as well. The van was totaled and the insurance company sent us $3900. The van was is great shape for being 11 years old. We had the van serviced as scheduled and it was always kept in the garage. We bought the van new and still live in the same house as when we bought it. So we should have received any recalls on the van. …
Tl* the contact owned a 2003 Kia Sedona. The contact stated while driving at 25 MPH the vehicle hesitated and failed to shift into the desired gear with smoke coming from under the hood. The contact managed to drive the vehicle home, parked the vehicle, and upon opening the hood saw flames. The contact stated that the fire department was called however, her neighbor attempted to extinguish the flames with a water hose until the fire department arrived to extinguish the fire. There were no injuries and a fire report was taken. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000. The dealer was not notified of this issue and the manufacturer was not made aware of this issue. The contact mentioned that the check engine and air bags warning lights had been illuminated since she purchased the vehicle.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Kia Sedona. While the vehicle was parked, smoke appeared under the driver side dashboard. The contact was able to clear out the smoke and noticed that the fuse box caught fire. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 128,000.
My Sedona keeps catching on fire not sure why but now if I get it up to temperature it automatically catches on fire I'm going into my second fire extinguishe
I purchased a 2003 Kia Sedona van from speedway Kia in March of 2003. One of the reasons I choose this van was due to the 5 star safety rating. On May 26th of 2004, I was driving my van from tampa fl to port orange fl on I-4 and I started smelling an electrical burning smell. I pulled off the highway, looked under the hood but could not see anything burning. I got back on the highway and continued east towards daytona beach. When I got off the port orange exit on 95, I smoke started pouring out from under my hood, I drove about a mile to my home. I then opened the hood and the insulation under my hood was on fire. My husband put out the fire, and smoke continued to come out of the vent behind the engine. At that point, my husband disconnected the battery to remove the power source because it smelled like and electrical fire, the smoke eventually stopped. …
We have a 2003 Kia Sedona ex that is one year old. It had 20,000 miles on the car and had no problems at all. On 09/03/04, after dropping our daughters off at school 5 minutes away, we pulled in the driveway, turned the car off and smoke poured out of vents. After that, car started on its own with no keys in it, panic started sounding constantly and then the car started on fire behind the steering wheel and was in full flames within one minute. The chief of the goshen fire dept. Stated it was an electrical fire that started in the dashboard. We are waiting for copy of report. We contacted the Kia manufacturer in ca immediately and sent pictures (can be furnished). It took Kia almost 2 weeks to even contact us after repeated calls to them. They called on 09/14/04 and said we'd have an answer by 2 p.m. 09/15 and they never called. Today, after we called and threatened to sue them (msg. …
On September 30, 2004 at approximately 6:00 p.m. My husband and son were scheduled to attend a meeting. As they approached our vehicle parked in the driveway, my husband noticed that the automatic key did not open the vehicle. He tried several times and finally manually unlocked the door. When he opened the door he noticed that the steering column, dash board and driver's door were damaged by fire and melted plastic damaged the carpet. The windows and interior were covered in residue from the smoke. We immediately contacted the Kia dealership and reported the incident and had the vehicle towed to southpoint Kia where we purchased the vehicle. We received a slow response for getting a replacement vehicle and was told several days later that we would need to cover the rental vehicle until they determined the cause of the fire. …
Dt: the consumer stated that 2003 Kia Sedona caught on fire while parked in the garage. The vehicle had been sitting for around six hours. The fire started underneath the steering wheel in the dashboard area. The inside of the van had substantial damage. The van was towed to a body shop until the insurance adjuster looked at the van. The van was driving fine and working in good shape prior to the fire. The fire department came and put out the fire. T a fire investigator came and inspected the scene. The fire investigator concluded it was an electrical fire. The dealer and the manufacturer have been told about the fire. The consumer just told Kia about the fire, and they wanted the consumer to get a copy of the fire report ,and then they would talk to him. The dealership told the consumer that they didn't know what to tell him. …
2003 Kia Sedona with approx 48,000 miles, parked and unoccupied in the parking area of my townhouse community. Went to open the door remotely using the key ring and there was no response. Eventually had to manually open the car and noticed the entire left hand side of the instrument panel and dashboard area had literally melted into the floorboard. Appears as if there was some kind of electrical short. Vehicle was towed to bonneville Kia and due to my extended service contract immediately set up a rental. The service rep at bonneville said he had not seen "anything like it" and was to call his factory rep and recommended I contact my auto insurance carrier to begin the claims process. The circumstances of this incident seem way to close to other complaints found on our webpage. Clearly there is some kind of defect that Kia needs to address. …
On tues. The 3rd of oct. 2006 I went to start my 2003 Kia Sedona and it would not start so aaa was called, they came and jumped the battery and it was all set to go. Thursday the 5th I noticed console near radio was hot to the touch. Friday oct. 6th 2006 I went to get into my car and I could not get the door open. I noticed the windshield was cracked and black. When I finally got into the car the drivers side was completely melted by a fire that occurred sometime in the middle of the night. The car was totaled by my insurance company, they are giving me cash value for it and now I am stuck with owing money on a car I don't have. They are currently investigating the exact cause of the fire. There must have been some kind of manufacturing defect. It was a 2003 and I purchased it only 6 months ago. No one was hurt but everything was damaged and I am at a loss and don't know what I can do.
NHTSA investigations
Electrical fire
By letter dated October 4, 2005, Kia notified the agency that it is conducting a safety recall (NHTSA recall no. 05V463) involving all model year (my) 2002, 2003 Kia sedona ex vehicles and certain my 2004 Kia sedona ex vehicles.Kia?s recall covers 74,276 vehicles.Kia reports that fires were caused by wiring under front seats being misrouted; this allowed the wire to be pinched by metal seat components.over time, the…
Electrical complaints in other Sedona years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2003 Kia Sedona?
NHTSA has 38 complaints about the electrical system of the 2003 Kia Sedona, 19% of the model year's 197 complaints. The component named most often is alternator/generator/regulator (4 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2003 Kia Sedona electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2003 Kia Sedona, though it has 5 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2003 Kia Sedona electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 64,000 miles, and 23% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 22 fires and 0 injuries to electrical system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.