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 2012 Kia Sedona owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
While driving the vehicle and applying the brakes the vehicle shifted to one side of the road. There was an accident 03/2024 after having the brake control arm serviced. The braking system failed. There was a recall on the front control arm 2016. The vehicle was totaled and was salvaged due to damages to the vehicle. The brake inspection failed. Today the braking system has has no control even after the master cylinder was repaired. The vehicle is currently sitting at a service station without being serviced for at least 2 months. Kia needs to be responsible and refund for the arm control repair and other related part failures. The electrical system does not work for the windshield wipers or the air conditioner or sliding doors.
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that the battery drained unexpectedly, and the vehicle failed to start. The battery was replaced twice, and the vehicle was temporarily repaired. The contact's son replaced the alternator; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was no longer operable. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 200,000.
THIS IS UNRELATED TO THE SAFETY RECALL FOR THE FUEL RAIL The electronic door locks fail, (mine are not fully automatic, but when you turn on the key you can hear the safety locks trying to engage before permitting the vehicle to move - they do not work. Worse even with the key, the doors will not consistently lock or unlock. Doors can become locked to the point that you can not manually open them, creating a fire hazard for occupants. Additionally, there is NO safety or emergency release on the back hatch. if you are inside when this locking aberration occurs, you must exit via a side (if it HAPPENS to be working) or front door (again, if it happens to be working. I fail to understand why this is not a major safety issue and why no recall has been issued. There are literally 1000s of such reports on various car forums. …
Unknown. I've replaced the alternator and battery. The alternator many times and still having lights come on. Mostly the "brake and battery " lights. It's sitting till further notice. Not drive able.
There is a continuous leakage of oil from my van even after the dealer replaced valve cover gasket . When I complained they said it was the leftover oil. After a month again I complained . Then they re-checked and said it is my car's timing cover reseal leaking . Again after few days I had to complain as there was a leak. I got the same standard reply of leftover uncleaned oil is the cause. Few weeks later I took the van to them and they said they thoroughly cleaned and there won't be any leak. I sent them pictures of oil drops underneth the car like I did on earlier occassions. On August 11th this year they checked the car after my complaint and said there was no active leak. On 30th of this month I sent them the pictures of leaked oil spots which they are going to check on 18th September!. Since I got my first appointment on January 19 2025 I took the vehicle to the dealer 5-6 times. …
Last September 6th, 2018, Sedona was almost caught fire while driver was with her children. Onwer saw a huge smoke after she looked at dashboard tempature guage that reached overheat, quickly parked, turned it off, and opened the hood. She smelled strong burned. Mechanic took a look at engine and found a lot of motor oil that was leaking through the head gasket and spilling over onto exhaust pipe under engine block. Oil spilling onto exhaust pipe could cause fire. Response of mechanic diagnosis, original alternator was at fault for stopping generate power supply to the radiator fan assembly. Then radiator fan assembly stopped operating, resulting in engine overheat to break the head gasket, leaking a lot of motor oil. Following overheat issue, transmission was also affected. Mechanic noticed that alarm was not built in for coolant fluid level low after half low in radiator found. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle both the driver side and passenger side door would erroneously opened. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. Also, while driving smoke was present inside the cabin of the vehicle. After stopping the vehicle, the driver extinguished the flames coming from the blower motor wire harness located under the glove box. Also the front low beam head lights had failed on multiple occasion and had to be replaced and the backup camera was inoperable. The cause of the failures were not yet determined. The local dealer a & b Kia dealer (100 marshall st. N, benwood, wv 26031) was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 130,000.
Driving to montana from colorado over the summer, ac went out. Got it back to dealership, was told blower motor went bad - actually melted the plug and we had smoke in the van! Replaced the blower motor and plug (out of pocket) from dealership since they said out of warranty due to mileage. Then, 3 weeks later, same problem. They replaced the wiring harness connector. 2 weeks later, same problem, replaced blower motor again and wiring pigtail connector to blower motor. A/C is one thing, but when entering into colorado winter driving, need heat for the windshield! Repeated problem dozens of times over the last 2 months! Vehicle isn't safe to drive now! Went to another dealership, now that it's winter in colorado, need heat for windshield. Was told needed to replace full vehicle wiring harness at ~$1,800 parts + ~$1,100 labor and to "see if that would fix it." nope! …
Key stuck in ignition. Parked Mini-van, cannot remove key from ignition. While turning counter clockwise, stopped at acc position. Can turn key clockwise, restart engine, turn off engine, key would not turn counter clockwise past acc position. Took to dealer, dealer could not duplicate problem. Cost $170. 2 days after pick up Mini-van from dealer, wife drove to grocery store, could not remove key from ignition. Checked internet, seems that there has been a problem going on since 2006 with numerous Kia vehicles but no technical service bulletins. I was able to duplicate it once. I could not turn key counter clockwise past acc, when I took foot off brake pedal, vehicle rocked slightly, heard click and saw gear selector lever shudder. Now could turn key and remove from ignition. I think something wrong with shifter linkage not releasing microlock in ignition.
My son was driving the car with my grandson in the front passenger seat. Smoke came out of the air conditioning vents and a fire started in the wiring below the dash on the passengers side. My grandson put out the fire with his shoe and after turning off the ac the smoke stopped. Dealership said blower motor was drawing too much current. Subsequently they found a 40 amp fuse had blown and a bad motor resistor. This problem never should have happened and if the fire had spread, at best the car would be totaled and worst case a serious accident with possible loss of life. Next issue is a bad ignition switch. It was very difficult to turn the key in the switch. Replacing key did not help. Ending up replacing ignition switch. In an emergency not being able to use your car could be life threatening.
Electrical complaints in other Sedona years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2012 Kia Sedona?
NHTSA has 33 complaints about the electrical system of the 2012 Kia Sedona, 31% of the model year's 108 complaints. The component named most often is alternator/generator/regulator (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2012 Kia Sedona electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2012 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 2012 Kia Sedona electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 72,000 miles, and 16% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 3 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.