Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2022 Kia Seltos owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The engine started to fail when I'm driving and on the highway it suddenly loses strength, the oil goes down and I don't know where it's going, the engine starts to make noises and burning smell, the ignition light turns on and minutes later goes out, a triangle signal also sometimes appears for 6 seconds and disappears, when this triangle appears the car starts to fail and give strong jolts, this has already happened on the highway and I almost lost control of the car due to the jock. I looked for a Kia store on 08/04/25 to recall and reported the problem, they said at the time that there was no vacancy to do the recall service 25v099 mileage 44232, so they managed to meet me only on the date 03/19/26 and said that the car was with the recall problem corrected, but 2 months later the engine power problems, oil lowering, noise and burning smell were intensifying, so today 05/15/25 I …
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Seltos. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V099000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle was able to restart. The contact stated that the failure had recurred while driving at various speeds, but mostly while driving at slow speeds. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive oil consumption, which required the contact to add a quart of oil to the vehicle every 2 to 3 days to reduce the frequency of the failure. …
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Seltos. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shut off without warning. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the dealer where an unknown sensor was replaced; however, the failure returned soon after the repair. The contact then received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V099000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact informed the dealer of the recall, and the dealer acknowledged the recall and that the piston oil rings had failed; however, the dealer informed the contact that the manufacturer had ordered the dealer not to perform the recall repair. The vehicle remained in the possession of the dealer. The contact was recently informed that the vehicle needed to be picked up from the dealer location because the part to do the recall repair was not available. …
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Seltos. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V099000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the contact had scheduled a recall appointment and was advised by the dealer that the recall had been placed on hold. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and advised the contact that the recall was on hold. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH and ascending a hill, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal, and failed to respond as needed. Additionally, the contact stated that vehicle was making abnormal knocking sounds while the vehicle was stopped and idling. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle had not been diagnosed by the dealer. …
My 2022 Kia Seltos out of nowhere started smoking, losing power, total control and braking. There were no lights on the dashboard warning of any kind complete stall than a little bit of power hesitation stall no brakes. I managed to coast it into a parking space at a hotel with it smoking so bad I couldn't see. It then burst into flames and golfing the entire Engine bay and melting the front of the car about 90 seconds after I got out of the car all of the symptoms here are completely aligned with the recall on this vehicle and the soul. In fact, my son soul had all the same issues except the fire and Kia refused to replace the Engine claiming that his lack of a recent oil change caused the problem that we all see reported here this vehicle was not in the recall VIN group but failed catastrophically just as described in the recall
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Seltos. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle or while accelerating, there was an abnormal amount of white smoke coming from the exhaust, with droplets of oil. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed and the contact was informed that the piston rings had failed due to oil build-up and the accumulation of moisture inside of the cylinders and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V099000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); as the possible cause for the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 64,000.
The contact owns a 2022 Kia Seltos. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was able to be restarted, but the vehicle was jerking while driving. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 84,000.
My vehicle was sent to the Kia dealership for service after a front-end collision there was minor body damage however the car wouldn't move so long story short a modular had to be replaced on the transmission there was multiple issues trying to program it I was told there was an issue with my computer they had to reach out to Kia manufacturer for help. I received my car back and while it was there for service I had them do an oil change I hadn't drove 300 to 400 miles and all of my oil was gone from my car when I called Kia they had me bring it back in couldn't find anything wrong with it and said they want to do a oil consumption after I had already documented oil that I had to put into the car three times in the week up until my appointment because every time I check the car it was empty of oil. …
Engine issue - unknown excessive oil consumption. I started the car to drive to work and immediately it had a very rough idle. I turned the car off and checked the oil level. The car was on a level surface and the oil level was below the acceptable range on the dipstick. It has been about 4000 miles since my last oil change (around 82000 miles) and I noticed the engine was consuming oil about 2500 miles after that oil change. I added a quart of oil to bring the level back within the dipstick's acceptable range. Throughout all of this, there have been no puddles to indicate a leak, no smoke to indicate oil burning, and no "Low Oil" warning light. I took the car to a Kia dealership in August 2025 for a piston ring recall inspection, and I was told there was nothing wrong with my car. At the time, there was nothing noticeably wrong with my car. …
My 2022 Kia Seltos is equipped with Idle Stop & Go (ISG), which shuts the engine off when stopped and restarts it when the driver releases the brake/presses the accelerator. ISG stopped functioning about a year ago (the engine stayed running at stops). I didn't think anything of it because the ISG had worked sporadically from the day I bought the car. (I purchased it new.) It began working again, sporadically, about a week ago. Since then, on 3 occasions, when stopped at a red light with the engine auto-shut-off via ISG, pressing the accelerator to proceed causes the engine to fail to restart as I accelerate, and the vehicle stalls. The dashboard displays a "Press Ignition Button" message. I lose power to the engine, and the vehicle stops accelerating, coasting briefly on momentum until I manually restart it via the ignition button. …
Related recalls
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Hard parts internal/mechanical
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Seltos and Soul vehicles. The piston oil rings may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in engine damage.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Dealers will also install piston-ring noise sensing system (PNSS) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 4, 2025.
NHTSA investigations
Kia 25V099 Piston Oil Ring Recall Effectiveness
On August 6, 2025, the Office of Defect Investigation (ODI) opened Audit Query (AQ) 25001 to assess the implementation of Kia America, Inc.'s (Kia) remedy program for Safety Recall 25V099, involving incorrectly manufactured piston oil rings which may damage the engine causing a loss of motive power or fire.
Engine complaints in other Seltos years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2022 Kia Seltos?
NHTSA has 49 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2022 Kia Seltos, 65% of the model year's 75 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2022 Kia Seltos engine problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 25V-099 (hard parts internal/mechanical, Feb 17, 2025). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2022 Kia Seltos engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 64,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 1 fire and 0 injuries to engine & cooling 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.