2012 Kia Soul Electrical Problems

Which parts fail

• Instrument cluster/panel
  1

Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  524%
• 25k–50k
  210%
• 50k–75k
  419%
• 75k–100k
  419%
• 100k–150k
  419%
• 150k+
  210%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2012 Kia Soul owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The contact's son owned a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the driveway, the contact's daughter-in-law looked through the glass door of the residence and noticed that the vehicle had caught on fire. The contact stated that the fire started from underneath the hood. The contact stated that the entire vehicle had burned significantly. The fire was extinguished by fire department, and the fire department filed a report. The contact stated that he resided in a lot for RVs converted into permanent residences. The contact stated that the contact's residence and a neighbor's residence sustained heat damage from the vehicle fire, and the side of the contact's residence melted. The contact's deck also caught on fire, and the fire was extinguished by fire department. The vehicle was totaled. The vehicle remained at the residence. …

The contact owned a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while stopped at an intersection, the vehicle independently accelerated while depressing the brake pedal. The contact steered the vehicle to the left in an attempt to stop the acceleration and repeatedly depressed the brake pedal. Due to the failure, the contact hit a curb, a sidewalk post, and finally, a retaining wall which stopped the vehicle. The sidewalk post was damaged due to the crash. The contact was unaware if any warning lights appeared on the instrument panel. The air bags did not deploy at any time during the failure. A woman was knocked over by the vehicle as a result of the failure. The woman sustained a cut to her right hand and suffered pain to the right side of her body. The woman was taken to the hospital by ambulance for treatment, her whereabouts remain unknown. …

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while reversing and parking the vehicle, the steering wheel malfunctioned and became difficult to turn, and the driver was unable to control the direction of the vehicle, causing the rear passenger side wheel to strike the curb. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who diagnosed that the steering failure was due to a faulty ignition key. The keys were replaced, but later the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who indicated that the keys needed to be reprogrammed. The keys were reprogrammed. Later, while at the dealer the steering wheel failure reoccurred. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 45,000. The VIN was not available.

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under NHTSA ID Number: 10247553 (Steering, Structure, Electrical System), and the vehicle intermittently failed to start. While driving at various speeds and while the vehicle was idling, the vehicle jerked and shut off unintendedly. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent; however, the failure mostly occurred while the radio or A/C was in use. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The contact used a diagnostic machine and retrieved a code for a failure with the ignition, and that an unknown software update was needed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 117,000.

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that the vehicle was driven to a local dealer to have the vehicle checked due to recall, NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The contact was contacted by the dealer and was advised that the check engine warning light was illuminated and that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The contact stated that the vehicle was diagnosed and that the vehicle needed a BGC Fuel Induction service. The contact picked up the vehicle and was advised by the dealer to drive the vehicle for 100 miles and then return the vehicle to the dealer to inspect the vehicle. The contact stated that after picking up the vehicle, she was driving at approximately 30 MPH, when the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated. …

I had some work done on the drive train of my car by a local mechanic. When I picked up the car, the Brake light and the Low Tire light were on. I asked the mechanic to see about getting them turned off. He came to me a bit later, said they tried to replace a fuse connected to these sensors, and the fuse blew out a small flame when they tried to start the car. He looked it up and discovered there was a recall on this very fuse from Kia (I never received a notice), and he had the car towed to the local dealership. They are refusing to correct the issue because they said he messed it up, and therefore they are not liable. They are wanting to charge me several thousand dollars to fix the problem. This seems completely insane because were it not for their faulty equipment, none of this would have happened. …

Despite being assured for years by KIA that my vehicle was not affected by this recall, I received a recall notice in DECEMBER 2023 for the HECU. Now it is April, and my vehicle still is not repaired because KIA STILL has not supplied the part required to fix this safety issue. Because of the high theft issue of my vehicle, I cannot park it outside and KIA is now telling me I cannot park the vehicle inside because of fire hazard. I have had to pay a higher insurance premium just to keep my car insured and have even been denied insurance by Farmers and Progressive. I am afraid to drive my car and how am I supposed to afford another car? Some dealers will not even consider the car as a trade in.

The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the contact informed the dealer of an attempted theft of the vehicle and that the ignition was damaged. The dealer informed the contact that the repair could not be performed. In addition, the contact stated that the dealer had not inspected the vehicle. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

While driving KIA 2012: It will suddenly quit running while driving. Loss of control of steering. Loss of electrical controls, ie: brake lights, head lights & all electrical devices. Dangerous to drive.

The series of events leading to my theory of what is wrong with my 2012 Kia Soul: 1. Steering coupler replacement in March of 2021 left my steering wheel sideways instead of straight, air bag light remains on, and traction control light as well. The after-market (I assume) cruise control is automatically on when car is started. Must turn off manually. 2. U-joint connecting to steering column fell onto my feet while driving in December of 2021. I slid it back on, but it slipped off approximately 4 more times in the next month before it was strongly secured. 3. Alignment performed in February 2022. Approximately 2 weeks after the alignment, my car started stuttering, if you will, prior to shifting into third gear. Then, again, prior to each shift into the higher gears. It stalled a few times in response to this action. …

NHTSA investigations

Electrical complaints in other Soul years