2011 KIA Sorento Exterior Lighting Problems
Owners have filed 102 complaints with NHTSA about exterior lighting problems on the 2011 KIA Sorento, 7% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 98,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “low beam” (25% of reports).
- 102exterior lighting complaints
- 98,000median miles at failure
- 1mention a crash
- 2mention an injury
- 1related recalls
- 38%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Low beam: mentioned in 25 of 102 complaints (25%)
- Headlight assembly: mentioned in 9 of 102 complaints (9%)
- Turn signal: mentioned in 9 of 102 complaints (9%)
- Come off: mentioned in 6 of 102 complaints (6%)
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems happen?
Based on 73 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 102 complaints, 1 mention a crash, 6 a fire, 2 an injury.
KIA Sorento exterior lighting complaints by model year
| Model year | Exterior Lighting complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Sorento | 2 | 3% | 530 |
| 2024 Sorento | 2 | 5% | — |
| 2023 Sorento | 2 | 2% | — |
| 2022 Sorento | 2 | 1% | — |
| 2021 Sorento | 3 | 1% | 55,839 |
| 2020 Sorento | 5 | 4% | — |
| 2019 Sorento | 22 | 5% | 8,500 |
| 2018 Sorento | 41 | 16% | 43,450 |
| 2017 Sorento | 125 | 16% | 37,100 |
| 2016 Sorento | 67 | 5% | 43,594 |
| 2015 Sorento | 91 | 12% | 76,000 |
| 2014 Sorento | 86 | 9% | 74,459 |
| 2013 Sorento | 70 | 7% | 94,187 |
| 2012 Sorento | 60 | 7% | 95,500 |
| 2011 Sorento | 102 | 7% | 98,000 |
| 2009 Sorento | 1 | 2% | — |
| 2008 Sorento | 13 | 6% | 72,000 |
| 2007 Sorento | 12 | 8% | 98,432 |
| 2006 Sorento | 56 | 23% | 50,000 |
| 2005 Sorento | 53 | 17% | 45,400 |
| 2004 Sorento | 14 | 6% | 55,500 |
| 2003 Sorento | 16 | 5% | 36,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (1)
Exterior lighting:brake lights:switch
Problem: Kia Motors Corporation (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2007-2010 Rondo, model year 2007-2011 Sedona, Sorento and Sportage, model year 2010-2011 Soul, model year 2008-2011 Optima, model year 2010 Forte, model year 2007-2009 Amanti, and model year 2009 Borrego vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Kia recalled 623,658 model year 2007-2010 Rondo and Sportage, model year 2007-2011 Sorento, model year 2007 Sedona, model year 2010-2011 Soul, and model year 2011 Optima vehicles. In September 2013, Kia informed the agency that it was adding an additional 356,719 vehicles to this campaign. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 980,377. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake-transmission shift interlock feature preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of PARK without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Kia will send an interim notification to owners in May 2013. When parts are available, owners will receive a second notification and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. Owners may contact Kia at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's recall campaign number is SC098.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
I was driving and my Kia started over heating and smoking and smelled like plastic burning I got it towed to the Hendricks of Kia and it sat there for 2weeks and I contacted them about giving me a lender until they fix my engine problem and they told me that my engine is not under warranty but is a…
My headlights are not working properly. This is an ongoing issue with Kia model vehicles- check online forums
This very dangerous issue has happened at least 3 times. It happens in frequently but is terrible when it happens because at night you are put into immediate darkness with no warning. Upon flashing the high beams on or using the turn signal the headlights go dark/off. Then you need to restart the…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2011 KIA Sorentos have exterior lighting problems?
No. NHTSA has 102 owner complaints about exterior lighting for the 2011 KIA Sorento (7% of the 1,520 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2011 KIA Sorento exterior lighting?
Yes: 1 safety recall list exterior lighting. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems start?
The median reported mileage is 98,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about exterior lighting problems on the 2011 KIA Sorento?
The most frequent phrase is “low beam”, in 25 of 102 complaints, followed by “headlight assembly” (9).
Other 2011 KIA Sorento problems
See all 2011 KIA Sorento problems or exterior lighting problems across all Sorento years.