NHTSA recall 16V862000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 16V862000 |
| Manufacturer's number | SC142 |
| Manufacturer | Kia Motors America |
| Reported | 2016-11-30 |
| Owners notified | 2017-01-19 |
| Component | TRAILER HITCHES; ELECTRICAL SYSTEM |
| Units potentially affected | 10212 |
| Report | Quarterly report 6, for 2018 quarter 2 |
|---|---|
| Filed with NHTSA | 2018-07-17 |
| Vehicles in the campaign | 10212 |
| Reported remedied | 6605 (64%) |
| Reported unreachable | 201 |
| Reported removed | 37 |
These are the manufacturer's totals for the whole campaign at the end of 2018 quarter 2, as filed with NHTSA. They do not say whether one vehicle has been remedied: check the VIN with the official lookups. The reports are from data as of 2026-10-19.
What is wrong
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Sorento vehicles manufactured October 27, 2014, to August 25, 2016, and 2017 Sportage vehicles manufactured December 10, 2015, to August 26, 2016. The affected vehicles are equipped with an accessory trailer hitch wiring harness that, due to a malfunction of the tow hitch module, may result in the trailer brake lights being constantly illuminated. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, " Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
What can happen
If the trailer brake lights stay illuminated while being used, other drivers may be confused, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the trailer tow hitch harness, free of charge. The recall began January 18, 2017. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC142.
Notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
| 2016 KIA SORENTO | Built 2014-10-27 to 2016-08-25. |
|---|---|
| 2017 KIA SORENTO | Built 2014-10-27 to 2016-08-25. |
| 2017 KIA SPORTAGE | Built 2015-12-10 to 2016-08-26. |
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| SC330_OWNR_301 | 2026-09-30. Service campaign. VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER RENOTIFICATION (SC330 Flight 301) - This document is the owner renotification advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Service Campaign to replace the multi-function switch knob with improved parts on certain 2016-2018 MY Sorento vehicles. |
|---|---|
| WTY031_TSB_R2 | 2026-06-18. Warranty extension. TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: WARRANTY EXTENSION CAMPAIGN: MULTIFUNCTION SWITCH REPAIR (WTY031) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information associated with the ‘Multifunction Switch Warranty Extension Program’ (WTY031) to repair the multifunction switch knob on 2016-2018MY Sorento (UMa) vehicles, produced at Kia Georgia from October 27, 2014 through March 7, 2018, which may exhibit an intermittent headlamp flickering. The vehicle’s warranty for this issue will be extended from 5 years/60,000 miles to 15 years/150,000 miles, whichever comes first, starting from the date the vehicle was first put into service. |
| SC340_OWNR_NQ5_105 | 2026-04-01. Emissions. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER NOTIFICATION (SC340 FLIGHT 105) - This document is the owner notification advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign to improve the emissions software logic in the Electronic Control Module (ECM) for certain 2017-2022 MY Sportage vehicles equipped with 2.4L Gas Direct Injection (GDI) engines to ensure compliance with emissions regulations. |
| SC340_TSB_R4 | 2026-03-13. Emissions. TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: THETA II 2.4L GDI EMISSION SECM LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SC340 REV 4) - This bulletin has been revised to include additional information. New/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Electronic Control Module ‘ECM’ system software for certain 2016-2022MY vehicles equipped with 2.4L Theta II engines listed in the table below. Kia has become aware that certain 2016-2022MY vehicles equipped with 2.4L Theta II engines may have engine calibrations that were not optimized for emissions standards under certain specific conditions. These calibrations may cause the vehicle to release air pollutants which exceed Federal and California standards. These standards were established to protect your health and welfare from the dangers of air pollution. |
| SC340_STKR | 2025-10-24. Emissions. SC340_STKR: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN COMPLETION LABEL/STICKER |
| SC340_QA | 2025-10-24. Emissions. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: QUESTION AND ANSWER (SC340) - This document is the Question and Answer Guide containing the most frequently asked questions regarding the Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign SC340. |
| SC340_POC | 2025-10-24. Emissions. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SC340_POC: PROOF OF CORRECTION CARD |
| SC340_DPSM | 2025-10-24. Emissions. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS AND SERVICE MANAGER MEMO (SC340) - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Service managers advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign to improve the emissions software logic in the Electronic Control Module (ECM) to ensure compliance with emissions regulations in certain 2017-2022 MY Sportage vehicles manufactured from December 10, 2015, through December 7, 2021, certain 2016-2020 MY Optima vehicles manufactured from August 28, 2015, through June 23, 2020, and certain 2016-2020 MY Sorento vehicles manufactured from October 27, 2014, through November 4, 2020, equipped with 2.4L Theta GDI engines. |
| SC340_DP | 2025-10-24. Emissions. VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PRINCIPAL MEMO (SC340) - This document is the announcement to the dealer principals advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign to improve the emissions software logic in the Electronic Control Module (ECM) to ensure compliance with emissions regulations in certain 2017-2022 MY Sportage vehicles manufactured from December 10, 2015, through December 7, 2021, certain 2016-2020 MY Optima vehicles manufactured from August 28, 2015, through June 23, 2020, and certain 2016-2020 MY Sorento vehicles manufactured from October 27, 2014, through November 4, 2020, equipped with 2.4L Theta GDI engines. |
| SC330_OWNR_201 | 2025-09-22. Service campaign. VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: OWNER RENOTIFICATION (SC330) - This document is the owner renotification advising that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Service Campaign to replace the multi-function switch knob with improved parts on certain 2016-2018 MY Sorento vehicles. |
A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.