2013 Kia Soul Recalls and Problems

NHTSA lists 3 safety recalls and 662 owner complaints for the 2013 Kia Soul.

Recalled components: brakes, engine, and body structure. Most-described problem: the check engine light coming on (117 complaints, 18%), then engine failure or replacement (70). Most-reported area: engine (283 complaints, 43%; median mileage when it happened: 117,000).

Data: NHTSA recall, complaint and investigation filesUpdated Oct 2, 2026

Year to avoidBest year

Excludes the electric Soul EV.

3 safety recalls for the 2013 Kia Soul

Do-not-drive and park-outside recalls first, then newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.

Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA has opened 2 investigations that name the 2013 Kia Soul, not counting audit queries; both are closed. An investigation means NHTSA is reviewing reports of a problem. It is not a finding that the vehicle has a defect.

A preliminary evaluation is NHTSA's first step, to gather information and decide whether to look further. An engineering analysis is a deeper review, usually opened after a preliminary evaluation. NHTSA lists investigations by make, model and model year only, so one can apply to only some versions of a model, such as one engine; its summary says which.

What owners report

Owners have filed 662 complaints with NHTSA about the 2013 Soul. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.

Problems owners describe

• Check engine light117 · 18%
  Median 125,100 miles at failure, from 84 reports with mileage
• Engine failure or replacement70 · 11%
  Median 112,000 miles at failure, from 41 reports with mileage
• Stalling or shutting off66 · 10%
  Median 110,000 miles at failure, from 49 reports with mileage
• Smoke or a burning smell48 · 7%
  Median 99,000 miles at failure, from 25 reports with mileage
• Steering rack problems: sticking, play or pulling45 · 7%
  Median 66,900 miles at failure, from 18 reports with mileage
• Shaking, shuddering or vibration41 · 6%
  Median 85,500 miles at failure, from 26 reports with mileage
• Loss of power or limp mode38 · 6%
  Median 130,000 miles at failure, from 27 reports with mileage
• Excessive oil consumption25 · 4%
  Median 125,000 miles at failure, from 15 reports with mileage

Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these. Compare other models in the problem owners report most for every model year.

Areas named in complaints

• Engine283 · 43%
  Median 117,000 miles at failure, from 179 reports with mileage
• Steering151 · 23%
  Median 70,000 miles at failure, from 85 reports with mileage
• Brakes96 · 15%
  Median 67,000 miles at failure, from 29 reports with mileage
• Electrical system71 · 11%
  Median 60,800 miles at failure, from 30 reports with mileage
• Engine and cooling44 · 7%
  Most named: exhaust system, emission control, catalytic convertor (7) · Median 137,500 miles at failure, from 36 reports with mileage
• Fuel and propulsion system27 · 4%
• Air bags18 · 3%
• Unknown or other61 · 9%
  Median 98,500 miles at failure, from 22 reports with mileage

A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%. Mileage is shown where at least 15 owners reported it.

Kia Soul recalls and complaints by model year

The highlighted bars are the 2013 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2020 Soul drew the most (165) and the 2013 drew 54.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

2013 Soul MPG

Questions