Kia Sportage Years to Avoid

Years to avoid: 2017 and 2023 At least twice the 36 complaints of a typical Sportage year. Most described: engine failure (2017), stalling (2023).
Best years: No year stands out Only the 2016, 2019, and 2021 drew under three quarters of the 36 complaints of a typical Sportage year since 2016, but each has a recall telling owners not to drive or to park outside until it is repaired.

Based on owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, not adjusted for sales. The 2024 to 2026 models are too new to judge. See every year ranked

Data: US EPA and NHTSAUpdated Nov 12, 2026

Every model year since 2010 in one place: EPA fuel economy, NHTSA recalls, owner complaints and crash test ratings. The best fuel economy rating, 43 mpg combined, arrived in 2023. Includes the Sportage Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid.

Sportage problems by year, ranked by owner complaints

How the years are ranked

Model years ranked by owner complaints filed with NHTSA in their first three years (model year Y: filed by the end of Y+2), so every year is measured over the same time on the road. Years without three full years of data, and launch or final years with very few sold, are left out. Counts are not adjusted for how many were sold.

A typical Sportage year drew 36 complaints in its first three years: the median of its years since 2016, higher than the median of all its ranked years (18). Years to avoid drew at least twice that, and at least 50. Best years are up to three years since 2016 with the fewest complaints, each under three quarters of a typical year since 2016 (36), with no open NHTSA investigation and no do-not-drive or park-outside recall that covers all versions; the 2020 is never picked, as its first three years fell in the pandemic. How the verdict works.

Model year	First 3 years	All complaints	Recalls
2023 Sportage Avoid Most described: stalling or shutting off	244	313	7
2017 Sportage Avoid Most described: engine failure or replacement	86	404	4
2018 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	42	166	3
2020 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	42	169	2
2022 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	30	47	1
2011 Sportage Most described: stalling or shutting off and engine failure or replacement	28	181	6
2019 Sportage Most described: excessive oil consumption	18	71	2
2021 Sportage Most described: excessive oil consumption and the check engine light coming on	18	54	2
2012 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	16	392	5
2015 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	15	146	2
2013 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	13	381	3
2016 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	13	134	2
2014 Sportage Most described: engine failure or replacement	9	125	3
2010 Sportage Most reported: brakes	2	20	2

Compare other models' worst years in the worst model years guide.

Check your Sportage for open recalls

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Kia dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Year by year

Model year	Best rating	Recalls	Complaints	Crash test
2026 MPG · Recalls and problems	42 mpg Hybrid	1	44
2025 MPG · Recalls and problems	43 mpg Hybrid	1	76
2024 MPG · Recalls and problems	43 mpg Hybrid	3	110
2023 MPG · Recalls and problems	43 mpg Hybrid	7	313
2022 MPG · Recalls and problems	26 mpg Gas	1	47
2021 MPG · Recalls and problems	26 mpg Gas	2	54
2020 MPG · Recalls and problems	26 mpg Gas	2	169
2019 MPG · Recalls and problems	25 mpg Gas	2	71
2018 MPG · Recalls and problems	26 mpg Gas	3	166
2017 MPG · Recalls and problems	26 mpg Gas	4	404
2016 MPG · Recalls and problems	23 mpg Gas	2	134	4 to 5 stars
2015 MPG · Recalls and problems	23 mpg Gas	2	146	4 to 5 stars
2014 MPG · Recalls and problems	23 mpg Gas	3	125	4 to 5 stars
2013 MPG · Recalls and problems	25 mpg Gas	3	381	4 to 5 stars
2012 MPG · Recalls and problems	25 mpg Gas	5	392	4 to 5 stars
2011 MPG · Recalls and problems	25 mpg Gas	6	181	Not rated
2010 MPG · Recalls and problems	22 mpg Gas	2	20	Not rated

Best rating leaves out the plug-in hybrid, which EPA rates on gas and on electricity separately. MPG by year lists both ratings.

Owner complaints by model year

All complaints filed so far. Counts rise with sales volume and with time on the road, so recent years look better than they may turn out. The highlighted bar is the model year with the most complaints in its first three years.

2023: 313 complaints

Show as a table

Owner complaints by model year, Kia Sportage
Model year	Complaints
2010	20
2011	181
2012	392
2013	381
2014	125
2015	146
2016	134
2017	404
2018	166
2019	71
2020	169
2021	54
2022	47
2023	313
2024	110
2025	76
2026	44

Best combined rating by model year

The best-rated version in each model year. Gas: 22 to 28 mpg (every year from 2010 to 2026); 28 since 2023. Hybrid: 42 to 43 mpg (2023 to 2026); highest in 2023.

Best gas version
Best hybrid version

2026: gas 28 mpg · hybrid 42 mpg

Show as a table

Kia Sportage best combined mpg by model year
Model year	Best gas version	Best hybrid version
2010	22	–
2011	25	–
2012	25	–
2013	25	–
2014	23	–
2015	23	–
2016	23	–
2017	26	–
2018	26	–
2019	25	–
2020	26	–
2021	26	–
2022	26	–
2023	28	43
2024	28	43
2025	28	43
2026	28	42

Every Sportage year's ratings in one table

Comparisons

Kia Sportage vs Hyundai TucsonMPG, fuel cost, recalls and crash tests

Questions

Which Kia Sportage years should you avoid?

The 2017 and 2023 Sportage are the years to avoid: each drew at least twice the 36 owner complaints of a typical Sportage year in its first three years. Owners of the 2023 most often describe stalling. Complaints can't tell you whether a particular car is sound, so whatever the year, check its open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy. Safety recall repairs are free at Kia dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

What are the best Kia Sportage years?

No year stands out as best. Only the 2016, 2019, and 2021 drew under three quarters of the 36 complaints of a typical Sportage year since 2016, but each has a recall telling owners not to drive or to park outside until it is repaired. If you are shopping for one, check by VIN that the repair was done. The 2024, 2025, and 2026 are not ranked yet: they have had fewer than three full years on the road.

Which Kia Sportage years have the most problems?

Counting owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, the 2023 (244) drew the most, then the 2017 (86). Owners of the 2023 most often describe stalling or shutting off.

Which Kia Sportage years have the most recalls?

The 2023 has the most safety recalls in NHTSA's file (7), then the 2011 (6). A recall can cover a problem that affects only a few cars, so open a year's page to see what each one covers. Five recalls tell owners not to drive the car or to park it outside until it is repaired, covering 2010 to 2023 models. Each year's recalls page lists them first.

What are the most common Kia Sportage problems?

In the 2,833 owner complaints NHTSA lists for 2010 to 2026 models, owners most often describe engine failure or replacement (598 complaints, most of them for the 2012, 2013, and 2017); stalling or shutting off (418 complaints); and loss of power or limp mode (281 complaints). One complaint can describe several problems. Each year's recalls and problems page lists what owners describe for that year.

Which Kia Sportage year has the best MPG?

The best EPA fuel economy is 43 mpg combined, first reached by the 2023 hybrid version. The plug-in hybrid, rated separately, gets up to 36 mpg on gas alone and 84 MPGe on electricity.

Sources and method

US EPA fuel economy data (fueleconomy.gov), file dated Nov 4, 2026.
NHTSA recall file dated Nov 12, 2026 and owner complaint file dated Nov 11, 2026; NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.