"How reliable is the 2018 Kia Soul?"

"Based on 268 NHTSA complaints, the 2018 Kia Soul has a median complaint mileage of 54000 miles. The most common issue is ENGINE."

"What are common problems with the 2018 Kia Soul?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2018 Kia Soul is ENGINE, accounting for a significant portion of the 268 total complaints filed."

2018 Kia Soul: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 268 complaints

268

Total Complaints

54,000mi

Median Mileage

ENGINE

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

13,485 25th Percentile

54,000 Median Mileage

76,500 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE

124

POWER TRAIN

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

AIR BAGS

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

STEERING

SERVICE BRAKES

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"OUR BRAND NEW 2018 CAR ON THE MARKET HAS A TIRE MOBILITY KIT. THIS KIT ONLY SEALS A PUNCTURE & COMPRESSES FOR A SHORT TERM TRIP TO A LOCAL GARAGE. AS YOU WELL KNOW, MORE THAN A PUNCTURE CAN OCCUR WHILE DRIVING. NO SPARE WELLS ("BUT DONUTS ONLY" ALONG WITH A JACK AT EXTRA COST) ARE BUILT TO ACTUALLY ..."

"WE WERE HIT IN REAR BY A TRUCK. MY WIFE AND I WENT FORWARD TO ALMOST THE DASH AND STEERING WHEEL, THE BELTS NEVER CAUGHT. I CALLED KIA TALKED TO OFFICE IN CALIFORNIA HE SAID THEY SHOULD HAVE CAUGHT. TOOK TO KIA DEALER HAS ADVISED AND THEY SAID IT WORKED FINE. THEY ADJUSTED BECAUSE NOW YOU PULL A LIT..."

"BRAKES FAILED. WAS PUMPING PEDLE, NO BRAKES WHATSOEVER AND REARENDED DRIVER INFRONT OF ME AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

ENGINE 124 complaints

25th: 60,750 mi Median: 70,812 mi 75th: 98,884 mi

POWER TRAIN 29 complaints

25th: 9,650 mi Median: 24,500 mi 75th: 54,025 mi

UNKNOWN OR OTHER 27 complaints

25th: 7,201 mi Median: 13,000 mi 75th: 21,727 mi

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 complaints

25th: 47,434 mi Median: 52,000 mi 75th: 63,000 mi

AIR BAGS 11 complaints

25th: 19,000 mi Median: 36,000 mi 75th: 37,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

FL: 37 TX: 30 CA: 29 OH: 13 AZ: 12 MD: 11 SC: 10 NC: 9 GA: 8 MO: 7

Who Files Complaints?

0.4%

Original Owners

99.6%

Second+ Owners

Kia Soul — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
2010	192	20,500	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	31
2011	270	50,000	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC	43
2012	663	90,000	ENGINE	41
2013	850	98,000	ENGINE	32
2014	1203	85,000	ENGINE	52
2015	1196	85,000	ENGINE	59
2016	1103	80,500	ENGINE	34
2017	338	73,000	ENGINE	21
2019	180	36,377	ENGINE	20
2020	458	12,000	ENGINE	12
2021	257	34,000	ENGINE	24
2022	112	50,000	ENGINE	4
2023	81	17,000	UNKNOWN OR OTHER	9
2024	32	-	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	0

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28