"How reliable is the 2020 Kia Forte?"

"Based on 88 NHTSA complaints, the 2020 Kia Forte has a median complaint mileage of 5000 miles. The most common issue is UNKNOWN OR OTHER."

"What are common problems with the 2020 Kia Forte?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2020 Kia Forte is UNKNOWN OR OTHER, accounting for a significant portion of the 88 total complaints filed."

2020 Kia Forte: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 88 complaints

Total Complaints

5,000mi

Median Mileage

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

2,553 25th Percentile

5,000 Median Mileage

31,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

POWER TRAIN

ENGINE

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

AIR BAGS

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST

STEERING

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"OPENING TRUNK MAY CAUSE DAMAGE TO REAR WINDOW AS THE TRUNK SWINGS TOO FAST WHEN ITS OPENING. THE TRUNK MAY DETACH AND STRIKE THE REAR WINDSHIELD. VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY."

"WHILE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION ON A CITY STREET, SEVERAL WARNING LIGHTS POPPED UP ON THE DASHBOARD: ELECTRONIC PWR STEERING, ELECTRONIC STABILITY INDICATOR, TPMS TIRE PRESSURE, MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LAMP, AUTONOMUS EMERGENCY BRAKE, ADAPTIVE FRONT LIGHTING , AND LOW TIRE PRESSURE WARNING LIGHTS. AT THE..."

"I WAS TURNING LEFT THROUGH A GREEN LIGHT ONTO A CITY ROAD WHEN A CAR COMING FROM THE LEFT SIDE RAN A RED LIGHT GOING 50 MILES AN HOUR IN A 35 MILES AN HOUR ROAD, CRASHING INTO THE SIDE OF MY CAR. IT HIT THE FRONT DRIVERS SIDE TIRE AND DOOR, BUT WAS HIT SO HARD THAT MY CAR MOVED FORWARD ABOUT 8 - 10 ..."

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

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