{"id":"2021_kia_seltos","make":"Kia","make_slug":"kia","model":"Seltos","model_slug":"seltos","year":2021,"url":"/kia/seltos/2021/","pts":["gas"],"configs":[{"id":42428,"model":"Seltos FWD","pt":"gas","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (AV-S8)","cyl":4,"displ":2.0,"eng":"","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":true,"city":29,"hwy":34,"comb":31,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Sport Utility Vehicle 2WD","co2":285,"fe_score":7,"ghg_score":7,"fuel_cost":2000,"save_spend":1250,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Tue Apr 14 00:00:00 EDT 2020"},{"id":42430,"model":"Seltos AWD","pt":"gas","drive":"All-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (AV-S8)","cyl":4,"displ":2.0,"eng":"","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":true,"city":27,"hwy":31,"comb":29,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD","co2":314,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2150,"save_spend":500,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Tue Mar 24 00:00:00 EDT 2020"},{"id":42429,"model":"Seltos AWD","pt":"gas","drive":"All-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (AM-S7)","cyl":4,"displ":1.6,"eng":"SIDI","turbo":true,"super":false,"start_stop":true,"city":25,"hwy":30,"comb":27,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD","co2":331,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2300,"save_spend":-250,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Tue Mar 24 00:00:00 EDT 2020"}],"vclass":"Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD","segment":"Compact SUV","recalls":[{"campaign":"25V099000","component":"ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:HARD PARTS INTERNAL/MECHANICAL","mfr":"Kia America, Inc.","reported":"2025-02-17","owner_notified":"2025-04-04","units":137256,"summary":"Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Seltos and Soul vehicles.  The piston oil rings may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in engine damage.","consequence":"Engine damage can cause a vehicle stall or fire, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.","remedy":"Dealers will inspect and replace the engine as necessary, free of charge.  Dealers will also install piston-ring noise sensing system (PNSS) software, free of charge.  Owner notification letters were mailed April 4, 2025.  Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542.  Kia's number for this recall is SC336.","notes":"Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or go to nhtsa.gov.","park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"mfr_campaign":"SC336","initiated_by":"ODI","variants":[],"severity":"critical"},{"campaign":"21V259000","component":"ENGINE","mfr":"Kia Motors America","reported":"2021-04-13","owner_notified":"2021-06-11","units":147249,"summary":"Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Soul, and 2021 Seltos vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines.  The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which may result in engine damage.","consequence":"A damaged engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash.  In addition, oil may leak onto hot exhaust components, increasing the risk of a fire.","remedy":"Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine, free of charge.  In addition, Kia will deploy Piston Ring Noise Sensing System (PNSS) software.  The recall began June 11, 2021.  Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542.  Kia's number for this recall is SC209.","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.","park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"mfr_campaign":"SC209","initiated_by":"MFR","variants":[],"severity":"critical"}],"recall_count":2,"critical_count":2,"park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"score":70,"grade":"C","complaints":{"count":365,"crash":13,"fire":6,"injured":8,"deaths":0,"comps":[["Engine",221],["Power Train",67],["Unspecified",46],["Electrical System",46],["Engine And Engine Cooling",43],["Fuel/Propulsion System",24]],"by_year":{"2020":18,"2021":33,"2022":39,"2023":38,"2024":27,"2025":120,"2026":90},"excerpts":[["2022-01-06","Engine","The contact owns a 2021 Kia Altos. The contact stated that upon taking the vehicle to an independent mechanic several times, he was informed that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact also stated that the vehicle was making abnormal rattling sounds while driving. There were no warning\u2026"],["2022-01-04","Steering","Safety System Failure. MY CAR WAS STOLEN TODAY. Even with a Club on the steering wheel. it was gone in minutes. Why do thieves look for Kia's? Because they know they can steal them fast. Shame on you for not putting better practices in place to help prevent this, or deter them at least or slow down the process at minim\u2026"],["2021-12-30","Engine","Im on my 2nd kia and im so over it. I have a 2021 kia seltos and i took it in for the recall and my scheduled maintenance for july 9th 2021, I scheduled my app a week out and i had been noticing my engine running strange off and on for awhile but its a new car so i thought i was being paranoid until i saw the recall. T\u2026"]]},"investigations":[{"action":"AQ25001","component":"ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:HARD PARTS INTERNAL/MECHANICAL","opened":"2025-08-06","closed":"2025-12-18","campaign":"","subject":"Kia 25V099 Piston Oil Ring Recall Effectiveness","summary":"On August 6, 2025, the Office of Defect Investigation (ODI) opened Audit Query (AQ) 25001 to assess the implementation of Kia America, Inc.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s (Kia) remedy program for Safety Recall 25V099, involving incorrectly manufactured piston oil rings which may damage the engine causing a loss of motive power or fire. This AQ was opened in response to consumer complaints alleging of an ineffective remedy, inconsistent inspection results to determine whether an engine replacement was needed, and the unavailability of recall remedies. On August 11, 2025, an Information Request (IR) was issued to Kia requesting: 1) why the inspection test was revised from requiring a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dccold\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 engine to a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcwarm\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 en"}],"ncap":[{"desc":"SUV AWD","overall":4,"frontal":4,"side":5,"rollover":4,"rollover_risk":0.151,"seats":5,"fcw":"Optional","ldw":"Optional","aeb":"Optional","esc":"","backup_cam":"","variant":null},{"desc":"SUV FWD","overall":4,"frontal":4,"side":5,"rollover":4,"rollover_risk":0.169,"seats":5,"fcw":"Optional","ldw":"Optional","aeb":"Optional","esc":"","backup_cam":"","variant":null}],"popularity":63,"headline":{"range":null,"mpg":31,"ncap":4,"complaints":365},"presskit_trims":[],"generated_at":"2026-09-11 05:01 UTC","sources":["EPA fueleconomy.gov","NHTSA recalls","NHTSA complaints","NHTSA NCAP","NHTSA investigations"]}