KnownCarProblems2008 Kia Sportage Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 98 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Kia Sportage, most often about the electrical (28% of complaints, typically around 90,000 miles). It is 15th of 26 Sportage model years by number of complaints and has 3 recalls.
⚠ Safety advisory1 recall for this car came with a park-outside warning. See below and check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Most common 2008 Kia Sportage problems
Electrical
27 complaints · 28%Half of these problems showed up before 90,000 miles. Parts named most often: 12v/24v/48v battery.
This is part 2 of 3... We got a new battery installed at advanced auto. Car ran fine. The next morning , she started the car and then went into the house. My niece was there and said she heard a pop and look outside to see the car on fire. The whole front end including the passenger compartment was burnt to a crisp. I…
The contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. While driving 50 MPH, the vehicle stalled and numerous warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the electronic control unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure recurred several…
Brakes
23 complaints · 24%Half of these problems showed up before 86,000 miles. Parts named most often: antilock, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip.
My sister in law's 08 Kia Sportage ex had all the dash warning lights come on, the code showed p0501 wheel speed sensor malfunction. I replaced rt frt sensor and still same code. Took it to local shop and they said something is shorted because they can't read all the lights on. I checked some fuses but found none…
I was driving when the brakes was pressed there was a terrible noise and no brakes. The garage said that it was the ABS system. The brake fluid had leaked into the ABS box and shorted it out. They wanted 3100.00 dollars to fix it. I dont have that kind of money. Please help by getting Kia to do a recall. My husband…
Engine
22 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 90,000 miles. Parts named most often: exhaust system, cooling system.
This is part 2 of 3... We got a new battery installed at advanced auto. Car ran fine. The next morning , she started the car and then went into the house. My niece was there and said she heard a pop and look outside to see the car on fire. The whole front end including the passenger compartment was burnt to a crisp. I…
Kia is ripping people off to the tune of $1,700 to $1,800 for their faulty ABS brake controllers plus labor. It is a widely know problem that brake fluid seeps out of the back of this unit onto the circuit board and causes a variety of safety and mechanical issues. A year and a half ago I experienced a problem with…
Body and structure
13 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 117,000 miles. Parts named most often: body.
This is part 2 of 3... We got a new battery installed at advanced auto. Car ran fine. The next morning , she started the car and then went into the house. My niece was there and said she heard a pop and look outside to see the car on fire. The whole front end including the passenger compartment was burnt to a crisp. I…
My Kia Sportage was parked in front of a garage was not turned on and was in park when the engine suddenly caught fire it sounded like a loud bomb. The front of the vehicle was destroyed the vehicle was not salvageable.
Transmission
12 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 25,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission.
The contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. While accelerating from a traffic stop at speeds of 25 MPH, the vehicle surged froward as the transmission struggled to change gears. The dealer advised they were aware of the failure however, the manufacture had not yet offered a remedy to correct the issue. The contact stated…
The automatic transmission shifts very sharp and rough from 2nd to 3rd gear, approximately at 25 MPH. On 17 mar 11, the dealer re-programmed a computer chip for the transmission under their service bulletin tsb eng 075--ECM upgrade. The transmission was fine for about 8 months, but then same problem started. The car…
Stability control
9 complaints · 9%Approximately, two weeks after purchase in 01/2013, "ESC off," light came on multiple times at various speeds including vehicle start up. I made several calls to place of purchase regarding intermittent, "ESC off," light. Pressing " ESC off," dash button has no effect and the light stays illuminated. Dealer of…
The contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that the brake lights illuminated when the brake pedal was not being pressed. The contact also mentioned that the electronic stability control light illuminated. The dealer advised that NHTSA campaign number 13v114000 (exterior lighting, service brakes…
Lights
7 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 51,000 miles. Parts named most often: brake lights.
The contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, she noticed sparks shooting from the passenger side tail light. The contact then began to smell a burning odor and pulled over to investigate the failure. There were no more sparks coming from the vehicle but the burning odor was still…
The contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that the brake lights illuminated when the brake pedal was not being pressed. The contact also mentioned that the electronic stability control light illuminated. The dealer advised that NHTSA campaign number 13v114000 (exterior lighting, service brakes…
Wheels and tires
5 complaints · 5%Parts named most often: pressure monitoring and regulating systems.
We have a new 2008 Kia Sportage. The TPMS (tire pressure monitoring system) comes on intermittently, four times in 10,000 miles. We have had to take the car back to the dealer on two occasions to have the light turned off. It went off by itself on the other two occasions. The dealer says the TPMS system is new and we…
Tl contact owns a 2008 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that the tire pressure monitor illuminated. The dealer changed the control panel sensor, but the failure persisted. They stated that they could not correct the failure. The failure mileage was 56,000 and current mileage was 60,000.
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2008 Kia Sportage recalls
Brakes: control unit/module
Risk: A fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures and other vehicles until the recall repair has been performed. Dealers will inspect and replace the hecu, its wiring harness, and its fuses, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed december 22, 2022. Owners may contact kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is sc253.
Full defect summary
Kia america, inc. (kia) is recalling certain 2008-2009 sportage vehicles previously recalled under recall 16v-815. An engine compartment fire originating from around the hydraulic electronic control unit (hecu) may occur while parked or driving.
Electrical: wiring
Risk: If the hecu short circuits, there is an increased risk of an engine compartment fire.
Fix: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the connector pins for corrosion, if no corrosion is found, the connector cover will be replaced. If corrosion is present, the dealer will replace the hecu assembly and the connector cover, free of charge. The recall began on november 28, 2016. Owners may contact kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is sc138.
Full defect summary
Kia motors america (kia) is recalling certain model year 2008-2009 kia sportage vehicles manufactured august 9, 2007, to may 13, 2009. The wire harness cover on the hydraulic electronic control unit (hecu) may be improperly sealed allowing water to get onto the hecu circuit board. If the water is contaminated with salt, such as could occur from melted snow, the wire harness connector pins may corrode and the circuit board may short circuit.
Lights: switch
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'on' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Kia will send an interim notification to owners in may 2013. When parts are available, owners will receive a second notification and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. Owners may contact kia at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's recall campaign number is sc098.
Full defect summary
Kia motors corporation (kia) is recalling certain model year 2007-2010 rondo, model year 2007-2011 sedona, sorento and sportage, model year 2010-2011 soul, model year 2008-2011 optima, model year 2010 forte, model year 2007-2009 amanti, and model year 2009 borrego vehicles. Originally, in april 2013, kia recalled 623,658 model year 2007-2010 rondo and sportage, model year 2007-2011 sorento, model year 2007 sedona, model year 2010-2011 soul, and model year 2011 optima vehicles. In september 2013, kia informed the agency that it was adding an additional 356,719 vehicles to this campaign. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 980,377. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressi
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Hyundai and kia ABS module fires
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) has received eight hyundai motor america (hyundai) and eight kia america, inc. (kia) part 573 recall reports between 2016 and 2023. The combined 16 safety recalls all involve the antilock braking system (ABS) modules or hydraulic electronic control units (hecu) manufactured by the equipment supplier mando. The part 573 recall reports contain varying defect descriptions and differing remedy descriptions for the same or similar equipment supplied by mando. Safety recalls included in this audit query (aq) review include: hyundai recalls 20v-520, 20v-543, 21v-161, 21v-160, 21v-303, 22v-056, 22v-810, and 23v-651. Kia recalls 16v-815, 20v-518, 20v-519, 21v
Questions about the 2008 Kia Sportage
- What are the most common problems with the 2008 Kia Sportage?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (27 complaints, typically around 90,000 miles); brakes (23 complaints, typically around 86,000 miles); engine (22 complaints, typically around 90,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2008 Kia Sportage have?
- 3 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 24, 2022 (brakes). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2008 a bad year for the Kia Sportage?
- It is 15th of 26 Sportage model years by number of complaints, with 98 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.