- Safety
- 5
- of 5 stars
- Recalls
- 1
- on record
- MPG
- 27
- combined
Fatalities reported
Owner complaints to NHTSA include 1 report involving a death. Read the complaint record closely.
Vehicle Summary
2020 Kia Sorento
Before You Buy
Safety record at a glance
- Recall campaigns
- 1
- Owner complaints
- 130
- Complaints citing a crash
- 9
These are raw counts from NHTSA records. They are not normalized by how many of these vehicles are on the road, so a model that sold in large numbers will tend to show more of everything. We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.
1 Recall on Record
1 of these is high-severity. Contact a dealer to verify these have been completed.
Safety recalls
1 NHTSA campaign affecting this model year.
- 22V703000high
Trailer hitches
TRAILER HITCHES
Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Sorento, 2021-2022 Sorento Hybrid (HEV), 2022-2023 Sorento Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV), and 2017-2022 Sportage vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
Consequence
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will inspect the vehicle, and, as necessary, replace the fuse and/or tow hitch harness module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC249.
NHTSA crash-test ratings
NCAP star ratings and the underlying test breakdown for the 2020 Kia Sorento.
Frontal crash
- Driver
- 5 / 5
- Passenger
- 5 / 5
Side crash
- Driver
- 5 / 5
- Passenger
- 5 / 5
- Side pole
- 5 / 5
Rollover
- Rollover risk
- 15.8%
- Dynamic tip
- No Tip
Driver-assistance technologies
- Electronic stability control
- Standard
- Forward collision warning
- Optional
- Lane departure warning
- Optional
What the ratings mean
NHTSA gives the 2020 Kia Sorento 5 out of 5 stars overall. NHTSA does not publish enough comparable results for this class and year to rank it against peers.
NHTSA published results for every NCAP test in this program, so the overall star rating rests on a complete set of crash and rollover results.
NHTSA's dynamic test put this vehicle's rollover probability at 15.8% in a single-vehicle crash — the figure behind the rollover star rating, published here because the star alone hides how wide each band is.
Fuel economy & emissions
EPA figures for the 2020 Kia Sorento, with tailpipe CO₂ and class context.
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual fuel cost
- $1,944
- Tailpipe CO₂
- 329 g/mi
How this compares
The EPA holds too few vehicles in this class and model year to rank the 2020 Kia Sorento against its peers.
Tailpipe CO₂ is 329 grams per mile — about 4.9 metric tons over 15,000 miles of driving.
Consumer complaints
130 owner reports filed with NHTSA.
- 130
- Total
- 9
- Crashes
- 11
- Fires
- 20
- Injuries
Most reported components
- ENGINE76
- OTHER19
- ELECTRICAL10
- BRAKES4
- VISIBILITY4
Serious Concerns
130 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 1 report involves a death. 20 reports involve injuries. 9 reports involve a crash.
Most reported problems
Safety timeline
Every dated recall and NHTSA investigation for the 2020 Kia Sorento, newest first.
- Investigation closed
NHTSA closed investigation DP22003
Loss of Motive Power
- Recall
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
- Investigation opened
NHTSA opened investigation DP22003
Loss of Motive Power
Dates are the NHTSA report-received date for recalls and the ODI open/close date for investigations. Crash-test ratings are not shown here because the source does not provide a reliable publication date for them.
Specifications & ratings
Specifications
- Body class
- SUV
- Drive type
- FWD
- Engine
- 2.5L 4-cyl
- Fuel type
- Regular Gasoline
- Transmission
- Automatic
- Seats
- 5
Fuel economy
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual cost
- $1,944
- Fuel
- Regular Gasoline
NHTSA crash ratings
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Explore related
Systems recalled
Safety timeline
Full timeline- Investigation closed
NHTSA closed investigation DP22003
Loss of Motive Power
- Recall
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
- Investigation opened
NHTSA opened investigation DP22003
Loss of Motive Power