Amy Katz drives a Kia Soul. “I was driving down 85, coming back from Greensboro, and in Kannapolis, I felt a little pop. I thought maybe I had run over a piece of tire or something, and then suddenly there’s streaming smoke out of the back of the car. We pulled over, and it was on fire,” she told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke.
She says she was in the car with her two young children, but fortunately no one was hurt. Katz says her insurance paid for a rental for about two weeks but wouldn’t cover the damage. She told Stoogenke she needs a new engine and that it costs $5,100, money she says she doesn’t have.
Another driver tweeted Stoogenke recently. She said her husband’s 2012 Soul caught fire while he was driving and that she has a Kia Soul too.
A father recently emailed Stoogenke that he was reading Action 9′s web articles about this issue and that the same thing happened to his son’s 2018 Soul.
Kia issued a recall in February for 2012-2016 Souls. Katz says she knew about it and took her car to the dealer back then “and they told me everything was fine.” If you have a Kia Soul, make sure you take it to the dealer for that recall if you haven’t already.
You may remember that Hyundai and Kia agreed to a $758 million settlement. The judge is expected to sign off on it by the end of the year. It includes the following makes and models but not Souls because they have a different engine:
• 2011-2019 Hyundai Sonata
• 2013-2019 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport
• 2014-2015 and 2018-2019 Hyundai Tucson
• 2011-2019 Kia Optima
• 2012-2019 Kia Sorento
• 2011-2019 Kia Sportage
No matter what you drive, if you have a fire without being in a wreck, tell Action 9, the car company and the federal safety agency, NHTSA. If you spend any money on repairs, save your receipts in case there is a recall or lawsuit so you can get your money back.
Cox Media Group
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