2007 Kia Sedona Problems

What owners report

Complaints on the 2007 Sedona are dominated by power sliding doors that open or fail to latch on their own, reported from very low mileage onward, along with a long-running pattern of stop lamp switch and ESC warning light complaints. Many of the door reports describe repeat dealer visits and adjustments without a lasting fix, while brake-light and warning-lamp reports often center on the switch covered by past campaigns.

1. 1
   Body and structure

   Power sliding doors open or fail to latch by themselves

   • 35 complaints (22%)
   • median 55,000 mi at 4.5 yrs old (29 state mileage)
   • filed 2007–2021

   Owners describe a sliding door that opens on its own while the vehicle is moving, sometimes only a few inches and sometimes fully, or that closes and then reopens roughly six inches from the latch. Several report that a door will not latch at all in the closed position and has to be pushed shut by hand, and others say the power function stops responding so the door must be opened manually. Complaints mention dealer adjustment, latch or un-latch motor replacement and, in some cases, a diagnosis of a failed door actuator or control module; several owners say the problem returned after repair. Reported across a very wide mileage span, from a few hundred miles to nearly 190,000, with many entries under 60,000 miles.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Open and close both sliding doors several times with the engine running and while driving over a bump, and watch whether they latch flush and stay shut. Ask whether the door control module, un-latch motor or remote controller motor has been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The electrical doors stopped working and do not latch, the door fly open when we turn a corner. The ESC light is on. My brakes and transmission has malfunctioned.. Malfunctions in sc 134. Sc133. Sc098. The ;suspenision and clicks and clutters. Since this year alone my van has malfunctioned in all the areas, u can see when looked at...the doors alone are dangerious.”

   NHTSA complaint #10883872, filed 2016-07, 130,000 miles

   “Power doors no longer work, they do not stay latched while driving. Three times the rear passenger door has come unlatched and started opening while I was driving with my kids in the back. I was able to pull over open the door all the way then re-close it. But the problem has persisted.”

   NHTSA complaint #10667801, filed 2014-12, 120,000 miles
2. 2
   Electrical system

   Brake lights stay on or fail, with ESC and ABS warning

   • 18 complaints (11%)
   • median 89,000 mi at 6.9 yrs old (14 state mileage)
   • filed 2010–2024

   Owners report brake lights that stay lit after the pedal is released, or that do not come on at all when braking, and some say the battery drained as a result. The electronic stability control light commonly comes on at the same time, and a few say the shifter would not move out of Park. Complaints describe dealers replacing the stop lamp switch, sometimes more than once, and several owners note that a campaign for the switch did not cover their vehicle despite matching symptoms. Mostly reported between roughly 50,000 and 100,000 miles, with a few at much higher mileage.

   Recall 13V114000Recall 09V1300002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Have someone watch the brake lights while you press and release the pedal, and confirm the ESC and ABS lamps go out after start-up. Ask whether the stop lamp switch has been replaced and whether any campaign for it was performed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “There was a recall for 2007 Kia Sedona regarding 2007 Kia Sedona recall, item affected: exterior lighting:brake lights:switch, date announced: 4/17/2009, affecting vehicles made 9-20-2006 thru 11-20-2006, however my vehicle was made 11-28-2006, everything on the recalls describes what my vehicle was experiencing.(the stop lamp switch in the affected vehicles may malfunction. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10422515, filed 2011-08, 138,400 miles

   “Some electoral problems are happening. When driving or parked the brake lights appear in flashing manner and during that 5 second time it will lock and unlock my windows and if I am using my suppers they stop working sometimes. Also sometime the windows dont work and thebradio also messes up and changes station with out me touching it. Thisbhas been an ongoing thing for ag least 3 years. Also it use to not startvat forb2 days and then itbwoukdbstart with no help. I woukd come throuhh the pasengers side and startbit fine. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11310467, filed 2020-02, 85,000 miles
3. 3
   Vehicle speed control

   Unintended or stuck acceleration, or loss of throttle

   • 26 complaints (17%)
   • median 69,464 mi at 7.8 yrs old (22 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2008–2018

   Owners describe the vehicle continuing to accelerate or holding high engine speed after the accelerator is released, sometimes requiring neutral and manual lifting of the pedal to stop it. Others report the opposite: the pedal goes to the floor with no response and the check engine light comes on. Complaints say dealers could not duplicate the problem or found no codes, while a few report a throttle position sensor diagnosis. Reported from under 5,000 miles up to about 100,000 miles, in a mix of highway and city driving.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: During a test drive, check that the pedal returns freely and engine speed drops promptly when you lift off. Ask whether any throttle body, pedal sensor or ECM software update has been done.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was going about 60mph on route 680. When I pressed on the accelerator the car kept accelerating by itself. I had to put the car in neutral but the engine kept increasing speed. I was able to pull over and stop. As of this writing my Kia dealer said the only problem recorded by his equipment was a break switch.”

   NHTSA complaint #10715734, filed 2015-05, 96,750 miles

   “City driving down a busy road at 45 miles an hour and the car speed began dropping, check engine light came on, and gas pedal would go all the way to the floor but not give gas to the engine. Pulled car into a nearby parking lot. After sitting for about 15 minutes, my mechanic showed up. He started the car and the gas pedal worked. We drove it to my home. Now I am afraid to drive it, it could happen again, and cost for fuel system repair is huge for me!”

   NHTSA complaint #10916663, filed 2016-10, 120,000 miles
4. 4
   Suspension

   Front suspension noise, broken springs and corroded control

   • 21 complaints (13%)
   • median 75,000 mi at 7.8 yrs old (21 state mileage)
   • filed 2010–2017

   Owners report clunking and scraping noises from the front and rear, broken front coil springs found during tire service, and in a few cases a lower control arm that corroded or detached, leaving the wheel tipped and the steering unresponsive. Complaints also mention worn sub-frame bushings and front strut, mount and rack work. Some owners note their vehicle was registered in states covered by past suspension campaigns but was not included. Mostly reported from about 50,000 miles upward, often on vehicles driven in areas that use road salt.

   Recall 16V387000Recall 13V5500003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Have the front lower control arms and coil springs inspected from below for rust, cracks and separation, especially on a vehicle from a salt-belt state, and ask whether any suspension campaign was completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Sub frame bushings on my 2007 Kia Sedona ,are according to my Kia dealership toast . Noise started at 70000 miles. They are not under warranty. This is way to early for this type of bushing to fail, under very average driving conditions. This should be a recall fix.”

   NHTSA complaint #10386649, filed 2011-03, 70,000 miles

   “Mechanic was rotating tires and observed that right front coil spring was broken and left front was close to broken. Opened ticket with Kia consumer affairs. During my investigation, I found that there was a recall (bulletin sc-095) for 2006 model year for this specific issue. Kia stated that recall was applicable to '06 only. We live and operate the vehicle in il, one of the states listed in the recall. My assumption is that the conditions causing the issue dealt with in the original recall continued to exist in later model years. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10597068, filed 2014-06, 158,000 miles
5. 5
   Electrical system

   Underhood smoke, burning smells and electrical shorts

   • 11 complaints (7%)
   • median 147,850 mi at 12.5 yrs old (10 state mileage)
   • 7 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2008–2026

   Owners describe smoke or fire from under the hood while the vehicle was parked and switched off, in some cases traced to wiring and the ABS or stability control module plug. Others report a burning plastic smell with crackling from the dashboard, intermittent no-starts, and warning lamps that flicker along with window and radio faults. Several complaints were linked by the owners to the ABS module moisture campaign. Reported from about 70,000 to over 220,000 miles, often on older, higher-mileage vehicles.

   Recall 20V0880001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask whether the ABS module campaign was performed and whether the module and its connector show corrosion or heat damage. Look for a burning smell or scorching around the underhood fuse box and ABS unit.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Our 2007 low mileage Kia had been parked for over 24 hrs. While sitting in our driveway not running, no keys in ignition, caught fire and burned to the ground. The fire travelled to my storage building. We lost everything in our storage and our vehicle. Kia assumes no fault. Attached is fire department report and pics of the damage.”

   NHTSA complaint #11098160, filed 2018-05, 70,000 miles

   “My car was parked in my driveway, not running, no key in the ignition, and had not been driven since the previous day. One of the kids went outside to play and came running back in to tell us the car was smoking. There was smoking coming out from under the hood. My boyfriend quickly got to it and got the battery out and found the source and unplugged the electrical stability control module ( I believe is what he called it) either way, the plug and wires were fried. The dealership stated that had we not seen this it would have caught fire. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11308166, filed 2020-02, 224,000 miles

Buying note. Check the sliding doors, brake lights and warning lamps carefully on a test drive and confirm which past campaigns were completed for the specific vehicle, since several complaints describe repeat repairs of the same parts. A pre-purchase inspection that includes the front suspension and underhood wiring is worthwhile on a vehicle of this age.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.