There are 11 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2015 Kia Cadenzain NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Vehicle: 2015 Kia Cadenza Issue: Open HECU Safety Recall — Fire Risk I am the owner of a 2015 Kia Cadenza with an open HECU recall related to a known fire risk. I have been experiencing a burning smell inside the cabin of the vehicle, consistent with the recall defect. Upon contacting Kia Consumer Assistance, I was advised not to drive the vehicle due to the fire risk and to have it towed to a dealer. However, after calling multiple Kia dealers in the Pittsburgh, PA area, the earliest available appointment is over one week away. Kia Consumer Assistance called dealers on my behalf and was unable to secure an earlier appointment. They said they could "Look into a potential reimbursement of $55/day for a rental vehicle." but could not confirm a loaner. I am concerned that Kia is not treating this recall with the urgency a fire risk warrants. I WAS NOT PROACTIVELY CONTACTED ABOUT THIS RECALL DESPITE MY VIN BEING AFFECTED. I am now without transportation, my vehicle cannot be safely driven or stored in an enclosed space, and I am waiting over a week for a repair on a vehicle that could combust. I am requesting NHTSA review whether Kia is adequately addressing this recall with appropriate urgency and dealer capacity.
My entire Dash went Black. I could not see speed, gas level, milage. This is an extreme Hazard! I brought the car into "Crown KIA" in Clearwater to run a Diagnostic Check for 0.5 hour at $150 and they could not find the problem. I had no money to pay for additional time! I did research on this and found that this is a common problem with KIA's no matter what year!! Just because my particular VIN # is not on the recall should not absolve KIA from their duty to provide a safe reliable car!
There’s something drawing the battery AMPS down. This has been an ongoing problem for the last 6 months. Per Kia techs, it was my battery and grounds needed cleaning. Battery changed, techs cleaned all the grounds the problem still exists. I was informed that it was the alternator, new alternator installed. Problem still remains. A new starter installed, problem still exists.
UNKNOWN, for the past few weeks I have been driving my car and smelling what I believe is something burning. Once I received the letter stating the safety recall, I spoke with Kia customer service and they are not helpful on time frame of when it will be fixed. This is my only car and the fact that I was told by the representative that it would be up to me to find my own means of getting to work, or if I drove the car, it would be on me, without giving any help or refund for needing to rent/lease a car. I feel that for a recall of this matter, Kia should be responsible in renting cars to people that are driving their vehicles, as for my case, I either risk driving a car that could start a compartment fire and seriously injure myself/my family/ or others driving/walking near my car. Something needs to be done, and as the representative stated, they do not have a timeframe for a remedy to fix this issue
I received a letter dated November 14, 2023 from KIA America identifying a defect in my vehicle which relates to motor vehicle safety. The defect in the hydrolic electronic control unit (HECU) may experience an electrical short in the engine compartment which can result in an engine fire while driving or parked. It is recommended to park outdoors and away from other vehicles. Status checks on the recall were done on 3/10/2024, 4/24/2024 and 5/17/2024 with KIA Customer Care Center at 800-333-4542 which as ot today the recorded message indicates no solution is available yet. I am preparing to take my family on a road trip in July and I am not happy about the suggestion of parking my car outdoors during Nebraska storm season.
I received a recall letter dated [XXX] with NHTSA Recall #: [XXX] for 2015 Kia Cadenza Vin# [XXX] . I contacted Kia's customer care number on or around January 17, 2024 as I had started having more and more electrical problems associated with this recall. My compass direction on my rear view mirror has not worked for well over a year and a half. I cannot lock my car with my key fob going on a year now. If I do lock it with the key fob, my car alarm randomly goes off multiple multiple times. Now my interior lights are not properly going off when you shut the door, and flicker when manually turning them on. The letter clearly states that a fire could happen either while parked or driving. This is my primary means of transportation, but at this point it is going on 5 months since the recall was issued. I definitely have safety concerns at this point, and feel that this has taken far longer than should have. What are the next steps to actively get the ball rolling to get this taken care of so that we don't have to move forward in far more complicated ways? Thank you for your time, and I look forward to hearing from you with an active solution. : ) INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Kia has issued a partial recall, NHTSA Recall Number 23V652000, but has still not established a remedy so that dealers can alleviate the problem. The current recommendation is to not park my car in a garage or near other objects. So, it is a potentially dangerous situation and the delay in Kia's finding a remedy is unacceptable. I have contacted two dealers and their hands are tied until they are told what to do.
MY KIA K900 WOULD NOT START WITH LESS THAN 2 YEARS ON THE BATTERY, I WAS TOLD IT'S NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR SO I PAID NEARLY $700 TO REPLACE IT. I HAVE A HAD A HOST OF ELECTRICAL ISSUES OVER THE YEARS AND MOST RECENTLY, MY CARD WOULD NOT TURN OFF. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER HA I ALSO NEEDED A NEW BATTERY WITH IT BEING LESS THAN 2 YEARS REPLACED. THEY HAVE HAD MY CAR FOR OVER 2 WEEKS, THEY REFUSE TO RETURN MY CALL.
I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK TUESDAY EVENING, THEN I NOTICED MY HEAD LIGHTS FLICKER TWICE. I THOUGHT NOTHING OF IT THEN THEY SUDDENLY SHUT OFF. I FLIPPED THE SWITCH BACK AND FORTH UNTIL IT TURNED ON. THEN 5 MINUTES INTO THE DRIVE THEY COMPLETELY SHUT OFF AGAIN BUT THIS TIME THEY NEVER CAME BACK ON. I HAD TO DRIVE 10 MINUTES TO MY HOUSE WITH MY HAZARDS. I GOT PULLED OVER BUT LUCKILY MY BROTHER IS A COP AND I WAS ABLE TO PROVIDE HIS GOLD CARD AND GOT A PASS FROM A TICKET. THE NEXT DAY I CHECKED ALL THE RELAYS AND FUSES IN THE CAR HOPING ONE HAD BURNT OUT, BUT THAT WAS A NEGATIVE. I SCHEDULED MY APPOINTMENT WITH KIA AND IT TURNED OUT THE MULTI FUNCTION SWITCH ASSEMBLY WAS FAULTY. IT STOPPED SENDING THE SIGNAL OUT TO TURN THE HEADLIGHTS ON. I ASKED WHAT COULDVE CAUSED IT AND THEY DIDNT KNOW, POSSIBLY A MANUFACTURE DEFECT LIKE THE K900 RECALLS. I ASKED IF THE CADENZA HAD THE RECALL THEY SAID NO, THEY CAN SWITCH OUT THE ASSEMBLY WHICH COST ME $500+ BECAUSE I WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. MY LUCK!!! WHICH I STILL THINK THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT SHOULD BE RESOLVED BY THE MANUFACTURES/ DEALERS NOT OUT OF THE CUSTOMERS EXPENSE.
WHILE DRIVING HOME MY VEHICLE BEGAN TO SMOKE AND LEAVE FUMES WITHIN THE CAR. I PULLED THE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY TO INSPECT TO FIND THAT MY KICKPLATE WAS ON FIRE FROM BELOW THE KICKPLATE. I PULLED THE PANEL OFF AND DOUSED OUT THE FLAME. NOW WITH THE VEHICLE HOME I DO NOT FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS VEHICLE KNOWING SOMETHING LIKE THIS IS EVEN REMOTELY POSSIBLE.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2015 KIA CADENZA. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING OPERATED, THE FRONT SEAT PASSENGER NOTICED SMOKE AND A BURNING ODOR COMING FROM THE AIR VENTS. THE FAILURE OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT PULLED THE VEHICLE OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND EXITED BEFORE THE VEHICLE CAUGHT FIRE. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A SALVAGE YARD AND WAS DEEMED DESTROYED. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 13,000.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026