There are 7 stored owner reports matching the body & structure leading-label group for the 2012 Kia Forte in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 7 of 7 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)I PREVIOUS REPORT NUMBER 11384011, PICTURES UPLOADED: DRIVING TO REPAIR LOCATION ON FREEWAY AND THE CAR STARTING SMOKING AND BURST INTO FLAME FROM THE ENGINE. MANAGED TO STOP AND GOT OUT OF THE BURNING CAR. I IMMEDIATELY CALLED FIRE SERVICE WHO CAME AND STOP THE BURNING. CAR TOWED TO KIA DEALERSHIP FACILITY. *LN *AS*JB
THERE WAS A RECALL FOR UNDERBODY RUST, WHICH I TOOK IN FOR PROTECTION. THERE ARE LITTLE ORANGE RUST SPOTS APPEARING SPORADICALLY THROUGH THE WHITE PAINT ALL OVER. I WOULD LIKE THIS LOOKED AT PLEASE.
I REAR-END A SUV AT 50 MILES PER HOUR, HIT MY NOSE AND MOUTH ON THE STEERING WHEEL. THE FRONT END IS SEVERELY DAMAGE, THE ENGINE CAUGHT FIRE, FLUIDS WERE LEAKING BUT NEITHER AIR BAG DEPLOYED.
300 MILES AFTER COMPLAINING TO DEALER OF SLIPPING FLOOR MAT STOPPING BRAKING AND RANDOM HIGH ACCELERATION-A REAL ACCIDENT OCCURRED AGAINST A BARRIER IN A PARKING GARAGE. MATS FLIP FAR MORE THAT AUDI AND TOYOTA RECALLS. ENTIRE CAR DAMAGED BY PREVIOUS ACCELERATION(RANDOM) OR BRAKES NOT WORKING DUE TO MATS. THE PARKING GARAGE INCIDENT OCCURRED AT 15 MPH AND SQUARE HEAD ON TO CEMENT BARRIER SEVERELY DAMAGING BUMPER, HOOD, FENDERS, GRILL, HEADLIGHTS AND INTERIOR ENGINE. I INJURED BOTH ARMS AND SKIN ABRASIONS ON CHEST-DUE TO AIRBAG NOT DEPLOYING-SIMILAR TO RECENT RECALLS. DEALER RESPONSE WAS THAT FLOOR MATS ALWAYS GIVE AWAY FROM WEAR AND TEAR AT 17K MILES WITHOUT WARNING-CAUSING ME NEAR FATAL OTHER ACCIDENTS. *TR
PREVIOUSLY, THERE WAS A RECALL FOR UNDER BODY RUST. I HAD THAT FIXED. HOWEVER, THE RUST PROBLEM EXTENDS TO THE PAINT JOB AND LITTLE ORANGE DOTS OF RUST HAVE BEEN ON THE VEHICLE IN MANY PLACES.
THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED I WAS DRIVING AROUND 45MPH AND I HIT A BUMP ON THE ROAD AND ALL OF THE SUDDEN REAR HATCH WARNING LIGHT CAME ON AND AFTER I PULLED OVER AND CHECKED THE REAR HATCH AND IT HAD COME OPEN WERE IT WAS AJAR BUT THE HATCH HASN'T BEEN USED IN A COUPLE DAYS. THE SECOND TIME A FEW WEEKS LATER THE SAME THING I HIT A BUMP AND THE WARNING LIGHT CAME ON AND THIS TIME I WENT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY JUST TOLD ME TO CLOSE IT HARDER AND I HAVE CLOSED IT HOW I WAS SHOWED EVER SINCE, BUT IT STILL HAPPENS ABOUT ONCE A MONTH AFTER I WENT TO THE DEALERSHIP. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 KIA FORTE. THE CONTACT NOTICED CONDENSATION UNDER THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE FLOOR MAT. IN ADDITION, THERE WAS AN ACCUMULATION OF WATER ON THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE FLOOR AREA. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER TWO TIMES FOR THE PROBLEM. THE TECHNICIAN WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS SCHEDULED FOR DIAGNOSIS BY A WATER SPECIALIST. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE DEFECT. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150. ... UPDATED 02/28/13 *BF
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.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.