There are 4 owner-reported visibility & wipers complaints for the 2012 Kia Sportagein NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
DRIVING TO WORK IN JULY 2013 I HEARD A LOUD POP SOUND AND LOOKED AROUND AND NOTICED NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY ABOUT 10 SECONDS LATER MY PANORAMIC SUNROOF SHATTERED. I THOUGHT MAYBE SOMETHING WAS KICKED UP FROM A TRUCK IN FRONT OF ME AND HIT THE ROOF SO I FILED A CLAIM WITH MY INSURANCE COMPANY. LUCKILY IT WAS TAKEN CARE OF. NOW ITS MARCH 2014 AND I HAD THE SAME THINK HAPPEN, I HEARD A LOUD POP LOOKED AROUND AND SAW NOTHING UNTIL THE NEXT DAY. MY WINDSHIELD WAS CRACKED AND THE PANEL OF GLASS BETWEEN THE WINDSHIELD AND THE PANORAMIC SUNROOF SHATTERED. I TOO CALLED THE DEALER AND THEY TOLD ME TO CALL MY INSURANCE COMPANY THAT THIS WAS NOT THEIR PROBLEM. TWICE IS ONE YEAR...I THINK THIS IS A MANUFACTURING DEFECT. *TR
I WAS WAITING AT A STOP LIGHT WHEN I HEARD A HUGE POP SOUND ALMOST LIKE A FIRECRACKER AND WHEN I TURNED AROUND TO SEE WHAT IT WAS MY ENTIRE BACK WINDOW WAS COMPLETELY SHATTERED. THERE WAS NO ROCK OR ANY OBJECT LIKE THAT TO BE FOUND ANYWHERE SO I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT CAUSED IT, MAYBE PRESSURE OR AN AIR BUBBLE? IT SEEMED LIKE A DEFAULT IN THE WINDOW TO ME BUT OF COURSE IT'S NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. *TR
ITS APPROX 57 DEGREES OUT. 6:30 AM THIS MORNING WENT OUTSIDE TO START CAR CAME, BACK 10 MINUTES LATER TO GO TO WORK AND FOUND A CRACK (WHICH WASN'T THERE WHEN I STARTED THE CAR) FROM BOTTOM LEFT CORNER UP TO THE TOP. ON MY WAY TO WORK ANOTHER CRACK STARTED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WINDSHIELD. MY CAR IS 9 WEEKS OLD, NO ACCIDENT, NO CHIPS. WHEN I CALLED THE CAR DEALER THEY SAID CALL MY INSURANCE COMPANY IT SHOULD BE COVERED. I TOLD THEM THAT I FELT THEY SHOULD TAKE CARE OF IT. THEY TOLD ME NO. WHAT WILL HAPPEN IN THE DEAD OF WINTER? *TR
DRIVING AT APPROX. 35 MPH, EXITING THE 405 S FREEWAY IN SOCAL ON THE BROOKHURST N EXIT RAMP, HEARD A LOUD POP. CHECKING THE FRONT WINDSHIELD, I SEE A LONG 13 INCH CRACK IN THE GLASS AT THE TOP RIGHT HAND CORNER, BEGINNING AT THE EDGE OF THE WINDSHIELD WHERE IT'S CONNECTED TO THE CAR BODY FRAME AND EXTENDING LEFT TOWARD THE CENTER OF THE WINDSHIELD. AFTER PARKING THE CAR, I INSPECT THE CRACK, WHICH IS COMPLETELY SMOOTH, INDICATING THAT IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE FOR A ROCK TO HAVE CHIPPED OR GOUGED THE GLASS TO START THE CRACK. ANY GLASS DUST WAS FOUND AT THE EDGE OF THE WINDSHIELD WHERE THE CRACK ORIGINATED. CLEARLY, A STRESS CRACK. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE IF THE FRONT WINDSHIELD WERE TO CRACK OR SHATTER UNEXPECTEDLY DURING NORMAL AND SAFE OPERATION OF A MOVING VEHICLE, THEN THAT WOULD CERTAINLY BE A POSSIBLE CAUSE FOR AN ACCIDENT AND/OR INJURY TO THE DRIVER AND ANY PASSENGERS. *TR
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