The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Forte 4-door, Forte Koup 2-door, and 2018-2019 Rio 4-door vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 401, "Internal Trunk Release."
The risk
A person inside the trunk compartment may become trapped, increasing their risk of injury.
The remedy
Dealers will replace the trunk latch assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC216.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Kia Forte | 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Kia Rio | 2018, 2019 |
Components: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TRUNK LID:LATCH
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kia Forte | 2016 | 136 | 1 |
| Kia Forte | 2017 | 305 | 3 |
| Kia Forte | 2018 | 136 | 3 |
| Kia Rio | 2018 | 28 | 1 |
| Kia Rio | 2019 | 22 | 1 |
Other latches/locks/linkages recalls in 2021
10 of the 988 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2021 concerned the latches/locks/linkages; Kia Motors America filed 82 campaigns in all.
| 21V00B000 21 Dec 2021 | Tesla, Inc. |
| 21V983000 16 Dec 2021 | Ford Motor Company |
| 21V932000 29 Nov 2021 | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) |
| 21V908000 19 Nov 2021 | Kia Motors America |
| 21V706000 10 Sept 2021 | Nissan North America, Inc. |
| 21V619000 6 Aug 2021 | Hyundai Motor America |
| 21V353000 14 May 2021 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC |
| 21V247000 8 Apr 2021 | Keystone RV Company |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2021