2021 KIA RIO — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 15 complaints · 2 recalls
Most-reported system: SERVICE BRAKES (2 complaints · 13.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 2
  • Fires 0
  • Injuries 0
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2020 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution SERVICE BRAKES appears in 2 of 15 owner complaints (13.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. SERVICE BRAKES: 2 complaints, 13.3% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 2 · 13.3% · 1 crash reports STEERING: 2 complaints, 13.3% of reports STEERING 2 · 13.3% · 1 crash reports BACK OVER PREVENTION: 1 complaints, 6.7% of reports BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 · 6.7% ENGINE: 1 complaints, 6.7% of reports ENGINE 1 · 6.7% FUEL SYSTEM: 1 complaints, 6.7% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 1 · 6.7% LANE DEPARTURE: 1 complaints, 6.7% of reports LANE DEPARTURE 1 · 6.7% POWER TRAIN: 1 complaints, 6.7% of reports POWER TRAIN 1 · 6.7% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 8 complaints, 53.3% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 8 · 53.3% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
SERVICE BRAKES 2 13.3% 1 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 2 13.3% 1 crashes · 0 fires
BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 1 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 1 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
LANE DEPARTURE 1 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 1 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 8 53.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jul 2021; the first recall shown was reported in Dec 2021. 2021-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2023-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jul 2021 Oct 2025 Recall campaign 21V936000 ◆ Recall campaign 21V936000 Recall campaign 22V304000 ◆ Recall campaign 22V304000
  • Campaign 21V936000 was reported 131 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2021-Q3 Owner reports 1
2022-Q1 Owner reports 2
2022-Q2 Owner reports 1
2022-Q3 Owner reports 1
2022-Q4 Owner reports 2
2023-Q1 Owner reports 3
2023-Q2 Owner reports 1
2023-Q3 Owner reports 1
2023-Q4 Owner reports 1
2025-Q2 Owner reports 1
2025-Q4 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 21V936000
Recall campaign 1 22V304000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (2)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 21V936000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    Reduced braking performance can cause longer brake pedal travel or extend the distance required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    Dealers will replace the brake master cylinder, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 11, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall SC223.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 22V304000

    Report date
    Component:
    STEERING
    Consequence:
    Loss of steering control can increase the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    Dealers will tighten the lower steering column u-joint retention bolt, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 27, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall SC235.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-22
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 15 complaints · page 1 of 1

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-22.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources