KIA CARNIVAL · model year

2023 KIA CARNIVAL

55 NHTSA complaints, 1 crash report, and 3 active recalls for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2023KIACARNIVAL carries 55 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 1 crash, 0 fires, 8 injuries, and 0 fatalities. For crash performance, NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave this cohort an overall Not Rated/5 rating, with Not Rated/5 front crash, Not Rated/5 side crash, and Not Rated/5 rollover scores derived from standardized barrier and dynamic tests.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2023 CARNIVAL is unknown or other with 19 filings, followed by structure:body (10) and electrical system (6). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 3 active recall campaigns, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 1 investigation file overlapping the 2023 CARNIVAL. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

55
Complaints
1
Crashes
0
Fires
8
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

55 filings

Crashes Reported

1 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

NHTSA NCAP overall: Not Rated/5 — Not rated · Front: Not Rated/5 · Side: Not Rated/5 · Rollover: Not Rated/5

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
UNKNOWN OR OTHER19
STRUCTURE:BODY10
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM6
ENGINE4
Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness2
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH:EMERGENCY MECHANICAL RELEASE1
STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR1
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION1
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL1
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS1
LANE DEPARTURE: LANE KEEP: STEERING ASSIST1
STEERING:COLUMN1
SEAT BELTS1
VISIBILITY/WIPER1
STEERING1

Recalls (3)

23V23600031/03/2023

STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling all 2022 and certain 2023 Carnival vehicles. The auto-reverse feature for the power sliding doors (PSD) may not activate in all situations.

24V02500018/01/2024

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2023-2024 Sportage and 2022-2024 Carnival vehicles. The roof molding may loosen and detach.

23V17900017/03/2023

TRAILER HITCHES

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2022-2023 Carnival vehicles equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Water accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical s

Recent Complaints

20260212ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that during freezing weather, the button was depressed to open the driver's side rear sliding door, and the door automatically opened; however, the motor reached a point of resistance and attempted to close the sliding door. Due to the failure of the cable in the door snapped behind the glass window. The contact manually opened the sliding door and used excessive force to close the door. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who confirmed that the door cable had snapped. The contact was informed that the vehicle was out of warranty; however, the dealer reached out to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer later agreed to partial assistance with the repair. The contact paid for the remaining cost of the repair. The manufacturer was contacted about the repair and provided a case number. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 63,476.

Mileage: 63,476

20260212LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that during freezing weather, the button was depressed to open the driver's side rear sliding door, and the door automatically opened; however, the motor reached a point of resistance and attempted to close the sliding door. Due to the failure of the cable in the door snapped behind the glass window. The contact manually opened the sliding door and used excessive force to close the door. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who confirmed that the door cable had snapped. The contact was informed that the vehicle was out of warranty; however, the dealer reached out to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer later agreed to partial assistance with the repair. The contact paid for the remaining cost of the repair. The manufacturer was contacted about the repair and provided a case number. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 63,476.

Mileage: 63,476

20260205CrashSERVICE BRAKES

ABS was activating inappropriately creating a grinding/pulsating noise while I was attempting to stop at a light. The vehicle did slow down but despite the completely dry road service and sufficient stopping distance, the vehicle never came to a stop and ran into the vehicle in front of me. The vehicle is currently in the autobody shop to be repaired as it is not drivable (leaking fluids). I will be contacting my insurance company and an independent service center shortly to have it inspected. I will also be contacting Kia America, Inc.. There were no warning lamps or symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

20260121ENGINE

Strong fuel smell that comes and goes. Dealership replaced fuel injection related parts after finding a leak. Problem is still present.

20251023STRUCTURE:BODY

Passenger side sliding door periodically gets stuck trying to open or close. My 3 year olds finger got stuck in the closed position of the sliding door and we could not get the door open immediately because of the faulty door periodically getting stuck.

20251016UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Gas/pump door actuator failed. Unable to open and put gas in car. This car is only 1.5 years old.

20250907FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

On August 23, 2025, I purchased a certified pre-owned Kia Carnival. Within hours, the vehicle had a severe fuel leak that produced a strong gasoline odor. Driving it made me sick, and I feared for the safety of my three children in the vehicle. A Kia technician later confirmed a crossover fuel line leak so severe that he became ill while inspecting it and feared the vehicle could explode. Even after repair, the gas odor persisted. This vehicle was sold to me in unsafe condition, and I believe this may represent a larger safety issue that needs investigation.

20250907UNKNOWN OR OTHER

On August 23, 2025, I purchased a certified pre-owned Kia Carnival. Within hours, the vehicle had a severe fuel leak that produced a strong gasoline odor. Driving it made me sick, and I feared for the safety of my three children in the vehicle. A Kia technician later confirmed a crossover fuel line leak so severe that he became ill while inspecting it and feared the vehicle could explode. Even after repair, the gas odor persisted. This vehicle was sold to me in unsafe condition, and I believe this may represent a larger safety issue that needs investigation.

20250828STRUCTURE:BODY

The power sliding door does not reverse when an object is in its path. The door closed on my sons body. He was okay we were able to pull the handle to make it open again but it did not stop on its own. Another instance the door did not stop closing when a toy went into the door. The door just crunched the toy and shut while beeping.

20250821UNKNOWN OR OTHER

My [XXX] son locked himself and his [XXX] brother in the car today. The scenario which is repeatable is if the cars start button is pushed to turn on accessory power the key fob will no longer unlock the doors. My father had the key fob outside of the car, while my son scrambled up front and pushed both the start button on the car and the door lock button. Again at this point the key fob is outside the car and will not unlock the doors. The daycare had to call 911 because two children were locked inside the car. This is an unacceptable situation for a minivan. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) I have not yet brought the vehicle to a dealer, there are no warning lights on the vehicle and the key fob is working and has power. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20250728STRUCTURE:BODY

After working out at my gym, my daughters and I were driving on a side street near at around 35MPH. With no warning, a large POP happened and our passenger sliding door window shattered. Thankfully, nothing but a scratch happened to my [XXX] that was in her car seat closest to the window that shattered. I called our local KIA dealership and my insurance agent and both mentioned that it could be because of the heat we are having in our area. This concerns me because the Carnival is a “MPV” aka family car and this happened without a chip or anything in the glass and terrified both of my girls. I have never heard of a window solely shattering bc of heat. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20250528UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Gas door outside cover would not open which makes it impossible to pump gas. Dealership removed door to enable the ability to pump gas. This then disables the safety feature that keeps the van door from sliding open which a rear passenger may mistakenly open the door and the gas pump hose would be knocked off. if Dealership opens the door to the gas area, and leaves the door to the gas cover ajar slightly to enable the ability to pump gas, this causes an issue if the door is mistakenly opened by a rear passenger, there is no clearance and the door to the gas area would be ripped off. One incident Dec 2023, another incident May 2025

20250324Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness

Unknown as to what exactly happened, but my husband put my daughter in her car seat buckled her and was just fine. We arrived to our destination no more than 15 minutes later and her chest clip buckle had busted apart. I do have video of the chest clip and how it was apart, however, as soon as I get the new piece and I will not have it to show due to needing the car seat. I do have video of the incident right after I noticed it and other videos showing the parts and pieces. My daughter ended up having the pieces that you press together to unlock the magnetic chest clip apart in her mouth. The magnet circle was still in the chest clip keeping it closed and locked in place. However, it very easily could have came open and out and her eat the magnet. I have contacted the manufacturer and she let me know that other car seats have had the same problem, but there is no recall. She just said she will send me a replacement piece.

20250318SEAT BELTS:REAR/OTHER:RETRACTOR

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that the seat belt located in the rear middle row was inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the seat belt failed to retract. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the seat belt needed to be replaced. The dealer ordered the part, which was on backorder. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

Mileage: 30,000

20250214Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness

The car seat harness fails to stay engaged in a safe and secure position. When tightened to the correct position it becomes loose. I contacted Nuna and they advised I should clean the harness adjuster button from debris but I did that and the harness is still coming loose. I don’t know how many times my children have been transported while wearing this faulty harness over time since purchasing our seats in 2021 but we are in our vehicle daily so my guess is upwards of 100’s of times. The manufacturer refuses to take accountability and recommends we wait indefinitely for a new car seat fabric cover, cleaning kit and instructions to alter the car seat for the purpose of cleaning the harness adjuster button ourselves.

20241028UNKNOWN OR OTHER

The windshield started cracking while the car was parked and continued cracking over the next week. The crack now runs from the center top, 3/4 of the way across the driver's side

20240924STEERING

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Carnival. The contact stated that an unknown fluid was leaking from the left side of the steering column while driving at various speeds. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer where the parts on the steering column were wiped down and the contact was instructed to return the vehicle to the dealer if the failure persisted. The failure returned and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer. A diagnostic test was performed, and the contact was informed that the vehicle was unsafe to drive. The contact was informed that the steering column needed to be replaced; however, the part for repair was on backorder. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was provided a case number. The vehicle was not repaired and remained with the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

Mileage: 10,000

20240814VISIBILITY/WIPER

My 2023 KIA Carnival has a windshield cracked even without hitting rock or anything. My vehicle was parked on the driveway overnight. I can prove that the damage occurred without the car moving. I have this issue on my dash cam too. The data is saved with date and time. Kia Findlay Las Vegas refuses repair. It's not an official recall about this problem. But Similar cases can be read on the Internet.

20240731UNKNOWN OR OTHER

The rails in the middle row where the seats connect to, get extremely hot to the point where it is very hot to touch. This is a safety issue that could potentially cause a fire and/or burn my children’s’ feet. It doesn’t matter if the car has been driven for a short period of time or on a long trip, regardless the rails get very hot

20240704ENGINE

We drove an hour then sat in the car while it was on for about 30 minutes. The gas tank was 14% full. We started driving again down a bit of a hill & got to a stop light. The car started beeping & said “engine off! Switch to N then start engine” We turned the car off and back on & it started working.

Compare 2023KIACARNIVAL to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL have?
The 2023 KIA CARNIVAL has 55 NHTSA complaints, 1 crashes, 0 fires, 8 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What is the safety rating for the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL?
The 2023 KIA CARNIVAL received an overall NHTSA safety rating of Not Rated/5, front crash rating of Not Rated/5, side crash rating of Not Rated/5, and rollover rating of Not Rated/5.
Are there any recalls for the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL?
Yes, the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL has 3 recall(s). The most common affected component is STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL?
The most-complained component for the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL is UNKNOWN OR OTHER with 19 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include STRUCTURE:BODY and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
Is the 2023 KIA CARNIVAL safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. The 2023 KIA CARNIVAL has an NHTSA safety rating of Not Rated/5. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.