Total Complaints
2 filings
KIA Sephia · model year
2003 KIA Sephia
2 NHTSA complaints. A VIN lookup is required to determine whether a specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
- Complaints
- 2
- Recalls
- 0
The verdict
The 2003 KIA Sephia posts top-1% complaint standing (fewest filings) among its own model-year siblings.
- Top 0%
- fewest complaints, own model years
- 0
- recall campaigns
The 2003KIASephia carries 2 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
The most frequently selected component label in reports for the 2003 Sephia is engine and engine cooling:engine with 1 filings, followed by air bags:frontal:sensor/control module (1). Complaint categories reflect owner reports and intake categorization; they do not establish a defect pattern or cause.
NHTSA currently has 2 investigation files overlapping the 2003 Sephia. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should read the complaint-by-year trend as report volume, not a causal diagnosis. Use the related-complaint feed and the official recall lookup when researching a specific vehicle.
2
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths
F
PlainCars Safety Score
0/100
2003 KIA Sephia
PlainCars' own composite of NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings and rollover-risk assessment, each dimension normalized against the federal scale or the full national model-year corpus. Not an official NHTSA figure, and not a substitute for a specific vehicle's VIN-level recall check.
NHTSA Overall Rating N/A
Not rated
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program overall crash-test rating.
Front Crash N/A
Not rated
Frontal barrier crash-test rating.
Side Crash N/A
Not rated
Side barrier and pole crash-test rating.
Rollover Resistance N/A
Not rated
Static stability factor + dynamic rollover test rating.
Rollover Risk N/A
Not reported
NHTSA single-vehicle rollover probability, dynamic test.
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
Complaints vs. fleet median (215)
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
Complaints by Component
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE | 1 |
| AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE | 1 |
Recent Complaints
20041216AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE
WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED THE ADVANCED AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT WILL INADVERTENTLY ILLUMINATE. THIS COULD CAUSE THE AIR BAGS TO BE INOPERATIVE. DEALERSHIP WA SAWARE OF THE PROBLEM, BUT DID NOT RESOLVE IT.
Mileage: 18,000
20021030ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
CONSUMER STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED AND WITHOUT WARNING THE VEHICLE WOULD PULL TO THE LEFT CAUSING IT TO BE HARD TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. DEALER NOTIFIED TS
Compare 2003KIASephia to Similar Vehicles
NHTSA Investigations
Vehicle Safety Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many complaints does the 2003 KIA Sephia have?▼
The 2003 KIA Sephia has 2 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 2003 KIA Sephia?▼
The most-complained component for the 2003 KIA Sephia is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE with 1 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE.
Is the 2003 KIA Sephia safe to buy?▼
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. 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.
Data vintage: August 2026. 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.
Every figure on PlainCars is rendered directly from NHTSA complaint and safety data, no number is typed in by an editor. This year-specific record is rendered from NHTSA ODI, recall, and NCAP rows for the 2003 KIA Sephia; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.