2018 Kia Forte: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
134 NHTSA owner complaints · 3 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Reviewed by the MotorJury data desk · 2 sources · Last updated 2026-08-20
134 NHTSA owner complaints · 3 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Complaints per year on the road: 16.75
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
Have to replace running lights every 4-6 months on both of my headlights. Happened every 4-6 months since I got the car in 2017
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Forte. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and it was discovered that the engine oil level was extremely low. The dealer kept the vehicle for nine months and performed an oil change. The failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, w…
Recently, while my boyfriend was driving my vehicle, the engine suddenly lost power without warning. He had the accelerator pedal fully depressed, yet the vehicle would barely move. He was fortunate to safely maneuver the vehicle off the road. Upon inspection, he discovered there was no oil present in the engine. Critically, neither the low oil warning light nor the check engine light had illuminated prior to this fa…
What the community is saying right now.
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 21V622000 | Latches/Locks/Linkages:Trunk Lid:Latch | 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… |
| 21V260000 | Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Oil/Lub | Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Forte vehicles equipped with a 2.0L Nu MPI engine. Foreign particles may stick insi… |
| 22V031000 | Air Bags | Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag C… |
EPA combined 32 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $1,900
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Engine (57 complaints in our indexed sample).
Our data verdict is CAUTION with a reliability score of 65/100, computed from 134 NHTSA complaints and 3 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
Yes — NHTSA lists 3 recall campaign(s) for the 2018 Kia Forte, 1 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 09/08/2021. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorComplaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-08-20.