Diagsheet

2014 Kia Sorento · symptom sheet

Windshield cracks or distorts

  • 55owner reports
  • 62,000median miles
  • 0involved a crash

Newest report Jul 14, 2026 · checked Sep 9, 2026

168 of the 941 complaints on this car are about the structure. 55 of those describe windshield.

Tick what matches of 55 reports

2
6
6
4

What got replaced

Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the windshield (55 reports).

Recalls and investigations

No recall on the structure covers the 2014 model year as of Sep 9, 2026.

NHTSA investigations into the structure on the Sorento

EA14-002opened May 12, 2014
Visibility · model years 2011 to 2013

Panoramic glass sunroof breakage. Closed jan 15, 2021.

NHTSA summary
The investigation focused on spontaneous breakage (fracture) of the panoramic sunroof (sunroof) on MY 2011-2013 Kia Sorento vehicles. The sunroof is constructed of tempered glass (often referred to as ?safety glass?), which, when broken, crumbles into granular chunks rather than splintering into jagged shards. The failure summary above shows NHTSA reports identified by the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI), and reports submitted by Kia from start of production of the subject MY 2011-2013 Kia Sorento through October 8, 2019, the date of ODI's last request for Kia data.Reports of sunroof failures typically occurred while the vehicle was in motion and often described a loud noise when the fracture occurred. If the sunshade is closed when the sunroof fractures, the particles are contained, otherwise the particles can drop into the passenger compartment.Reported injuries generally were minor in nature, such as nicks and cuts that often occurred when complainants were cleaning-up glass particles post-incident. No crash incidents have been identified, and complaints display a declining trend since 2014.During EA14-002, ODI requested and obtained failure data for the subject vehicles, the MY 2014 Sorento (which used a similar sunroof from a different supplier), and other peer Kia products (Optima and Sportage).ODI also requested and obtained failure data for peer vehicles produced by Hyundai, Ford, Nissan, and Volkswagen and failure reports through a General Order NHTSA issued to
PE13-035opened Oct 21, 2013
Visibility · model years 2011 to 2013

Panoramic sunroof breakage. Closed may 21, 2014.

NHTSA summary
On October 21, 2013 the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE13-035 in order to further examine claims that the sunroof would spontaneously break on 2011-2013 Kia Sorento vehicles.The majority of these claims occurred while the vehicle was in motion.Glass shattering while driving may distract the driver, and the resulting glass particles which enter the passenger compartment may injure occupants.To date, ODI has received a total of 26 reports of sunroof breakage on the subject vehicles. Of those, 24 occurred while the vehicle was in motion.There were also four (4) injury incident reports for minor cuts/scratches. Kia submitted a total of 123 field incidents related to sunroof breakage in response to ODI's information request. Of this number, ODI identified 78 unique vehicle identification numbers (VINs), with 9 matching ODI complaint vehicles.Sixty of the submitted reports occurred while the vehicle was in motion.Fourteen (14) of the submitted reports alleged minor cuts/scratches from falling glass.Kia also submitted a total of 101 warranty and goodwill claims for sunroof replacement, of which 86 unique VINs were identified.Kia stated in its response that their field inspections identified only one potential cause for the sunroof breakage - external impacts from rocks or other foreign objects encountered while the vehicle was in motion.In the other instances, no evidence of a defect was found, however, Kia's inspection results were inconclusive as to a cause for the

None of these investigations covers the 2014 model year.

When it happens

The middle half of failures fell between 36,000 and 85,000 miles, from the 34 reports that gave a mileage.

315
417
218
419
1220
1621
822
423
124
126

What owners wrote

“2014 KIA Sorento; at 80775 miles the passenger side pillar by the front windshield the Pearl White Paint has peeled off. There was no impact. The paint code is SWP. I see that this is a wide-seen condition of this paint color; Pearl White with the KIA vehicles. I can see other spots on the car that appear to be weak and ready to peel.”

Filed Nov 28, 2022 · 80,775 miles

“Several spots of paint peeling off of the vehicle, all mainly around the windshield area on the top and sides as well as a few spots on the hood”

Filed Aug 20, 2022

“Paint peeling left and right sides of front windshield. Front of car.peeling in spots where rocks have hit and left back passenger side large piece paint peeling Started with a very small spec. Continuing to peel”

Filed Jul 9, 2022

“The paint on my pearl white Sorento began delaminating or peeling off in sheets on the A bars on both sides of my windshield October 2020. Lots of rust beginning as a result. Auto body shop had never seen anything like it. I did not attempt repair bc of expense and uncertainty that a spot repair would be insufficient if it were to continue in other areas. Out of warranty due to age of vehicle.”

Filed Apr 23, 2022

Should you keep driving it?

This page can't tell you that. 0 of 55 reports involved a crash and 1 people were hurt. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.

File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation.

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