AutoUtility currently tracks 60 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2023 Kia Forte. Driver Assistance & Safety Tech issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 16 complaints (26.7% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 10 filings cite a crash, 4 cite a fire, 5 report one or more injuries, 1 reports one or more fatalities.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
16 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
13 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
10 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
7 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis
3 complaint narratives describe this symptom.
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"Electrical system failed while operating vehicle on major highway. All lights flashed, system shut off, power steering locked up."
"The right front lower control arm has completely broken/fractured during operation. Kia has previously issued safety recalls SC283 (NHTSA 23V649) and SC306 (NHTSA 24V244) for this exact vehicle model year due to improperly manufactured right front lower control arms that can crack and fail. My..."
"The A/C compressor field coil assembly failed on my 2023 Kia Forte. The air conditioning system is completely inoperative. The vehicle is currently [at my residence / at the dealership - specify location] and the component is available for inspection upon request. 1 This is a documented issue. Kia..."
"The contact owns a 2023 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made abnormal knocking sounds. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle later lost motive power while driving with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to..."
"I was driving home, on my way while driving I approached a curve on my way around the curve my vehicle continued to accelerate to the right as I was going around the curve. I tried to redirect the vehicle back to the left by trying to turn the steering wheel towards the left but I could not control..."
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2024)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Kia Forte | 258 | 16 | 1 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Kia Forte | 2 | 0 | 1 | View 2016 Problems → |
| 2017 Kia Forte | 301 | 23 | 3 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Kia Forte | 134 | 13 | 3 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 Kia Forte | 147 | 11 | 2 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 Kia Forte | 74 | 9 | 0 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 Kia Forte | 67 | 10 | 2 | View 2021 Problems → |
| 2022 Kia Forte | 26 | 3 | 1 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 Kia Forte Current Page | 60 | 10 | 3 | Current |
| 2024 Kia Forte | 24 | 5 | 0 | View 2024 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 36 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance NHTSA category: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lane Departure Warning NHTSA category: LANE DEPARTURE | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| STEERING,SUSPENSION | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Back Over Prevention / Camera NHTSA category: BACK OVER PREVENTION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,LANE DEPARTURE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doors, Latches & Locks NHTSA category: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,AIR BAGS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,STRUCTURE,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| STEERING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SUSPENSION,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year
Key performance indicators, EPA fuel economy specs, powertrain variants, and summary ratings.
Official recall campaigns, safety defect descriptions, and manufacturer free remedy instructions.
NHTSA 5-Star NCAP crash test results, driver assistance systems, and rollover resistance ratings.
EPA fuel economy ratings, electric range, and annual energy cost benchmarks.
Direct, deterministic answers synthesized from verified United States government databases for the 2023 Kia Forte
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2023 Kia Forte is Driver Assistance & Safety Tech, appearing in 16 records (26.7% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Steering System (13) and Electrical System (10).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 60 consumer defect complaints and 3 safety recall campaigns for the 2023 Kia Forte.
Reviewing documented component complaint distributions, recall remedy notices, and active federal investigations provides an objective, evidence-based view of the vehicle's historical safety and defect record.
Among consumer complaint records on file with NHTSA for the 2023 Kia Forte, 10 filings cite a crash, 4 cite smoke or fire, and 5 report one or more injuries.
Incident entries represent consumer descriptions at the time of submission to federal authorities and do not establish mechanical causation or legal liability.
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database under 49 CFR Part 576.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.