What breaks most · 2008 to 2010 model years
Kia Borrego problems by year
Owners have filed 69 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Kia Borrego across model years 2008 to 2010. Three years stand out: 2009 for electrical system complaints, 2008 for seats complaints and 2010 for powertrain and transmission complaints.
- Years to check closely: 2009, 2008, 2010
- Complaints on file
- 692008 to 2010, all trims
- Worst year
- 200965 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 40 fires · 3 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 37kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 5Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Seats (2) | |
| 65 | 4 | 3 | Electrical system (10) | |
| 2 | 0 | 2 | Powertrain and transmission (2) |
What fails on the 2009 Kia Borrego
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 15% |
10 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2009 Kia Borrego |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 15% |
10 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Seat belts | 11% |
7 | 0 | Check recalls for seat belts on NHTSA.gov |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 11% |
7 | 0 | Shop steering parts for the 2009 Kia Borrego |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 11% |
7 | 0 | Shop exterior lighting parts for the 2009 Kia Borrego |
| Stability controlABS and wheel speed sensors | 11% |
7 | 0 | Shop all stability control parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 9% |
6 | 0 | Shop brakes parts for the 2009 Kia Borrego |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 8% |
5 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2009 Kia Borrego |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
The steering column does not telescope either in or out. The first time it happened the outside temperature was above 90 degrees. Temperatures less than 90 used to allow normal operation. Now it does not telescope at all.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Kia Borrego years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2009, 2008, 2010 carry the most filings on the Kia Borrego. The 2009 alone has 65 complaints, led by electrical system.
What is the most common Kia Borrego problem?
On the 2009 model year, the most-reported component is electrical system with 10 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Kia Borrego problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Kia Borrego complaints that include mileage is about 37,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.