Kia bulletin SA611
What it saysThis bulletin outlines the procedure for resetting the modem in certain 2016-2025MY Kia vehicles listed on page 3 that are equipped with Kia Connect Services. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Kia filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Mar 20, 2025, received Mar 26, 2025, about the electrical system — 1 document under this number: TSB_ELE378. It names 68 model years (2016–2025). A service bulletin is not a safety recall: it is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a condition, and whether the work is paid for depends on the warranty in force. Quoting the number at a service desk can save a diagnosis.
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What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationTECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: KIA CONNECT MODEM RESET (SA611) - This bulletin outlines the procedure for resetting the modem in certain 2016-2025MY Kia vehicles listed on page 3 that are equipped with Kia Connect Services. The affected vehicles may encounter the following issues: remote Start/Climate Control function not working, vehicle Status on the Kia Access App not updating, connected routing not functioning properly.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TSB_ELE378 | Service bulletin | Mar 20, 2025 | 11015973 | PDF, 404 KB |
The summary is NHTSA’s abstract of the document, as filed under 49 CFR 579.5. One communication is usually filed as several documents — the bulletin, a dealer notice, an owner letter — and the number on any of them finds this page. A PDF link is shown only once NHTSA’s own server has been seen to serve that document; the rest are checked over the following nights. Quote the number at a service desk; it is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Model years it names
Source: as the manufacturer filed themand 28 more on this site: 2024 Kia Sorento, 2023 Kia Sorento, 2022 Kia Sorento, 2021 Kia Sorento, 2020 Kia Sorento, 2025 Kia Soul, 2024 Kia Soul, 2023 Kia Soul, 2022 Kia Soul, 2021 Kia Soul, 2020 Kia Soul, 2019 Kia Soul, 2018 Kia Soul, 2017 Kia Soul, 2025 Kia Sportage, 2024 Kia Sportage, 2023 Kia Sportage, 2022 Kia Sportage, 2021 Kia Sportage, 2020 Kia Sportage, 2023 Kia Stinger, 2022 Kia Stinger, 2025 Kia Telluride, 2024 Kia Telluride, 2023 Kia Telluride, 2022 Kia Telluride, 2021 Kia Telluride, 2020 Kia Telluride.
A vehicle page’s bulletin list shows the newest few communications filed against that model year; the count there is every one.
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What owners reported
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseOwners of the 68 model years this bulletin names have filed 8,605 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 1,676 of them name Electrical System — the same broad component group this bulletin is filed under. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so that means the same area of the vehicle, not necessarily the same fault.
On the 2017 Kia Optima, the 16 owners who gave an odometer reading for Electrical System reported it at a median of 18,000 miles. That figure is one model year’s, not the whole range this bulletin covers — medians from different model years are not averaged.
I've had this car going on three years sometimes not all the time I will go to start it and it will barely start so I took it to the dealership three times when I got my oil change and they checked the battery but they're saying the battery is good and the starting system the car will just be sitting in my garage and I try to start it it…
2019 Kia Optima · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA May 9, 2021 · ODI 11415708
Number one vibration while driving when cold car has had 24 tires put on in 19,000 miles Michelin has now paid for somebody else’s tires to be put on the car number two Engine misfire dealer verified replaced coil pack same condition still exists no check engine light Number three excessive ticking noise when engine started cold in a.m.
2019 Kia K900 · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Jun 24, 2022 · ODI 11470901
Vehicle does not reliably handle the 12V battery well. Many times, I see it sitting at 12.8 VDC when driving the vehicle. On a ICE vehicle, the charging voltage is close to 14V when running/driving. On 3 separate occasions, when I tried to "start" the EV6, the 12V battery was too dead to allow the car to be started. Basically stranded.
2023 Kia EV6 · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Apr 3, 2024 · ODI 11581040
In depth: 2024 Kia EV6 electrical problems → · 2023 Kia EV6 electrical problems → · 2022 Kia EV6 electrical problems → · 2021 Kia Sorento electrical problems →
A complaint is one owner’s account, not a defect finding, and a bulletin is not a recall. Nothing here says this bulletin was issued because of these complaints, or that the repair it describes fixed them. Complaint files on this site begin in 2015.
More bulletins about the electrical system
Source: same model, same component group179 other manufacturer communications filed against these Kia models under the same component group (electrical system), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Kia list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SA656 | Service bulletin | Sep 28, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: FRONT VIEW CAMERA REPLACEMENT (SA656) - This bulletin provides information to replace the front… |
| SC330 | Service campaign | Sep 25, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN: MULTI-FUNCTION SWITCH REPAIR (SC330) - This bulletin provides information to repair… |
| TSB_ELE328_R1 | Service bulletin | Sep 16, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CLUSTER SOFTWARE LOGIC IMPROVEMENT FOR LOWER THAN ACTUAL FUEL LEVEL INDICATION - This bulletin has been revised… |
| SA652/SA653/SA658 | Over-the-air update | Sep 16, 2026 | RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SERVICE ACTION SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR RCM, UWB AND SBCM (SA652/SA653/SA658) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software upd… |
| SC367 | Emissions | Sep 11, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Electronic Control Modul… |
| PS813 | Service bulletin | Sep 4, 2026 | This Pitstop provides information related to the smart key fob programming procedure on certain 2027MY~ Seltos (SP3) vehicles. |
| PI2606 | Other | Sep 4, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: This bulletin provides information to upgrade the 12-volt battery… |
| PI2605 | Other | Sep 2, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: PRODUCT IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN: BMU LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (PI2605) - This bulletin provides information regarding a Ba… |
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Kia, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Kia SA611 a recall?
No. A service bulletin is a manufacturer communication filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR 579.5; a safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number (two digits, a letter, six digits) and a federal duty to repair for free. Check the vehicle’s recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls, or on its page here.
Is the SA611 repair free?
Not automatically. A service bulletin describes how to diagnose or repair a condition; who pays depends on the warranty in force, any extension, and the dealer. Quoting the number can save a diagnosis either way. Every Kia warranty extension on file lists the ones Kia has filed.
Which vehicles does SA611 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 68 model years: 2020 Kia Cadenza, 2024 Kia Carnival, 2023 Kia Carnival, 2022 Kia Carnival, 2024 Kia EV6, 2023 Kia EV6 and more. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.