Kia bulletin SC279_DP
What it saysVOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PRINCIPAL MEMO - This document is the announcement to the dealer principals that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign on certain 2018-2021 MY Kia Stinger… NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Kia filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Dec 18, 2023, received Jan 6, 2024, about the engine. It names 4 model years (2018–2021). 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 communicationWhat it applies to, as NHTSA’s summary states it — build dates and equipment as the manufacturer filed them. The dealer checks the VIN and the build date on the door jamb; a vehicle outside the window is not covered by this bulletin.
VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PRINCIPAL MEMO - This document is the announcement to the dealer principals that Kia is conducting a Voluntary Emissions Service Campaign on certain 2018-2021 MY Kia Stinger vehicles equipped with 2.0L Turbo GDI engines manufactured from September 29, 2017 to January 20, 2021 to improve the emissions logic in the Electronic Control Module (ECM) to ensure compliance with emissions regulations. This condition may cause the vehicle to release air pollutants that exceed Federal and California standards.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SC279_DP | Service bulletin | Dec 18, 2023 | 10247631 | not found |
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 themA 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 4 model years this bulletin names have filed 148 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 78 of them name Engine, 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 2018 Kia Stinger, the 13 owners who gave an odometer reading for Engine reported it at a median of 70,000 miles. That figure is one model year’s, not the whole range this bulletin covers — medians from different model years are not averaged.
I recently purchased a used 2018 Kia Stinger premium. I was notified online that my vehicle had an outstanding recall, sc196a with a fire hazard from the fuse box. I made an appointment with garden grove Kia and ask numerous times if the part could be ordered ahead of time before I took it in so I don't have to be inconvenienced twice.
2018 Kia Stinger · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Mar 25, 2021 · ODI 11404923
The contact owns a 2020 Kia Stinger. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V169000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 70-75 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated to respond.
2020 Kia Stinger · Engine · filed with NHTSA Sep 3, 2024 · ODI 11612301
After failed first fix at 300 miles, wife was driving an ran out of gas on highway around 800 miles on O/D. Told this time the entire instrument/gauge cluster is bad. Dangerous situation to run out of fuel on a highway. Kia roadside assistance driver would not come and get her as she was on an Express Lane.
2021 Kia Stinger · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA May 30, 2021 · ODI 11419046
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 engine
Source: same model, same component group4 other manufacturer communications filed against the Kia Stinger under the same component group (engine), newest first.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SC369 | Emissions | Jul 24, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: THETA III 2.5L T-GDI ECM SOFTWARE LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SC369) - This bulleti… |
| TSB_ENG222_R8 | Service bulletin | Apr 3, 2025 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION NU/GAMMA/THETA/KAPPA ENGINES - This bulletin has been revised to include additional in… |
| TSB_ENG222_R7 | Service bulletin | Feb 28, 2025 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION NU/GAMMA/THETA/KAPPA ENGINES - This bulletin has been revised to include additional in… |
| SC279_DPSM | Service bulletin | Dec 18, 2023 | VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS SERVICE CAMPAIGN: DEALER PARTS AND SERVICE MANAGER MEMO - This document is the announcement to the dealer Parts and Serv… |
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 SC279_DP 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 SC279_DP 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 SC279_DP cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 4 model years: 2021 Kia Stinger, 2020 Kia Stinger, 2019 Kia Stinger, 2018 Kia Stinger. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.