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2014 Sorento LX OBD II plug was cut off!

6K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  dingode 
#1 ·
My wife took her car for a front end alignment before our vacation. Once it on was on the rack they called my wife in to show her that the OBD II plug had been cut off and they needed that plug to zero out some sensor in the steering after the alignment.

This is the second alignment since we had the car. The first was done by the dealership and was a fiasco. It took 2 days and they had to rent us a car while they worked on ours! The kicker is that the alignment wasn't even that far off.

During this alignment fiasco the dealership never mentioned the missing plug and I have my theories on how the plug became missing (service manager was an ass and is no longer working there), but I can't prove them.

We needed this second alignment after hitting a huge pothole about a week after the dealer spent 2 days aligning it. Needless to say we didn't take it back to the dealership this time.

So, I need a OBD II plug. Luckily, whoever cut it off did it right behind the plug so I have plenty of wire to work with. What I don't know is where can I get one or a compatible one? None of the local salvage yards have a 2014 Sorento and I don't know if the ODB II plug from other Kia models or years would work. I'm more than capable of soldering the wires back together, but I need you help with finding one online or a suitable substitute from another model/year. Thanks for any help you can offer.
 
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#2 ·
I'll check my stock of used wiring harnesses tomorrow. I believe any OBDII connectors will work as long as you pin them correctly. What size engine do you have?
 
#3 ·
Hi Paco,
Thanks for the help. She has the 4cyl engine. I've done some more investigation using different search terms and found some more information. All I could find initially was OBD scanners and scanner cables and plugs.

First thing, I'll have to go look at the fuse panel in the morning and see if the actual plug is missing. She showed me where the cut wires were hanging under the steering column and I assumed that's where the plug was supposed to be, that's where it's been in other cars I've had so I just assumed.... I now know the plugs location is actually in the fuse panel area. So, if the plug is still in place behind the fuse panel door I can solder the wires back pretty easily.

Second, if the plug is missing I'll have to see if it's a 16 or 20 pin plug and then get the correct schematic/pin out. If I have to do that I'd like to put the plug back where it belongs, and I'd like to use the same colored wires. A replacement plug seems easy to get for the 16 pin any way. Any idea where to get the correct wires? I guess as a last resort I can use the wires I have left and just tuck the plug up under the dash.

Please let me know what you have and I'll update the thread tomorrow afternoon. Just got back from vacation (700 mile drive in one day) and I'm sleeping in tomorrow!
 
#4 ·
Ok, let me know. If it is the OBDII under the dash, its the 16 pin. I probably have enough wires to get all the correct colors if they aren't already right.
 
#5 ·
all OBDII are same. It is standard plug so any OBD II from any car will work just fine.

As for wires - they also are standardised as to location of each plug and what it does. However, colours could be different on different cars.

But why would someone CUT the plug?? It makes no sense....
 
#6 ·
OK, the plug is missing. I believe I counted 10 wires, my wife is out and about with the car right now so I can't post the colors. I think to mount the plug in its original location I'd need a foot of wire coming out of the new plug.

PLP, the dealership gave me a BS story about how some people will cut it off if it's hanging down in their way. I have an idea about how it got cut off, but I can't prove it it.
 
#8 ·
I purchased a new 2014 Sorento (a dealer demo unit with 60 miles total) and after some stress involving conflicting warranty coverage statements by the dealer and KIA Motors USA, the issue was cleared up. I thought that was the end of the car problems. Not exactly. While on a trip out of state the car suddenly would not start. I looked down and a bundle of wires had fallen down from the area of the left side lower dash. I immediately noticed that they were covered with "Scotch-Lok" connectors and "Butt Connectors" like someone (not factory) would use if they were tapping into a wiring harness to install some accessory. They certainly did not appear to be factory style connections. Plus a ground wire was screwed to a point under the dash and the whole mess was zip-tied (unsuccessfully). I took photos before touching anything and then saw a very small gauge wire that had been placed in a connector designed for a large gauge wire and had fallen out. There were wires that had been cut and re-routed to other connections.

I was parked by the side of the road and decided to place the mis-connected wire back in the bad connector and had someone try to start the car. Success!. I removed the crappy connector, twisted the wires together (with tape also) and drove to the nearest KIA dealership. They took one look at it and said that it was definitely not factory and that it was the worst job of wiring they had seen. If the wire had come apart at highway speeds the results could have been disastrous. They advised me to contact KIA Corporate.

I contacted KIA Motors (Corporate) when I got home and they want me to deal with the selling dealer. I'm in the process of that now. I let them know that I will only accept a complete, new wiring harness to replace the compromised one. That would also include a comparable loaner car during repairs.

Hopefully this week will bring some determination of the plan to correct a dealer screw up. They must have installed an alarm and then removed it. They also screwed a pin receptacle (not the OBD port) to the lower dash. That needs to be replaced also so I don't have holes in the car. Now it is going to cost someone a lot of money to replace the harness. They offered to "repair" the harness but I refused that offer. By the way, I'm still driving around with a self-repaired harness after almost 3 weeks.

I'll keep you informed on my progress and how KIA Motors (Corporate) assists in this matter.
 
#9 ·
Update on Non-OEM Wiring Issue

The selling KIA dealer (who did the botched wiring job, or had it done) arranged to have my local KIA dealer look at the car. That will happen next week due to my schedule. The service manager that will be looking at it mentioned that they will probably want to simply "repair" the wire harness rather than replace it. He said replacement would entail removing the dashboard, front carpets, console and seats and tried to persuade to accept a repair instead. I said that we would discuss all options when I brought the car in. Does anyone have an idea how much (materials & labor) it would cost to go the full replacement route?

My contention is that I purchased a new car that was supposed to have wiring harnesses that were not compromised and then discovered that KIA altered the car prior to the sale. I welcome your opinions on my options.
 
#13 ·
Does anyone have an idea how much (materials & labor) it would cost to go the full replacement route?
That would vary greatly by location, dealer, etc. so no. And does it really matter? If this is what you want, why care what it costs the dealer who is going to do the work? Whatever it is, it would/should be charged back to the original dealer that muffed it up in the first place.

My contention is that I purchased a new car that was supposed to have wiring harnesses that were not compromised and then discovered that KIA altered the car prior to the sale.
Correction:
"wiring harnesses that were not compromised and then discovered that the KIA dealer altered the car prior to the sale."

;)
 
#12 ·
If I can make a suggestion and a request, folks . . .

Please quote the person you are replying to. We have 2 separate issues in this thread. KiaKruiser should have started his own thread which would have prevented this confusion but the damage is already done. By not quoting, people following this thread have no clue who you are responding to. Makes things much easier for all if we know who you are replying to.

;)
 
#14 ·
I'm the OP with the cut off plug. As for the selling dealer replacing the plug, it wasn't a Kia dealer that I bought the car from and I'm sure the plug was there when I bought the car. IMHO it was the Kia dealer that cut the plug off when we took it in for an alignment and they screwed it up so bad they had to get us a rental for two days. The service manager was a (expletive) and I believe he or one of his minions cut it off to screw us in the future. Of course he's not there anymore and obviously the dealership isn't going to admit anything. So what I need to do it to just get the plug replaced. I think the plug posted a few post back will work, but I'd like to stick with the original colored wires so I'm going to look in junk yards for a KIA and see if I can get one. If not I'll order one and look for a pin out.
 
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