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Get your 2021 Sorento a radiator guard

42K views 88 replies 21 participants last post by  C-Trink  
Bought a Sorento EX a month ago. Feels good, drive it around, until last Saturday. A stone flew through the lower grill of the front bumper and hit the radiator. I didn't hear any sound, nothing wrong from the dashboard, no high temperature. However, I saw pink fluid around the front bumper and identified the coolant leak and a dent on the radiator. Also, the coolant level was dropping.

The EX got towed to the dealership (couldn't risk driving, it may cause engine overheat). They said it will cost ~$1,000 and would not be covered by the warranty. The worst thing is that there are no parts for this new-new model, and the service advisor told me there was no estimated time to order the new radiator. Who knows how long should I wait for that?

The space of the front lower grill is 'massive'. I also found other smaller dents and dead insects. So I believe Kia made a bad design to protect the radiator.

So here is my warm advice. Please look at your radiator and find out if your radiator got hit already and install a radiator guard to prevent similar trouble like mine. View attachment 120257 View attachment 120258
Why don’t you find a radiator repair local radiator repair shop and have yours fixed? Have Kia pull it out and you drop of the radiator and have it fixed. Once done have Kia put it back in. It will be faster and they more then likely can repair yours.