Just Joined the Dead Engine Club (2017 Kia Soul Plus 2.0L)
My wife bought a 2017 Kia Soul Plus 2.0L in 2021 with about 49K miles and since owning it, it has really high oil consumption, loud valve rattle, erratic MPG and just general poor consistent performance.
I'm mechanically inclined and did all the maintenance and tune ups to try to get it to run better or improve fuel economy.
We took the vehicle back to the dealer two times, the first time they replaced the crankshaft cam gear - it has a known design defect where the guide pin shears off causing the timing to be off. It took over a month for them to get approval. They had to replace the timing chain, guides, as well as the whole camshaft. My wife was pushing for engine replacement because her vehicle VIN was included in the settlement, the dealership would only do the repair. Because it was over the threshold they had to send an inspector out to make sure the work billed to them was actually being done.
Shortly after getting the car back we got a P420 code for the catalytic converter because the car had been running so rich it burned it out. Luckily they were able to attach it to the original repair and cover the replacement of the catalytic converter, that was another week in the shop.
Lastly the car continued to burn excessive oil between oil changes -- never a "low oil" warning light or any indication of a problem. Up until a few days ago when the car just died in the middle lane of a freeway on-ramp, during rush hour -- probably the scariest vehicle break down I've ever had. Tried to restart the vehicle -- the starter self-destructed, white smoke and the strong smell of burning electrical.
Had it towed back in to the dealer -- luckily this time they fast-tracked engine replacement! The dealership verified the crankshaft failed causing complete engine seizure at 109K miles and also got approval for warranty replacement.
The engine is on order due in 3-5 days. Cautiously optimistic that this will fix things for the near future.