2022-2023 Kia EV6 Charging Problems

Updated on November 28th, 2023 Author: Sergei Lemberg

Lemberg Law is investigating complaints that owners are not able to fast-charge their 2022-2023 Kia EV6 vehicles with Level 2 home chargers. Additionally, owners are complaining that their 12-volt batteries lose power when charging and that chargers shut down indicating a short-circuit.

Is There a Problem with the 2022-2023 Kia EV6?

Owners of 2022 and 2023 Kia EV6 vehicles are reporting major problems relating to charging their 12-volt batteries. The car is advertised as being capable of 48 or 50 amp Level 2 charging, but in reality, the level is substantially reduced.

The initial problem is that when owners charge their EV6 vehicles at home, many of them get “charge interrupted” messages and the charger stops charging. Some report restarting via the app as many as 3-4 times.

While the expectation is that they can charge at 48, even 50 amps, typically it fails at 40 amps and users are forced to reduce to 36 amps. And it only gets worse.

Some owners have lodged complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Many more have joined Kia EV Forums in an endeavor to find answers from fellow Kia EV6 owners.

Complaints to the NHTSA

There aren’t many complaints lodged with the NHTSA, but they tell the story. Some dealers identify problems, others tell owners they can’t help.

For example, an owner who reported multiple failures attempting to charge on AC 220-volt current at both 9 and 8kW was told by the dealer that there was a fault. The NHTSA complaint states that the dealer said “there is a fault where the battery management system or charging system is overheating that causes the vehicle to stop charging.”

But another dealer told another owner that there was no problem when he wasn’t able to charge the EV6 at 40 amps or higher with a Level 2 charger. When charging at home, the owner is notified that “charging has been interrupted.” After checking the Kia forums and discovering that other owners have the same problem, he took his vehicle to the dealership. But they said there weren’t any issues. When the problem recurred, he went back to the dealer. After 3 days, they said it was fixed. But it wasn’t.

Charger Draws Excessive Current

An owner from Florida complained in February 2023 that the on-board charge controller on the EV6 was “drawing excessive current from my Level 2 EVSE portable charger. When my charger is set to 24 amps maximum the car will draw 28 to 30 amps, causing the charger to shutdown and report a short-circuit has been detected. When my charger is set to 40 amps, about an hour into charging, the car will draw 46.6 amps again causing the charger to shut down and indicate a short-circuit. My understanding of the Level 2 charging standard is that the charger tells the vehicle its current setting, and the vehicle is not supposed to draw more current than the charger tells it.”

This owner states that because the charger draws more power than it should when used with the Kia EV6, this is a major safety issue that could cause a fire. He adds that the same charger doesn’t draw excess power when used with other vehicles.

“Kia hasn’t indicated any willingness to fix the problem and they don’t seem to be treating it with the seriousness it deserves. I took my car to the dealer and they grudgingly applied the only Level 2 software update they had, but it has not made any difference in the problem. Now they say there is nothing else they can do.”

What Does Kia Say About EV6 Charging Capacity?

Kia states that as its first dedicated EV, the Kia EV6 enables ultra-fast DC charging capability from a 10-80% charge (up to 217 miles range) in under 18 minutes. This assessment is based on Kia Motor Corporation’s test with an SAE International J1772 charger.

It also boasts the world’s first patented multi-charging system supporting 400- and 800-volt DC charging working on DC chargers with speeds ranging from 50kW to 350kW.

According to the Kia media website, 800-volt DC fast charging from a 350-kW charger allows:

• Nearly 70 miles added in less than 5 minutes
• Up to 217 miles (10-80%) added in under 18 minutes
• 11kW on-board charger (OBC) for Level 2 recharging from 10-100% in 7 hours
• 10 minutes (240v AC, at 40-amps) for the larger 77.4 kWh battery versions

But what does this mean for owners?

What Other Charging Problems are 2022-2023 Kia EV6 Owners Experiencing?

The charging problems that 2022-2023 Kia EV6 owners are experiencing are similar to those that 2022-2023 Hyundai Ioniq 5 owners are describing. While most owners are able to charge at the full 48 amps for the first few months of ownership, Level 2 charging starts to fail.

A telling comment from a Kia EV Forums member says he thinks the Kia EV6 rapid charging numbers look good on paper. But, “in reality the technology is not there yet.” He also has a problem with Level 2 charging. “We charge another EV in the garage without ever having this glitch. I called my local KIA dealer and they act as if they have not heard of this. Like so many other little annoyances with this fine driving EV, it looks like the best solution is to restart it. Lowering amps to 32 will be a pretty slow charge.”

Many other members of the forum agree or have similar comments to share.

More concerning is that many have had more failed charging issues since Kia issued a technical service bulletin (TSB) in January 2023.

About the TSB Solution

In January 2023 Kia issued a TSB aimed at improving the “software logic” of the 2022-2023 EV6 Vehicle Charging Management System (VCMS). It was to overcome high-voltage battery (HVB) charging issues caused by “excessive high temperatures at the combo charger inlet module assembly.” A second TSB was issued for the 2023 GT model in May 2023.

In both instances, the instruction is: “This upgrade must be conducted based on a customer’s complaint.” But many customers are convinced that the upgrade has been implemented without their consent, and with negative effects. Others who did consent to the update say it didn’t work.

Does the TSB Solution Work?

A member of the Kia EV Forums tells how the TSB “only half fixed the problem, by slowing the charging significantly.” The problem started after having been able to “charge at the full 48 amps until after about 4 months of being new, and just before I reached 5,000 miles. Then the Level 2 home charging began to fail about an hour or so after starting, eventually every time I tried charging.”

The TSB solution didn’t help but rather exacerbated the problem.

“The car was advertised to be capable of 50 amp Level 2 charging, and although I love the car, I am not satisfied with the reduced charging level. The highest rate I can charge at now with my Leviton 48 amp charger is 36 amps. I achieve this level by setting the charger at 40 amps, and changing the setting to ‘reduced’ in the car, which actually nets around 35 amps. With the outside temp near 80F, the AC inlet temp maxed out around 192F.”

Other owners have similar, sometimes shorter stories.

“I have had the TSB update. It didn’t work! I still have charging interruptions. I have to adjust the kW down to avoid the interruption.”

Another forum member who had experienced “all the failed charging issues,” states that the TSB stopped these errors “and allowed the car to continue charging. However this is not a fix as it seems that all the software change does is throttle the charging speed down low enough to not create the problem.” Not only does it not fix the problem, it also makes the charger handle too hot to touch.

What Should You Do if Your 2022-2023 Kia EV6 has a Charging Problem?

A huge number of Kia EV6 owners appear to be experiencing charging problems. In certain circumstances, recurring issues can qualify as vehicle as a lemon.

Do you think your Kia EV6 might be a lemon? If you do, it’s a good idea to ask a lemon law firm to evaluate your problems. This is something that Lemberg Law will do free of charge.

Every year auto manufacturers are forced to replace, buy back, or pay cash settlements to thousands of lemon owners. All you need to do is call our Helpline or fill out a contact form right now and we’ll do what we can to help you. The law says that Kia must pay the legal bills for lemon law cases, so it’s not going to cost you.

About the Author:

Sergei Lemberg is an attorney focusing on consumer law, class actions related to automotive issues, and personal injury litigation. With nearly two decades of experience, his areas of practice include Lemon Law (vehicle defects), Debt Collection Harassment, TCPA (illegal robocalls and texts), Fair Credit Reporting Act, Overtime claims, Personal Injury cases, and Class Actions. He has consistently been recognized as the nation's "most active consumer attorney." In 2020, Mr. Lemberg represented Noah Duguid before the United States Supreme Court in the landmark case Duguid v. Facebook. He is also the author of "Defanging Debt Collectors," a guide that empowers consumers to fight back against debt collectors and prevail, as well as "Lemon Law 101: The Laws That Lemon Dealers Don't Want You to Know."

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