2020 Kia Telluride problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Exterior Lighting (163) · Visibility/Wiper (135) · Engine (102)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Kia Telluride model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
196 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (7)
Seats:front Assembly:power Adjust 2026-07-02 · campaign 26V430000 · 462,869 vehicles ⚠ PARK OUTSIDE
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2024 Telluride vehicles. The front power seat motor may overheat due to a stuck power seat slide knob or an improper recall 24V407 repair, which can result in a fire while parked or driving.
Risk: A fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will install an electronic fuse assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 13, 2026. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC374. This recall replaces NHTSA recall number 24V407. Vehicles already repaired under the previous recall will need to have the new remedy completed. Vehicle Identification
Seats:front Assembly:power Adjust 2024-06-05 · campaign 24V407000 · 462,869 vehicles ⚠ PARK OUTSIDE
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2024 Telluride vehicles. The front power seat motor may overheat due to a stuck power seat slide knob, which can result in a fire while parked or driving.
Risk: A fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will install a bracket for the power seat switch back covers and replace the seat slide knobs, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 30, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC316.
Power Train:driveline:driveshaft 2024-03-20 · campaign 24V214000 · 427,407 vehicles
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2024 Telluride vehicles. The intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not be fully engaged, which can result in vehicle roll away while in PARK.
Risk: A vehicle roll away increases the risk of a crash or injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to manually engage the emergency parking brake prior to exiting the vehicle until the recall remedy is performed. Dealers will update the electronic parking brake software and replace any damaged intermediate shafts as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 15, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC303.
Exterior Lighting:headlights 2024-02-26 · campaign 24V148000 · 35,031 vehicles
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020 Telluride vehicles. The high beam headlights may fail.
Risk: Inoperable high beam headlights may reduce visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and repair or replace the high beam headlights, as necessary free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 9, 2024. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC299.
Trailer Hitches 2022-08-15 · campaign 22V626000 · 36,417 vehicles ⚠ PARK OUTSIDE
Defect: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Telluride vehicles potentially equipped with a Genuine Kia 4-pin tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Kia dealership. Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
Risk: A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will install a new fuse and a wiring harness extension. Dealers will also inspect and replace the tow hitch harness assembly, as necessary. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 12, 2023. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC247.
Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control 2020-07-28 · campaign 20V436000 · 86,921 vehicles
Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020 Telluride vehicles equipped with Smart Cruise Control (SCC). When a trailer is connected to the vehicle, the trailer brake lights will not illuminate when the SCC applies the brakes. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Risk: Inoperative trailer brake lights can fail to warn other drivers that the vehicle is slowing, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will install an additional wire harness to the main fuse box to signal the trailer brake lights, free of charge. The recall began September 10, 2020. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC194.
Seat Belts:rear/Other 2019-08-13 · campaign 19V594000 · 30,168 vehicles
Defect: Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020 Telluride vehicles. The seat belt assemblies in the front passenger, second, and/or third row seats may not tightly secure a child restraint system in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Risk: If a child seat is not properly secured, there is an increased risk of injury to the occupant in a crash.
Fix: Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles and replace any incorrect seat belt assemblies. The repair will also include replacing the driver's seat belt which has a non-U.S. specified label, with a U.S. specification seat belt. The repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began August 30, 2019. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC181.
Service bulletins (152)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Engine 2026-09-25 · TSB_ENG270 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: excessive engine oil consumption: this bulletin provides information on diagnosing and/or repairing a 2020-2025my telluride (on) vehicle's engine, which may exhibit a symptom of excessive oil consumption. follow the flowchart on page 2 in this procedure to repair a vehicl
Visibility/Wiper 2026-09-25 · WTY049_REIMB · Warranty Program/Extension
warranty extension campaign: reimbursement form (wty049) - this document is a reimbursement request form that was mailed with the customer letter advising them to submit the form if they had paid for repairs for this same matter prior to the warranty extension campaign program launch.
Visibility/Wiper 2026-09-25 · WTY049_OWNR · Warranty Program/Extension
warranty extension campaign: owner notification (wty049) - this document is the owner notification advising that kia is extending the new vehicle limited warranty coverage to owners for specific repairs related to the front sunroof wind deflector on certain 2020-2022 my telluride vehicles manufactur
Power Train 2026-09-23 · TSB_CHA129_R1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin: awd coupler noise/vibration logic improvement (revision 1) - this bulletin has been revised to include additional information. new/revised sections of this bulletin are indicated by a black bar in the margin area. this bulletin provides information to upgrade the 4-wheel
Visibility/Wiper 2026-09-23 · WTY049_QA · Warranty Program/Extension
warranty extension campaign: question and answer (wty049) – this document is the question and answer guide containing the most frequently asked questions regarding warranty extension campaign wty049.
Visibility/Wiper 2026-09-23 · WTY049_DPSM · Warranty Program/Extension
warranty extension campaign: dealer parts and service manager memo (wty049) - this document is the announcement to dealer parts and service managers advising that kia is extending the new vehicle limited warranty coverage to owners for specific repairs related to the front sunroof wind deflector on
Showing the 6 most recent of 152 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-25 · Electrical System“batter drainage issue. have paid for a new battery and i just bought the car 09/14/2026…”
2026-10-19 · Fuel/Propulsion System“i am reporting a serious safety concern involving my 2020 kia telluride sx with approximately 129,000 miles. the vehicle began experiencing delayed starting followed by a very strong gasoline odor. i also heard a hissing sound that continued after the engine was turned off. due to safety concerns, i had the vehicle towed to a repair facility rath…”
2026-10-17 · Seats“1. incident & vehicle identification •vehicle: 2020 kia telluride •owner name: [xxx] •contact phone: [xxx] •kia customer care case number: xxx •nhtsa safety recall number: 26v430 2. description of safety hazard & manufacturer reimbursement refusal plaintext complaint regarding manufacturer non-compliance with 49 cfr § 573.13 (reimbursement for pre…”
2026-10-16 · Engine“hi- i bought a used kia telluride (2020) and after 2 months it stalled out and after 2 different mechanics and a kia dealership telling me it was fixed- it was not. the car basically had no oil left with zero light or warning. after doing some research, there are tons of people complaining of the same issue. the engine is essentially ruined and nee…”
2026-10-14 · Engine“i have this 2020 telluride and it’s consuming a lot of oil i have to add a quart of oil every 600 miles. i was wondering if there is any open recalls for this. …”
2026-10-09 · Electrical System · 119,000 mi“the contact owns a 2020 kia telluride. the contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the air bag warning light illuminated. the dealer was contacted by phone and made aware of the failure. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with an electrical bleeding between the wiring harness. the contact was informed that…”
2026-10-07 · Structure:body“this afternoon i noticed that my 2020 kia telluride paint has and continues to peel in large chunks in my driveway. all was good this morning and then all of the sudden large pieces of paint started to break away. near the windshield hood area.…”
2026-10-07 · Engine“i am reporting a potential safety defect involving excessive engine oil loss and persistent oil leakage on my 2020 kia telluride, vin [xxx]. the vehicle currently has approximately 100,367 miles. it has been experiencing significant oil loss, approximately one quart of engine oil per week. i am concerned that this amount of oil loss is abnormal an…”
2026-10-06 · Unknown Or Other“i am filing this safety report regarding my 2020 kia telluride, which currently has approximately 133,000 miles. the vehicle is experiencing severe internal oil consumption, burning through multiple quarts of engine oil rapidly between normal service intervals without triggering any dashboard warning lights, creating a high risk of sudden engine fa…”
2026-10-02 · Exterior Lighting“led running light of driver's side headlamp assembly inoperable on 10/14/24 both headlamp assemblies were under recall warranty and replaced at sons kia in mcdonough ga. on 10/8/25 i returned to sons kia for service and to have the led checked on the driver's side as it was no longer operable, less than a year after replacement. i was advised ther…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.