Comprehensive guide to Kia Telluride lemon law claims, common defects, NHTSA recalls, and your legal rights as an owner.
Model years covered: 2020-2024
The Kia Telluride has been a massive sales success since its introduction in 2020, praised for its styling, value, and family-friendly features. However, this popular midsize SUV has also generated a significant number of consumer complaints and safety recalls, leading many owners to seek relief under state lemon laws. From spontaneous windshield cracking to severe transmission issues and fire risks, the Telluride has proven problematic for a notable percentage of buyers.
Owners should be particularly aware of the major safety recalls affecting the 2020-2024 models, including a "park outside" warning due to power seat motors catching fire, and a rollaway risk caused by driveshaft disengagement. Additionally, persistent issues like excessive oil consumption, harsh transmission shifting, and blanking instrument clusters have frustrated many drivers. While Kia offers an industry-leading 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty, a warranty is only helpful if the dealership can actually fix the problem.
If your Kia Telluride has been in the shop repeatedly for the same issue, or has been out of service for an extended period, you may not have to settle for endless repairs. State lemon laws provide powerful protections for consumers who have purchased defective vehicles. Depending on your situation, you could be entitled to a vehicle buyback, a replacement vehicle, or a cash settlement, often with the manufacturer covering your legal fees.
Total recalls: 10
The Kia Telluride has been subject to several major safety recalls. In June 2024, Kia issued a critical "park outside" recall for 462,869 Tellurides (2020-2024) because the front power seat motor could overheat due to a stuck slide knob, posing a serious fire risk.
In March 2024, Kia recalled 427,407 Tellurides (2020-2024) due to a defect where the intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not fully engage, potentially causing the vehicle to roll away while in park.
Other notable recalls include a 2024 recall for valve spring failures that could lead to engine shutdowns and fires, and earlier recalls for blanking instrument clusters and faulty trailer tow hitch harnesses that also posed fire risks.
View all Kia recalls and NHTSA safety alerts
Kia has issued numerous Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) for the Telluride to address common complaints that do not rise to the level of a safety recall. Notable TSBs include instructions for technicians to inspect the steering shaft universal joint for proper installation (TSBCHA097) due to severe vibration complaints at highway speeds.
Other significant TSBs address transmission noise and vibration requiring automatic transmission replacement (MC-10176924-0001), software logic upgrades for the air conditioning system (MC-10249179-0001), and early bulletins acknowledging customer reports of windshield chipping followed by extensive cracking (MC-10168561-0001).
The Kia Telluride has been the subject of several significant class action lawsuits. Most notably, Sanchez v. Kia (and related cases) alleges that the windshields on 2020-2023 Tellurides are defective, prone to spontaneous cracking and chipping under normal driving conditions. This litigation is ongoing across multiple states.
Another recent class action lawsuit, filed in May 2024 (O'Connell v. Kia America Inc.), alleges a defect in the digital instrument cluster of 2023-2025 Tellurides. The plaintiffs claim the display goes completely blank while driving, depriving drivers of critical safety information, and that Kia failed to disclose the defect or provide an adequate free repair.
While the Telluride was not part of the massive $1.3 billion Theta II engine settlement that affected older Kia models, it is included in the ongoing Kia/Hyundai vehicle theft settlement regarding vehicles lacking engine immobilizers, though this primarily affects lower trims with turn-key ignitions rather than push-button starts.
Yes, many owners have reported transmission issues, including harsh shifting, delayed engagement, and slipping into neutral. These problems can sometimes be fixed with software updates, but severe cases have required complete transmission replacements.
While there is no official safety recall for the windshield, Kia did issue a 'Customer Satisfaction Initiative' for 2020 models to replace impacted windshields. A class action lawsuit is currently pending regarding defective windshields in 2020-2023 models.
In June 2024, Kia recalled over 462,000 Tellurides (2020-2024 models) because the front power seat motor could overheat due to a stuck slide knob, creating a fire risk. Owners were advised to park outside until the repair is completed.
Kia recalled over 427,000 Tellurides (2020-2024 models) because the intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not fully engage, which can cause the vehicle to roll away while in park. The fix involves a software update for the electronic parking brake and potential replacement of the shafts.
Your Telluride may be a lemon if it has a substantial defect that affects its use, value, or safety, and the dealership has been unable to fix it after a reasonable number of attempts (usually 3-4) or if it has been out of service for 30 or more days.