Audited US model-year file

2020 KIA Telluride

Exact make, model and year evidence from official US sources. Recall campaigns, ODI investigations, complaint allegations and EPA estimates remain separate.

Model-year evidence is not a VIN check.

A campaign may cover only certain production dates, plants or equipment. A zero result here is not safety clearance. Use NHTSA’s official VIN tool for the individual vehicle.

Official VIN lookup ↗

01 · Safety actions first

7 NHTSA recall campaigns

Exact model-level NHTSA results for 2020 KIA Telluride. Campaign records are official safety actions; applicability to a particular car still requires its VIN.

01
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2019-08-13

SEAT BELTS:REAR/OTHER

Campaign 19V594000
Summary

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."

Consequence

If a child seat is not properly secured, there is an increased risk of injury to the occupant in a crash.

Remedy

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.

02
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2020-07-28

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING

Campaign 20V436000
Summary

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."

Consequence

Inoperative trailer brake lights can fail to warn other drivers that the vehicle is slowing, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

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.

03
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2022-08-15

TRAILER HITCHES

Campaign 22V626000

Urgent NHTSA flag: park outside. Confirm current instructions using the official campaign and VIN lookup.

Summary

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.

Consequence

A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy

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.

04
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2024-02-26

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

Campaign 24V148000
Summary

Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2020 Telluride vehicles. The high beam headlights may fail.

Consequence

Inoperable high beam headlights may reduce visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

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.

05
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2024-03-20

POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE:DRIVESHAFT

Campaign 24V214000
Summary

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.

Consequence

A vehicle roll away increases the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy

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.

06
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2024-06-05

SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:POWER ADJUST

Campaign 24V407000

Urgent NHTSA flag: park outside. Confirm current instructions using the official campaign and VIN lookup.

Summary

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.

Consequence

A fire increases the risk of injury.

Remedy

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.

07
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2026-07-02

SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:POWER ADJUST

Campaign 26V430000

Urgent NHTSA flag: park outside. Confirm current instructions using the official campaign and VIN lookup.

Summary

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.

Consequence

A fire increases the risk of injury.

Remedy

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 Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning July 17, 2026.

02 · Owner allegations

758 NHTSA complaints

Counts are not adjusted for sales, vehicle age, mileage, publicity or reporting behavior. They are allegations, not defect findings or a reliability score.

Crash mentions
8
Fire mentions
9
Injuries reported
11
Most-reported component labels
EXTERIOR LIGHTING183
UNKNOWN OR OTHER143
ENGINE142
VISIBILITY/WIPER135
POWER TRAIN70
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM58
Complaints across nearby Kia Telluride model years

Totals for the same nameplate, scaled against its highest year here. They are not adjusted for how many were sold, how old they are, how far they are driven, or how much publicity a fault received — an older or better-selling year will usually carry more reports. This shows where the reporting sits, not which year is better.

  1. 7582020
  2. 3492021
  3. 3172022
  4. 2022023
  5. 2102024
  6. 972025

A dash means NHTSA holds no complaint record for that exact year, make and model. See all Telluride years with specs and fuel economy →

03 · Agency review

1 NHTSA ODI investigation

An investigation means ODI reviewed a possible safety issue for this exact model-year identity. Opening one is not a defect finding; closing one does not by itself clear a vehicle.

PE23002
Closed 2024-04-17 · opened 2023-01-27

Complete Loss of High Beams

NHTSA source ↗

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS · Associated recall campaign 24V148.

04 · EPA configurations

Fuel economy & specifications

FuelEconomy.gov records are summarized as ranges where this model name has multiple engines, drivetrains or trims.

EPA configurations
2
Combined economy
21–23 mpg/MPGe
City / highway
19–20 / 24–26 mpg/MPGe
Engine displacement
3.8 L
Cylinders
6
Fuel type
Regular
Drive
All-Wheel Drive · Front-Wheel Drive
Vehicle class
Small Sport Utility Vehicle 2WD · Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD
Annual fuel-cost estimate
$2800–3100

05 · Evidence strength

Exact identity. Explicit limits.

No opaque score. Evidence strength is expressed through source availability, exact match method, jurisdiction and honest empty states.

exact match

Recall campaigns

7 exact US model-year records in this bounded view.

exact match

Complaints

758 exact US model-year allegations; narratives and VIN fragments are omitted.

exact match

ODI investigations

1 exact US model-year action numbers in the approved import snapshot.

canonical only

Model aliases

Only the exact NHTSA vPIC model name is published; unverified aliases are not merged.

not published

Manufacturer ownership

No rights-reviewed official ownership record is joined to this exact model-year.

PUBLIC EVIDENCE PASSPORT

Identity, freshness and provenance.

The canonical URL is this file’s permanent public identifier. Source IDs and timestamps show exactly what was matched and when; they do not turn the evidence into a verdict.

Permanent public ID
https://modelyearfacts.com/vehicle/2020/kia/telluride
NHTSA make ID
499
NHTSA model ID
25756
Match key
2020 · KIA · Telluride · US
Live evidence requested
EPA publication catalogue
Complaint matrix snapshot
Imported safety snapshot
nhtsa-investigations · exact match

NHTSA ODI investigations

Action number, component, subject and open/close dates from the approved bulk import; long summaries omitted.

Open official source ↗
US-market boundary

Only NHTSA vPIC, NHTSA ODI complaints and investigations, NHTSA recalls and FuelEconomy.gov contribute to this vehicle claim. CPSC equipment notices are searched separately and never joined to vehicle fitment. UK MOT, Canadian, New Zealand and European records are not merged into this US claim.

06 · Research paths

Diagnose first. Confirm fitment.

These are transparent searches, not diagnoses or endorsed parts. Recall remedies come before purchases; exact part fitment requires VIN, trim, powertrain, production date and OE number.

Offers status: held

Awin US and R2 affiliate inventory are not published until a US programme, merchant and exact-fitment projection are approved. No offer currently has both merchant approval and exact vehicle fitment, so commercial links never count as evidence.