The 2021 Kia Telluride has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 926,835 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 421 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the unknown or other. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
SEATS24V4070002024-06-05462,869 affected
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.
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…
POWER TRAIN24V2140002024-03-20427,407 affected
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.
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,…
TRAILER HITCHES22V6260002022-08-1536,417 affected
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…
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…
AIR BAGS21V1640002021-03-11142 affected
Defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2021 Telluride, K5, and Forte vehicles. The Occupant Classification and Detection System (OCS/ODS) unit may not detect the presence of a child restraint system in the front passenger seat. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor…
Consequence
In the event of a crash, deployment of the front passenger air bag, with a child in that seat, can increase the risk of injury to the child.
Remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will replace the OCS/ODS unit, free of charge. The recall began March 18, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC207.
Complaints by component
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
89
3injuries
VISIBILITY/WIPER
60
ENGINE
53
3fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
35
1injuries
STRUCTURE:BODY
30
POWER TRAIN
24
SUSPENSION
17
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
14
3crashes1injuries
SERVICE BRAKES
13
3crashes2injuries
VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY
11
1injuries
Total complaints421
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The sunroof won’t close properly, it looks like wind deflector is broken”
“The cv axel is bad and needs replaced. I am only at 72,000 miles. If I had not gotten an oil change and the technician saw it, it could have broken while driving this coming weekend for 14 hours. Independent service center is replacing. No warning. This could have caused a serious accident.”
“I wish to amend my previous report dated 6/22/2026. #11745783. It is is cv boot on the right side. I had a dealer do the repair. It is not under warranty, if you follow the kia telluride complaint page son fb, others have had the same issue. It cost $777.61 to repair. It should not need to be…”
“Bought car on a saturday (6-20-26)and that night noticed the drive mode was broke and the forward collison is broke and will go on and off. Dealership said they did the whole inspection on the car before they put it on the lot to sell. Also, oil was extremely low when I left the lot and had to go…”
“Bought car on a saturday (6-20-26)and that night noticed the drive mode was broke and the forward collison is broke and will go on and off. Dealership said they did the whole inspection on the car before they put it on the lot to sell. Also, oil was extremely low when I left the lot and had to go…”
“The sunroof failed and is stuck open. This creates a hazard as you cannot secure the vehicle, it is open to the elements, and you have highway noise. This is not a simple small motor fix it is $3000+ and a complete replacing of the track/cassette.”
“Sunroof won't fully close which becomes a big issue when driving or parking the vehicle in the rain. Kia dealership diagnosed that the full sunroof assembly needs to be replaced at a total expense of $6,441.56 since the vehicle is out of the 5-year warranty period. No warning messages were…”
“I noticed the button to fold captain’s chair began working intermittently beginning of jun, then the seat began to fold on my granddaughter then my daughter on 2 different occasions. I called dealership to get a diagnostic done but they couldn’t get me in until 29 jun. After diagnostic I was…”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2021 Kia Telluride as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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