HomeKiaTelluride › 2020

2020 Kia Telluride

Gas Compact SUV

2027202520242023202220212020
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratingsCompare
F
Safety Signal
35 / 100
FSafety Signal · 35 / 100
7Recalls · 3 critical
750Complaints · owner reports
5★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
23 mpgFuel economy · best combined
⚠️
Active NHTSA advisory: park outside and away from structures until repaired. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and see the recall details below.

The 2020 Kia Telluride is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact SUV with 2 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Telluride FWD, is EPA-rated at 23 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for this model year, 3 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 750 complaints, most often about exterior lighting. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
Telluride FWDGasFWD3.8L 6-cyl202623$2,700
Telluride AWDGasAWD3.8L 6-cyl192421$2,950

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

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Recalls (7)

Seats

critical
Park outside462,869 vehicles

Problem: 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

NHTSA campaign 26V430000 · reported Jul 2, 2026 · Kia America, Inc.

Seats

critical
Park outside462,869 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 24V407000 · reported Jun 5, 2024 · Kia America, Inc.

Power Train

high
427,407 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 24V214000 · reported Mar 20, 2024 · Kia America, Inc.

Exterior Lighting

high
35,031 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 24V148000 · reported Feb 26, 2024 · Kia America, Inc.

Trailer Hitches

critical
Park outside36,417 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 22V626000 · reported Aug 15, 2022 · Kia America, Inc.

Electrical System

high
86,921 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 20V436000 · reported Jul 28, 2020 · Kia Motors America

Seat Belts

high
30,168 vehicles

Problem: 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.

NHTSA campaign 19V594000 · reported Aug 13, 2019 · Kia Motors America

NHTSA investigations

Exterior Lighting:Headlights — Complete Loss of High Beams (closed)

On January 27, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE23002 to investigate allegations of loss of high beams with no warning and no re-engagement resulting in reduced visibility at night in the 2020 Kia Telluride. The investigation revealed that the halogen bi-function projector beam, used in vehicles built between January 2019 and November of 2019, is composed of one halogen bulb light source that provides light for both low beam and high beam. The heat generated by the halogen bulb will inflict damage to the gear mechanism and as a result the shutter’s electric motor will no longer be able to move the shutter to the open position to reveal the high beams. A loss of high

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Apr 17, 2024 · action PE23002

Owner complaints

750 complaints filed

8 involved a crash, 9 a fire, 11 injuries, 1 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2019: 73 · 2020: 71 · 2021: 52 · 2022: 50 · 2023: 151 · 2024: 122 · 2025: 126 · 2026: 105

Most-cited components

  • Exterior Lighting — 183
  • Unknown Or Other — 141
  • Engine — 139
  • Visibility/Wiper — 135
  • Power Train — 70
“I WAS DRIVING AND A ROCK FLEW UP BARLEY HIT MY WINDSHIELD AND BROKE IT”Aug 5, 2019 · Structure · NHTSA owner report
“THE WINDSHIELD BROKE AND I DID NOT SEE ANYTHING HIT IT”Aug 5, 2019 · Visibility/Wiper · NHTSA owner report
“AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY TODAY, A SMALL ROCK CAME UP AND HIT MY WINDSHIELD. IT WAS VERY SMALL AND SHOULD NOT HAVE DAMAGED MY WINDSHIELD. I ENDED UP WITH A LARGE CRACK IN MY WINDSHIELD.”Jul 30, 2019 · Visibility/Wiper · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★☆14%
SUV FWD★★★★★★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★☆16%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking.

Compare the 2020 Telluride with

2020 Hyundai Tucson

Other Telluride model years

C

2027 Telluride

3 recalls · 27 complaints

C

2025 Telluride

3 recalls · 106 complaints

F

2024 Telluride

5 recalls · 215 complaints

F

2023 Telluride

6 recalls · 206 complaints

F

2022 Telluride

7 recalls · 320 complaints

F

2021 Telluride

5 recalls · 357 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 41229, 41232). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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