general problems of the 2021 Kia Motor Telluride

I have 2 issues going on with my vehicle. The trim on the outside of my doors is coming off which I know was a recall for some Telluride vehicles about this old. Also ive been having some electrical issues/hot smell like something is burning if the heated seats get turned on.

Cooling fans running continuously after the car is turned off, which drains the battery. The dealership has identified that this is due to a faulty fan relay that will need to be completely replaced. The battery has been replaced once and the issue continued indicating that it was not a battery issue. The car ran out of battery in a busy location and caused risk to the passengers that were then exposed to busy traffic. The car has been inspected by repair specialists at the vaden Hyundai service center. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms before the problem began.

I attempted to use my sunroof today 2/18/26 and I heard a popping sound and it sounded like something broke. I rolled the sunroof back closed and now the back of the sunroof (moonroof) is now propped open and won't close. I have tried the manual overide for 10 to 15 seconds and it just makes a clicking sound. I am pretty upset as I have only used my sunroof maybe 10 times in the 4 years I have had the car. After research there is a TSB 319 that clearly documents it is a known problem on 2019 to 2022 Telluride models yet, no recall. While it is not a major safety issue, it is now a concern that when it rains, it will get into my my vehicle causing further damage. This should be a covered repair on kia's behalf especially when it seems it is happening most often after factory warranty or 60,000 miles for most who are reporting it. Sounds like a scam to get another 5,000 dollars out of their customers. Won't be buying a kia again.

There rear parking sensors have come up with an error message. After I looked into this it looks like a wide spread problem. The kia dealership said it was the rear bumper harness was faulty. I am just outside of warranty and kia is trying to charge $850 for a problem that they are well aware of and are not addressing. They are also claiming that the oil filter housing is damaged and I have only ever gone to a kia dealership for oil changes. After researching, this also appears to be a widespread issue which they are trying to charge $450 for. These 2 issues are known defects and widely reported and kia should be fixing these items.

Child safety lock failure. At random times something within the rear doors will make a constant clicking noise for roughly 20 seconds. When clicking stops the dash will display child safety lock failure. The clicking noise sounds as though it is coming from an electrical component such as an actuator or solenoid.

I am reporting a serious and ongoing electrical and transmission issue with my 2021 kia Telluride (VIN: [xxx] ). The problem began under 20,000 miles and has continued intermittently for years, progressively worsening. My vehicle is currently at ~99,600 miles and under extended warranty. The key safety concerns include: transmission lockout: the vehicle intermittently becomes stuck in park and will not shift, even with the brake depressed. No-start condition: the vehicle will randomly become completely unresponsive—no dash lights, no infotainment, and no engine start. Electrical system failure while driving: multiple safety systems fail mid-drive, including: loss of power steering and air conditioning random activation of esc, tpms, collision assist, blind spot, and parking brake warnings infotainment screen turns off while in motion component failures due to electrical shorts: both the radio and the backup camera were diagnosed with shorts and had to be replaced under warranty. Brake lockout post-shutdown: the brake pedal becomes very firm and the vehicle will not restart until hours later. Most concerning, my wife and children have been left stranded in the disabled vehicle on multiple occasions due to these issues. The car has been in the shop several times — around 50,000 and 80,000 miles — but no permanent resolution has been found. This is a clear and escalating safety hazard. The failures affect critical systems while driving and leave the vehicle unpredictably disabled. Kia has been made aware and an escalation is underway, but I am filing this report to ensure the NHTSA is aware of the pattern and potential danger these failures pose to others. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

I recently brought this 2021 kia Telluride used from a local dealership with 103,000 miles and everything was great , until yesterday I notice that when coming to a stop the car would sputter I thought maybe it was just a one off because I recently got recall work done at a kia dealership and they checked over the vehicle and everything was fine. So this morning im driving to work and it happens again so I check the oil and its completely empty I've went less than 3k miles on this oil change something needs to be done no warning to lights.

My main screen on my 2021 Telluride goes out suddenly, turning off the backup camera and collision warnings. Sometimes when I start the car it never turns on, sometimes it starts to boot and then goes out and sometimes it works for a few seconds/minutes and then turns off. Once and a while it turns on and stays on for days before going on randomly again.

My infotainment/navigation system has failed before the 4 year anniversary of my car 1/13/21. The screen freezes with larger vertical magenta colored blocks in the foreground with an olive green and brown background. Sometimes the screen is completely black. The color on the screen often oscillates between blue and regular functionality. When the system temporarily worked, I updated the software. Yet updating the software did not correct the chronic, safety issues with the screen. This very flawed kia Telluride 2021 infotainment system presents a real safety hazard to every driver who has purchased this car. Today I am in capitol kia replacing a 3 year old infotainment system on my own dime. I counted there should be a class action suit and a recall.

My engine started jerking when stopped. Then the electrical started acting up, like the windows wouldn't roll back up. Then the engine just shut off while I was driving.

Anytime going through the car wash the front and back parking sensors don’t work and gives an error. It is now permanently stuck with this error.

Sunroof started to open and came off track and bent the tracking system beyond repair. Sunroof stuck in half open position and tilted or wedged in open position. Concern that it would fly off when driving and could not shut it to protect the interior in case of rain. There has already been a recall on the kia sorento sunroof moving tracking system in the recent past. This should be taken into consideration to have this be a recall on the kia Telluride.

Driver's side door will lose power while in park or while driving. This causes the locks to not work and windows (driver's and passenger's) will not go up or down. The mirrors will not fold in. Lights on the door goes out. Controls goes completely unresponsible.

While driving the kia Telluride, the forward collision avoidance warnings started flashing, then said it was failing, then the tire pressure system did the same, then the speedometer and tachometer failed as did the turn signals, gear shift, and lights. The car was becoming unsafe to drive. The car has been at the dealer for 3 weeks now, the dealer changed the cluster assembly-instrument at at cost of $2600. Within 1/2 of leaving the dealership the same problem noted above began happening, again making the car unsafe to drive. In researching on line at the kiatelluride forum there have been a large number of similar unsafe occurrences by other kia Tellurides as reported by owners. This is a serious safety problem that has been noted numerous times. (I can't get my images of the 2 page dealer invoice for cluster assembly-instrument $2600 that did not solve the problem to download on this form. ).

Went to open sunroof and the plastic rail that kia uses broke causing the sunroof glass to derail. Not able to retract the glass back in. In addition to the guide rail failing the wind deflector also broke.

Harness and wires damaged and chewed by woodchuck causing multiple warning lights and malfunctions including headlight; turning signal and temperature to suddenly stop working, resulting in front wiring harness replacement and repairs costing over $7k in damage.

Here are some basic facts on what has happened: on August 1st I was in my driveway, in mt pleasant, SC, when my car rolled down my driveway with my two kiddos inside, resulting in me reacting and getting knocked over by the driver side door and the car running over my chest. I had 5 broken ribs, 4 are now titanium, several broken bones, a punctured lung and a torn acl. There is a police report but do not have to upload right now this was reported and kia had my car for about a month to investigate it and gave us a very brief response stating “after the preliminary investigation results indicate that the vehicle functioned as intended, no issues found with the parking mechanism. ” because of the trauma this has caused me, I made my husband make the car disappear and he sold it to a local carmax in charleston. This safety recall came out on March 26th saying cars rolled away and they are updating software so cars do not move with car doors open. Kia is also stating there have been 16 cases not resulting in injuries. The kia I had is a 2021 within this range and the VIN is 5xyp6dhc4mg154150.

Well, what I thought to be a solid build has succumbed to the known issues with this vehicle. The car has 17,7862 miles on it. I always follow the ‘severe’ maintenance schedule along with babying the heck out of it. I was driving the vehicle on city street, roughly 35-40mph when I got the xmas tree of death light up on the dashboard (all the indicators went crazy), and a slight loss of power with engine and transmission. I shifted the gear shifter into manual so I could at least control the car and make it safely back home. Once I parked, I shut off the car and then turned it back on. The indicator lights turned off, however the check engine light stayed on. I swapped out the battery for a new one and that fixed the problem for a few hours until later that day the same thing happened again. At this point I know there is something more happening electronically that is not right. Hence the problem: the ub module assembly behind the dashboard needs to be replaced because it is defective (full disclosure, this is what I believe to be the issue, but will be scheduling appointment with dealer to have them look). Ah, but thank goodness for the Telluride forum that has brought to my attention many issues that I also experience with my vehicle. I too have a crack in my windshield that happened three months in (thankfully I have a film on the windshield that has kept it from spidering), I too have to hand wash or touchless wash car due to nightfall trim peeling (thankfully I have car ceramic coated so hopefully that is helping the longevity), I too feel the binding and slipping in my awd system as I try to accelerate a turn from a stop. It would behoove kia to address the ongoing issues with their ‘top selling SUV’ as clearly there are still many vehicles popping up with problems. I will say pay attention to the warning signs. Roughly a month ago, the forward parking sensors failed due to ‘blockage’. I should’ve known it would lead to a larger problem. This could’ve been bad!.

As I was driving down the highway in the rain, my check engine light came on and I was unable to accelerate my vehicle over 30mph and the speedometer stopped working. I was turning onto the road I live on, so I was able to make it home. I then shut my car off and turned it back on about 5 minutes later, and that issue was no longer happening. I had an upcoming appointment for an oil change at a kia dealership, so I told the dealership about the issue. They told me that they hooked their computer up to the car and it was showing that there weren’t any issues showing and the only way that they would be able to see that there was an issue is if the vehicle was brought in while it was malfunctioning. Also, the mirror function on my vehicle where the side mirrors fold/unfold when locking/unlocking the vehicle, the mirror(s) don’t fold/unfold every time I press the lock/unlock button on m key fob. Another issue, my windows don’t roll/unroll when I try to use that function. I can sometimes roll the front window up/down while the rest of the windows won’t roll up/down. I then have to shut my vehicle off, open the driver door, then turn the vehicle back on. Sometimes the windows will work, sometimes they won’t. It’s an ongoing issue.

While at a red light after exiting the highway, the vehicle lost all power and functionality. The car was in drive, and the brake was pressed in. No buttons had been pressed to shut down the vehicle. I had no power and no ability to restart the vehicle. I placed the vehicle into park and attempted to turn on my hazard lights. Unfortunately, there was no response from the vehicle, and though I was interrupting traffic, I could not provide any visual indicators to oncoming traffic. After moving the vehicle into park, I was unable to move the car into neutral. After approximately five minutes, without the brake being pressed or any button is pressed, the vehicle turned on its own. I was able to move the car into drive and continue to function as expected. Prior to this, I had used the vehicle to drop off my kids at daycare (which required turning on the vehicle, driving, and turning off the vehicle). This event occurred roughly 40 minutes after a mix of highway and city driving. From a safety perspective, this was very concerning as I had no way to indicate to other drivers that my car was not driveable. Fortunately my children were no longer in the car. I was very concerned that not only the car lost all power and functionality, but was more concerned that the car started on its own. I was also concerned that if I had not moved the car to park and somehow it turned back on if left in drive what potential damage could have been done to me, another vehicle and potential injury 30k service and all recalls had been satisfied prior to this by an authorized kia dealership.

My wife had placed our two children in the car in their car seats. She attempted to start the vehicle by pressing the brake and the starter button. Though all the dome lights and other normal electrical items were on at the time, as soon as she attempted to start the car, it instantly went dead. There was no power to anything, and all the interior dome lights did not work. No matter how often she attempted, she could not start the vehicle, even with accessory mode. It was almost as if the battery had been suddenly removed from the vehicle. At no point was the car moved outside of park. My wife removed our two kids from the vehicle, and shortly after, they were secured in our other vehicle; without my wife being in the Telluride, the car turned on itself. All interior lights were on, and the car was functional. She found that while the radio was on, the hvac that had been on was now off. In addition, the fuel performance reset to zero. She turned off the vehicle, and we could not reproduce the issue. From a safety perspective, this was very unnerving as it involved our children in our car, but also that the car started on its own after five minutes. If we were not at home and the car could have been running in the garage without our involvement. All regular maintenance and satisfaction of recalls had been completed by a kia-authorized dealership before this event.

The alternator fails causing the battery to drain and die while driving and permanently kills the battery. When this occurs all power is lost to the vehicle and in rapid succession multiple warning lights illuminate and a cascading series of messages related to the vehicle saftey features appear one after another. While the engine remains on power steering, headlights, and all other saftey features shut off in rapid succession causing unsafe driving conditions and leaves the vehicle inoperable. The vehicle was towed to a local kia dealer that refused to diagnose the alternator problem until I agreed to pay $350 for a new battery and a $150 diagnostic fee. Once I agreed (would require paying more to two to another local mechanic and two back to have kia cover the alternator) they immediately diagnosed the alternator problem, but again refused to cover the battery which was less than two years old, but was 3,000 out of warranty.

While in drive, the battery discharge warning was displayed inconsistently, similar to what had occurred sporadically on January 21 and January 23. Without notice, multiple indicator lights started flashing, including low tire pressure, safety features such as check forward collision assist system, and more. Power steering failed, and ultimately had to coast into a safe location. This resulted in a tow to the dealership, where after multiple days, the dealership found that the alternator failed and replaced it under warranty. This could have negatively impacted not only my safety but the safety of others as the vehicle safety features were not operational and I lost full functionality of the vehicle such as power steering loss. All regular maintenance and satisfaction of recalls had been completed by a kia-authorized dealership before this event.

While driving, an error illuminated (inconsistently), signaling a battery discharge warning. This indicator was not consistent and would come and go at different times. The ambiguity of indicator lights and the inconsistency of how they were displayed raised concerns of safety of the vehicle and operations. All regular maintenance and satisfaction of recalls had been completed by a kia-authorized dealership before this event.

After owning this Telluride for a year the engine started stalling. I took it into the nearest oil change company, and they informed me that the oil was completely out and dry. I always stay up to date with my oil changes, so this was a huge shock. There was no light that ever came on stating an oil concern and there was no light that came on even when the engine stalled. This company sent me directly to kia stating they have seen this several times with this vehicle and they have oil consumption issues. I went to kia and they had me do the oil consumption test. When completed they stated I was within the "standard" oil consumption levels. I asked why the car didn't even have an oil light or engine light come on as a warning and they had no answers for me. Had a light come on I would've taken it to be looked at prior to having the engine stall on me which was a major safety issue. Fast forward, I ended up and purchased another car and gave the Telluride to my husband. I drive a lot for work and he doesn't, so it made more sense to help with the oil. We are now having to put at least 3 quarts of oil in it in between oil changes. And he has still experienced the engine puttering. Both times with our kids in the car, steering becomes difficult and he has to pull off the road. Once he turns it off and restarts, it seems to be fine. Another mechanic told us that they anticipate a recall to come out with the 2021 Telluride soon since they have already recalled previous years for the same issues. It is absurd to have to put in 3 quarts of oil in between oil changes. The fact that no warning lights have ever come on is safety concern. The car randomly stalling is a safety concern. Kia needs to do something about this before someone gets injured.

I was parked and wanted to bring window down the one in back seat made a weird noise and put the window back up but did not close completely and tried to close it from driver seat and nothing.

The child safety locks will randomly start latching and unlatching until the button is disengaged. I have videos of it and the dealership has been able to reproduce the issue multiple times. If the button is not on, the issue does not occur. This is a problem since I have a 3 year old and he has had opened the door while I drive on at least 1 occasion. The issue began October 2021, I took it in for service in December and had to wait for the replacement part until almost March. At this point I have taken the car in for service 6 times for the exact same issue, they have replaced multiple components, actuator, master key lock system, etc. The issue will be fixed temporarily but will then reappear within as little as a day to a week or two. There are multiple reports of this happening on kia forums and the issue is not model specific. This also happens with palisades which happen to share the same frame as the Telluride. I have contacted kia corporate, case number 14666961, to let them know and will be sending a certified letter.

The instrument cluster failed in less than 30 days on my new 2021 kia Telluride lx. Bought the vehicle with only 9 miles on it and I am shocked to take in for service so soon. The engine starts up and the car drives but none of the gauges light up or work in the instrument cluster.

Driver's side window remained stuck open about 1 inch when driver rolled down window with slight tap on window switch driving motion at highway speeds. Window would not go up or down while in motion when using switch to open or close window even after coming to complete stop (on shoulder of road) and shutting down vehicle. Was able to fix when putting vehicle in accessory mode (not running or in motion) and place hands gently on both sides of window to gently move up to highest allowed position then close window with switch. This fixed the problem and window switch operated as usual. Vehicle mileage was around 3,100. We believe the cause is a safety sensor in the window switch component that detects obstruction in window which stops window from operating. Read other forums that stated window got stuck open at highway speeds and would not move. Their fix was to open sun roof and then shut drivers side window. This did not work for us. Https://tellurideforum. Org/threads/less-than-40-miles-and-the-window-is-broken. 912/ [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Last week the front collision warning and lane departure warning illuminated on the dash and today the windshield has a crack in it, nothing has hit the windshield it was parked in the driveway. 2021 s model 2800 miles on the clock.