2020 Kia Telluride problems: recalls, complaints and whether this is a year to avoid
The 2020 Kia Telluride has 768 owner complaints on record with NHTSA, which ranks it 1 of 3 Kia Telluride model years by complaint volume. That is the highest of any year in the run — the 2023 car has 207. 7 recall entries cover this year.
Is 2020 a good year for the Kia Telluride?
The spread across this nameplate is wide: the 2020 draws 4 times the complaints of the 2023. On a run like that the model year you buy matters more than the badge, and 2020 sits near the top of it.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Recall entries |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 219 | 5 |
| 2023 | 207 | 6 |
| 2020 ← this page | 768 | 7 |
Older years have been on the road longer and collect more complaints for that reason alone, and a year that sold in higher volume collects more while being no worse.
This retrieval holds 3 of the nameplate’s model years. 2021, 2022 are absent, which means no records came back for them — not that they were clean. The ranking above is among the years shown.
The 2020 accounts for 64% of every complaint filed against the Kia Telluride in this retrieval, which works out to 128.0 complaints per year on the road across the 6 years since it was sold new — the figure to compare against other years, because it removes the advantage a newer car gets simply from having had less time to accumulate reports.
Which recalls cover the 2020?
Seat Belts
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.
Free 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.
Electrical System
When a trailer is connected to the vehicle, the trailer brake lights will not illuminate when the SCC applies the brakes.
Free 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.
Trailer Hitches
Debris and moisture accumulation on the tow hitch harness module…
Free 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.
Take the campaign number to any franchised Kia dealer. Recall repairs are free with no mileage or ownership limit, and they follow the car rather than the owner, so a used 2020 with an unrepaired campaign is a free repair you can claim. How recalls work.
Recall text is abridged from the NHTSA record. Search the campaign number at nhtsa.gov/recalls for the full notice and affected VIN ranges.
What do owners report on the Kia Telluride?
Across every Kia Telluride year, not the 2020 alone — NHTSA does not split component totals by model year.
- Unknown or Other — 209 reports
- Exterior Lighting — 175 reports
- Visibility/Wiper — 169 reports
- Electrical System — 136 reports
Which other Kia Telluride years should you compare?
2023 Kia Telluride → · All Kia Telluride years
If you are deciding between years, the table above is the short answer and the Kia Telluride page carries the full run with the component breakdown. Before money changes hands, run the VIN for open recalls and read the inspection checklist — ten minutes in the seller’s driveway finds most of what matters.
Check a 2020 before you commit
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