Complaint volume
709 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2020 Kia Telluride Complaints
709 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2020 Kia Telluride, grouped by component category.
709 Total complaints
8 Crash reports
7 Fire reports
7 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are exterior lighting, visibility/wiper, unknown or other. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 8 crash reports, 7 fire reports, 7 injury reports, and 1 fatality report. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 188 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 18,754 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to exterior lighting, visibility/wiper, unknown or other?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2020 Kia Telluride?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2020 Kia Telluride
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2020 Kia Telluride complaints?
8 Crash
7 Fire
7 Injury
1 Fatality
7 Towed
6 Medical attention
What are the most common 2020 Kia Telluride complaint categories?
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 162
VISIBILITY/WIPER 121
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 86
ENGINE 80
STRUCTURE 34
POWER TRAIN 31
SUSPENSION 19
VISIBILITY 12
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 11
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9
709 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2023 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Sunroof malfunction while opening. Loud snap sound then wouldn’t shut. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | High beam headlights will not turn on | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | I was driving during the night, tried to turn my high beams on and they did not work. This caused a severe driving hazard as we were driving winding roads filled with wild life and I had very limited visablilty.There was no warning indicators shown. Replaced both headlamps and the high beams still do not work. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | We were on a back country road in the dark, tried to use our high beam lights, but they would not come on. The blue light illuminated as if they were turning on, but nothing happened. We had no warning lights or indication that the system had failed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | My high beams aren't working. All I have access to are my low beams. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | This started in July/August. I went in to get into my car and noticed that although my car was making the sound of unlocking, it wasn’t unlocking. Neither the key fob or pressing the button on the door handle would unlock my car. I manually used the key to get in. Once I got in, I had a rear collision warning on my dash and was unable to shift from park. I overrode the shift mechanism and took it to a mechanic. They hooked it up to a reader and was tracking down the error when all of sudden the error code disappeared, and they were unable to progress. I left there and drove to work without issues. Two days later (Saturday) it happened again. I disconnected the negative battery cable and waited a few minutes before I hooked it back up. It was fine for about a month and then it started happening again. This time I tried the battery cable again and it worked for a while, but it started to happen more regularly. I took it to a Kia dealer but they were unable to replicate it. They said if it happens again record it and send a the video. Two days later it happened, and I sent them a video. I took my car back to the dealer and it has been there 11/9. In between visits, it happened, and I overrode the shift mechanism and I noticed my dash lights were almost out as well as the other issues. I believe I know what the issue is. I noticed this only happens when it’s cool in the early morning and then, when the sun comes up, there is an abundance of moisture on the inside windshield. I believe that heavy moisture is shorting out the electronics in my dash. I’ve never had an issue when it rains or midday. It’s probably why this has been so noticeable in the fall early winter. We have lots of mornings in the 30’s and they quickly warm up when the sun comes out. I have read some online forums that talk about the condensation issue with the Kia Telluride. I haven’t found any that talks about the electronic issue however. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | High beam headlights stopped working without warning | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Headlights work fine, but the High Beams don't. The light in the car shows them on, but they do not turn on outside the vehicle. I can't confirm how long they haven't worked since this was the vehicle my wife drove but very rarely at night. Now that I'm driving it in the dark in the mornings and evenings, I noticed it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Complete loss of high beams during vehicle operation. This problem is intermittent.This has caused reduced visibility and can increase risk of a crash resulting in injury and or property damage. Kia has knowledge of the problem and has sent me a letter that extended the warranty to 15 years/ 150,000 miles. It is very difficult to get the headlights replaced under warranty because of the intermittent problem and for this there should be a complete recall of the defective headlights. Increasing the warranty doesn't fix the problem because they are defective. I believe kia is increasing the warranty to avoid a recall. Please issue a recall before there is injury. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The headlights on my vehicle do not provide adequate light. Also, the bright headlight option does not work. The blue indicator on the dash illuminates but neither of the headlights produce bright lights, only the standard lights. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Paint is peeling off the car. Car is 3.5 years old. Kia refuses to take issue with the car. They are standing behind mileage. I first reported this KIA of North America at 40K+ miles.. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The high beams suddenly stop working without any prior indication. Although the dashboard indicates that the high beams are on, they are not functioning. Conversely, the low beams continue to work properly. No warning lights are illuminated, and despite attempting to resolve the issue by replacing the bulbs, it remains unresolved. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Hi beams stopped working | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Hibeams completely stopped working without warning | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | While driving down a very dark road, I noticed my high beams did not work. High beams are an essential feature for safe nighttime driving, and when they're not working, it can be dangerous because non-functioning high beams can compromise your ability to see and react to potential dangers while also affecting the safety of other drivers, making it a significant safety concern. I made an appointment to have this issue diagnosed but my appointment date is not until Jan 2nd which also poses a safety risk. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | SEAT BELTS | Driver side middle seat, seat belt will not retract back in. The rear 3rd row seat roof belt does not retract very well at all either. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Hi beam indicator on dash comes on when activated but the headlamps do not go to hi beam. Can't see as well at night without hi beams. Hi beams haven't worked the last few night drives. There are no warning la.ps to indicate a problem. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | CHILD SEAT | one of the tether anchor bars in the 3rd row pulled off and broke away from the seat. the vehicle was not involved in a crash. someone pulled the anchor location thinking it was the strap to sit the seat up and the tether bar broke away. not only is there one less spot for a tether anchor the tether anchor would not have performed well in a crash, thus putting a child in danger. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The contact's husband owns a 2020 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the high-beam headlights became inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had been occurring intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer several times, but the dealer could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Fred Anderson Kia of Greenville (2424 Laurens Rd, Greenville, SC 29607) where the high beam fuse and bolts were inspected, but the cause of the failure could not be determined. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 44,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 44,000 |
| Oct 2023 | ENGINE | All of my oil changes have been done religiously at the same Kia dealer where I bought my 2020 Telluride but ever since my 1/14/23 oil change, I have experienced oil leaking from my car on and off. Was told by the dealer that the issue was faulty oem oil filters and that the o-rings weren't sitting properly. I have had a total of 8 oil changes between 1/14/23 & 10/9/23. I explained on 3/25/23, during one of my return trips to the dealer, that I didn't want my car back until they could guarantee it wasn't leaking. They had it up on the lift, ran it for a while, gave it back to me, no leaks finally! My car didn't leak between 3/25/23 & 6/10/23 when I had my next routine dealer oil change done. I also didn't experience any leaks between 6/10/23 & 9/5/23 when I had another routine oil change. However, shortly after the 9/5/23 oil change, we discovered the car was leaking oil again. Brought it back to the dealer on 9/25/23 where they said it was another bad filter, changed it and sent me on my way. The following week, I noticed oil leaking, yet again, so I brought the car back to the dealer where they then diagnosed it as a cracked oil filter housing. I am out of warranty so naturally they expect me to pay out of pocket. Either way. I don't see how this is a consumer issue considering I had 8 oil changes in 10 months when I should have only had 2 or 3. So if the oil filter housing is now indeed cracked, the additional wear & tear is not a result of normal wear & tear (consumer issue) but of excessive oil changes done by the dealer due to faulty oil filters. Or maybe it's been a crack in the plastic oil filter housing all along but then why didn't it leak between 3/25/23 & 9/5/23? Either way, the problem shouldn't fall back on the consumer. The internet is full of Kia owners experiencing oil leaks after oil changes and it needs to be addressed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | High beams do no turn on, however, the light indicator on the dash is on. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Both high beams suddenly went out and are no longer working. Regular headlights are working though. This is a safety concern. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY | Went to open the sunroof and the track mechanism cracked. Now it is stuff half open, off the track and dangerous to drive with. It is unable to open/close anymore than it is now. Looking online I see 20+ complaints in two different Kia Telluride forums about the same issue, with no apparent reason. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | My hi beams don’t work. I replaced the fuse and the bulbs and still nothing. It shows the indicator on the dash when I switch to hi beams but the function itself doesn’t work. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The high beams no longer work at all. The blue indicator light on the dash will appear, but the high beams are not working. The low beams work just fine as well as the daytime running lights. Bulb replacement did not fix the issue. It is a major safety concern not having access to high beams. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |