Complaint volume
334 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
2021 Kia Telluride Complaints
334 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Kia Telluride, grouped by component category.
334 Total complaints
7 Crash reports
4 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 unknown or other, visibility/wiper, engine. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 7 crash reports, 4 fire reports, 7 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 40 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 17,163 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to unknown or other, visibility/wiper, engine?
- 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 2021 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.
2021 Kia Telluride
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Kia Telluride complaints?
7 Crash
4 Fire
7 Injury
0 Fatality
8 Towed
5 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Kia Telluride complaint categories?
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 69
VISIBILITY/WIPER 53
ENGINE 37
STRUCTURE 21
VISIBILITY 15
POWER TRAIN 13
SUSPENSION 12
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 8
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 5
334 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2023 | VISIBILITY | Returning from a trip, driving through the mountains, I heard a noise on the passenger side window. The next day I noticed a chip spidering. This should not be. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2023 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2023 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Both high beam headlights failed while driving at night. One keeps failing, but this was the first time both failed. Headlight failure alert does appear on the dash. Mechanic said that it is a wiring issue, as LED bulbs do not fail so frequently. Interior lights also stop working randomly. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2023 | VISIBILITY | Windshield was hit by a TINY piece of gravel or road debris - so small we didn’t even see it. It left a ding in the windshield about the size of a pencil point - maybe a couple of millimeters in diameter. Before we could even pull off the road, the grass has cracked about three inches. Within about ten minutes the crack spread another three inches. Within a couple of hours, the crack had traveled both up towards the roof and down towards the hood - approximately two inches in both directions. This is a known problem with Kia windshields since the debut of the 2020. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2023 | STRUCTURE | While driving, the fuel door body panel detached from the vehicle. Uncertain when or how it occurred. The component was there when the journey started, but upon arriving at the destination it was missing(12/08/2022). At the previous fuel stop almost 1 week prior(12/02/2022), there was no indication that the body panel attachment was compromised. This component failing and detaching at highway speeds could put the safety of others at risk. The panel was unable to be recovered after it fell off of the vehicle. No damage to the remaining components were found by the dealership. They claim it was stolen and not covered under warranty. Attached image does show a residue on the swing arm. Uncertain if that was an adhesive that failed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Three windshields in a row have cracked seemingly without cause. My windshields never chip, they have only cracked or shattered. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2022 | VISIBILITY | Driving on the highway on 11/20/22, at approximately 65-70 mph, when there was a loud bang above the driver’s head causing the driver to become startled and swerve. The wind noise became louder and there was also a noise like something was moving on top of the sunshade. Exited the highway and pulled into a parking lot. Got out and the front sunroof had exploded and shards of glass were on top of the closed sunshade. The glass that remained was blown outward as if something inside the vehicle caused it to explode. Luckily the sunshade was closed and contained the glass or it would have come into the vehicle cabin and potential caused an accident or injuries to the occupants, and one could have been my one year old daughter. There were no cars around, no debris in the road, and not near an overpass. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | While applying the brake at an approaching Stop sign the brake pedal was completely depress and the vehicle continued to roll forward into the intersection. This happened twice in a week. Kia dealer assessed the vehicle on two occasions and was unable to find a fault. This could very well cause a major crash and impact the Safety of myself, my family and others on the roadway. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2022 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2021 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH there was a loud rattling sound that came from under the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact then pulled over safety. The contact stated there were parts of the vehicle that fell onto the highway. When the contact was on the side of the vehicle they checked under the hood, and located smoke and fire from the engine. The contact exhausted the flames with liquid from a nearby driver. The CHP and fire arrived on the scene; however, the fire was extinguished by the time of their arrival. There was no CHP report filed that the contact was aware of. There were no injuries or medical treatments needed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer and diagnosed two pistons came from the engine, and it was a catalytic failure. The vehicle currently was being repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 15,000. | Crash: No Fire: Yes Towed | 15,000 |
| Aug 2022 | VISIBILITY | The windshield failed spontaneously, overnight while not being driven and not having been impacted by any object. The crack began as about 10 inches long, and has grown to more than two feet long. The windshield requires replacement for safety. The problem has been confirmed by Safelite (which will replace for $1,000, as compared to Kia's $1,600), but has not been inspected by others. There was no warning or any symptom of the problem prior to the failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | Part number 97279-S9010 fell on my feet while I was driving from under dash. Part block access to the brake as it fell on my feet between my foot and the brake/gas making it impossible to apply the brake. Fortunately, was a rural road so I put in neutral and coasted to the side of the road. Very confusing until I saw the part blocking the brake and gas pedal. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Safety and security bypass via USB port in steering column making vulnerable to theft with only a USB cord | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | WHEELS,TIRES | These tires ball super quick and are a danger to the road. Others have complained as well on review sites. Since they wear fast they also pop easily. Have popped 3 tires in 1.5 years all different tires. 1st tire popped at 12K miles 2nd tire popped at 20k miles 3rd tire popped at 26k miles SCORPION ZERO ALL SEASON - SIZE: 245/50R20 These need recalled. They are pour quality and are a road hazard if anyone pops their tire at higher speeds. Thankfully all three of mine were lower speeds. I have now replaced the latest tire with a different brand as these tires put me at risk. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Upon driving my new vehicle for approximately 5 months, the windshield got chipped. I took this to an individual and had this sealed. Last week, after driving my Telluride for about a year, the windshield began to crack in a different spot. The crack has grown and grown and now encompasses most of the windshield. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | The windshield cracked without getting hit by a foreign object. It happened overnight while parked in a garage. It wasn't there the day before or I would have noticed it because it was so visible. It cracked from the very top and spread down around the rearview mirror and spread across and you can't feel the crack either from inside or outside, it is very smooth and you can only see a line. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I was driving over the Harbor Bridge in Corpus Christi, Texas with my kids and nephew when suddenly my front sunroof exploded. It blew from inside out based on the way the glass is pointing outward. Luckily I didn’t wreck into another car, or even have my sunroof headliner open. Kia said theirs no recall under my vin, but there are several other people I’ve found online with the same car and issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Tiny rock, not visible to me but heard a soft tink sound, hit the windshield causing tiny chip and a huge crack from near the top of the drivers side to the bottom near the wipers. No reason for a tiny pebble to completely crack a windshield. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Windshield cracked about 7 inches in diameter with no point of impact. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Windshield appeared to have 6 inch crack in windshield, even though no rock or chip were noticed. Crack grew to an 18inch crack within 1 day. Crack will likely spread across entire windshield and inhibit visibility. This was 1 year to the day of purchasing the vehicle. Brought it to the dealers attention, and they are aware of the issue with 2020 models, but didn't have guidance from KIA on 2021 models. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 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 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Driver side rear window stopped going down while car was in motion. Window will no longer go up or down and is stuck about 1-1 1/2 inches open. Vehicle has only approximately 9,000 miles on it. Have seen several other posts with similar issues. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | AIR BAGS | The contact owned a 2021 Kia Telluride SX. The contact stated while the wife was driving 70MPH the vehicle was stuck on the rear driver's side and crashed into a tree. No warning lights were noticed. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to an impound yard. The vehicle could possibly be totaled. There was a police report. The driver sustained injuries to the face, head, knee, chest, and shoulder. The passenger sustained back injuries. The spouse drove the passengers in a separate vehicle to the hospital where they received medical attention. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 21,000. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 2 Towed Medical attention | 21,000 |
| Apr 2022 | VISIBILITY | Chip in front windshield due to a rock quickly became an 12 inch crack. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Driving on smooth road about 40 mi/hr heard loud boom. Sunroof had broken, sounded like an explosion. No rain or anything overhead to cause breakage. Weather mild, above frost temp and overcast. Cover was closed so no glass in interior of car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |