KIA Telluride Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls — NHTSA data

We purchased a new 2025 Kia Telluride 17 days ago. Just three days after purchasing the vehicle, I experienced a serious and potentially dangerous failure while driving in heavy traffic in downtown Chicago. The dashboard suddenly lit up, an alarm began sounding, and the following warning appeared: “Engine Off! Shift to P or N and then start engine.” I was forced to pull off the road in VERY congested downtown traffic, put the vehicle in park, turn it off, and restart it. I immediately contacted the dealership. The next day, I took the vehicle to the dealership for an unrelated detailing issue and asked them to check out the car to address what had happened. I was told it was likely a computer fluke and that I would need to wait to see if it happens again. The next day, the exact same thing happened while merging onto the interstate on a tight onramp in congested traffic. This time, I had significant difficulty getting safely to the side of the road and came extremely close to being struck by another vehicle. Again, I had to put the vehicle in park, turn it off, and restart it. The following day, I returned the Telluride to the dealership. It has been there for over a week. They seem to know this is a common issue with Tellurides but they've indicated that KIA has not provided guidance on addressing this specific issue. As a result, they could only respond to the code that was generated- which indicates an electrical control issue. I've contacted KIA and I'm waiting to hear if they can provide a fix that can guarantee I'm not put into another dangerous situation. If an older person or teenager had been in the situations I had been in, I can nearly guarantee there would've been a very serious and potentially fatal accident. Please help us address this issue!

Component: Factory forward panoramic sunroof glass, 2025 Kia Telluride, VIN [XXX]. On XXX at 8:18 a.m. ET, [XXX], 59 mph, the glass shattered with a loud bang. No object was seen hitting the roof. Sunshade open. Vehicle/photos available. Original glass may not have been kept after dealer/insurance repair (State Farm; return set XXX). Safety risk: Highway-speed failure with a [XXX] in the front passenger seat. Glass entered the cabin and fell on driver [XXX] and the child. Noise like a gunshot. Risk of startle, cuts, blocked vision, and loss of control. Driver kept the lane and exited at [XXX]. No injuries. Not safe to keep driving. Confirmed: One-time shatter, documented by photos. Calavan Kia West received the vehicle XXX. A Kia assessor inspected it and warranty was denied, citing two lower-windshield marks I had already seen the day before when I washed the car. Those marks are on a different panel and do not explain the roof bursting. No written denial or assessor report. State Farm is replacing the glass. Inspections: Kia assessor at Calavan Kia West. State Farm claim opened. Police not called. I photographed the roof at [XXX], before the tow. Warnings: None. No lamps, messages, cracks, or rattles beforehand. First sign was the sudden bang and shattered glass. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

There have been two individual episodes of this occurring. While actively driving the entire vehicle shuts off and begins to Coast and will not respond to pressing the accelerator. This happened once in our driveway in March. This happened again about 3 weeks ago while driving on the interstate and had to cross multiple lanes of traffic in order to make it to the shoulder. Very unsafe situation with no warning

I purchased this new vehicle in March of 2026. The vehicle has 6,800 miles. While idle, I started to get a warning the engine was overheating with the ac only blowing hot air while the engine smelt like it was overheating. This put me at risk of being stranded in the heat with my toddler and new born or the vehicle malfunctioning in the highway.

The engine just quit when making a brake stop. The RPM went to zero. The car did restart but failed a second time after a few feet of travel and the brakes were applied. There are at least two occasions when the issue occurred within the past two days.

When driving, the vehicle will randomly shut off. Every warning light and alarm goes off. A message displays on the dash to put the vehicle on P or N to turn it back on. This happens unexpectedly. It's happened about 16 times on the road and 2 times on the highway. This is a huge safety issue. We notified Kia in February of 2026, it's gone to the service department three times for this specific issue, but they are unable to recreate it and no codes are stored for them to see what it is. We have recorded the vehicle acting up once it's shut off. This is very dangerous that a new vehicle randomly shuts off, and no one knows what is causing it. Now, it's at the shop for the fourth time. This time the Kia engineers have asked the service shop to replace the engine harness along with some sensors and send it to them. We have recordings from Kia Corporate stating they dont know what it is. We even have a service tech stating that there are others with this issue but no solution has been uncovered.

The infotainment displayed information at the home screen is so close to the left side of the screen that when you are driving, the steering wheel and my hand covers it, so if you want to see it, you need to bend a little to the right, taking the eyes off the road and more important things. The infotainment screen design has a lot of room in the middle of the screen, but somebody with very low brain, had to be a designer, decided it was better to put everything stacked up to the left

Aug 1 2026 While going to the store, we were waiting at the traffic light to make a left turn, as we were making the left turn and entering the store parking lot an audible alarm sounded which surprised us and then a message appeared that stated "Engine Off! Shift to P or N, then start engine". Fortunately, there were no cars behind us and I was able to shift into Park and restart my car. With engine off, we had no power steering or power brakes, again a surprise. Had there been traffic, the surprise loss of these features makes driving difficult. The mere fact that the engine turned off alone in the middle of a parking lot driveway poses risk for traffic accidents ... I had to take my eyes off the road to see what the alarm was. Not to mention had there been traffic and having to stop in a somewhat sudden manner could pose risk for accidents from other drivers.

XXX While returning home, we were crossing a 2 lane bridge between [XXX] and [XXX] heading south, an audible alarm sounded which surprised us and then a message appeared that stated "Engine Off! Shift to P or N, then start engine". Once I was able to refocus my attention to the road, I was then able to turn on my hazard signals, stop the car, shift to Park and restart the car. This all happened with traffic behind us and passing us in the opposite lane. There was no shoulder for us to use to get out of the way. I should also mention we were traveling a slight incline up as we were crossing the bridge. This was the second time this has happened and again it forced my attention away from the road so that I could address this issue. Fortunately, this all occurred at low speed, approx 30-35mph. Also, luckily I was able to get my hazard signals on quickly to avoid being rear ended by the sudden occurrence of this issue. I cannot imagine what would have happened if I had been on the interstate going 70+ mph. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

XXX While returning home, we just turned right onto [XXX] heading south, an audible alarm sounded which surprised us and then a message appeared that stated "Engine Off! Shift to [XXX], then start engine". This same problem had just occurred not 10 minutes earlier while crossing the bridge into [XXX] from [XXX]! Again, once I was able to refocus my attention to the road, I was then able to turn on my hazard signals, stop the car (no power brakes), shift to Park and restart the car. With this occurrence we were fortunate there was no traffic on the street at the time. We were traveling at about 30mph. This was the 3rd occurrence of this problem within 30 days and then again the second occurrence within 10 minutes on the same day! This is really unnerving to have your engine turn off suddenly and without any warnings! Just a sudden audible alarm, followed by a message, completely out of the blue! I cannot imagine what will happen should this occur at higher speeds? Or in heavier traffic? INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The contact owns a 2025 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that while idling, the vehicle stalled. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle with no issues. The contact stated that while making a left turn on another occasion, the vehicle stalled and was nearly rear-ended. The vehicle was shifted to park(P) and restarted. The contact stated that while making a left turn on a third occasion, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted. The immobilizer, oil, and check engine warning lights illuminated after the failure occurred on each occasion. The vehicle was taken to a dealer; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 14,000.

My stepson became entangled in the left/driver-side third-row seat belt of my 2025 Kia Telluride. The seat belt webbing became wrapped/tangled around him and the seat belt retractor entered a locked condition. We were unable to create sufficient slack or otherwise release him from the restraint. The situation became a life-threatening child-entrapment emergency. Emergency services were called and responders ultimately had to CUT THE FACTORY SEAT BELT WEBBING to free the child. My safety concern is not simply that a child became tangled in a seat belt. My concern is that once this occurred, the seat belt/retractor locked in a manner that prevented us from releasing tension and freeing the child. The only available solution during the emergency was for first responders to physically cut the restraint. I have also located reports from other Kia Telluride owners describing children becoming trapped when third-row seat belts became wrapped around an occupant or seat component and subsequently locked. I am also aware of NHTSA Recall 26V356 / Kia Safety Recall SC372 involving certain 2027 Kia Telluride and Telluride Hybrid vehicles. That recall involves a driver's seat belt emergency locking retractor that may lock while the webbing is being extended. I understand that recall applies to a different model year and seating position and may have a different underlying cause. However, because my 2025 Telluride experienced a serious seat-belt retractor locking event involving a child, I am requesting that NHTSA evaluate whether this incident represents a related, broader, or separate restraint-system safety defect. This incident required emergency intervention and destruction of the factory seat belt to free a child. I believe the inability to release tension from the locked restraint presents a potentially serious child entrapment and strangulation hazard, and I am requesting that NHTSA investigate.

Large crack appeared with no impact point observed. Crack originates at the bottom edge under the hood. There is an ongoing class action regarding similar incidents involving KIA windshields.

Over the course of two days, the engine stalled when decelerating at intersections three different times. The engine died with warning lights on the dash and a message: “ Engine Off! Shift to P or N then start engine.” I had to completely stop, shift gears, and then restart the engine, then back to drive. This happened at or near intersections, creating a significant hazard for myself and others around. Dealer has not been able to identify or replicate the issue. I have safety concerns about driving the vehicle. The third time happened without auto hold or auto start/stop on.