2022 Kia Telluride Powertrain & Transmission Problems

Catastrophic rear differential failure at highway speed following recent warranty repair. Vehicle previously brought to Kia dealership for rear differential knocking noise. Warranty repair performed and vehicle returned. Within one week, original noise returned with additional whirling/ grinding sound.While traveling approximately 70 mph on the highway, vehicle experienced a sudden loud bang and immediate abrupt stop in traffic. At the time of failure, wife and two children were in the vehicle. Incident posed a severe and life-threatening safety risk.Visual inspection indicates complete rear differential mechanical failure, with fluid and component debris present underneath vehicle. Vehicle is currently unsafe to operate.Failure occurred immediately following manufacturer-authorized warranty repair.

The oil filter housing cracked on the car, causing all the oil to leak out. In researching this, I have found that this is a common problem with the Kia Telluride and Kia Sorrento. The problem is that the oil filter housing is made of cheap plastic and not durable material such as aluminum or steel. This allows the oil filter housing to easily crack under stress. In speaking with the dealership, this is not an uncommon problem. I feel that this should be covered under the Powertrain warranty or through a recall. A quick Google search will show that the problem is widespread in the Sorrento and Telluride models. This repair cost me a total of $425. If I had not replaced or repaired oil filter housing, the engine would have locked up as all the oil at escaped onto the pavement.

Borescope inspection of the engine shows multiple signs of internal mechanical failure involving oil control, piston ring integrity, coolant intrusion, and cylinder wall damage. Excessive oil buildup is visible above the oil control ring, far beyond what is expected at 59k miles. Cylinder walls show heavy polishing where cross-hatching should be visible, indicating loss of lubrication and abnormal wear. Carbon deposits are extremely thick; in several areas carbon has flaked off and been pulled downward into the cylinder, creating scoring. Straight vertical scoring marks cut through the normal diagonal honing pattern, confirming blow-by and damage to the cylinder sleeves. Evidence of coolant intrusion is present, including orange discoloration consistent with rust/coolant contamination, excessive moisture, and steam-cleaned areas of the combustion chamber. The intake valve and combustion surfaces appear abnormally clean, consistent with coolant steam-washing. This suggests head-gasket failure, a block or head casting defect, or ring damage (possible cracked scraper ring). Coolant in the cylinders can wash away oil from the bore, leading to rusted pistons and accelerated scoring. Multiple pictures show severe scoring and loss of lubrication. This compromises the ability of new pistons or rings to seal, meaning the cylinder walls would continue to allow blow-by, oil burning, coolant intrusion, and friction. Even attempting to polish or recondition these bores would enlarge them, causing piston flutter, noise, and long-term failure. Based on the level of damage, the engine is no longer safe or reliable. A seized piston could cause sudden loss of power at highway speeds, creating a safety risk. The observed defects indicate a potential manufacturing or casting issue that may affect other engines. The dealership and KIA Consumer Affairs have been notified but there has been no replacement or resolution after 3 months of ongoing issues, and 8 weeks of holding my vehicle.

The Telluride has developed a shimmy. At first, the shimmy was noted at lower speeds, around 35 to 45 mph while under minimal load such as going uphill and slightly accelerating. The car was taken to the dealership. The tires were balanced. We were told no other problems. A month later, same thing, same result. We just took a 2700 mile trip. The shimmy is apparent at higher speeds and in all transmission modes of operation.

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that after his wife had parked the vehicle and left the front driver's side door opened while there were two passengers in the rear seats. The contact stated that his wife unloaded the vehicle and walked towards the front door. The contact's mother-in-law and daughter who were in the residence noticed that the vehicle was rolling back and alerted the contact's wife, who turned around and ran after the vehicle. The vehicle crashed into the rear passenger's side of another parked unoccupied vehicle. The vehicle continued to roll back until it crashed into a palm tree. The contact stated that none of the passengers occupying the rear seats sustained injuries. The vehicle was driven back to the driveway. The contact stated that the front driver's side door which was opened at the time of the incident, became bent and damaged. Additionally, the rear of the vehicle was damaged. The contact stated that the incident was recorded by his front door camera. No police report was filed. The vehicle was then towed to an autobody repair shop to be repaired. The contact stated that the recall of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V214000(Power Train) was previously completed on the vehicle; however, the recall remedy failed to fix the failure. The dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The contact sent a recording of the incident to the manufacturer, but the manufacturer denied assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.

The vehicle intermittently fails to shift gears and loses acceleration without warning, creating a serious safety hazard. The problem began in October 2024 when the check-engine light first appeared and has continued since. Despite multiple repair attempts by the Kia dealership—including replacement of the fuel pump, fuel pressure sensors, and ECU—the root cause remains undiagnosed, and the defect persists. When the vehicle was brought back in August 2025, the dealer’s latest recommendation on 9/30/25 was to replace the injector harnesses and front wire assembly, but they cannot guarantee this will resolve the issue.

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that while the vehicle was idle and in park(P) in the driveway, the vehicle jerked forward while his wife was in the front driver seat. As the contact's wife checked the gear shifter, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and crashed into the contact's garage door without warning. The garage door, garage rail, and garage opener were all damaged as a result of the crash. The air bags did not deploy upon impact; there were no injuries and a police report was not filed. The manufacturer was immediately notified of the failure and a case was filed. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 46,000.

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that after parking in the driveway and exiting the vehicle, moments later the vehicle erroneously rolled backwards and struck the side of the residence. During the failure the front and rear driver's side doors and residence were damaged. The cause of the failure was not determined. The contact was informed of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V214000 (Power Train). The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The manufacturer and local dealer were not contacted regarding the failure. The failure mileage was 37,600.

The vigils when turning left or right makes a grumbling sound from the rear or transmission. Took the car to Kia in Huntsville. Al and they keep saying they don’t hear anything. You can clearly hear it. I have video recording. Seem like they don’t want to cover what is broken. It could possibly be the transmission case/ coupler because it’s an AWD. Next I will be filing a law suite.

While idling there is no heat. This is very dangerous in states where it drops below freezing. If I should be able to rely on getting heat but I can not. They called it a “design flaw”

Problem started 4-5 months ago and was very intermittent; about 2-3 occurences per month. Problem has become more frequent and become much more severe. When foot is on brake and just coming to stop, engine races to around 6000 rpm. Originally would return to normal rpm in a second or two. Most recent occurences were on Oct. 10 2023, problem manifested 9 times. At stop, engine raced to 6000 rpm and remained there. Some times returned to normal rpm after few seconds, other times shifting to neutral and back to drive caused rpm to normal; 3 times I had to turn off engine. Once when restarting, engine immediately raced back to 6000 rpm and I had to stop engine again. Problem is intermittent so dealer says cannot tackle problem until they can experience problem themselves despite my very detailed description. Vehicle is unsafe to drive. Fortunately so far problem occured with foot on brake pedal so instantly increased brake pressure prevented vehicle from lurching forward into an accident.

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Telluride. The contact stated there was knocking sound coming from the engine compartment. There were no warning lights illuminated. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle felt as if it had shifted into neutral. The contact stated that the instrument panel failed to provide accurate information while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 32,000.

The contact owns a 2022 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that the client's vehicle was parked in the driveway and turned off, while the client was reaching into the rear driver-side seat area the vehicle began to erroneously roll backward causing the rear door to make contact with the client, and the client was knocked to the ground. The EMS was called to the scene and the client was transported to the hospital. A police report was taken at the scene. During the incident, the client sustained an injured left leg, injured left side, neck, and back injuries. The client also suffered emotional distress due to the incident. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure. The client was recently informed of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V214000(Power Train). The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced that same failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was unknown.

I brought my 2022 Kia Telluride with only 12 miles on it in February 12, 2022. Less than 4 months old and only 4177 miles and my transmission has gone out. The dealership I bought has had it for 20 days now. I am told my vehicle is not safe to drive so it has to at the dealership. I have contacted Kia Customer Service they are advising me that the transmission is on back order and not ETA for it.

Vehicle was parked on level ground in the garage with the transmission in park. Parking brake was not set. I returned home in a different vehicle and checked the clearance on the garage door prior to closing it. It was at this point that I noticed that the garage door (which was previously closed) would not be able to close without hitting the Telluride. The Telluride was not driven, moved, touched or occupied during this brief period. Somewhere between opening the garage door and parking my other vehicle, the Telluride rolled back 1-2 feet. I tried pushing it and confirmed it wouldn't move, but it would have been impossible for the garage door to have opened or closed with the Telluride in the current position. As the garage was closed just before I opened it, and there were not any scratches on the Telluride or garage door, there is no explanation other than the Telluride rolled back. Since that incident, we have been setting the parking brake (manually). I understand the EV6 has a recall for a similar issue. Seems like the Telluride may have a similar problem.

My new AWD 2022 Kia Telluride vibration/ humming at 65 mph and above from day 1. It’s been in service 5 times and they are not able to fix the problem. The dealership we bought it from didn’t even admit there is a problem so we had to take it to another dealership which actually admitted there is a problem. They just changed the drive shaft and rear differential and the problem is still there . It’s been in service longer than it’s been with me. Very frustrating.