NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2023 Kia Telluride. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026
Our 2023 Kia Telluride's digital cluster panels (all of the screens displaying speedometer, fuel tank, safety information, and entertainment) have gone black and have remained blank for over 2 weeks. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealership, but they do not have a fix and have just told us we have to wait until Kia issues a new update. This is very dangerous to drive as there is no indication on speed, fuel left, or any other pertinent information.
The problem has occurred 3 times in the last 3 weeks while driving in "Snow Mode". The accelerator doesn't respond to me pushing on it which has left me in the middle of an intersection and needing to quick change to a different driving mode to get the car to move again. All 3 times it occurred after coming to a complete stop. It allowed me to go forward for about 2-3 seconds but then the accelerator stopped responding whether I was barely pushing on it or pushing harder. The wheels were not spinning, it was a matter of the accelerator not responding. Luckily there were not cars coming in all 3 instances otherwise we would have been hit. It takes time to realize the accelerator isn't working and then think to switch it to another driving mode before you can move again. In that time we could have been hit from the sides or the back. Very scary and not safe at all. I have not brought it into the dealership to get looked at yet. No lights or warnings were on the screen. No other driving mode has this problem occur, just the Snow Mode.
The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop and making a left turn, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to respond and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle responded as needed. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving on two other occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the Idle, Stop and Go (ISG) System was malfunctioning. The dealer advised the contact to press the ISG OFF button A to deactivate the ISG system prior to driving. The contact followed the dealer's instructions; however, the failure persisted while driving. A warning light displaying a speedometer with a key was illuminated, and the message "Limit - 20 MPH" was displayed. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and continued driving. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Kings Kia (9600 Kings Automall Dr, Cincinnati, OH 45249), where the contact was informed that she might have unknowingly set the cruise control speed to 20 MPH; however, the contact informed the dealer that it was not a possibility because the vehicle had stalled and failed to move. The dealer then informed the contact that someone might have hacked the vehicle through Kia Connect mobile application and reduced the vehicle speed. The contact was concerned that Kia Connect mobile application had such capability. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 8,000.
Had to get the front windshield replaced with only about 2,000 miles on the car, had a crack across the entire windshield. Now with only about 6,000 miles. I have another chip on my windshild. I barely drive on the freeway and have nomal driving conditions. This shouldn't be an issue on a new car. Windshield is fragile and makes me worried glass is unsafe.
The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle did not accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated before accelerating. The contact stated that the failure started while the vehicle was in snow mode and then the contact noticed that the failure was occurring while in other selected traction modes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,100.
I bought my car on August 28, 2023 (2023 Kia Telluride EX AWD) with 8 miles on it. I took it in in November for an oil change. That was around 7500 miles. Then i started hearing a ticking noise and immediately went to the dealership to report it on or around December 1, 2023. The initial testing of my engine was an entire week. I had to pay for a rental out of my pocket until Kia approved for a rental. I was told that my Engine had metal shavings in it and they had to check the transmission also. The engine had to be replaced. I was told it was on National Backorder and I wouldn't have my car back before February. I complained to corporate and for some reason my engine was there the following week. It was frustrating having a brand-new Kia Telluride EX AWD and the engine goes bad. This is my 5th Kia and the first incident I had with a Kia.
When put into Snow Mode the car won't accelerate from a stop at normal speeds. It feels like the car is stuck in neutral and I'm just coasting. It won't accelerate normally until I switch it into another driving mode like Eco. This has caused a few close calls when turning out of driveways or onto busy streets.
There is something wrong with the electrical system that drains the battery. I keep getting. An ESC code, and then the battery goes dead. The car has been at the dealership for the past three days and they are unable to duplicate the problem. I showed them a video I took of the instrument cluster which shows the code and electrical issues. The Kia dealership says they cannot do anything about the code because they are unable to duplicate the air while the vehicle is in their possession. This has happened twice on a new 2023 car. The dealership says they are returning me my vehicle with no resolution. So essentially, I’m getting a broken car returned to me. When you online search “ESC” Kia there appears to be a lot of complaints about this exact same issue but no fix?
Since November 10th we have gotten this message at least 3 times while driving and a message showed up on the screen "Check Lane Change Assist Function". It went away after a few minutes. Dealership was unable to duplicate so nothing was done. (see photo B and C)
While driving on the highway, windshield was hit by a small pebble on the driver side. What was an initially a very small chip started to spread over half the windshield creating visibility issues and negating the ability to repair the chip in the windshield.
On October 27th we were driving down the road and all of a sudden the steering wheel snatched to the left hard enough to put us over the centerline. My son was driving, he is around 200lbs of muscle and he couldn’t keep it from crossing the centerline. There was nothing in the road that should have caused avoidance and no audible alerts. It did it a second time after we made a turn on to another road but not quite as severe. Dealership was unable to duplicate so nothing was done.
There is a dark show that comes Dow 3/4 of the windshield when driving on a dark street with no street lights. This happens when the low beam are turned on, when you switch to high beam your visibility improves.
The vehicle started displaying every single warning light stating the engine was shutting down and to pull over immediately. Power steering went out along with power brakes and the infotainment before vehicle could be pulled over safely. All occurred within 10 seconds. I was barely able to pull onto a side street without getting hit. Vehicle completely shut off as if battery was removed. I jump started vehicle but upon removing the jump starter after engine was running the vehicle shuddered and shut off again. The vehicle was towed to KIA service and they diagnosed the issue to be a faulty battery. Battery was replaced under warranty and picked up. The next day, the issue occurred and the vehicle shut off. Luckily I was able to get to a safe place before loosing all power. Shortly before the second issue the vehicle displayed a notification stating an engine control fault was detected. The vehicle is currently disabled and waiting to be towed again. I suspect the issue is the alternator as other people say this issue occurred with their alternator on the same vehicle as well. Towing took 4 hours last time and I do not believe it will be any quicker this time. I am without a vehicle until then. This issue is very dangerous and needs to be addressed immediately!
10 months after purchasing brand new vehicle from dealership, the windshield developed large crack for no apparent reason--no debris or collision. Need to replace due to inability to see out and possibility of further cracking/breaking. A class action lawsuit against this company is taking place for this very issue, yet no recall exists. I am forced to pay $500 out of pocket (deductible) in order to get this remedied. Dealership informed me that warranty does not cover this.
The Driver Attention Warning (DAW), specifically the 'Take a Break' alert is too sensitive and persistent, without the option to disable. The 'Take a Break' alert both displays a message and emits an audible alert (5 or so dings). The alert occurs too frequently, no matter who is driving, which is a distraction in itself. The warning has increased in frequency over time. There is no known way to disable, re-calibrate, or reset this alert as in previous models. While intended to be a safety 'feature' it is the exact opposite as it is an additional distraction and removes the driver's attention when acknowledging the overly sensitive dash warning.
while driving , the power steering went out making steering very difficult and unsafe. a multitude of warning lights flashed on and off. several warning icons were subsequently sent to our home app for a period of 10 days while the car was parked and we were in hawaii. there is an obvious issue with the computers electrical systems that affect safe driving and continue to send false warnings to the app. this steering electrical issue will hurt someone if not fixed.
First issue, the entire screen went black while driving. Couldn't see navigation, speed other critical information. Was at the dealership a few weeks got it back and the hazard lights no longer worked but they did before it had gone to the dealership. Screen went out again and took it back. Dealership had it a few weeks fixed hazards and started a ticket with Kia engineering. Screen still goes out randomly. Electrical is messed up and car won't start randomly while screen blinks on and off. Been in the shop multiple times for weeks at a time for this issue and they say there is nothing wrong because they can't duplicate it while they have it. They have had to pick it up from my home because it wouldn't start and still say there is nothing wrong with the vehicle.
Windshield cracked during regular use, no object hit the vehicle to cause a crack. Crack started from the seal and moved out from there. It is not safe to drive a car with a crack in the windshield. Many people have complained online about this same issue. Dealer said "it may be a common issue". No warning, no inspection.
We were driving on the highway and our sunroof spontaneously exploded and shattered everywhere. Nothing hit it, it happened out of nowhere. We luckily had the cover closed. If we didn't, my husband, two daughters and I would have been covered in shards of glass everywhere. There was absolutely nothing that caused the explosion, it just Spontaneously happened.
WINDSHIELD CRACK. We are unsure the cause, but our vehicle is only 3 months old and overnight (while parked in our garage) the windshield mysteriously cracked. The crack started vertically, and has since moved horizontally. This does not seem to be an uncommon issue with the 2020-2023 Tellurides. I've been told by multiple glass companies that this is an extremely difficult windshield to replace, potentially because this windshield is only used on this year and model.
Car was parked in a secured area on Friday and not utilized until the following Sunday. I found that the windshield had cracked about 1.5 - 2 feet. There is no sign of road damage such as a star or rock. The crack looks to have begun under the panel on the drivers side. This crack impedes visibility of the driver and interrupts heads up display. Full replacement is required
While driving my 2023 kia telluride in 49 degree weather on our way to our vacation rental in Wyoming, we heard an extremely loud explosion. We stopped the vehicle on the side of the road where we discovered that the sunroof had spontaneously combusted throwing shards of glass everywhere. Fortunately we had the inside screen closed otherwise we all would have been pierced by the glass shards. We could have been blinded had the glass been launched into our eyes. The glass badly scratched the roof and the car. Kia is refusing to cover this obvious defect that has happened to many other kia tellurides as you can see by the many accounts posted on Google and other social boards. Kia continues to deny responsibility for this defect and, instead, wants customers to turn this in to their personal insurance companies. However, even if you would agree to turn this in to your car insurance, they would not cover it as there was no accident. Kia must be made to acknowledge and pay for this clear defect (see the recent sunroof settlement made by Hyundai for the exploding sunroof) instead of expecting their car buyers to pay for their mistake out of their own pockets.
Small rock thrown from vehicle in front of us while driving about 50mph. Windshield cracked right in middle of drivers side windshield
The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that the second-row seat belts failed to operate as designed. The alarms failed to engage when the seat belts were buckled or unbuckled. While there was a child using a car seat on the second row of seats, the seat belt was unbuckled, and there was no alarm to alert the occupants. While driving at unknown speeds, the information screen displayed went blank for approximately an hour. While refueling, the fuel gauge displayed that there was no fuel in the tank. The contact checked the fuel and noticed it was not depleted. While driving in hot temperatures, the engine overheated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the thermostat needed to be replaced. The mechanic informed the contact that the driver's seat randomly failed to stay in position. The mechanic repaired the driver's seat and thermostat. Additionally, the contact stated that the children failed to meet the weight requirements. The mechanic was unable to duplicate the other failures. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 120.
This is actually our second brand new Kia Telluride 2023 because the first one had this same issue as our second: after the car has not been in use for a week or less, the battery is completely dead so there's obviously a battery drain somewhere. We had Kia corporate master technician on the case along with few other people.
Windshield seemed to crack spontaneously with only 4000 miles. I don’t see an obvious impact area from where something hit the windshield.
Small Windshield crack was unable to be repaired , spread less the 2000 miles
While driving approximately 15 MPH, the windshield cracked. Nothing hit the windshield, it just split.
Windshield cracks very easily, causing visability issues. I have replaced it twice in 6 months, with no known impact
Windshield cracked without any impact or signs of impact to window. Crack continues to get longer without any movement.
On two separate occasions within 2 weeks of each other, I lost complete power of my new 2023 Kia Telluride while driving. The first incident occurred on June 22nd, 2023 with only 2000 miles on the car I received a message of an issue with the Engine Control System, along with the Battery warning light and Check Engine Light. Shortly afterwards the entire display panel started transmitting every error message on the screen while I was driving. As I was turning left at an intersection onto a lesser busy street, I started to lose power steering and lost complete power as I pulled my car to the side of the road. The second incident occurred while on vacation with my family on July 1st, 2023 with approx 2600 miles. The dashboard displayed the same Engine Control System message along with the Battery warning light and Check Engine Light. Shortly thereafter all of the error messages displayed on the display screen and as we pulled over to the side of the road, we lost complete power. The car was serviced by Kia Schaumburg on 06/27/2023 and I was told the electronics module was causing the issue and had to be reset and the problem was corrected. The safety of myself and my family is put at risk both times. The first time the car started losing power steering while turning which could have resulted in a collision. The second time, my family was stranded while on vacation in a semi-remote location. In both cases the car lost full power within minutes of pulling over and not even the hazards would work, putting us at risk of collision by passing traffic.
The horn quit working on the vehicle after pushing on it. Both the low and high horn had to be replaced. The vehciles rear differential was replaced due to continued loud sounds coming from the rear and constant wheel slippage. The Rear differential replacement did not fix the issue.
Without any other vehicles driving in front, a small crack appeared on the edge of the driver’s side of my brand new 2023 Kia Telluride windshield. Looks like a small rock may have hit, but there were no cars to throw the rock. The windshield immediately cracked across to the middle of the passenger seat. The crack has a large gap where dust has started collecting. The glass is not very thick, and the crack is visibly deep. This happened within a month and a half of owning the brand new vehicle. I have read many complaints about the same or similar issues regarding Telluride windshields
Driving on interstate with sunroof closed/not in use. Entire sunroof glass shattered suddenly. No rocks or flying debris were visualized flying toward my vehicle before the glass shattered. The glass just seemed to shatter without impact from debris.
My Vehicle is about 2 months old and the windshield is cracked. Its very concerning because it seems as though the windshield is very fragile and this is a huge safety issue for myself as well as others who get into my vehicle. I took my vehicle to Kia and expressed my concerns and problem and they told me that the issue was not covered by Warranty.
The AC condenser is not working. Kia os blaming on a h rock hitting it. But when you look on the internet everyone is having the same problem
The driver dashboard went blank except for randomly flashing nonsense numbers. Vehicle speed, fuel level, engine RPM and other vehicle information was lost. Additionally forward collision avoidance, lane keep and departure, adaptive cruise, emergency braking and blind spot warning systems became inactive. I am unsure if the antilock brake system and stability controls are functional. My safety was put at risk because i was unsure of vehicle speed and loosing all driver assistance tools. The problem has been persistent since it 1st occurred. The vehicle is going to the dealer today, 05 June 2023. Immediately before the driver dash going blank, the entire driver dashboard showed all warnings lights before going blank.
On our new 2023 Kia Telluride with less than 1500 miles, the windshield cracked from the bottom drivers side across the windshield to the passenger side. The glass is measurably thinner than any other windshield I've ever seen before. Our safety was put at risk because we didn't know if the windshield was going to cave in on us or not - you could see how thin the glass is. We were not able to get in contact with our dealership. They did not return calls. We reported to Kia. Kia has had windshield recalls for this same exact problem for the 2020 model year of Telluride. We feel we are experiencing the same issues with cracking windshields - and very thin glass. Kia told us we had to replace the windshield with OEM glass ($800 more) or our warranty would be void. We had to replace it with Safelite Glass - and OEM - for a total of $1335 - on a brand new car.
The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, a warning chime sounded with the check forward safety system, check rear cross traffic safety system, check blind spot safety system, and the AWD safety system messages displayed. The contact restarted the vehicle and the vehicle resumed normal operation. Several days later the failure returned, and the contact called and made the dealer aware of the failure. The contact was informed that pests might have entered the vehicle and the contact was advised to have the vehicle cleaned. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle shut off as the previous warning messages displayed. Additionally, the engine off message was displayed. The contact pulled off to the shoulder of the highway and restarted the vehicle; however, the failure persisted after the vehicle was restarted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was referred to a dealer. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer where a code reader determined that there was a defect with the front radar. The failure persisted and the vehicle was taken to Auto Express Kia (9090 Peach St, Waterford, PA 16441). The dealer was unable to diagnose the failure and the vehicle remained with the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.
Fuel gauge (fuel level) and estimated mileage abruptly zero’s out and you get low fuel message regardless of amount in tank. Dealer stated they will show how to reset, but did not indicate a fix. Not sure if impact on other systems. Over several days the fuel gauge re-corrects, but it should not be happening.
I recently purchased a 2023 Kia Telluride SX-P on May 13, 2023, and am writing to report a critical issue with the fuel reading system. Despite the instrument panel initially displaying a range of 395 miles with a full tank, I encountered a sudden discrepancy in the readings. On Wednesday, May 17, the instrument cluster and Kia Connect app showed 123 miles on the fuel estimator, but the fuel gauge indicated 0% with a low fuel warning light. As I drove a few miles, the estimated range dropped to 0, and the fuel level indicator remained low despite having around 5 gallons of fuel. The pump stopped at 13 gallons when refueling, despite the tank's capacity being approximately 18 gallons. This fuel reading system problem has been reported by several 2023 Kia Telluride owners on public forums (see links below). I'm deeply concerned about the safety implications, such as the risk of the vehicle not starting or stalling unexpectedly. Public Forum 1: https://tellurideforum.org/threads/faulty-fuel-sensor-23-sx-xpro.13652/ Public Forum 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/KiaTelluride/comments/11ds4m8/2023_kia_telluride_sxp_showing_low_fuel/ I kindly request an urgent investigation and a resolution for the fuel reading system issue. Your prompt attention is greatly appreciated. I look forward to hearing from you soon with a resolution.
The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. The contact stated that the lane recognition sensor located on the rearview mirror had exploded. The contact sustained injuries to his face. No medical attention was received. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who stated that the windshield would be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 6,001.
Purchase brand new 2023 Telluride EX X line. Currently have 500 miles on the dash and it still shifts very rough from 1 to 2 gear while going at low speeds around 5-15 mph. I have tried changing the drive settings from comfort, smart, sport, eco and it still has jerky gear shift in every setting. Also getting very low gas mileage. I thought it jusy needed few miles to break in but problem is still there. Also does not even give you warning sounds of when getting to close to car infront when parking like it does in the rear. Not what I expected from a BRAND NEW CAR that cost around $55,0000. Wish I would have just sticked to the Acura or Lexus.
My windshield received the smallest of a chip. Within 3 hours the chip expanded to a full 24 inch U shaped crack (Straight down the center of the windshield and over toward the drivers side). In the past on other vehicles tiny chips were easily repaired with no resulting crack. In this case, the speed of the cracking preventing any chip repair . My issue is with the integrity of this windshield.
Windshield has cracked and has needed replacement twice in the 15 months I have owned it.
I purchased a 2023 Kia Telluride for a family vacation tow vehicle. Spec's call out 5000 lb towing capacity and "pre-wired" for a trailer. Problem is, pre-wired means a connector in the back of the vehicle, but no actual harness available that plugs into it to run trailer lighting/brakes. Contacted Kia several times, no harnesses, was advised to take it to U-haul and get a splice-in harness. It's a brand new car, I don't want to cut into factory harness. Isn't this false advertisement? Can't tow anything without lights and pre-wiring obviously isn't the case. I thought pre-wired meant you plug your trailer straight into an existing plug. Kia forums also indicate no solution, initially dealers said couple months, couple months. Now, 6 months later, still no OEM harness equipment available.
windshield cracked by itself
My windshield failed. I have 2401 miles on the car and out of nowhere it had a huge crack the next day when I went to take my kids to school. It puts us at risk of shattering at any moment. It gets bigger as the days past. Yes I have reported it. It has been happening to a lot of 23 Telluride owners. No warning light or anything came on.
Lack of acceleration when in snow mode. The car decreased speed and I couldn’t get it to increase The car is at dealership now It has happen 7 times and I haven’t even had my first payment. No warning was given I have a video of it. It will not let me upload it.
For the 3rd time in less than 3 months the instrument panel is blank, no instruments are visible, no power to the screen. Cars need to go back to analog gauges for safety.