- Kia is recalling 2020-24 Telluride SUVs due to risk of fire from a stuck power seat slide knob.
- More than 462,000 SUVs need to return to dealers for a new power seat switches.
- Owners told to park outside and away from buildings and other cars until repair work completed.
The Kia Telluride’s huge cabin and seating for up to eight make it a hot pick for big families, but now owners of the big SUVs are being told to park outside and away from other cars in case things get too hot.
Almost half a million 2020-24 Georgia-built Tellurides are being recalled after it was discovered they could catch fire due to faulty power seat electrics. One owner reported smoke coming from underneath his seat, and Kia’s own technicians have come across a second example that was also producing smoke inside the passenger compartment.
Related: 427,000 Kia Tellurides Are At Risk Of Rolling Away In Park
The problem was traced back to the driver seat switch panel, which had received a knock, causing a misalignment of the switch that forced the seat slide knob to get stuck, overheating the motor.
No Tellurides have been destroyed yet, and there are no reports of injuries relating to the issue, but Kia is telling owners to leave their cars parked out in the open to minimize the risk until the necessary recall work is carried out. Which is easier said than done if you live in an apartment building with a communal parking garage.
Unfortunately for owners with busy schedules, this isn’t a simple over-air-update fix. A total of 462,869 Tellurides are heading back to service centers where dealers will install a bracket for the power seat switch back covers and replace the seat slide knobs.
The Telluride scores well in road test reviews but owners must be fed up of recalls. This new problem with the seats is at least the third Telluride recall announced this year, previous problems including high beam headlights that might fail, driveshafts that could disengage and cause the SUV to roll away, and valve springs that want to snap and grenade the entire engine.
But odder than those recalls was a springtime service bulletin telling owners to bring their Tellurides to their nearest dealership to have the software for the door handles updated. Who even knew that was a thing?
