Beginning April 5, 2024, a selected group of Kia Telluride owners across the United States will receive a letter in their mailbox informing them that the valve springs in their vehicle’s engine may be prone to breakage. Certainly not the kind of news anyone wants to wake up to.
A recall notice issued by the Korean carmaker reveals that a total of 2,872 Telluride models built for the 2024MY between October 1, 2023, and December 6, 2023, have engine valve springs that could break while driving due to fatigue cracking, triggered by damage done during the manufacturing process.
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Kia says that a broken valve spring will result in a loss of power and could blow a hole in the engine block if a broken valve enters the combustion chamber. Owners may be alerted to a potential issue if they notice an abnormal engine noise, a check engine light, or the engine begins to run rough.
The first report of an incident related to the 2024 Telluride’s engine came in November last year when an owner in North America noticed a ‘pop’ sound while driving and smoke coming from the engine bay. A dealer soon discovered a hole in the engine block. Kia later became aware of a growing number of engine replacements for 2024 Tellurides and started collecting the faulty engines, quickly discovering that all showed signs of fatigue cracking.
While the brand is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to the issue, it does know of one fire that involved some localized melting.
Owners will be told to bring their vehicle to a Kia dealer where the engine sub-assembly will be replaced free of charge. Kia will also reimburse any owners who have previously paid for repairs related to the issue.