Over 400,000 Kia Vehicles Recalled Due to Rollaway Risk

Kia is recalling 427,407 Telluride SUVs due to an issue with the driveshaft system that may allow parked vehicles to roll away. According to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the recall is necessary to fix an improperly assembled intermediate shaft and front right driveshaft that could engage only partially. This, when repeated frequently, can cause damage to the intermediate shaft splines, potentially allowing unintended movement while the vehicle is in park. Kia said there have been 16 reports of this problem, including 10 warranty claims, and in six of the cases, the vehicles have been confirmed by the automaker to have spline damage or wear consistent with the recall issue.

The recall covers a wide spread of Tellurides, including all 2020 through 2023 and select 2024 model Telluride vehicles manufactured from January 9, 2019, through October 19, 2023. Documents filed with NHTSA cite Kia’s estimate that only 1 percent of vehicles covered under the recall will turn out to be affected. The NHTSA safety report states that both a grinding noise and loss of power can help identify the issue to owners.

The NHTSA documents state that 2024 Tellurides built starting October 20, 2023, are not included in the recall because they have a driveshaft assembly that the supplier inspected with “an additional computer vision process” to make sure it is fully engaged.

Notification letters will be sent to owners with instructions to bring their vehicle to a Kia dealer. Dealers will inspect the intermediate shaft and replace it if necessary. They will also install an update to the electronic parking brake system to prevent unintended movement while the vehicle is in Park, or any time the vehicle is stopped and the driver’s door is opened.