Kia America has issued a new recall for nearly 463,000 of its Telluride SUVs, urging owners to again park their vehicles outside and away from buildings after several customers reported fires following previous repairs.
The recall, announced this week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, replaces a prior one Kia initiated in 2024. Certain Tellurides from the 2020-2024 model years are affected, with the NHTSA warning that the front power seat motor of these vehicles may overheat due to a stuck slide knob.
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That could result in a fire while the car is parked or being driven. And even after Kia rolled out a remedy in 2024, recall documents note several customers filed complaints of alleged fires underneath the passenger seat. The automaker investigated other vehicles that had received the prior repair and identified "sporadic dealer workmanship issues" — later deciding to initiate a new recall.
Between October 2024 and April 2026, Kia North America's safety office identified 18 incidents involving either localized seat fires or melting of the seat motor, per recall documents. No associated injuries or crashes have been reported.
To address the hazard, Kia's new fix will be for dealers to install an electronic fuse assembly, free of charge — aimed at preventing ongoing operation of the seat motor if its switch becomes dislodged or otherwise damaged. That remedy will be available in early August, according to an advanced dealer notice published by the NHTSA. And owner notification letters are set to be mailed starting Aug. 13.
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In the meantime, the NHTSA is warning owners to "park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete."
Press contacts for Irvine, California-based Kia America — a subsidiary of the larger South Korean automaker — did not immediately respond to The Associated Press' requests for further comments on Friday.
Drivers can also confirm if their specific vehicle is included in this recall and find more information using the NHTSA site and/or Kia's recall lookup platform.
The recall covers 462,869 model year 2020-2024 Tellurides that were manufactured between Jan. 9, 2019 and May 29, 2024. Kia America estimates that 1% have the defect.
