In an unexpected turn of events, Korean car manufacturer, Kia, has made an alarming declaration. A little over 427,000 of its distinguished Telluride SUVs have been pulled in for a recall, owing to a significant defect with disturbing ramifications. Seemingly, the flaw could result in vehicles engaging in autonomous rolling while parked, posing a threat to safety and property.
The core of the issue, according to documents published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, lies within the intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft of specific 2020-2024 Telluride models. These critical components might not be completely engaged, a scenario that could, over time, bring about inadvertent vehicle movement, even when the vehicles are ostensibly in a parked state. Needless to say, such a malfunction dramatically heightens the potential for accidents.
In an effort to avert any such incidents, Kia America made an executive decision to recall every single 2020-2023 model year and an exclusive selection of 2024 model year Tellurides, promptly this month, as shown by NHTSA documents. Fortunately, no reports of injuries or crashes have surfaced at the time the recall was issued.
The recall envelope encapsulates the 2020-2024 Tellurides that were manufactured during the period stretching from January 9, 2019, to October 19, 2023. The underlying suspicion points towards improper assembly being the culprit behind the shaft engagement issue. Kia America’s estimation pegs the number of affected vehicles with the defect at around 1% of the total.
As for the solution, recall documents propose updating the electronic parking brake software of the affected cars. Any intermediate shafts that have sustained damage as a result of the defect are also slated to be replaced, free of charge. For those owners who may have already shouldered repair expenses due to this issue, Kia has assured that they will be reimbursed.
Until the recall process rolls out fully, owners of the compromised Tellurides have been advised to manually engage the emergency brake before venturing out of the vehicle. Additionally, drivers have the option to verify if their vehicle is part of this recall and can access more related information by visiting the NHTSA site or Kia’s recall lookup platform.
Notification letters designated for the owners are planned to hit the mail by May 15. Dealers are projected to receive their notifications just a few days prior.
Requests for additional comments were directed towards Kia America, headquartered in Irvine, California. However, there is yet to be a response as of Sunday.
