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2020 Kia Telluride

For every car sold, owners filed more complaints about the 2020 Telluride than about the typical Telluride year: 1.6 times as many. Among the 4 Telluride years with enough complaints to compare, owners filed the fewest about the 2023 (1.48 per 1,000 sold) and the most about this one, the 2020 (3.68).

Safety complaints filed by owners in the first three years, per 1,000 sold.

3.68 per 1,000

1.6 times this nameplate’s own median

Counted from 246 complaints filed in the first three years, of 783 ever. 95% lower bound 3.22.

Every Telluride model yearComplaints per 1,000 sold, first three years
This yearOther yearsTypical year, 2.29

Against its own model years

The model year carries far more information than the badge, so this is the comparison that matters. The bar is how many complaints each rate rests on.

Model yearPer 1,000Complaints
20203.68246
20211.66140
20222.29222
20231.48156

Issues owners of the 2020 Telluride report

Phrases over-represented in these complaints compared with the same component on every other vehicle. Counts are complaints containing the phrase.

Exterior Lighting 186 complaints

high12567%
beams9249%
high beams7942%
high beam6535%
stopped working3720%
beam lights2011%

Engine 154 complaints

oil12279%
consumption5838%
oil consumption5536%
quart2718%
excessive oil2516%
housing2214%

Unknown Or Other 148 complaints

sunroof4228%
paint2416%
white1913%
peeling1711%
pearl139%
track139%

When it breaks

77% of reported failures happened before 30,000 miles (median 6,000 miles, from 196 complaints that recorded one).

Failures cluster early, which is the signature of how the car was built rather than of wear. A low-mileage example has not yet passed the risk window.

What NHTSA did

1 investigation covering this model year, 1 of which list a recall campaign. Owners had filed 60 complaints about this component over roughly 36 months before an investigation opened.

Complete Loss of High Beams

Questions buyers ask about the 2020 Kia Telluride

Is 2020 a good year or a bad year for the Telluride?

For every car sold, owners filed more complaints about the 2020 Telluride than about the typical Telluride year: 1.6 times as many. Among the 4 Telluride years with enough complaints to compare, owners filed the fewest about the 2023 (1.48 per 1,000 sold) and the most about this one, the 2020 (3.68). The typical year is the median across its model years.

What problems does the 2020 Telluride have?

The parts owners named most often in complaints filed to date: Exterior Lighting (186), Engine (154), Unknown Or Other (148). The phrases they used are listed above.

Is the 2020 Telluride reliable?

Complaint records cannot settle that on their own. They count safety problems owners chose to report to the federal government, not every repair. What they do show is how this year compares with the other Telluride years: for every car sold, owners filed more complaints about the 2020 Telluride than about the typical Telluride year: 1.6 times as many.

Which Telluride year has the fewest complaints?

Among years with enough complaints to compare, the 2023, at 1.48 per 1,000 sold. Every Telluride year, ranked.

What the used-car guides say

No guide we read covers the Telluride.

Check this yourself

Example records behind this page, each on NHTSA’s own site:

Limits of this figure. It counts safety complaints filed with the federal government, which is a floor on failures and not a census: problems that only cost money are under-reported. Complaint rates also reflect how likely a brand’s owners are to file, which cannot be separated from how often the car fails. Sales are calendar-year and the denominator for this nameplate is taken year by year from published US sales figures, each one quoted from a named source.