Kia Telluride Acceleration Problems

Owners have filed 58 complaints about speed control & acceleration problems with the Kia Telluride — 3% of all Telluride complaints. The worst model years are 2024 (16), 2023 (14) and 2020 (13). Problems typically start around 26,000 miles. No acceleration recall has been issued for the Telluride.

58complaints
2024worst year
26ktypical miles
0related recalls
2crashes
0fires

Acceleration complaints by model year

2020202120222023202420252027134514166
Acceleration complaints per model year, Kia Telluride.
YearComplaintsShare of year's complaintsTypical mileage
202565%—
2024167%4,000 miles
2023147%35,000 miles
202252%38,000 miles
202141%81,000 miles
2020132%28,000 miles

Which parts fail

  • Accelerator pedal
    3
  • Cruise control
    2

Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).

Mileage when the problem started

  • Under 25k
    660%
  • 25k–50k
    330%
  • 50k–75k
    00%
  • 75k–100k
    110%
  • 100k–150k
    00%
  • 150k+
    00%

What owners report

Purchased vehicle 1/18/2025; first and only owner. Occurrence = Engine Shut off, alarm sounded and warning lights flashed; Error: "Engine off, shift to N or P, Then start engine." Had to shift to Neutral and Push Start to restart engine. -During March: occurred 2 times, both times worked after shifting to Neutral. -4/1-4/3: occurred 1 time, worked after shifting to Neutral. -4/16: occurred 1 time, had to stop and shift to Park to restart engine! -Kia of LaGrange 4/23/26: could not replicate issue; no error codes found -Kia of Newnan 4/29/26: left vehicle for 2-4 days and they didn't have time to check it, so we picked it up because we needed a vehicle. -May 5: occurred 3 times on same road; only got pics. Then occurred 1 time after stopping and different trip, got video. All occurrences worked after shifting to neutral. …

2025 Telluride · Apr 2026

My vehicle was purchased [redacted] - VIN #[redacted] - on 6 or more occasions, the while driving on the highway with cruise control on at 70 mph, the cruise control feature suddenly applied the brakes bringing the vehicle sometimes down to 48 mph for a few seconds and then re-engages the cruise control to 70 mph. This happens with no obsticals, vehicles, or other interference in front, however, there have been vehicles behind and this is a huge safety issue as it could cause a rear-end collision. My vehicle had been returned to the dealer, the first time for a week, they could not duplicate the issue, the vehicle was returned to me. On [redacted] I brought my vehicle again to the dealership for the same reason as the cruise control continues to disengages for no reason. The dealership has finally been able to duplicate the issue. …

2025 Telluride · Mar 2026

The contact owns a 2024 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that while driving with the vehicle in Snow Mode, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. The contact switched to Sport Mode for the vehicle to respond and accelerate as needed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that while his wife was driving and switching to Snow Mode, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and depressed to the floorboard but the vehicle failed to accelerate. The driver switched to Sport Mode to drive the vehicle as needed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 5,800. The VIN was not available.

2024 Telluride · Accelerator pedal · 6,000 miles · Nov 2023

The contact owns a 2024 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving at approximately 25 MPH with the Snow Mode activated, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that the accelerator pedal failure only occurred while driving with the Snow Mode feature activated. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was test-driven with the service manager and the failure was replicated. The contact stated that the vehicle remained with the local dealer, but the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 450.

2024 Telluride · 0 miles · Jun 2024

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle did not accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated before accelerating. The contact stated that the failure started while the vehicle was in snow mode and then the contact noticed that the failure was occurring while in other selected traction modes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,100.

2023 Telluride · 35,000 miles · Dec 2023

The contact owns a 2023 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle hesitated while responding. The dealer and the manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 500.

2023 Telluride · 1,000 miles · Feb 2023

The contact owns a 2020 Kia Telluride. The contact stated that while reversing, after releasing the brake pedal, the vehicle unintendedly accelerated to 4 MPH. While driving, after releasing the brake pedal, the vehicle independently accelerated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who informed the contact that the vehicle was working as designed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 38,300.

2022 Telluride · 38,000 miles · Mar 2024

The instrumentation screen in front of the drivers wheel goes out all black periodically on some startups. With it black, cannot tell what MPH / Gear / distance to empty / drivers mode, and none of the advanced drivers assist features work. One time it happened while on cruise control and just kept accelerating as if it didn't know what speed I was going. 2022 kia telluride. Many others same issue in the forums I'm in.

2022 Telluride · Cruise control · Jul 2021

Frequently asked questions

Which Kia Telluride years have acceleration problems?

By NHTSA complaints, the 2024 (16), 2023 (14), 2020 (13), 2025 (6) and 2022 (5) model years. Acceleration complaints make up 7% of all complaints for the 2024.

Is there a recall for Kia Telluride acceleration problems?

No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for any Kia Telluride model year. A widespread problem may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin, so ask a dealer.

At what mileage do Kia Telluride acceleration problems start?

Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 26,000 miles; 90% happened before 50,000 miles.

What part fails most often?

Owners most often name the accelerator pedal (3 mentions), followed by the cruise control (2).

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.