Kia is telling owners of 462,869 Telluride SUVs to park outside and away from their homes because a driver’s power seat switch can overheat and ignite on its own — even when the vehicle is off — according to NHTSA’s official recall announcement. The recall covers the 2020-2024 Telluride, and a permanent fix is coming, but Kia wants the “park outside” instruction followed in the meantime.

Key Points

• 462,869 Kia Tellurides from model years 2020-2024 are covered.
• A driver’s seat power switch can become dislodged, misaligned or damaged, causing continuous operation and overheating of the seat motor.
• NHTSA is explicitly telling owners to “park outside away from buildings and other vehicles” until the repair is completed — this is a fire risk that isn’t tied to driving or even the engine running.
• Dealers will install an electronic fuse assembly designed to cut power before the switch can overheat.
• This is a follow-up to an earlier, related 2024 Telluride seat-switch recall (campaign 24V407) that didn’t fully resolve the problem.

What’s Affected

• 2020-2024 Kia Telluride, driver’s front power seat only

Why this recall carries a “park outside” warning

A “park outside” instruction is one of the more serious signals NHTSA issues short of telling owners to stop driving entirely — it means the agency believes the defect can start a fire without the vehicle being started, driven, or even occupied. In this case, striking or bumping the front power seat’s slide cover or control knob can dislodge or damage the switch underneath it, and a damaged switch can keep signaling the seat motor to run continuously. A motor that never gets the signal to stop overheats, and an overheated motor can ignite the surrounding trim and upholstery. Because the fault sits in the switch itself rather than anything tied to the ignition, the fire risk exists whether the Telluride is parked in a driveway, a garage, or on the street.

What Owners Should Do

• Park away from your home, garage and other vehicles until the remedy is complete.
• Kia began mailing owner notifications on August 13, 2026.
• Contact a Kia dealer to schedule the free electronic fuse assembly installation.
• Check recall status by VIN at NHTSA.gov, call Kia at 800-333-4542, or call NHTSA’s hotline at 888-327-4236.

The recall is logged with NHTSA under campaign number 26V430000, and Consumer Reports separately confirmed the same population and the park-outside guidance in its own coverage of the filing. Nearly half a million Tellurides is a big enough population that plenty of owners will only hear about this secondhand — if you or someone you know drives a 2020-2024 Telluride, it’s worth checking the VIN today rather than assuming a notification letter will arrive before it matters.