Kia bulletin SA640
What it saysThis bulletin provides information on accessing the Dealer Mode function on 2025MY Telluride (ON) models equipped with an Audio Video Navigation (AVN) head unit and performing a Dealer Mode Factory Reset. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Kia filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Jan 21, 2026, about the electrical system — 1 document under this number: TSB_ELE411. It names 1 model year (2025). A service bulletin is not a safety recall: it is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a condition, and whether the work is paid for depends on the warranty in force. Quoting the number at a service desk can save a diagnosis.
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What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationWhat it applies to, as the document itself states it — the build window in the manufacturer’s own words, read by machine from the PDF NHTSA serves. The build date is on the certification label in the driver’s door jamb; the dealer settles a borderline vehicle by its VIN.
TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: AVN FACTORY RESET THROUGH DEALER MODE (SA640) - This bulletin provides information on accessing the Dealer Mode function on 2025MY Telluride (ON) models equipped with an Audio Video Navigation (AVN) head unit and performing a Dealer Mode Factory Reset. A factory reset is required on certain 2025MY Telluride (ON) vehicles produced between December 2, 2024, and November 17, 2025, as incomplete initialization of the head unit during manufacturing may prevent the telematics system from properly connecting to U.S. networks, resulting in Kia Connect activation issues. Other AVN functions, including rear‑view camera display, are not affected by this condition.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TSB_ELE411 | Service bulletin | Jan 21, 2026 | 11027750 | PDF, 541 KB |
What the document itself lists
Labour operation and the time the manufacturer allows
| Operation | Description | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 250A65R0 | AVN Head Unit Reset | 0.3 hrs |
Read by machine from the document NHTSA serves (5 pages), read Sep 29, 2026. A part number is shown only where it matches Kia’s own catalogue shape, an operation only with its code and time, and a description only where the reader got it whole; anything it could not settle is left out, and the PDF is the record. Times are the manufacturer’s warranty allowances, not a quote. Listings and prices on eBay Motors are the seller’s.
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The summary is NHTSA’s abstract of the document, as filed under 49 CFR 579.5. One communication is usually filed as several documents — the bulletin, a dealer notice, an owner letter — and the number on any of them finds this page. A PDF link is shown only once NHTSA’s own server has been seen to serve that document; the rest are checked over the following nights. Quote the number at a service desk; it is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Model years it names
Source: as the manufacturer filed themA vehicle page’s bulletin list shows the newest few communications filed against that model year; the count there is every one.
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What owners reported
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseOwners of the 1 model year this bulletin names have filed 124 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 22 of them name Electrical System — the same broad component group this bulletin is filed under. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so that means the same area of the vehicle, not necessarily the same fault.
Rodent damage to floor harness of brand new car. Per service advisor this is a common issue with newer cars due to the use of soy based wiring which attracts rodents
2025 Kia Telluride · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Feb 5, 2026 · ODI 11715784
A complaint is one owner’s account, not a defect finding, and a bulletin is not a recall. Nothing here says this bulletin was issued because of these complaints, or that the repair it describes fixed them. Complaint files on this site begin in 2015.
More bulletins about the electrical system
Source: same model, same component group36 other manufacturer communications filed against the Kia Telluride under the same component group (electrical system), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Kia list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| TSB_ELE328_R1 | Service bulletin | Sep 16, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: CLUSTER SOFTWARE LOGIC IMPROVEMENT FOR LOWER THAN ACTUAL FUEL LEVEL INDICATION - This bulletin has been revised… |
| SA652/SA653/SA658 | Over-the-air update | Sep 16, 2026 | RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SERVICE ACTION SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR RCM, UWB AND SBCM (SA652/SA653/SA658) - This Over-the-Air (OTA) software upd… |
| OTA_ELE431_432_434_NOTES | Over-the-air update | Aug 29, 2026 | RELEASE NOTES: OVER-THE-AIR: SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR ROOF CONTROL MODULE (RCM), ULTRA-WIDEBAND (UWB) and SIDE BODY CONTROL MODULE (SBCM) - This… |
| SA658 | Service bulletin | Aug 21, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: SBCM SOFTWARE LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SA658) - This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Side… |
| TSB_ELE426 | Service bulletin | Aug 19, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: AVN GEN 5.0 WIDE SOFTWARE UPDATE - This bulletin provides information on the Audio Video Navigation (AVN) system… |
| SA652 | Service bulletin | Aug 6, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: ULTRA-WIDE BAND SENSOR SOFTWARE UPDATE (SA652) - This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Ultra-Wideban… |
| SA653 | Service bulletin | Aug 5, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SUNROOF LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SA653) - This bulletin provides information to upgrade the Roof Control Module ‘RCM’… |
| SA651 | Over-the-air update | Jun 24, 2026 | TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN: SERVICE ACTION: DIGITAL KEY BATTERY: DISCHARGE LOGIC IMPROVEMENT (SA651) - This bulletin has been revised to inc… |
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Kia, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Kia SA640 a recall?
No. A service bulletin is a manufacturer communication filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR 579.5; a safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number (two digits, a letter, six digits) and a federal duty to repair for free. Check the vehicle’s recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls, or on its page here.
Is the SA640 repair free?
Not automatically. A service bulletin describes how to diagnose or repair a condition; who pays depends on the warranty in force, any extension, and the dealer. Quoting the number can save a diagnosis either way. Every Kia warranty extension on file lists the ones Kia has filed.
Which vehicles does SA640 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 1 model year: 2025 Kia Telluride. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone. The document itself sets the build window: 2025MY Telluride (ON): built on or after 2 Dec 2024; Telluride (ON): built 2 Dec 2024 – 17 Nov 2025 — the build date is on the certification label in the driver’s door jamb.