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NHTSA campaign 19V594000 · manufacturer recall SC181

2020 Kia Telluride: seat belts recall

If a child seat is not properly secured, there is an increased risk of injury to the occupant in a crash.

high 30,168 vehicles affected FMVSS 208 93% reported repaired

What was reported

Source: manufacturer filing, 49 CFR Part 573
Problem Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2020 Telluride vehicles. The seat belt assemblies in the front passenger, second, and/or third row seats may not tightly secure a child restraint system in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection." Risk If a child seat is not properly secured, there is an increased risk of injury to the occupant in a crash. Fix Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles and replace any incorrect seat belt assemblies. The repair will also include replacing the driver's seat belt which has a non-U.S. specified label, with a U.S. specification seat belt. The repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began August 30, 2019. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC181.

Reported to NHTSA Aug 13, 2019 by Kia Motors America, owners notified Aug 30, 2019.

What that means, in plain English

Source: WhichTrim's reading of the filing above — not NHTSA's wording

Seat belt assemblies that cannot properly secure a child restraint system in a crash directly reduces occupant protection, fitting the high category for restraint-system failure.

Written for us by a language model from the manufacturer's filed text, which is quoted in full above. Where the two differ, the filing is the record and this is only our summary of it.

The fix, from the dealer bulletin

Source: NHTSA remedy instructions and dealer notice
Stop-sale Yes: the bulletin says the vehicle may not be sold or delivered until repaired
Remedy Instructions filed: the dealer bulletin exists

Labour, as the warranty table lists it

  • 0.2 h · op 191A25I0
  • 1.2 h · op 191A25R0
  • 1.5 h · op 191A25R1
  • 1.9 h · op 191A25R2
  • 2.3 h · op 191A25R3
  • 2.7 h · op 191A25R4

The operation code and time the manufacturer pays the dealer; a customer-pay estimate elsewhere is a different number.

Torque

  • Torque specification for bolts (C): 28.9 – 39.8 ft.lb. (39.2 – 53.9 Nm
  • Torque specification for bolts (D): 28.9 – 39.8 ft.lb. (39.2 – 53.9 Nm
  • Torque specification for bolts (C & D): 28.9 – 39.8 ft.lb. (39.2 – 53.9 Nm

The advisory, as filed: “Under applicable law, you may not sell or otherwise deliver any affected vehicle until it has been repaired pursuant to the procedures set forth in this bulletin.”

Read from NHTSA’s copy of the manufacturer’s dealer documents (manufacturer campaign SC181). The procedure itself is in the bulletin; a franchised dealer has the current copy on the manufacturer’s portal, and that copy governs. Working a lot or a fleet? Recall Watch carries this line on every VIN it checks: remedy status, hours, stop-sale.

Which vehicles are covered

Source: NHTSA campaign 19V594000

Vehicles built Jan 9, 2019 to Aug 5, 2019 — a VIN outside that window is not part of this campaign even if the year, make and model match.

Model yearClassSafety SignalRecalls on file
2020 Kia TellurideLarge SUVF7

Those are the model years inside WhichTrim's range, 2016 onward. The campaign may cover others outside it, and the only thing that settles whether one specific vehicle is included is its VIN.

How much of it has been fixed

Source: manufacturer quarterly report, 49 CFR 573.7
Reported repaired 93%

of the campaign

The final figure: the six quarters of reporting that 49 cfr 573.7 requires have closed.

This is the manufacturer's own cumulative count of vehicles it has inspected and repaired, divided by the vehicles the campaign covers. It files that count with NHTSA every quarter for six consecutive quarters, starting from the quarter in which owners were told a remedy was ready, and then the obligation ends — so a figure on an older campaign is where the count stopped, not where it stands today.

It rarely reaches 100%, and not because the work was not done. The same report asks manufacturers to count vehicles they could not reach at all — exported, stolen, scrapped, or simply never located — and those stay in the denominator. A low number means a lot of these vehicles are still out there unrepaired; it does not tell you which ones.

The federal paperwork

Source: nhtsa.gov

Check one specific vehicle

A recall applies to a build range, so year, make and model cannot settle it. Type the VIN and the WhichTrim recall report checks this campaign’s build window and engine against it.

Campaign 19V594000 · the manufacturer calls it SC181

Own one, or run a fleet? Recall Watch checks each VIN against every new NHTSA campaign and emails you when one lands, this one's expansions included. Or take a free one-line alert by model year.

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A recall covers a build range. Only your VIN settles it.

Check it with the WhichTrim recall report now, or have us check it every night and email you when something new is filed.

Photo: Taiga Miyamoto / Unsplash

Common questions

Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR Part 573

Is SC181 the same recall as 19V594000?

Yes. SC181 is the number Kia Motors America uses for this campaign in its own paperwork and in the letter it sends owners. 19V594000 is the number NHTSA files it under. One recall, two references — dealers and service departments generally quote the manufacturer's.

Does this recall repair cost anything?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to remedy a safety defect or a compliance failure at no charge, for vehicles up to 15 years old measured from the date of first sale. A dealer that asks you to pay for a recall repair is in the wrong.

How do I know whether my vehicle is included?

By VIN, not by model year. This campaign covers vehicles built Jan 9, 2019 to Aug 5, 2019. The manufacturer files a build range with NHTSA and only vehicles inside it are covered, so two identical-looking cars from the same year can differ. NHTSA's own lookup checks a VIN against the manufacturer's list.

What if the repair is not available yet?

It happens, and often. Manufacturers must notify owners when a defect is found even if the parts or the software are not ready, then notify them a second time once the remedy exists. The remedy filed for this campaign is described above.

What did the manufacturer say was wrong?

The problem, risk and fix quoted on this page are the manufacturer's own words as filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR Part 573. WhichTrim does not paraphrase them.

Who started this recall?

NHTSA's record credits the manufacturer. A recall can begin with the manufacturer's own testing, with a defect investigation, or with a compliance test against a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.