2020 Telluride AWD rear end jerking thumping and vibrating

[JerseySXP]

Sadly, most of them don't care once the sale is finalized. I stayed at the dealer's while the General Manager and Sales Manager test drove it. I needed to avoid close contact so I let them go. Of course, when they came back, the GM said he couldn't feel any vibration and the SM said I must have fixed it somehow. Ha! I didn't get off the lot and their Used Car Manager called me saying they would purchase it for $44,200. I got them up to $44,700. They already had a buyer for it. For spite, I traded it at Toyota and saved on the sales tax.
JerseySXP, you're wasting your time dealing with the dealer and Kia tech. Just go pay the $50-75 for an independent inspection. That will be your leverage. Then file under the Lemon Law, make a complaint to NHSTA, and let's look for an attorney for a clas-action suit.

I have to go through at least 3 attempts before claiming this as a lemon.

Called a few places near me and they only work with mechanics meaning they will diagnose the driveshaft / balance it but they don't touch any vehicles. Completely different kind of insurance.

I'll know tomorrow if I'm wasting my time as it's my second face to face with this SM.

 

[JerseySXP]

put my Telluride on ramps and took a look underneath - no noticeable damage to the driveshaft from delivery. It's a total of 9 Bolts to take the driveshaft off - if the SM and Tech line don't agree to put a socket wrench to it for a total of 2 minutes and remove it I'll flip out...

 

[Cmd111183]

So I just experienced this problem for the first time and found this forum when searching for causes/answers.


Happened to me at a lower speed, maybe around 45mph-50mph. Only thing different today is that I flipped Snow Mode on. We had a blizzard last night. Part way home and I turned Snow Mode off (back to Comfort) and almost immediately the car started to vibrate. Reminded me a lot of the Jeep death wobble. I didn't have time to read all 45 pages of replies so if anyone has found a solution and can message me or reply, that would be awesome.

 

[Nightcrawler1215]

So I just experienced this problem for the first time and found this forum when searching for causes/answers.


Happened to me at a lower speed, maybe around 45mph-50mph. Only thing different today is that I flipped Snow Mode on. We had a blizzard last night. Part way home and I turned Snow Mode off (back to Comfort) and almost immediately the car started to vibrate. Reminded me a lot of the Jeep death wobble. I didn't have time to read all 45 pages of replies so if anyone has found a solution and can message me or reply, that would be awesome.

Maybe a silly suggestion but could it have just been ice/snow build up causing an unbalanced wheel?

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[Cmd111183]

Maybe a silly suggestion but could it have just been ice/snow build up causing an unbalanced wheel?

That was my first thought too, but doesn't seem to be the case. Roads were fairly well plowed and car is garage kept. I'm going to keep an eye on it. Let it sit overnight and drive again tomorrow to see if it resolved itself.

 

[JerseySXP]

So I just experienced this problem for the first time and found this forum when searching for causes/answers.


Happened to me at a lower speed, maybe around 45mph-50mph. Only thing different today is that I flipped Snow Mode on. We had a blizzard last night. Part way home and I turned Snow Mode off (back to Comfort) and almost immediately the car started to vibrate. Reminded me a lot of the Jeep death wobble. I didn't have time to read all 45 pages of replies so if anyone has found a solution and can message me or reply, that would be awesome.

Here is something from the manual - maybe going from snow mode or AWD lock can cause something similar:

When the AWD LOCK mode is deactivated, a shock may be felt as the drive
power is delivered entirely to the front wheels. This shock is not a mechani-
cal failure.

 

[JerseySXP]

That was my first thought too, but doesn't seem to be the case. Roads were fairly well plowed and car is garage kept. I'm going to keep an eye on it. Let it sit overnight and drive again tomorrow to see if it resolved itself.

Let me know if you still feel it tomorrow.
Did you ever feel it before?

 

[Cmd111183]

Let me know if you still feel it tomorrow.
Did you ever feel it before?

Nope first time which is why I'm almost certain it was related to the Snow mode. Are we not allowed to switch driving modes while in motion maybe?

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[JerseySXP]

Nope first time which is why I'm almost certain it was related to the Snow mode. Are we not allowed to switch driving modes while in motion maybe?

Haven't come across that in the manual. I can't see why that would cause serious damage.

Keep driving it and see if it's still there.

If so then the mystery continues to deepen...changing modes during driving causing new vibration issues...that's a first I must say but damn...

 

[mgoblue]

Can you help me understand the test drives that you took with the SM, if any? Did he drive, or did you?

OR

Did you just drop it off and they took care of everything else in regards to test driving, diagnosing, what steps to take, etc?...the SM never emailed me back from my note on yday and I can now tell I'm not working with a SM who seems to give a crap about my issue and he controls all conversations with Techline (unfortunately).

I have done nothing with/at the dealership so I can’t offer much help here.

It’s a long story but I’ve had other issues with my Telluride (poorly installed rear glass, camera flicker) even before the vibration one. The glass issue was going to require a few hours of time, and because of distance/pandemic/kids, plus the dealership caring deeply about their reviews and customer satisfaction, I worked it out with them to do a pickup and dropoff of the vehicle (eg drive a loaner to my house, take my Telly, and then do the reverse after the work was done) rather than me bringing it in. That set a precedent for all my additional visits, so I haven’t actually gone to my dealership myself in a few months.

It’s 60 miles round trip, and they’ve had to do multiple rounds, so that gave them plenty of test driving of their own. Everything else has just been phone/email convos. They manage everything themselves and just keep me updated.

Note - for how great my dealer is, they are still beholden to the tech line rules and just did whatever they were told, which included that test. So regarding your driveshaft removal and drive, I think you have to hope that techline will respond that way about yours. If not, your dealer probably won’t do it on their own (which will be frustrating, I know).

 

[Deleter]

Anybody feel a oscillating vibration at around 70mph?
SX AWD

Once Kia fixed yours, any more problems? I have a SX AWD ordered with a January ETA. I'm not sure I want it, as the problem still continues with recent AWDs per comments on this forum. Thinking to wait for a FWD instead.

 

[Bev]

Once Kia fixed yours, any more problems? I have a SX AWD ordered with a January ETA. I'm not sure I want it, as the problem still continues with recent AWDs per comments on this forum. Thinking to wait for a FWD instead.

Don't buy an AWD until Kia is forced to fix it. You'll be really upset and stuck with it. I just took a little loss trading mine in for a Toyota Highlander FWD.
I posted an attachment earlier this week. I took mine for an independent diagnosis at a Driveshaft Speciality shop. There's a design flaw.

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[qwikhit]

Seems like there needs to be a poll on this thread to document who is having vibrations and who isn't for AWD vehicles

 

[JerseySXP]

Seems like there needs to be a poll on this thread to document who is having vibrations and who isn't for AWD vehicles

that's not a bad idea - also trying to match it up with MFR dates could prove useful.

All in all - still looks like its rare although we've had 2 new users make accounts the past 24-48 hours coming here to share their issues/concerns...

 

[qwikhit]

Forums bring out more of negatives than the positives. More will come I'm sure

 

[JerseySXP]

Forums bring out more of negatives than the positives. More will come I'm sure

I disagree with this - look at this thread:

Did I make a mistake buying a Telluride?

you, like many owners, became a victim. And yes, you made a mistake.

tellurideforum.org

A lot more positive reviews than negative - most of us are just asking folks to take their delivery on a highway before signing on the dotted line.

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[qwikhit]

Car forums in general not just this forum

 

[Bev]

Seems like there needs to be a poll on this thread to document who is having vibrations and who isn't for AWD vehicles

The problem with that is you really don't know if they're having issues or not. Some people hardly ever get on the highway for speeds of 60-80 mph. Some people may blame it on the roads, and then some people may not admit we all got duped. And then you may have some people that don't know if they have an AWD or FWD. hahahaha

 

[JerseySXP]

Just had my families lifelong mechanic take a ride with me. He sat in multiple seats of the vehicle as I was driving.

His observations:

1. The fact that I'm not feeling anything in the steering wheel and only in the seats is a dead giveaway that it's not Tire Related. 99% of Tire issues make the steering wheel act wonky.
2. He jumped around from seat to seat and said he felt it everywhere.
3. He said though it may be subtle its a defect and easily fixable - there shouldn't be this vibration in a brand new car.

That's it - I'll fight Kia until they take down my damn driveshaft and let me test drive it without it on.

He cautioned anyone thinking about removing those 9 bolts and testing it out themselves because Kia will blame you for said issue.

 

[Bev]

Just had my families lifelong mechanic take a ride with me. He sat in multiple seats of the vehicle as I was driving.

His observations:

1. The fact that I'm not feeling anything in the steering wheel and only in the seats is a dead giveaway that it's not Tire Related. 99% of Tire issues make the steering wheel act wonky.
2. He jumped around from seat to seat and said he felt it everywhere.
3. He said though it may be subtle its a defect and easily fixable - there shouldn't be this vibration in a brand new car.

That's it - I'll fight Kia until they take down my damn driveshaft and let me test drive it without it on.

He cautioned anyone thinking about removing those 9 bolts and testing it out themselves because Kia will blame you for said issue.

Exactly. If anything is done without Kia's blessing, you void your warranty.
I'm still communicating with Kia Consumers and I sent them a copy of the findings from the Driveshaft Specialist.
I'm telling you, you need to take it to one and have a written report so you have something to fight with. The Kia Tech line works directly for Kia and is going to play the game Kia tells them to do so you won't get a fair report from them or the dealer. Sad but true. Fortunately, it's not that expensive to have it checked, just inconvenient to be without your vehicle for a day or two.