Class Action Says ‘Defective’ 2020 Kia Telluride Windshields Prone to Crack, Chip, Fracture

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The windshield found on the 2020 Kia Telluride crossover SUV is defective in that it’s prone to crack, chip or fracture “for no reason at all” or upon a “very slight impact,” a proposed class action lawsuit claims. 

The 54-page complaint, filed in California’s Central District, alleges defendant Kia Motors America has known of the windshield issue since at least 2019 and, despite admitting to the problem’s existence, has “fraudulently misrepresented” the nature and extent of the defect while systematically denying valid warranty claims. 

Instead, Kia has “merely replaced defective windshields with other similarly defective windshields,” the plaintiff, a Houston resident, alleges, claiming some drivers have had to replace their windshields multiple times.

“Had Plaintiff and Class Members known about the Windshield Defect, they would not have purchased the class vehicles or would have paid substantially less for them,” the case contests.

Car and Driver published in October 2019 an article centered on the unusually high number of Kia Telluride owners who reported the apparent windshield defect to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the suit says. The following month, according to the complaint, Kia sent some, but not all, 2020 Telluride owners a “customer satisfaction initiative” letter in which the automaker purported that it would replace some windshields as part of a “goodwill gesture,” though the suit says such repairs would be performed under warranty. 

When the plaintiff brought her vehicle to an authorized Kia dealer in January 2020 and referenced the letter, however, the driver was told the repair would cost roughly $1,000 out of pocket, the lawsuit says, arguing Kia’s “customer satisfaction initiative” was no more than a ruse that left thousands of affected drivers out in the cold. 

“The Goodwill Letter is a wholly inadequate and illusory sham remedy for the Windshield Defect,” the suit scathes, relaying Kia’s letter falsely suggested the issue was caused by an “outside influence” and was therefore not covered under the automaker’s new vehicle limited warranty.

“Indeed, [Kia] claims that it ‘will replace your Telluride’s windshield as a goodwill gesture should it chip or crack thereby preventing repair of the chip while we continue to investigate this issue,’ not pursuant to its warranty,” the suit reads. 

In all, the Kia Telluride windshield defect poses “an extreme safety hazard” in that a spontaneous shattering or cracking event can impair a driver’s view, distract a driver and/or lead to dislodged glass harming those in the vehicle and pedestrians, the complaint relays. Moreover, the suit stresses a vehicle’s windshield is part of a network of safety features whose efficacy is dependent on each individual component functioning properly. If a Telluride’s windshield is compromised, the lawsuit says, the airbag “may be useless” in a collision.

Still further, a vehicle’s windshield is crucial to the car’s structural integrity, and plays a part in ensuring the roof does not collapse in the event of a rollover, according to the complaint. 

Despite being on notice with regard to the windshield defect, Kia has failed to offer drivers a suitable repair or replacement free of charge and has not offered reimbursement to those who paid out of pocket to replace their windshields, the lawsuit goes on, claiming that without the court’s intervention, the automaker will continue to reap significant profits from knowingly selling defective Telluride SUVs. 

“Kia has and will continue to benefit from its unlawful conduct – by selling more vehicles, at a higher price, and avoiding warranty obligations – while consumers are harmed at the point of sale as their vehicles continue to suffer from the unremedied Windshield Defect,” the plaintiff argues.

The lawsuit’s filing comes nearly four months after a judge gave the preliminary green light to a sizable $758 million settlement covering qualified Hyundai and Kia drivers whose cars were equipped with engines susceptible to catching fire. 

The suit alleges violations of the Texas Deceptive Practices Act and federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. 

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