Kia wants lakhs of owners to park cars outside homes, issues recall order in US
Kia has issued recall orders in the US for almost 400,000 vehicles to check a possible fault that could, in the worst case, lead to fire in the engine compartment area. Advising owners of the suspected vehicles to park these cars outside garages and in open areas, Kia plans to investigate the issue with certain vehicles.
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The suspected vehicles include Sportage SUV produced between 2017 and 2021, and Cadenza sedans produced between 2017 and 2019. According to Kia, a short circuit in the hydraulic electronic brake control unit may potentially result in excessive current that could in turn lead to a fire.
Owners of these vehicles are being asked to check for early signs of a problem by seeing if the tire pressure, anti-lock brake or other warning lights on their dashboard come on before any of these problems are actually observed. Kia is also asking owners to be mindful of any burning or melting odour.
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Kia has further informed that the recalled vehicles are not equipped with Kia's Smart Cruise Control system.
Owners of potentially affected will start getting notified about bringing in their car for a check from April 30 and dealers are tasked with replacing fuses in the electrical junction box.
Kia, in its report to US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has stated that no accident, injuries or deaths have been reported in a Kia car because of the suspected problem.
The NHTSA has been keeping a very close watch on Kia and Hyundai since 2019 and even fined both companies hefty amounts for previously failing to issue timely recall orders. Together, the two car makers were ordered to pay $137 million in fines and for safety improvements after it was found that they moved slow to recall a million vehicles with suspected faults.
Kia denied the charges but chose not to pursue legal options
