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DETROIT (AP) – Hyundai and Kia have added more than half a million vehicles to a three-and-a-half-year chain of US recalls for engine failures and fires. Three recalls released by the government on Thursday add new problems and new vehicles to the list of Korean manufacturers' safety issues, which has sparked hundreds of fire-related complaints across the country.
Since September 2015, companies have recalled to nearly 2.4 million vehicles that are victims of fires and engine failures and are currently under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for their potential slowness in repairing defective vehicles.
In addition, companies are conducting a "product improvement campaign" covering 3.7 million additional vehicles to install software that will alert drivers of possible engine failures and will send cars into "reduced speed" mode if problems are detected.
The most important of the three recalls, released on Thursday on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website, are about 379,000 small Kia Soul SUVs from 2012 to 2016 equipped with 1.6-liter engines. The documents show that the high temperatures of the exhaust gases can damage the catalytic converters, which control the pollution. This can cause abnormal combustion and damage pistons and connecting rods. A faulty connecting rod can pierce the engine block and cause oil leaks that can cause fires.
In addition, Hyundai and Kia recall 152,000 Tuscon SUVs from 2011 to 2013 and Sportage from 2011 to 2012 in order to repair a leak in the engine oil sump that could also cause a fire.
Documents show that Kia was investigating fires in Souls after the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety asked the government to review the fires last year. In November, the builder could not detect any trends in safety issues, but continued to monitor repair data and find the problem with the catalytic converters.
All souls equipped with 1.6-liter engines manufactured from July 8, 2011 to August 11, 2016 are recalled. Dealers will replace a computer that prevents the catalytic converter from overheating. They will also replace the catalytic converter and the engine if they have been damaged. The letters will be mailed to the owners as of April 12th.
A coach carrying greyhounds carrying a lacrosse team catches fire on the Schuylkill highway
Hyundai, which is affiliated with Kia, also offers models with a 1.6-liter engine. But spokesman Jim Trainor said that they were different from Soul with different control software. Kia spokesman James Bell said he would check the other models.
In the Tuscon and Sportage recalls, the solution to the problem of oil tanks is still under development. Owners of Hyundai will be notified as of March 29, while Kia owners will receive letters starting April 10.
In a letter to lawmakers on Wednesday, the Center for Auto Safety called on Congress to take action to hold Hyundai and Kia accountable for failing to repair millions of fire-prone vehicles. The center said the government had more than 300 Hyundai-Kia-related fire complaints, which is high compared to similar vehicles.
"We hope that Kia Souls' best late memory will help address this flaw causing a fire," said Jason Levine, executive director of the center. "Still, one has to wonder why Kia's initial reaction was to deny the validity of our petition, especially since dozens of fires involving these vehicles have been reported up to the end of the day. last summer."
Levine stated that Kia denied having any fire problems with the Soul and asked why the company was resisting recalls from other vehicles exposed to the fires.
In a reminder, NHTSA said it had scheduled a meeting with Hyundai to discuss the investigation of the fire and engine failure, but that the meeting had to be canceled due to the partial closure of the government. The documents do not say whether this has occurred since the end of the 35-day shutdown period.
An NHTSA spokeswoman said the agency had communicated with both automakers since the reopening of the government.
The documents in the last series of recalls do not specify whether there were fires or injuries. In January, Kia announced six fires among vehicles recalled due to fuel leaks, while Hyundai said it did not report a fire. Neither company reported injuries.
Levine said that fire complaints to NHTSA came from across the country, including a death in Ohio in April 2017.
(© Copyright 2019 by Associated Press Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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