Hyundai warns owners to park outside, recalls 180,000 SUVs

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“This recall of brand new models finally peels back the story that the epidemic of Hyundais catching fire were only happening on their older vehicles and they fixed the problem,” Levine said.

by Tom Krisher, Associated Press

September 11, 2020

Detroit – For the second time this month, Hyundai is telling some SUV owners to park outdoors because an electrical short in a computer could cause vehicles to catch fire.

The Korean automaker is recalling about 180,000 Tucson SUVs in the U.S. from 2019 through 2021 to fix the problem. The company says corrosion can cause a short circuit in defective anti-lock brake circuit boards that can cause a fire even if engines are off.

Hyundai says on Friday that it knows of a dozen engine fires caused by the problem but no injuries.

In addition, Hyundai says if the anti-lock brake warning light comes on, the SUVs should not be driven and owners should disconnect the positive cable on the battery. They should contact a dealer who will provide a loaner vehicle if needed.

Separately, Kia, which is affiliated with Hyundai, is recalling more than 9,000 Stinger sports cars with 3.3-liter turbocharged engines for a similar problem. Documents posted by U.S. safety regulators say fires can occur in the area of the anti-lock brake control computer.

Kia said in a statement Friday it has six fire reports with no injuries. The company has no reports of fires after engines are turned off, but it’s still recommending they be parked outdoors until repairs are made, “out of an abundance of caution,” the statement said. The cause of the fires isn’t known yet.

The recalls are the latest in a series of engine fire problems that have plagued the two automakers and have touched off investigations by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Hyundai will notify owners of the recall by mail starting around Oct. 30. In the meantime, owners can key in their 17-digit vehicle identification number at www.hyundaiusa.com/recalls to see if their Tucson is affected.

The automaker said it’s investigating whether the same problem is happening in other countries.

On Sept. 3, U.S. safety regulators announced that Hyundai and Kia would recall over 600,000 vehicles in the U.S. and Canada to fix a brake fluid leak that could cause engine fires.

 

Read the full article from The Detroit News.