Park outside: Hyundai, Kia recall vehicles due to fire hazard
Hyundai and Kia are asking owners of more than 571,000 SUVs and minivans in the United States on Friday to park them outdoors because the trailer hitch harnesses can catch fire while parked or being driven. (David Zalubowski, Associated Press)
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DETROIT – Hyundai and Kia are asking owners of more than 571,000 SUVs and minivans in the U.S. to park them outdoors because the trailer hitch harnesses can catch fire while parked or being driven.
The associated Korean automakers are recalling the vehicles and warning people to park them away from structures until repairs are made.
Affected Hyundai vehicles include the 2019 to 2023 Santa Fe, 2021 to 2023 Santa Fe Hybrid, 2022 and 2023 Santa Fe Plug-in Hybrid and 2022 and 2023 Santa Cruz. The only Kia affected is the 2022 and 2023 Carnival minivan. All have Hyundai or Kia towbars that came as original equipment or were installed by dealers.
The Korean automakers say in documents released Thursday by U.S. safety regulators that water can get into a circuit board on the connectors and cause a short circuit even if the ignitions are off.
Hyundai has reports of one fire and five incidents of heat damage without injury. Kia has no reports of fire or injuries.
Dealers will first remove the fuse and trailer data module until a solution is available. Later they will install a new fuse and wire extension with an improved connector that is waterproof. Owners will be notified as of May 16.
Last year, Hyundai recalled more than 245,000 Palisade SUVs from 2020 to 2022 for a similar problem.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday that the latest recall is a direct result of the agency monitoring the Palisade recall from last year.
