Second major recall may have lead to this result
No changes expected for other markets
News from Korea says that Hyundai will end domestic sales of the Kona Electric after a series of issues lead to a pair of large recalls on the vehicles.
Reuters reports that South Korean cable news channel YTN said Hyundai was reviewing the end of Kona EV sales in the country after a series of issues involving fires and faulty braking systems.
The first recall was in October, where Hyundai Kona EVs in the country were recalled because of a risk of short circuit related to faulty manufacturing of the high-voltage battery cells. The recall included software updates and battery replacements and affected more than 25,000 Kona EVs sold in South Korea and built from September 2017 through March 2020. 50,864 Kona EV and Nexo fuel-cell models were recalled over faulty braking system electronics.
Hyundai declined to confirm the reports to Reuters but said that “We are reviewing various options as we prepare to launch the Ioniq 5” midsize crossover EV.
The battery recalls affected around 11,000 vehicles in North America and more in Europe. The braking issue, which was a potential defect with the brake booster, is more recent, having just come to light yesterday in the form of a recall by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
