Hyundai to recall 77,000 KONA Electric models over battery fire risk

Hyundai is being forced to recall  77,000 of its KONA electric model and replace their battery systems owing to the vehicle being linked with a string of electrical fires.

Recall and replacement of the batteries is set to cost the automaker $907 million (€751 million) and it will need to cooperate with its supplier, LG, as to how best divide the costs evenly based on an upcoming announcement from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) regarding the accidents.

Read more: Hyundai to develop own EV platform & charging systems

This is by far the biggest voluntary recall in Hyundai's history and the full programme is expected to take at least a year.

As of Monday, Hyundai Motor Company and LG will begin replacing battery systems that include battery cells, battery packs, and battery management systems of all KONA Electric models.

Fires were still being reported following a smaller recall, resulting in Hyundai being forced to offer battery replacement for a greater number of vehicles.

Rumours had been circulating for weeks over potential faults with KONA systems dating back to 2018.

Hyundai has been widely criticised for a belated recall and as many as 15 fires have been reported thus far, including five that occurred following a battery management system upgrade.

The automaker recently announced a US stop-sale and recall order and have also reportedly stopped domestic sales as well.

All the models recalled were made between September 2017 and March 2020.

While no one has officially been blamed for the fires, Hyundai's consensus is the faults say squarely on the shoulders of LG, which may prompt them to switch suppliers.

As such, various outlets have reported as much as two-thirds of the cost may be laid on the battery supplier.

A Hyundai spokesperson said the company were looking into various countermeasures, but nothing has been confirmed awaiting approval from MOLIT.

Other experts have expressed their support for Hyundai's decision.

Professor Park Cheol-wan of Seojeong College told the Electronic Times: “Although it will take some time to replace the entire battery systems, it is the right decision. Because a battery separator film can be filtered through the back-end battery process on normal conditions and be observed before ignition, it cannot be a cause of the fires.”

Hyundai's misadventure is not the only mass recall of electric vehicles made this year.

Tesla has had to recall 135,000 Model X and Model S owing to technical fault making their on-board touchscreens fail.

Read more: Tesla to recall 135,000 vehicles due to hardware failures

The company previously claimed this was not a safety concern, but opted to recall the vehicles anyway after a The US's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigation found it could offer a serious threat to safety for drivers.

Ford also postponed development on its Escape SUV following a recall of its Kuga model after fire risks were discovered last year.

The US-based automotive giant had to recall 20,500 vehicles owing to a fault discovered in Europe in which the battery packs were venting gas, which presented a serious fire risk.

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