After a slew of thefts of Kia and Hyundai vehicles, the City of St. Louis has threatened legal action against the two companies, claiming their cars have defects that make them easy to steal.
KMOX Auto Show host Greg Damon joined Total Information AM to explain the phenomenon.
"It's kind of kind of crazy to think how easy these things are to steal," Damon said. "And just think about it. They're using a USB cable, which could come right out of your USB car charger, and they may steal a car with your own USB cable."
Damon said it's not exactly a design flaw that makes the cars easy to steal. Since the cars are push-starts, meaning drivers don't have to insert a key, there are simple ways for people to get the car running.
"What they do is they come in, they break the steering column, the plastic cowling around the column, pull that down," he explained. "And there's actually a thing that the ignition switch hooks onto that a USB cable will fit right on. They just use a USB cable, turn it like a key, start the vehicle and drive away in it."
He said for people with Kias or Hyundais who want to protect their cars, you canbuy a club which goes across the steering wheel. In October, Hyundai plans to start selling an immobilizer kit that people can purchase.
"These cars don't have an immobilizer. I'm sure everybody's heard about a key or chip inside your key where the car recognizes the key and will start up," he said. "These do not have that. There's no really security feature for the keys. That's why they're so easy to steal."
Hear more from Greg Damon about Kia and Hyundai thefts in the area, and how to protect your vehicle:
Copyright 2022 KMOX (Audacy). All Rights Reserved.
Follow KMOX | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Listen on the free Audacy app.
Ask your smart speaker to play K M O X.