Hyundai Motor America and Kia America Tuesday announced recalls for thousands of Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride vehicles due to risk of fire related to an accessory attachment.
According to a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration release, owners of “select Model Year 2020-2022 Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride vehicles,” should “park their cars outside and away from homes and other structures until their vehicles have been repaired.”
A “stop sale” for unsold vehicles that could potentially be affected was also issued along with the recall. Overall, 245,030 Hyundai Palisade vehicles and 36,417 Kia Telluride vehicles are impacted by the recall as of Tuesday.
The recall concerns an accessory tow hitch sold at dealers. This hitch may allow moisture into the harness module, which in turn can cause a short circuit. NHTSA documents show the issue is under investigation.
“In some cases, an electrical short can cause a vehicle fire while driving or while parked and turned off,” said the NHTSA release.
However, there have been no confirmed fires related to the issue in the U.S. so far. Additionally, there have been not been any confirmed crashes or injuries in the U.S. related to the recall.
Approximately 40,480 tow hitch accessory wiring harness assemblies were included with an accessory tow hitch, or sold as a service part for Hyundai Palisade vehicles included in the recall.
“To identify all vehicles equipped with potentially affected tow hitch wiring harnesses, all model year 2020-2022 Palisade vehicles sold in the U.S. are expected to be involved in this recall,” said NHTSA documents.
Documents regarding the Kia recall identify a “Genuine Kia 4-pin tow hitch harness accessory supplied by Mobis Parts America,” that was discontinued. It also said “a recall population was determined by a review of vehicle production and part sales records.”
Owners of the affected Hyundai Palisades can bring them to Hyundai dealers for inspection of the tow hitch module and removal of the fuse, as necessary for an interim repair. An interim repair option is not yet available for Kia vehicles.
“The recall repair is under development,” said the NHTSA. “When a repair is available, all owners of vehicles potentially equipped with affected trailer hitch wiring harnesses will be notified by mail with instructions to bring their vehicles to a Hyundai or Kia dealer.”
Information about the recalls are available on the NHTSA website.
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