Hyundai, Kia Being Investigated for Air Bag Failures
Hyundai and Kia are being investigated by safety watchdog groups in the United States due to multiple reports of airbag failures in the Korean brands’ vehicles.
According to Reuters, the National Highway Traffic Saftey Administration has received reports of six crashes in which six separate people were injured when the airbags failed to deploy in Hyundai and Kia cars. Four of the accidents were in 2011 Hyundai Sonata sedans, while two were in 2012 and 2013 Kia Fortes.
Hyundai-Kia also said it was aware of two deaths linked to the crashes, which were reportedly the result of high-speed head on collisions.
NHTSA is currently looking at recalling 425,000 2012-2013 Kia Forte and 2011 Hyundai Sonata vehicles. The airbag modules in the affected cars are supplied by German automotive supplier ZF-TRW, and the safety group is investigating whether or not the modules were used in cars from different manufacturers.
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Last month, Hyundai recalled 154,753 Sonata sedans in the US after airbag non-deployments were linked to electrical problems in the airbag control unit. It hasn’t found a fix for that recall yet, however.
In a statement, Hyundai-Kia said it has “carefully monitored the quality and safety performance of the 2012-2013 Kia Forte,” and “has not confirmed any airbag non-deployments arising from the potential chip issue,” that plagued the Sonata. It also said it will work with NHTSA on the investigation “including monitoring and conducting additional crash testing as appropriate.”
More to come.
[Source: Reuters]
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Sam McEachern holds a diploma in journalism from St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, and has been covering the automotive industry for over 5 years. He conducts reviews and writes AutoGuide's news content. He's a die-hard motorsports fan with a passion for performance cars of all sorts.
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