Hyundai Recalls 26,000 Velosters Over a Fire Hazard Related To Parking Sensors

(CTN News) – Hyundai is recalling 26,169 Hyundai Velosters as a result of an electrical issue that can result in a fire in the vehicle.

RPAS, or more commonly known as parking assist, is a sensor that is used to assist the driver in reverse in cars equipped with the Reverse Aid Parking Sensor (RPAS) for the 2012 and 2013 model years.

The owners of the affected cars are expected to be notified in April 2023 that their cars have been affected.

According to a report by Consumer Reports, documentation filed by Hyundai to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) confirms that five reports of fires have occurred as a result of the issue, but no injuries or crashes have been reported as a result.

Due to inadequate waterproofing on the RPAS, there is a short in the circuit board as a result of water entering the module and shorting the circuit board.

The first short reaction is a fire, but it is not fully formed or complete until it has a few symptoms that come from the initial water intrusion.

Owners of cars that have RPAS modules that are compromised may not be able to use the rear parking assist features of their cars, and they may have their car stuck in park to begin with, at least for those car owners that have automatic transmissions.

There is no explanation as to why the transmission is stuck in park as a result of this fault.

In addition to this recall, Hyundai has faced several fire risk related recalls in the past month with CR noting that 7 million Hyundai and Kia vehicles have been recalled for fire risks in a number of its vehicles’ subsystems in recent months.

There have been a wide range of causes for the problem from faulty wiring harnesses to engines themselves, to battery problems. Moreover, it recently allocated $2 billion for fixing recurring problems which affected its Theta GDI engines, which ate heavily into the company’s profits over time.

As well as this, Hyundai had recalled an Elantra and an Accent because the pre-tensioners for the seatbelts exploded. Several criticisms have also been leveled at Kia recently after it came under fire for the infamous USB hack that allows thieves to easily steal Kia cars equipped with a physical key to be taken away.

The NHTSA has launched investigations into both Hyundai and Kia vehicles for alleged defects, and both companies are facing class-action lawsuits over the issues and problems.

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