Six months after Hyundai and Kia issued a recall of 3.4 million of its vehicles in the United States because they risked catching fire, whether the engines were on or off, most of those vehicles remain on the road unrepaired.
Aschedule that Hyundai filed with the government shows that owners won’t start receiving letters advising them to take their cars in for repairs until April 22 at the earliest. Most of them won’t get the letters until May or June — eight or nine months after the recalls were announced.
The lack of repair put owners, families, homes and garages in danger of fires which have occurred when brake fluid leaked onto the circuit boards of antilock braking systems, triggering an electrical short and igniting the fluid. Thus far, 56 vehicle fires and “thermal incidents,” have occurred which include burning, melting and smoking.
Hyundai and Kia acknowledged that there was little hope of repairing most of the affected vehicles until June or later, roughly nine months after they announced the recalls. Delays were attributed to the huge number of vehicles involved.
According to both companies, they’ve been unable to obtain enough of the needed parts — fuses that reduce the boards’ electrical currents — to fix most of the affected vehicles. Hyundai and Kia have urged the vehicles’ owners to contact the companies or dealers if they see dashboard warning lights or smell something burning, but say the cars remain safe to drive.
Safety advocates complain that it may take 10 weeks before repairs begin, and sometimes longer. During that that time, owners are urged to outside and away from other vehicles. Additionally, if too much brake fluid leaks, it could impair braking or lengthen the distance to stop a car.
Auto safety advocates also say they’re mystified about why it’s taking so long for Hyundai and Kia to obtain the necessary fuses, a relatively simple part, with some questioning whether a fuse will reliably solve the brake fluid leak.