US Investigates Deaths in Hyundai-Kia Cars When Air Bags Failed

FILE - South Korea's largest automaker Hyundai Motor, and its second largest, Kia Motors, reached a settlement with 33 states and Washington, D.C., over charges that they inflated their fuel economy numbers.

Air luggage in some Hyundai and Kia cars didn't inflate in crashes and 4 individuals ar dead. Now the U.S. government’s road safety agency desires to understand why.

The National main road Traffic Safety Administration says it’s work issues that associate degree effect on} an calculable 425,000 cars created by the Korean automakers. The agency is also wanting into whether or not an equivalent drawback may happen in vehicles created by different corporations.

In documents denote on its web site Sat , the security agency says the probe covers 2011 Hyundai serious music midsize cars and 2012 and 2013 Kia Forte compacts. The agency says it's reports of six front-end crashes with vital harm to the cars. Four individuals died and 6 were blistered.

Electrical circuits

The problem has been copied to circuit shorts in constraint management computers created by elements provider ZF-TRW. NHTSA currently desires to understand if different automakers used an equivalent laptop.

On Feb. 27, Hyundai recalled nearly a hundred and fifty five,000 Sonatas thanks to constraint failures, that the corporate curst on the short circuits.Hyundai’s sister manufacturer Kia, that sells similar vehicles, has however to issue a recall.

In a statement Sat, Kia aforementioned that it's not confirmed any constraint non-deployments in its 2002-2013 Kia Forte models arising from “the potential chip issue.” the corporate aforementioned it'll work with NHTSA investigators.

“Kia can act promptly to conduct a security recall, if it determines that a recall would be applicable,” the corporate aforementioned.

But a shopper grievance cited in NHTSA’s investigation documents aforementioned Kia was sophisticated of a crash close to city within which air luggage didn't deploy and a traveller was killed.

In Oct 2015, the litigator told NHTSA that a 2012 Forte was concerned in a very serious front-end crash that occurred in Gregorian calendar month 2013. A traveller was killed and therefore the driver was blistered. in step with the grievance, Kia was notified, the constraint laptop was tested and it had been “found to not be operating.”

Kia interpreter James Bell aforementioned he couldn't comment on the far side the company’s statement.

Hyundai recall

In addition, no deaths or injuries were disclosed in Hyundai’s recall documents, that were denote by NHTSA in early March.

Hyundai interpreter Jim Trainor says the matter occurred in rare high-speed head-on collisions that were offset from the middle of the vehicles. “It’s terribly uncommon to own that sort of collision,” he aforementioned Sat.

Dealers can contemplate giving loaner cars to house owners till the matter is repaired, he said. “We actually would do everything we will to assist our customers,” Trainor aforementioned.

Hyundai aforementioned in a very statement that the constraint management electronic equipment was broken in 3 crashes and a fourth crash is beneath investigation.

ZF-TRW aforementioned in a very statement that it's prevented by confidentiality agreements from distinctive different automakers that bought its constraint management computers. the corporate aforementioned it's operating with customers and supports the NHTSA investigation.

According to NHTSA, Hyundai investigated and located the matter was “electrical overstress” within the computers. the corporate didn’t have a fix developed at the time however aforementioned it had been work the matter with ZF-TRW. Hyundai doesn't however have a fix for the matter however aforementioned it expects the serious music recall to begin Apr twenty. the matter can also stop the seat belts from adjustment before a crash.

In the documents, NHTSA aforementioned it beneathstands that the Kia Fortes under investigation use similar constraint management computers created by ZF-TRW. The agency noted a 2016 recall involving over one.4 million rescript Chrysler cars and SUVs that had an identical drawback inflicting the air luggage to not deploy. Agency documents show those vehicles had constraint computers created by ZF-TRW.