More than 570,000 Hyundai and Kia cars recalled due to fire risk
Hyundai and Kia are recalling more than 570,000 vehicles over fears their towbars could catch fire due to an electrical short.
The recall, announced Thursday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, affects the 2022-23 Santa Cruz, 2019-23 Hyundai Santa Fe, 2021-23 Santa Fe Hybrid, 2022-23 Santa Fe Plug-in Hybrid and 2022-23 Kia Carnival models.
NHTSA urged owners to park their cars outside until repairs can be arranged.
Thursday’s action is related to a previous recall in August 2022 in which 245,030 Hyundai Palisades were recalled due to fire hazards. In that case, NHTSA warned that dirt and moisture can build up on a circuit board that’s part of the vehicle’s tow bar, in some cases shorting it out and causing a fire.
Owners can determine if their vehicle is affected by the recall by going to NHTSA.gov/recalls and entering their 17-digit vehicle identification number.