Hyundai recalls 58,000 Palisade SUVs in South Korea due to automatic seat problem
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
SEOUL, March 24 : South Korea's transport ministry announced on Tuesday the recall of 58,000 Hyundai Motor Palisade hybrid sport utility vehicles nationwide over safety concerns, following a fatal accident in the United States earlier this month.
Hyundai stopped sales of some high-end versions of its new Palisade SUVs and recalled 68,500 new Palisade SUVs in the United States and Canada after a two-year-old girl in Ohio died on March 7. Local media reports said the automatic seat collapsed on the child sitting in the third row of a Palisade SUV. Hyundai has said it is investigating what happened.
On Monday, Hyundai reported that two passengers of Palisade SUVs in South Korea had been injured in October and December last year possibly due to a problem with the automatic seats.
That came after the automaker reported to the U.S. safety regulator last week four injuries in the United States linked to the power seat issue.
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
South Korea’s transport ministry said the Palisade’s second- and third-row seats failed to detect contact with occupants or objects due to inadequate software design in the seat controllers, posing safety risks.
On Friday, Hyundai started offering software updates to address safety concerns as an interim step, the transport ministry said, adding that Hyundai is considering additional measures to enhance safety.
Palisade was Hyundai's top-selling SUV in South Korea last year. Meritz Securities said in a report that should the recall involve hardware replacement, it would cost the automaker about 100 billion won ($66.08 million), adding the automaker could face potential class-action lawsuits and punitive damage claims.
Under the software update, Hyundai Motor will make it easier to turn off the automatic-folding function, with a single switch operation. Previously, a person needed to turn the car off and back on before disabling the power seat feature.
The update will also restrict activation of the power seat function to when the tailgate is open.
($1 = 1,513.3000 won)
Newsletter
Week in Review
Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review
Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app