Hyundai and Kia are recalling two of their new plug-in hybrid models to address a potential defect with their fuel tanks. The twin automakers have processed several warranty claims that were traced to tanks produced by a single supplier prior to a shortage-related shutdown in April, 2022. All tanks produced since then are correct, limiting the number of vehicles involved to just a few hundred — 326 Santa Fes and 34 Sorentos.
“Due to a manufacturing issue at the supplier, the fuel tank may have been improperly molded at the seam,” Hyundai’s defect report to NHTSA said. “An improperly molded fuel tank can result in a fuel leak. Improper molding of the fuel tank at the supplier occurred from 4/7/2022 to 4/9/2022. The molding processes were corrected in production at the supplier on 4/10/2022,” Hyundai said. “As of the date of this filing, Hyundai has confirmed no unique incident reporting a fuel leak in the U.S. There are no confirmed crashes, injuries, or fire related to this condition. This recall was decided based on three (3) incidents occurring in Europe,” the company’s chronology said.
Owners should expect to be notified of the issue and remedy procedure (tank inspection and replacement) by the end of March.
Related video:
.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
