Source: Gasgoo
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a statement that Kia is recalling some of its 2022 Niro electric vehicles in the United States because the high-voltage battery safety plug may overheat. When that happens, the plug could melt, which could cause the vehicle to lose power and even start a fire, NHTSA said in the recall report.
The recall may involve 2,209 Kia Niro electric vehicles manufactured between July 21, 2021 and December 2, 2021.
Owners of affected vehicles will receive an email notification asking them to take their cars to a Kia dealer for a free replacement of the battery safety plug, which will be connected using a solid bus bar instead of a female-to-female connection terminal. Until then, Kia advised owners not to charge their vehicles indoors, as the safety plug could overheat and cause a fire during charging.
Image source: Kia
Kia said the root cause has not been determined at this time, but the company suspects that the supplier had a problem manufacturing the mate-to-mate-connection terminals for the safety plugs. If there is a problem with the plug, the contact surface may develop high resistance over time, which may cause the connector to melt while charging or driving.
Earlier this year, Kia announced another recall related to the Niro electric car, this time for the latest generation model. On certain vehicles manufactured between June 27 and July 13, 2023, the supplier may not have properly heat treated the left front drive shaft, and there is a possibility of breakage under load. A total of 204 vehicles may be affected by the recall in the United States.
