Recalls – Unintended Acceleration on Hyundai Ioniq EVs

IONIQ 5’s crossover body has short overhangs due to its elongated wheelbase.

Hyundai Motor America is recalling 2017-2019 Ioniq electric vehicles because an “unstable” electrical ground may cause the vehicle to enter a fail-safe mode with reduced acceleration and power leading to unintended acceleration.

“In certain conditions while in fail-safe mode, the vehicle may accelerate after the gas pedal is released,” Hyundai said in the required filing with NHTSA. The Ioniqs were made in Korea with a computer from Korean supplier MOBUS.

During operation, Ioniqs may enter a “fail-safe” mode causing the “EV Ready”lamp to flash, accompanied with reduced acceleration and overall power output. While in this “fail-safe” mode, a slow, unintended acceleration incident can occur following full accelerator pedal release, if according to Hyundai, a specific set of sequences are met. The sequence steps being (1) the accelerator pedal is rapidly cycled at the moment the “fail-safe” mode is initially engaged, (2) followed by a sustained period of 100% accelerator pedal application and lastly (3) an abrupt release of the accelerator pedal. The braking and steering systems are fully functional during the “fail-safe” mode.

A Korean media report regarding an incident alleging unintended acceleration on a vehicle in the Korean domestic market prompted the investigation. HMC conducted a joint investigation with MOLIT (Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport) and KATRI (a Korean testing organization) and collected data from the vehicle involved.

“Analysis of the vehicle data indicated that an unstable electrical ground may have caused instantaneous electrical noise to flow abnormally triggering a ‘fail-safe’ mode designed to prevent impact during driving by restricting vehicle speed. The onset of the ‘fail-safe’ mode could result in operators experiencing an acceleration delay when operating the accelerator pedal and, in limited instances, slow vehicle acceleration after full release of accelerator pedal. Noting difficulty in replicating the subject condition under normal driving conditions, HMC focused its investigation on duplicating the condition while providing regular updates to MOLIT and KATRI on its findings,” Hyundai said.

Dealers will update the EPCU (Electric Power Control Unit) software and repair the ground wiring, free of charge as is required by US regulations. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed February 4, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai’s number for this recall is 215. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153) or go to www.nhtsa.gov. NHTSA recall 21V944000.