First recalled in April 2024 over improperly tightened bolts in the gear drive unit, Kia's largest electric vehicle to date has been hit with a new recall. On this occasion, the South Korean automaker determined that a small number of crossovers have been assembled with front passenger seatbelt retractor covers that may not be secured as intended. Why is this such a big deal?
Simply put, the automatic locking retractor and emergency locking retractor won't operate as intended. This obviously leads to an increased risk of injury. What's more, recalled EV9s don't comply with the requirements of two motor vehicle safety standards, those being number 208 for occupant crash protection and 209 for seatbelt assemblies.
88820-DO500EMA is the part number of the front passenger seatbelt assembly, and the supplier of said assembly is a South Korean company dubbed Samsong Industries. Back on February 23, the folks at Kia America received a techline case from a dealership involving an EV9 exhibiting a grinding noise coming from the front passenger seatbelt.
The dealer also reported a sticking condition, which prompted Kia America to investigate this problem together with Kia Corporation and the aforementioned supplier. At the beginning of May, the mothership in South Korea confirmed that Samsong Industries somehow failed to secure the front passenger seatbelt retractor cover as intended.
A review of production records determined that four suspect vehicles had been shipped to the United States of America, where the EV9 will soon be manufactured locally. The production facility in question is located in West Point, Georgia. The production facility is currently tasked with making the Sportage, Sorento, and Telluride crossovers.
Photo: Kia
The four suspect vehicles were assembled at Kia's Autoland Gwangmyeong in South Korea on October 17 last year. It's nigh-on impossible for us mere plebs to determine when a vehicle was produced, but owners can easily find out whether their EV9s are included in this recall by running the 17-character VIN on Kia's website or the NHTSA's website. Affected vehicles feature VINs beginning with the letter K.
Dealers have already been instructed to replace the front passenger seatbelt assembly with a new assembly promising a properly secured retractor cover. There is no difference in part number because this isn't a design-related issue. Owners, meanwhile, have to wait until June 5 for the recall notification letters to be mailed via first-class mail.
EV9 is Kia's largest vehicle underpinned by the Hyundai Electric Global Modular Platform. The E-GMP is further shared with the EV6, EV5, and EV3. A four-door sedan by the name of EV4 is on the horizon as well, and hearsay suggests that Kia intends to debut said electric vehicle in early 2025.
Highlight numbers for the family-sized EV9 include seating for up to seven, 24 minutes to charge from 10 to 80 percent, and no more than 304 miles of driving range. That's 489 kilometers in the metric system, and the aforementioned numbers also result in a rather high sticker price. The entry-level Light RWD specification is $54,900 before taxes and options, while the GT-Line AWD costs $73,900.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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