Hyundai Halts Sales of Some Palisade Models, Plans Recall After U.S. Seat Incident

Hyundai Palisade [Photo provided by Hyundai Motor]

Hyundai Motor Co. said it has identified a safety issue in its large SUV, the All New Palisade, and has temporarily stopped selling certain configurations. The automaker said it plans a voluntary recall for vehicles already sold and will file reports next week with South Korea’s Transport Ministry and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Hyundai said Saturday that when the second- and third-row power-folding seats operate under certain conditions, the system may fail to detect contact with an occupant or an object. It said sales of vehicles with the affected specification will be suspended for now.

Reuters reported that a 2-year-old girl died March 7 in Ohio in an incident involving a Palisade power seat.

Hyundai said it will resume sales after improving the seat’s anti-pinch function. The company said it will increase the sensitivity for detecting occupants and objects and restrict the power-folding function to situations when the rear door is open, among other steps to strengthen overall system safety.

The recall scope is still being tallied, Hyundai said, and will cover vehicles produced through March 11 this year. It estimated about 57,474 vehicles in South Korea and 74,965 in North America could be affected.

The All New Palisade exported about 100,000 vehicles worldwide last year, and 59,506 were sold in South Korea, the company said.

Hyundai apologized for the inconvenience and said it will continue to put customer safety first and thoroughly review all issues to improve trust and satisfaction.

* This article has been translated by AI.

SHIN JIA