A Simple Forgotten Screw Put Kia EV9 Occupants' Safety At Risk, Leading To A Massive Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured Between September And October 2024

A Simple Forgotten Screw Put Kia EV9 Occupants’ Safety At Risk, Leading To A Massive Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured Between September And October 2024

Written by Rafaela Fabris

Published on 08/01/2025 at 17:37

O Kia EV9 2024 recebeu a classificação máxima de cinco estrelas nos testes de segurança do Euro NCAP. As pontuações detalhadas foram: 84% para proteção de ocupantes adultos, 88% para proteção de ocupantes infantis, 76% para proteção de usuários vulneráveis da estrada (como pedestres) e 83% em sistemas de assistência à segurança.

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A Single Missing Screw Compromised The Safety Of The Kia EV9 Seats, Resulting In A Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured In South Korea Between September And October 2024, With A Direct Impact On The Markets Of The United States And Europe.

Can a small screw trigger a big problem? That’s exactly what happened with Kia. A worker’s oversight at its factory in South Korea led to a massive recall of nearly 23,000 units of the Kia EV9, the automaker’s flagship electric vehicle. Let’s understand how this incident impacts consumers and the market.

The Missing Screw Issue

It seems simple, but a fastening screw in the second and third row seats was missing in several units. According to NHTSA, this directly compromises the safety of the occupants, increasing the risks of injury in the event of an accident. Imagine being in a technological behemoth like the EV9 and discovering that something so basic was overlooked. It’s not exactly the kind of trust one expects from an 85,000 euro car, is it?

The Kia EV9 is the flagship model of the South Korean brand, designed for demanding markets like the United States. With a starting price of 85,000 euros in Spain, the vehicle combines futuristic design with advanced technology. However, the low adoption in the Spanish market, with only 178 units registered in 2024, contrasts with the expected success in the U.S., where the problem was identified.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

The Origin Of The Problem

Kia’s factory in Gwangmyeong, South Korea, is one of the brand’s main production units and underwent major expansion in 2024 to increase electric vehicle manufacturing. This is where the Kia EV9 is produced, but it was also the location where the error occurred that caused the recall of the 23,000 units.

The flaw dates back to the Gwangmyeong factory, which recently underwent expansion to meet the growing demand for electric cars. Between September 25 and October 15, 2024, a human error allowed units to leave without the fastening screw in the seats. This type of oversight, though rare, reveals the challenges of integrating new productive capabilities while maintaining high quality standards.

Kia’s Response And The Review

With nearly 23,000 potentially affected cars, Kia acted quickly. All vehicles manufactured during that period will be inspected and corrected if necessary. The automaker has not yet confirmed whether the units sold in Europe are included, but the action in the U.S. serves as a reminder that even major brands are not immune to human error.

Incidents like this reinforce the importance of rigorous quality control processes, especially in such a competitive sector as automotive. As Kia seeks to regain its customers’ trust, the EV9 recall serves as a reminder that sometimes a small screw can cause big headaches.

Despite the Kia EV9’s impressive qualities, its reputation has been tarnished by what seems to be a trivial mistake. The automaker’s quick response is a step in the right direction, but consumer trust may take time to fully restore. After all, in the world of electric cars, the margin for error is as small as a missing screw.

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GIOVANNI

#110550

08/01/2025 22:33

Gostei da atitude da Kia em corrigir o erro imediatamente.
Se fosse aqui, colocariam esse parafuso na revisão e ainda ia te cobrar por isso.

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Hermes

#110984

Reply to GIOVANNI

10/01/2025 15:04

Falou e disse!!!

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A Simple Forgotten Screw Put Kia EV9 Occupants’ Safety At Risk, Leading To A Massive Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured Between September And October 2024

A Single Missing Screw Compromised The Safety Of The Kia EV9 Seats, Resulting In A Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured In South Korea Between September And October 2024, With A Direct Impact On The Markets Of The United States And Europe.

The Missing Screw Issue

The Origin Of The Problem

Kia’s Response And The Review

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A Simple Forgotten Screw Put Kia EV9 Occupants’ Safety At Risk, Leading To A Massive Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured Between September And October 2024

A Single Missing Screw Compromised The Safety Of The Kia EV9 Seats, Resulting In A Recall Of 23,000 Units Manufactured In South Korea Between September And October 2024, With A Direct Impact On The Markets Of The United States And Europe.

The Missing Screw Issue

The Origin Of The Problem

Kia’s Response And The Review

The Soviet Union spent 22 years drilling into the Earth’s crust and reached a depth of 12,262 meters — they found water where it was thought impossible, hydrogen bubbling from the rock, granite that is 2.7 billion years old, and temperatures of 180 degrees that melted the drill bits.

Norway is drilling 27 kilometers of rock 392 meters below the bottom of a fjord to build the world’s largest and deepest underwater road tunnel — when completed, a 21-hour journey will be reduced to 10.

The island that has 35 inhabitants and celebrates Christmas on January 6: the remote island of Foula lives in isolation, without internet and following Julius Caesar’s calendar for centuries.

A German architect built a cylindrical house in 1994 that rotates to follow the sun throughout the day, generates 5 times more energy than it consumes, and was the world’s first energy-positive house.

An astronaut spent 340 days in space while his twin brother stayed on Earth, and NASA found a “rejuvenating” effect, genes, microbiome, cognition, and immune system that revealed the biological cost of living outside the planet.

China has just successfully tested the world’s first ground effect maritime vehicle, a craft that flies up to 6 meters above the water at 200 km/h, uses quantum technology and 6G communication, and can rescue patients in the middle of the ocean.

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