Kia Motors America: Electrical System › Wiring
Kia Motors America reported this defect to federal regulators on Nov 10, 2016 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 71,704. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain model year 2008-2009 Kia Sportage vehicles manufactured August 9, 2007, to May 13, 2009. The wire harness cover on the Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU) may be improperly sealed allowing water to get onto the HECU circuit board. If the water is contaminated with salt, such as could occur from melted snow, the wire harness connector pins may corrode and the circuit board may short circuit.
The risk
If the HECU short circuits, there is an increased risk of an engine compartment fire.
The remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the connector pins for corrosion, if no corrosion is found, the connector cover will be replaced. If corrosion is present, the dealer will replace the HECU assembly and the connector cover, free of charge. The recall began on November 28, 2016. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC138.
2 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 Kia Sportage | 80 | 3 | 8 | 4 |
| 2008 Kia Sportage | 98 | 3 | 24 | 2 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 16V815000.
Full record for the 2009 Kia Sportage → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →