Kia America has announced a recall affecting over 80,000 vehicles due to concerns with the wiring under the front passenger seat. This wiring issue has the potential to be damaged, which could hinder the proper deployment of both airbags and seat belts. Additionally, there is a risk that the faulty wiring may lead to unintended deployment of the side curtain airbags, as outlined in reports submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The recall affects a total of 80,255 units from the 2023-2025 Niro lineup, including the EV, Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV), and Hybrid models. In order to address this issue, Kia dealers will be tasked with inspecting the vehicles, replacing any damaged wiring, and rerouting the floor wiring assembly if needed, all at no cost to the vehicle owners. Furthermore, dealers will also install wiring covers as an added precaution. Notifications regarding this recall will be sent to vehicle owners through letters that are expected to be mailed out in March.

This recall follows a previous one in November, where Hyundai and Kia collectively recalled over 208,000 electric vehicles. That earlier recall addressed issues with a transistor in a charging control unit, which could suffer damage and cease to charge the 12-volt battery. Such a malfunction could lead to a loss of driving power, thereby elevating the likelihood of an accident.