Kia Air Bags: Frontal

Kia is recalling about 145,755 vehicles over a problem with the air bags. If the clock spring develops high resistance, in the event of a crash, the drivers air bag will not deploy and will not be able to properly protect the driver, increasing the risk of injuries.

Campaign
12V014000
Manufacturer
KIA MOTORS CORPORATION
Reported
17 January 2012
Vehicles
145,755
Built between
Sep 2005 – Mar 2008
Models
2
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
11 July 2012
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between September 2005 and March 2008. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2006-2008 Kia OptimaBuilt September 2005 to January 2008
  • 2007-2008 Kia RondoBuilt September 2006 to March 2008

What the defect is

Kia motors america, inc. (kia) is recalling certain model year 2006-2008 kia optima vehicles manufactured from september 29, 2005, through january 29, 2008, and model year 2007 and 2008 kia rondo vehicles manufactured from september 13, 2006, through march 21, 2008. The clock spring contact assembly for the driver's side air bag supplemental restraint system (SRS) may become damaged through usage over time. If the clock spring contact assembly becomes damaged, the driver's air bag electrical circuit will experience a high resistance condition potentially causing the driver's air bag to not deploy.

What could happen

If the clock spring develops high resistance, in the event of a crash, the drivers air bag will not deploy and will not be able to properly protect the driver, increasing the risk of injuries.

What gets fixed

KIA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE VEHICLE'S AIR BAG CLOCK SPRING CONTACT ASSEMBLY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 11, 2012.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtSeptember 2005 to March 2008
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA17 January 2012
  3. Owners notified11 July 2012

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 17 January 2012.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact kia customer assistance center at 1-800-333-4542.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
SC094
Recalling manufacturer
KIA MOTORS CORPORATION
Recall initiated by
MFR

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Kia's recall campaign number is SC094.OWNERS may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to <a href=http://www.safercar.gov>http://www.safercar.gov</a> .

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand