2021 Hyundai Kona may have same battery issues as 2019-2020 models

Well this isn't comforting at all. It certainly looks like the start of yet another dumpster fire but without Kona's actually catching fire (thankfully). Still stinks to high heaven.

Still waiting to hear about my expedited battery....cheque is in the mail response from Hyundai Canada. My wife as well has already told me that it isn't allowed in the garage (Garage attached to the house). So, if it ever shows up, I will have to get the electrician back to re-wire the charger for outside the garage.

So...just had a thought. What happens to all of these "replaced" (assuming they ever get replaced) battery packs. I can't see them going into a landfill anywhere. Potentially 77,000 battery packs must have a huge environmental footprint to build let alone replace. Is this the right way to build a green vehicle?
No one seems to be talking about this aspect. Zero emissions and green was a huge factor in my original purchase thought process.

 

Once a line is tooled up to disassemble a given type of cell, I would think that recycling of the materials
to produce new cells would be relatively easy and safe. Easier than mining.

_H*

 

I am in the exact same situation. It will be a month soon since I took the car back to the dealership. They said they ordered the equipment they need to replace the battery. Once they get it just then they will order the battery. Nobody can tell me how long t could take. I am pissed off about the whole thing. I will never ever even think about buying another Hyundai.

 

You could do some saber-rattling using your state's lemon law. First open a case with Hyundai Motor America and get a case number. Then tell them you are planning to make a lemon law claim if they don't fix it fast. Usually 30 days out of service is enough to trigger the law.

 

That’s not true in NYS. I was denied a lemon law claim while we waited and waited for a battery (4 months now). Lemon Laws don’t cover recall parts. NHTSA person told me the same. Said they knew of no state that allows a recalled part to qualify under lemon law. However threatening one does seem to make Hyundai jump a bit. Or at least someone would call us back after the threat and then communication would cease for the next few weeks


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Hi ColoradoKonaEV, when you say that you are in the same situation as Sue, can you elaborate? Do you own a 2021 Kona that was disabled by the BMS and is waiting for a battery replacement?
I own a 2021 Kona that disabled itself 8 weeks ago and is awaiting a battery replacement. I am trying to collect information of how many of these 2021's have the similar issue.
Thanks and take care.

 

I agree with your thoughts in "theory". Please correct me if I am wrong, but nothing like this currently exists. If it does, please provide a link to your information on how hyundai is recycling these batteries.
Practically speaking, I don't see any company gearing up this "line" in a time frame that will recycle 77,000+ batteries in a fashion quick enough to provide "new" batteries to all affected Konas. I believe that most electric car companies weren't expecting to have to face the battery recycling issue for another decade or so...plenty of time to build your theoretical line. A line like this would require extreme safety provisions (lots of hazards here) and would likely be very manual and slow.

 

For such a large quantity of identical batteries, it would be well worth the effort for someone to use them to build a few grid-level storage units, built in a way that takes into account the potential fire/failure risk.

 

Hyundai Canada announced partnership for refurb & recycling

https://www.guideautoweb.com/en/articles/59075/

 

Agreed. Another theoretical use that hasn't been built yet. Load shifting for grid is one of the future plans for batteries that have reduced charge, not necessarily batteries that are defective. My point was and still is that these 77,000+ batteries returning well before their designed life is ended is a HUGE problem for Hyundai and LG. None of this has been worked out yet. The issue is practicality. Where do you put 77,000+ batteries in the short to long term while you are working out these details? Especially since concentrating them means that hopefully only a few of them has a potential fire starting issue. One spark in a fireworks factory is devastating.

I will propose another theoretical use for 77,000+ identical Kona batteries is the following. Take each one back one at a time in a slow roll out of a recall. As each comes back, dismantle the pack and check each of the five modules. Don't get down to the cell level. If 4 out of five modules are deemed good, put them back into the pack with a fifth module from another recalled pack. Then package them up and send them back out the door to a waiting disabled Kona. From a practical standpoint, this is easier. Time consuming and keeps lots of Kona owners waiting and unhappy. Also, doesn't necessarily solve the problem. As a Kona owner, I wouldn't be happy with a recycled battery which has a mismatched set of battery modules with varying use on them.
GM has been upfront with their plan. They are recalling all bolts and here is the fine print on the batteries...GM warrants new OR REFURBISHED advance propulsion batteries...

 

GM & LG battery refurb and recycling partnership:

https://www.autoblog.com/2021/05/11/gm-ultium-ev-battery-recycling/

 

Older announcement re Hyundai & LG recycling batteries for energy storage in Korea:

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2020/10/19/business/industry/Hyundai-Motor-LG-Chem-battery/20201019175300560.html

 

How can I check the battery type on the 2021 Ultimate I bought in June to replace my bought-back 2020? This one was built in December 2020. I assumed it would have an updated battery, but from this thread, maybe not.

(On the good side, the infotainment system has the old firmware from before Hyundai trashed the UI on the radio screen. I won't be "updating" it.)

 

I might disagree with this assertion. This _IS_ the new model/facelift we are talking about. What manufacturer thinks it is a good idea to undercut the value of the current userbase by intentionally -devaluing- their investments? There is another thread about this on this site. The decrease in price is pretty stark and I'd call it a slap to those who bought in early to help the idea along. But that's just me, YMMV.

 

Yes, I have 2021 Kona EV which when charged to 100% at home with Level2 charger would not go into Drive. Attaching OBDII scanner and clearing the error codes would fix it until the next charging. I did this 3 or 4 times and took the car to the dealership, hoping it is a matter of software update to fix the problem. They kept the car for few days and talked to Hyundai for consultation. They were told the entire battery have to be replaced but was backordered at that time. This was exactly 1 month ago. The car is still at the dealership awaiting the equipment they need to swap the battery first to arrive. When they have it they would order the actual battery. This is what I know so far.

 

Not surprised at all as the Hyundai group ( Hyundai & Kia ) has never been known for quality products foe ICE products, do not expect any different for their EV products.

 

"Doctor, it hurts when I do this."

"Don't do that."

Can you demand your car back, set the charge limit to 80% or 90%, and tell the dealer they can have it back when they are ready to replace the battery?