Thought I'd ask before I experiment. I'm still parking in my garage. Max charge to 80% and unplugged after charge done. Based on a post on FB Kona Group re bad smell encountered during/after charging I'm wondering what my last resort options may be. In the old days it would simply be a matter of putting it into Neutral and put some muscle to it. I imagine ignition would have to be turned on to get it out of Park? Or... is there an override that tow-truck drivers would use?
Good question, but I think your gonna need power and the fob. This is what the manual says. When towing your vehicle in an emergency without wheel dollies: 1. While depressing the brake pedal shift to the N (Neutral) position and turn the vehicle off. The POWER button will be in the ACC position. 2. Release the parking brake.
I assume your driveway is not slopped away from the garage. Don't get it rolling and not be able to stop it. Also once it's out get back in and apply the parking brake. The tow truck driver should know how to load it.
That's a really interesting thought! Back when the LEAF was announced I learned quite a lot about it, and I recall a very similar discussion about this. IIRC the "solution" to releasing the parking lock (if, for example, you needed to tow the car but could not power it on) was to remove the parking lock actuator (4 bolts) and rotate the parking lock shaft by hand using a socket wrench. Not physically difficult, but not exactly something you can do in a hurry is it? I don't even know if that applies to the Kona Electric but I'm sure it's similarly possible... EVs are so mechanically simple there's not much opportunity do things radically different! Unfortunately if you also use the parking brake, that locks up the rear wheels and I have no idea how you'd release that without power and a working fob. Long story short; if you're paranoid about a car fire while it's parked in your garage, keep a set of these handy
Interesting gadget. Filed for future reference Not really paranoid, just exploring possible options I may have. I could easily park without emergency brake applied as I'm level inside and outside garage, but if I remember correctly the Kona goes into P after some time on it's own. Have to check that though. I still have to research, but I'm guessing/hoping that before fire there will be some smouldering/smoke which my Nest detectors should catch. Basically just exploring the options, if there are any, to get the Kona outside without even having to turn 12 Volts on to switch into Neutral. As I said, not paranoid but maybe just a bit Covid bored
Just keep any heirlooms out of your garage and make sure your insurance. If it catches fire, i don't believe you will have much time to be trying to push it out of the garage. Did you not see where the hood and garage door ended up in the Montreal Kona Fire?. I will not want to be very close to a burning EV, prolly equivalent to white phosphorus and I've seen both in action.
Yeah, saw the pics etc. Too bad they (Montreal) still haven't supplied details. Maybe I missed them. I.e. was it sitting at 100%? Did ambient temp increase? Would be nice if there were some facts as to what the Kona was doing at the time and the environment around it. Seems most were charging? Obviously not all, but were those recently charged, to 100% perhaps. All the info I found is basically Hyundai cover thy a.. stuff. All well and good but it would be nice to have some facts. Just to satisfy curiosity if nothing else.
I don't set the parking brake when parked on the flat at home and it's sat for weeks without engaging by itself. I believe it would apply automatically if a certain minimum slope was detected. There's a list in the manual ... It really should have a mechanical override under the hood, but someone would eventually ruin it for everyone by running themselves over. The best I could deduce is that it had been charging and the car was still plugged in because the cap was off and the port looked relatively clean despite the fire. The owner turned off the breaker immediately after the explosion but had said it wasn't charging. I can only suggest that it had finished. The "explosion" IMO was really a matter of the pack vent being small and unable to release the gases fast enough to avoid a catastrophic pressure failure of the housing. It looks like it opened up around the seam as the front bay and rear wheels showed the most exposure to heat.
My memory with specific details is vague, but I believe the ambient Temps at the time was high and obviously the garage door was closed cuz it landed on the lawn across from the place. Them acknowledging the issue is with the anode tabs, it's makes me wonder if they expanded in the garage heat and charging further made them expand and created a spark. But they do say , don't leave in a garage, so that makes me wonder too.
Sorry, by "P" I meant that you can't leave it it Neutral forever. I believe I read that it puts itself into Park after a time. Of course I can't find that part in the manual right now. Memory could be wrong
