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Hyundai Fined $17.35 Million For Delayed Recall

Hyundai has agreed to pay a $17.35 million fine for delayed reporting of a brake defect affecting Genesis luxury cars, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday. The defect involves corrosion in critical brake system components that can reduce braking effectiveness and increase the risk of a crash, NHTSA said. Hyundai was aware in 2012 that brake fluids used in the model year 2009-2012 Genesis cars did not sufficiently inhibit corrosion in key components of the vehicle's brake system, the agency said. But rather than issue a recall, Hyundai instructed dealers to change the brake fluid in affected vehicles without explaining the consequences that failure to take that action might have, NHTSA said. Hyundai also did not inform Genesis owners of the potential safety consequences, the agency said. Hyundai recalled 27,500 of the cars in October 2012 just hours before the government opened an investigation. "Hyundai failed to act to protect their customers and others that were harmed in an accident, and must change the way they deal with all safety related defects," David Friedman, head of the safety administration, said in a statement. About 70 percent of the affected Genesis cars have been repaired so far, the safety administration said. Hyundai is committed to ensuring immediate action in response to potential safety concerns, including the prompt reporting of safety defects, said Jim Trainor, a senior group manager for Hyundai Motor America. "In order to mitigate a situation like this in the future, Hyundai is instituting new organizational and process improvements, and enhancing the ability of its U.S. leadership team to readily respond to regulatory reporting requirements," he said in an email. In May, the safety administration slapped General Motors with a record $35 million fine Friday for taking more than a decade to disclose an ignition-switch defect in millions of cars that has been linked to at least 13 deaths. Earlier this year, after a four-year criminal investigation, the Justice Department made Toyota pay $1.2 billion for concealing unintended acceleration problems from NHTSA. No individuals were charged with a crime. Related Gallery Safest Crossovers For The Budget-Conscious Family View 10 Photos Recalls Genesis Hyundai NHTSA brakes

2016: The year we talked about autonomy a bunch | Autoblog Podcast #497

This week on the Autoblog Podcast, Mike Austin and David Gluckman take a look back at one of the biggest topics of 2016: autonomous driving. The thing is, there was a lot of news about autonomous driving, but not much in the way of autonomous cars you can buy. They also talk about what they've been driving lately - there was a good turbocharged compact car and a not-so-good turbocharged compact car. And then we round out the year with a quick Spend My Money. The podcast will take a break next week, but we'll be back in the new year with reports from CES and the 2017 Detroit Auto Show. And we're lining up some fun guests for future recordings. The rundown is below. Remember, if you have a car-related question you'd like us to answer or you want buying advice of your very own, send a message or a voice memo to podcast at autoblog dot com. (If you record audio of a question with your phone and get it to us, you could hear your very own voice on the podcast. Neat, right?) And please send trivia questions! You'll get the honor of stumping your fellow listeners, and we'll thank you too. Autoblog Podcast #497 Topics and stories we mention 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport 2017 Nissan Sentra SR Turbo 2016 Honda Accord V6 (The sedan, but here's our Quick Spin of the coupe for reference) Autonomous Driving Rundown Intro - 00:00 What we're driving - 02:40 Rants (metal trim on steering wheels, learn how your car works) - 14:25 Looking back at autonomous driving in 2016 - 21:10 Spend My Money - 31:20 Total Duration: 37:46 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Feedback Email – Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show on iTunes Podcasts Honda Hyundai Nissan Car Buying Technology Emerging Technologies Autonomous Vehicles nissan sentra

Hyundai Sonata sales drop so Santa Fe production will increase

Hyundai will begin production of the five-seat Santa Fe Sport at its Alabama factory this summer to take advantage of the growing popularity of crossovers in comparison to midsize sedans. The company won't release official production targets for the CUV at the plant, but an anonymous company insider told Reuters Hyundai would build around 30,000 of them at the site this year. The Kia factory in Georgia will continue to handle the majority of Santa Fe Sport production, but the Alabama assembly will help Hyundai keep up with demand. The three-row Santa Fe will still come from South Korea. The Alabama factory has a 400,000-unit annual capacity and already produces the Elantra and Sonata. Sonata sales slipped in 2015 to 213,303 deliveries from 216,936 in 2014. Meanwhile, the volume of both body styles of Santa Fe jumped to 118,134 examples in 2015 from 107,906 the previous year. According to Reuters, Hyundai could have sold more of the CUVs last year, but a limited production capacity restricted the sales. Rumors from 2015 suggested that Hyundai might have had an eye on the plant for additional crossover production in case of falling sales for the sedans built there. The Alabama factory last built the Santa Fe in August 2010. "We're thrilled to bring back another pillar of the Hyundai lineup to our production mix here at HMMA," Chris Susock, vice president of production at the plant, said in the announcement. SANTA FE SPORT PRODUCTION WILL BEGIN AT HYUNDAI MOTOR MANUFACTURING ALABAMA IN SUMMER 2016 ID: 44810 • Additional production will support growing demand in the sport utility segment • Alabama plant is the home of the Sonata and Elantra sedans • Plant is capable of assembling 400,000 units per year MONTGOMERY, Ala., January 7, 2016 –Hyundai Motor Company has announced the addition of the Santa Fe Sport to the production schedule at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA) starting in the summer of 2016. This change will supplement existing U.S. production of the sport utility vehicle to meet the growing demand in this popular vehicle segment. "We're very happy Hyundai has been able to make this change, which will result in more great Santa Fe crossovers available to our dealers and customers," said Dave Zuchowski, president and 'CEO of Hyundai Motor America. "The new production will help us meet the growing demand for one of our most popular products," said Zuchowski.