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Hyundai, Kia add to 2.4 million cars recalled in U.S. over fires, engines

DETROIT — Hyundai and Kia have added more than a half-million vehicles to 3 1/2 -year string of U.S. recalls for engine failures and fires. Three recalls released Thursday by the government add new problems and vehicles to the Korean automakers' list of safety woes, which have brought hundreds of complaints about fires from across the nation. The companies have now recalled nearly 2.4 million vehicles for fire and engine failure problems since September 2015, and they are under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for potentially being slow to fix faulty vehicles. In addition, the companies are doing a "product improvement campaign" covering another 3.7 million vehicles to install software that will alert drivers of possible engine failures and send the cars into a reduced-speed "limp" mode if problems are detected. The largest of three recalls posted on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website Thursday covers nearly 379,000 Kia Soul small SUVs from 2012 through 2016 with 1.6-liter engines. Documents show that high exhaust gas temperatures can damage the catalytic converters, which control pollution. That can cause abnormal combustion and damage pistons and connecting rods. A failed connecting rod can pierce the engine block and cause oil leaks that can cause fires. In addition, Hyundai and Kia are recalling 152,000 Tuscon SUVs from 2011 to 2013 and Sportage SUVs from 2011 and 2012 to fix an engine oil pan leak that also can cause fires. Documents show that Kia had been investigating fires in Souls after the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety petitioned the government to look into the fires last year. In November, the automaker couldn't find any safety problem trends but it kept monitoring repair data and found the problem with the catalytic converters. All Souls with 1.6-liter engines made from July 8, 2011, through August 11, 2016, are being recalled. Dealers will replace a computer that prevents the catalytic converter from overheating. They'll also replace the catalytic converter and the engine if they have been damaged. Letters will be mailed to owners starting April 12. In the Tuscon and Sportage recalls, the fix for the oil pan problem is still being developed. Hyundai owners will be notified starting March 29, while Kia owners will get letters starting April 10.

Driver unaware SUV is in flames going down the highway

NBC Nightly News recently carried the above segment on a video showing a 2012 Kia Sorento spewing flames as its driver travels at highway speed on Interstate 4 in Orlando. Another motorist, Meredith Olinger, drives alongside, shooting the video while trying to warn the driver to pull over. She does, just in time. Seconds later, the Kia is cooked. The driver, Susan King, says, "I got out, and suddenly the car was engulfed in flames. (Olinger) saved my life. I'm incredibly grateful, and she was my angel that day. It was surreal." NBC did a nice job of using the video to highlight a serious issue. The SUV's owner was not King but her friend Tyla Kennedy, and though the Kia was part of a recall of 2012-14 Sorentos having to do with an engine defect, Kennedy says she never received a recall notice. That's because she was not the car's original owner. And as anyone who has received a recall notice for a long-sold car knows, automakers send the notices to original owners. Subsequent owners are out of luck. We could argue all day about whether automakers, sellers or subsequent owners should do more to ensure that automakers know the current whereabouts of their products, but luckily there's an easy way past all of that. If you own a car you bought second-hand, go to safercar.gov and enter your VIN. If there is a recall on your vehicle, it will show up there. If one pops up, contact a dealership and the repair will be carried out free of charge. Even if you bought your vehicle new, doing this check couldn't hurt, just in case your notice got lost in the mail. It could keep you from discovering, as you fly down the highway, that you are driving a fireball. Related Video: Image Credit: Meredith Olinger Auto News Recalls Kia Crossover SUV Videos

Wards names its 2015 10 Best Interiors list

Wards Automotive has named the winners of its 10 Best Interior awards, covering a wide but affordable array of vehicles. Where last year's list contained two six-figure vehicles, including the $372,800 Rolls-Royce Wraith, this year's is, well, a whole lot more reasonable. The publication lists the Mercedes-Benz C400 at $65,000 (which seems off), making it the most expensive vehicle here. That said, we'd argue that the entire C-Class line deserves to make this year's list, owing to its varied and high-quality selection of materials. The other vehicle to break the $60,000 mark, meanwhile, is the $60,675 Ford F-150 King Ranch, which has 327,000 pounds of leather lining its interior. Only one other German car, the BMW i3, and one other pickup truck, the GMC Canyon, managed to make this year's list. Here's the full list of this year's winners: 2014 BMW i3 ($52,550) 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum ($51,175) 2015 Ford F-150 King Ranch ($60,675) 2015 GMC Canyon SLT ($40,465) 2015 Honda Fit EX-L ($21,590) 2015 Jeep Renegade Limited ($33,205) 2015 Kia Sedona SXL ($43,295) 2016 Mazda6 Grand Touring ($33,395) 2015 Mercedes C400 ($65,000) 2015 Nissan Murano SL ($41,905) See what we mean about the mainstream vehicles? Not only is there a distinct lack of luxury brands, it's the price of some of the vehicles that surprise. The Honda Fit, Jeep Renegade and Mazda6 are very reasonably priced, especially when you compare Wards price with the starting price. The Renegade Limited starts at less than $25,000, the Mazda at less than $22K and the Fit at under $16,000. Head over to Wards for a more detailed explanation of why each vehicle won. Featured Gallery 2015 Ward's Automotive 10 Best Interiors View 10 Photos News Source: Wards Automotive BMW Chrysler Ford GMC Honda Jeep Kia Mazda Mercedes-Benz Nissan Truck Crossover Hatchback Sedan nissan murano gmc canyon Interior jeep renegade WardsAuto kia sedona wards 10 best interiors mercedes c400