Hyundai is recalling 6,240 additional vehicles made between 2020 and 2022 because of a pyrotechnic seatbelt pretensioner that could explode in an accident and send shrapnel flying through the cabin.
The latest recall affects 2020 Hyundai Accents made between February 28 and April 4, 2020, as well as 2021 to 2022 Elantras made between February 24 and July 15, 2021. These models are fitted with seatbelt pretensioners that aren’t working properly.
At the time the recall notice was filed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the cause of the abnormal deployment of the pretensioner remained unknown. Hyundai is effecting a recall anyway and will analyze the pretensioners it removes to learn more.
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Whatever the root cause of the fault, the result is that the pyrotechnic-type pretensioners could explode in the case of an accident, sending shrapnel flying through the cabin, which may injure occupants.
Unfortunately, that happened on September 15, 2021, when a Hyundai Elantra occupant was injured by shrapnel to the leg after an accident. That’s when the automaker and NHTSA were alerted and the latter asked the former to investigate.
Although the root of the issue is unknown, the safety regulator opted to recall all pretensioners produced within a suspect lot. Since then, the number of vehicles recalled has been increased, and two more injuries have been caused by faulty parts (one more in the U.S. and another in Singapore).
Hyundai will notify the owners of the vehicles included in this specific recall on May 31. They will be asked to bring their vehicle in for inspection in Hyundai dealerships where a technician will replace the seatbelt pretensioners where necessary.
