Missed Free Software Update Warning for Car Owners

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Here’s an important warning about why you should never throw away any car-related junk mail from your dealership or car manufacturer. Plus, two current makes this especially applies to for owners right now.

Looks Like Junk Mail, So You Toss It…Without Reading It

We are all guilty of this: tossing away our daily mail without clearly identifying it as junk mail. It’s one of those “If it walks like a duck, smells like a duck, quacks like a duck then it probably is a duck” mental things we do out of either laziness or because we are so used to receiving so much unwanted junk mail that a “toss or not toss” determination is made after just a quick glance.

Big mistake. And some car manufacturers and dealerships know this.

That was the message in a recent Steve Lehto YouTube channel episode where Steve talks about what happens when your car experiences total engine failure all because you failed to acknowledge or missed out on a free software update that could have protected your car from catastrophic engine failure only to have it happen shortly after your car warranty expires.

It Happened to This KIA Owner

The origin of the recent Steve Lehto YouTube channel episode is a news story titled “KIA Won’t Cover Engine Repair After Missed Software Update” based on the story of the owner of a 2015 KIA Optima who was experiencing engine noise that had her concerned enough to seek help from a garage only to find out that she needed a new engine.

As it turns out, the damage could have been prevented if the owner had had a free software update to counter a knock sensor problem in her Optima. Unfortunately, her car is past its warranty and the software update had not been done before the damage occurred. If she had had the update done anytime before the damage occurred (even after the car warranty expired) she would have had a lifetime warranty against this known problem. However, as it stands, KIA won’t cover it.

According to the news story:

“If you’ve got a Kia or Hyundai that is part of this settlement, make sure you have that Knock Sensor Detection System updated so that you are getting that lifetime warranty to cover this problem.”

The models covered are:

2011-2019 Hyundai Sonata

2013-2019 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport

2014-2015, 2018-2019 Hyundai Tucson

2011-2019 Kia Optima

2012-2019 Kia Sorento

2011-2019 Kia Sportage

“There is another similar but separate class action settlement involving Kia and Hyundai engines. This one affects different models and contains different requirements and deadlines.”

Here's a link to the news story.

In addition, here is a YouTube video that discusses what is going on and what you can do about it. 

Please note: You can start at timepoint 8:40 to get right to the meat of the topic:

Steve Explains More About the Problem

Now that you can see how important it is to have current software updates or other recall/repair fixes done on known problems on your vehicle, follow along with Steve in the video below as he discusses the finer points of the problem and how that dealerships and manufacturers might be intentionally making service alerts appear like junk mail in order to save money and leave you footing a repair bill.

Related article: The Biggest Lie Dealerships Use on Their Customers

And finally…

For additional articles related to vehicle warnings, here are a few selected ones for your consideration and enjoyment:

Timothy Boyer is Torque News automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for new and used vehicle news.

COMING UP NEXT: Ford Repair with a Coat Hanger

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