Hyundai Recalls 3,031 Luxury Genesis Sedans For Display-Related Issue

Within the last 18 months, an electronics expert said that soon many safety-related vehicle recalls would be electronic and not mechanical. Though there was no exact estimate or break-out, the expert made it clear that a healthy number of recalls would be on the electronic side of the ledger.

As if to prove him right, automakers are now reporting far more recalls due to problems with electronic systems. Indeed, many of the recalls are related to software issues, although hardware issues seem to balance them out.

The latest automaker to report an electronically related recall is Hyundai. The South Korean automaker has announced the recall of 3,031 2015 luxury Genesis sedans for a problem with the instrument panel display. The display unit in question is a seven-inch, TFT-LCD instrument cluster that presents the driver with speed and other safety-related information.

In announcing the recall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), indicated the “instrument cluster … may display an incorrect vehicle speed,” or it may “illuminate all of the warning lights or not illuminate a warning light that needs to be lit.
As a result, there “would be an increased risk of a crash,” the agency said in a statement.

The recall is expected to begin at the end of the month. Hyundai will notify owners who will be told to return their luxury sedans to their dealers for the fix. The fix is a software update that should eliminate the problem. It is free of charge.

For further information, owners can contact Hyundai customer service at 800-633-5151. Hyundai’s recall number for this issue is 147. Owners can also contact NHTSA’s Motor Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236. The NHTSA recall number is 16V575. Or, owners can go to the agency’s website, www.safercar.gov, for more information.

Hyundai manufactured the affected luxury sedans between Feb. 1 and May 20, 2015.