Hyundai speeds up software fix for easy-to-steal vehicles

Hyundai is accelerating the rollout of a software upgrade for vehicles not equipped with engine immobilizers as part of its response to the nationwide hotwiring frenzy spurred by social media posts showing how to easily steal models lacking the anti-theft device.

At the same time, AAA is stepping in to help Hyundai secure insurance coverage for owners of affected vehicles, following State Farm and Progressive's decision to stop writing new policies for models without immobilizers.

AAA will provide support for owners having "difficulty securing and sustaining auto insurance as a result of the increased criminal activity targeting Hyundai vehicles," Hyundai Motor America CEO Randy Parker said in a statement.

AAA insurers will issue new and renewal policies for eligible affected Hyundai customers in all states except Alaska, Massachusetts and Washington, where it does not offer insurance.

The initial Hyundai upgrade, announced in February, covered more than 1 million 2017-20 Elantra, 2015-19 Sonata and 2020-21 Venue model year vehicles, and the automaker promised availability to the remaining eligible vehicles by June. The faster rollout will now include all 3.8 million affected Hyundai models.

The upgrade can be performed at any Hyundai dealership and takes less than one hour for installation.

For a smaller group of 2011-22 model year vehicles that cannot accommodate the software upgrade, Hyundai says it will reimburse owners for their purchase of steering wheel locks. Hyundai is also preparing to provide this subset of customers with the option of obtaining reimbursement to offset their purchase of a different anti-theft device, such as an alarm kit.

About 4.5 million Kia vehicles built between 2011 and 2021 also were caught up in the auto theft craze, and they were eligible for the software upgrade announced earlier in the year. At that time, Kia said it had started notifying owners and anticipated making the upgrade available "over the next few months."

A Kia spokesperson told Automotive News that the company does not have information to share on whether it will partner with AAA or another company to provide similar insurance to affected vehicle owners.

"On the software upgrade front, before the end of April, Kia will have contacted close to 75 percent of their total affected population and is seeing strong response from owners for installation," the spokesperson said.

The crisis ignited last summer after a TikTok video showed viewers how to easily remove the Kia or Hyundai vehicle's steering wheel column and trigger the ignition using a USB plug. The number of car thefts rose sharply, starting in Wisconsin and quickly trickling into other states.

Last fall, lawsuits brought by owners of stolen Hyundai and Kias started popping up around the country. The suits allege the vehicles are defective because they lack the device, which has become standard across most of the industry.

According to a study by the Highway Loss Data Institute, immobilizers were standard in 62 percent of models from other manufacturers by the 2000 model year. By 2015, 96 percent of other vehicles included them as standard. At that time, only 26 percent of Hyundai and Kia vehicle models included them as standard.

The plaintiffs in the lawsuits are asking that Hyundai and Kia issue a nationwide recall, which could cost upward of $5 billion, according to several attorneys. They are also seeking damages for financial losses incurred by vehicle owners.

Hyundai and Kia have taken several steps to mitigate the problem. Both companies provided free steering wheel locks via local law enforcement in affected cities to owners with the vehicles on the hit list.

Hyundai separately announced the availability of a $170 dealer-installed Firstech alarm system that could cost owners up to $700 depending on installation fees. A Kia dealer with stores in Washington and California told Automotive News that their service departments have not performed installations of the kits.

Hyundai and Kia then announced the free software fix that covered 8.3 million vehicles — 3.8 from Hyundai and 4.5 million from Kia.

Matt Van Fleet, a senior trial attorney with MLG Attorneys at Law in California, said at the time the fix developed by Hyundai and Kia does not solve the problem for litigants in lawsuits across the U.S. whose cars have already been stolen, and it is not enough to stop the litigation.

Van Fleet is working on the multidistrict litigation that consolidated several of the lawsuits and transferred them to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, closer to Hyundai and Kia's U.S. headquarters.

All Hyundai vehicles produced since November 2021 are equipped with an engine immobilizer as standard equipment.