Kia, Hyundai Thefts Continue Three Months After Carmakers Deployed Fix

It has been an unnerving experience for car owners such as Shanaya Dias. Her Kia Sportage was stolen last month, even after it had received the antitheft software, she said, citing service records and a Los Angeles police report. It was the third time thieves made off with the car—first in August, and again in December.

Hyundai and Kia said they are running broad campaigns to get word to customers, retailers and law enforcement about the free antitheft software, including phone calls and digital ads. But the problem continues to plague car owners, and has become a costly embarrassment for the affiliated South Korean automakers. Hyundai owns a nearly 34% stake in Kia, and the companies’ vehicles share many parts.

As of early May, around 7% of the roughly 8 million cars in the U.S. identified as having the vulnerability have received the software upgrade, although the number of fixed vehicles is growing quickly, the companies said.

Kia said it has been in contact with Dias about the most recent theft and the company remains confident that the software upgrade works as designed.

Getting car owners to schedule any fix, however, has been a longstanding challenge in the car business. In this case, some dealers said the automakers’ decision not to issue a safety recall on the cars—despite pressure from some states—could complicate the effort.

The surge in thefts began last summer, after a group calling itself the Kia Boys posted videos on TikTok and other social-media sites detailing how to exploit the cars’ lack of an antitheft computer chip.

In Minneapolis, for example, nearly 1,900 Hyundais and Kias were stolen this year through mid-April, compared with 107 during the same period last year, according to a police department spokesman.

Hyundai has tried to work with TikTok and other social-media websites to have the videos removed, but the company said that as new videos surface, there have been additional waves of thefts. Kia said it continues to work with law-enforcement agencies to combat car theft and with social-media companies to limit the impact of content promoting crimes.

A TikTok spokesperson said theft videos of Kias and Hyundais haven’t been a TikTok trend on the platform, but said people share news reports and warnings issued by the companies. Spokespeople for YouTube and Instagram parent Meta Platforms said they remove videos that violate their policies.

The stolen cars have resulted in a torrent of bad publicity and a reputational hit for Hyundai and Kia, which have otherwise been gaining U.S. market share and winning critical praise.

Several U.S. cities have sued the companies, alleging that their failure to prevent the thefts has resulted in more crime and strained police budgets. The companies said that lawsuits filed against them are unnecessary and without merit.

Earlier this month, Hyundai and Kia agreed to pay more than $200 million to owners of stolen cars to settle a class-action lawsuit.

Last month, attorneys general from 17 states urged federal safety regulators to demand a recall of the cars. Hyundai and Kia said the vehicles aren’t defective and comply with safety regulations.

The affected Hyundai and Kia vehicles were manufactured between 2011 and 2021. They use a standard key instead of a push-button start, and lack a chip designed to prevent the car from turning on without the key being present.

To steal the car, thieves tear off the plastic cover surrounding the steering column, remove the ignition and start the vehicle with a pair of pliers or even a USB charger cable, the companies have said.

The companies in mid-February began offering a software fix that would mimic the antitheft chip. Hyundais and Kias equipped with the update must be unlocked with the owner’s key fob before they can be started.

Dealers and officials from some states said the automakers’ decision not to issue a safety recall means fewer owners would become aware of the free software fix. Hyundai and Kia instead sent dealers a service bulletin, which automakers use to guide dealers on how to fix non-safety-related issues. Both service bulletins and recalls are monitored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

At LaFontaine Automotive Group, a Michigan dealership chain that owns Hyundai, Kia and other franchises, many such service bulletins are issued monthly, and don’t get the same level of attention as a safety recall, a company spokesman said.

In March, Ashleigh Singleton bought a used Kia Sportage SUV from one of LaFontaine’s dealerships in Ann Arbor, Mich., and drove it to her home in Detroit. When the 38-year-old social worker woke up the next morning, the car was gone.

The antitheft software update had been available but wasn’t installed on Singleton’s vehicle because the SUV was purchased from a Buick-GMC dealership, which hadn’t been alerted about the software update, the LaFontaine spokesman said.

Hyundai and Kia said that the service bulletin gives car owners and dealers the information they need for the fix, and that they are trying several methods to contact customers.

Even when victims of the stolen cars have their cars recovered, they could face a wait of weeks or months to get them fixed because of a shortage of steering-column covers and other parts damaged during the theft, dealers said. Hyundai and Kia said they are hurrying to get more parts, many of which were no longer in production.

Some Hyundai and Kia owners who have had their cars stolen said the experience has prompted them to switch brands.

Cara Evans’ 2018 Hyundai Tucson SUV was stolen outside her Oakland home in March. She said the vehicle was found a few days later, but the insurance company determined it would be too expensive to repair. She replaced it with a Mazda.