Kia has issued a recall order for almost 52,000 of its Soul hatchback vehicles due to steering system issues.
The vehicles involved in the recall order have a 2014 model year.
Hyundai-Kia America Technical Center, Inc. (HATCI) sent [pdf] a letter to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in behalf of Kia Motors Corporation for a voluntary safety recall campaign of the Soul hatchbacks.
HATCI is an independent organization that was tasked to serve as the communication liaison with the NHTSA for Kia Motors and Kia Motors America.
The recalled Soul hatchback vehicles, which were produced from July 21 of last year to January 17 of this year, are about 51,641 in number.
"The pinion plug secures the pinion gear to the steering gear assembly. If the pinion plug loosens due to improper application of thread-locking adhesive during the supplier's assembly process, the pinion gear may separate from the steering gear assembly, causing loss of steering, which could result in a crash," states the letter sent by HATCI to the NHTSA.
The owners of the Kia Soul hatchback vehicles that are involved in the issued recall order will receive first class mail. The mail will contain information about the recall and the process of bringing the vehicles to the nearest Kia dealer.
Once owners bring the affected vehicles to the dealer, the pinion plug of the Soul hatchbacks will be replaced with a new pinion plug that has the thread-locking adhesive properly applied.
The owners of the affected vehicles will not be charged for the replacement. In addition, Kia will give out reimbursements to owners that have incurred expenses for repairs regarding the defect, according to the company's General Reimbursement Plan which was filed April 14 this year.
Kia expects all the company's dealers and all the owners of the affected vehicles to be notified within the month.
The discovery of the issue began when a dealer requested Kia Motors America to conduct an investigation regarding loosening pinion gears in Soul hatchback vehicles. The problem of the improper application of the thread-locking adhesive was confirmed in the first week of June.
Kia said that it has not received any reports of injuries or accidents incurred due to the defect.
Kia's recall order due to a steering problem comes at a time when much of the automobile industry is facing a crisis over airbags issued by Takata. Mitsubishi is the latest company to announce a vehicle recall due to defective Takata airbags, which may open with too much force that would result in ruptured inflators sending metal shards out towards passengers.
