Hyundai EVs under the spotlight for brake regen safety, Ioniq 5 power loss

Research has revealed a potential safety hazard for Hyundai Motor Group’s electric vehicle regenerative braking system, as an investigation opens on reported Ioniq 5 power losses.

American advocacy group Consumer Reports [↗] has found the carmaker’s full EV models failed to illuminate the rear brake lights when slowing down to a stop – even if the driver had some pressure on the accelerator pedal – via stronger Level 3 and ‘i-Pedal’ regen modes.

The brake lights only activated when the driver completely lifted off the accelerator, which would warn other road users – albeit at the maximum recuperation intensity.

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However, Consumer Reports noted an Ioniq 6 electric sedan example was an outlier and had consistent brake-light illumination when using i-Pedal.

It tested 24 EVs from its own fleet, including the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, Niro EV, Genesis GV60 and Electrified GV70.

Consumer Reports Auto Test Center director, Jennifer Stockburger, said owners should avoid using the stronger regen modes.

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“Until this issue is remedied, drivers of the affected EVs should stick with the Level 1 or Level 2 regenerative-braking modes and avoid using the stronger Level 3 and strongest i-Pedal modes,” Stockburger said.

Meanwhile, it also found Mercedes-Benz EVs don’t immediately keep the brake lights activated during the last point of deceleration and once at a complete stop when using its strong recuperation mode. It only activated after 15 seconds – long after the vehicle stopped.

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Software update fix coming

In response to Consumer Reports’ findings, a Hyundai Motor America spokesperson confirmed that a software update will roll out to address this regen braking safety issue.

“After further investigation, Hyundai and Genesis will be launching a field service campaign to update the EV brake light logic for the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Genesis Electrified G80, Genesis Electrified GV70, and Genesis GV60. There will also be a change made to new production of those models,” the Hyundai America spokesperson said.

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“Regardless of the accelerator pedal input, the brake lights will now turn on when the deceleration rate exceeds 1.3m/s2 (approx. 0.13G).

“The service campaign will launch in July for approximately 56,000 vehicles and will be performed free of charge.”

Meanwhile, a Kia America spokesperson told the organisation that it is ‘evaluating’ the i-Pedal brake light logic on the Niro EV and EV6 electric SUVs, but unknowingly not for the high performance EV6 GT flagship.

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Ioniq 5 power loss under investigation

Additionally, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation to a reported spontaneous loss of power fault on 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5 electric SUVs.

The safety authority’s Office of Defects Investigation [PDF ↗] has received 30 complaints, with many reporting a “loud pop noise followed by a warning displayed in their dashboard and immediately experience a loss of motive power that ranges from a reduction to a complete loss.”

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It also said it has conducted several interviews with owners – each experiencing varying time intervals between the warning message and loss of power.

Hyundai told the regulator the failure is related to the Integrated Control Charging Unit (ICCU), where over-current can damage transistors in the DC-to-DC converter resulting in the inability to charge the 12-volt electronics battery.

If the issue is found to be widespread, it could impact nearly 40,000 owners in North America.

It is not yet known if the mechanically related Kia EV6 has been affected by these issues.