Hyundai, Kia recall more than 1.8m vehicles in US

Reuters (Detroit) - Hyundai Motor Corp. and its Kia Motors affiliate are recalling more than 1.8 million cars and SUVs in the United States to address a potentially faulty switch and a loose headliner, according to regulators.

Hyundai is recalling 1,059,824 cars and SUVs and Kia 623,658 vehicles from model years 2007 through 2011 to replace a switch that could increase the risk of a crash, according to documents filed with U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In addition, Hyundai is recalling another 186,254 Elantra cars from model years 2011 through 2013 to apply adhesive strips to the headliner to prevent that part from becoming displaced during a side curtain airbag deployment and increasing the risk of cuts during a crash, the NHTSA said.

Reuters could not immediately reach officials at Hyundai and Kia to learn whether any reported accidents or injuries resulted from the problems.

The malfunctioning stop lamp switch in the larger recall affecting Hyundai and Kia may cause the brake lights not to illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed.

That malfunctioning switch may also cause intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, prevent the shifter from being moved out of the park position or allow the driver to move the shifter out of park without applying the brake, or cause the electronic stability control malfunction light to illuminate, according to NHTSA documents.