Just before the calendar rolls over into a new year, Kia notified the NHTSA of a recall notice for thousands of its EV9 electric vehicles. The recall names nearly 23,000 of the EV SUVs for missing seat fasteners. Worse yet, an NHTSA statement places the blame on a solitary “plant assembly worker.” 

A worker at the Autoland Gwangmyeong neglected to install seat bolts in Kia EV9 models, leading to a recall for 22,883 EVs

A new Kia recall names 22,883 Kia EV9s from the 2024 and 2025 model years. Specifically, the notice indicates that affected models might not have seat bolts in the second and third rows of seats. Fortunately, the issue may only pertain to 1% of the EVs. However, seats that could potentially come loose during a stressful crash or driving event could be dangerous for occupants.

According to the recall, a plant assembly worker at the Kia Autoland Gwangmyeong EVO plant in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea may have neglected to install the bolts in affected models. “Due to an error by a plant assembly worker, the second and/or third-row seat mounting bolts may be missing,” the NHTSA report says.

As you might imagine, such a mistake won’t directly impact nearly 23,000 vehicles. Inspections have revealed just three examples of missing seat bolts in the North American market. However, the Korean automaker will do its due diligence and inspect every potentially affected model. 

The news follows a September recall for the three-row electric SUV. That recall named EV9 models for a Remote Smart Parking Assist software issue. Like the previous recall, EV9 owners can get their issues remedied free of charge.

Kia may inform vehicle owners by January 24th, 2025 with notification letters. However, you can verify your Kia EV9’s recall status using the NHTSA’s recall lookup tool. You can use your year, make, model, and VIN to get updated recall information about your vehicle.