Seattle Councilmember joins U.S. leaders in efforts to stop Kia, Hyundai theft crisis

The staggering theft of Kias and Hyundais continues to plague Washington. On Wednesday, Seattle City Councilmember Tammy Morales joined leaders across the country to demand the company recall vehicles that are easy to steal.

The City of Auburn, while not in the coalition, is also dealing with stolen Kias and Hyundais. On Friday, Auburn police saw a blue Kia with no plates parked in front of a 7-Eleven. 

The Kia matched two robberies in Des Moines and Tukwila with similar suspects. Auburn officers said they saw the same suspects running out of the 7-Eleven’s front door.

“He then noticed two people coming out of the store in masks with two cash tills in their hands, cash registers making a b-line for that car,” said Auburn Police Department’s Public Information Officer, Kolby Krossley.

Police said the robberies in Des Moines and Tukwila may have been armed. In the Auburn robbery, the suspects hinted at having a gun but never showed one.

Krossley said there were four suspects inside the stolen Kia.

Auburn police, along with K9s and a police chopper, arrested the four suspects shortly after they ran from the 7-Eleven.

“It is becoming a consistent denominator,” said Krossley. “It is something we’re seeing a lot of. Kias Hyundais those are kind of the primary cars that are being used in these kinds of things.”

Stolen Kias and Hyundais are becoming such a common denominator that Councilmember Tammy Morales and elected officials from cities across the U.S. are calling on the car makers to recall the 2011-2021 models. 

Seattle Police stats show that last year 8,379 cars were stolen in Seattle. That’s 21% more than the 6,920 reported stolen cars in 2022, which was already up 30% from 2021′s 5,352 stolen cars.

Tammy Morales cited Seattle Police statistics that specifically tracked Kias and Hyundais. Their reports show that the amount of Kias reported stolen in 2022 was 363% more than the amount reported stolen in 2021. For Hyundais, that number was 503%.

“The resolution and the lawsuit are really about corporate responsibility, corporate accountability for not just the theft but for the extravagant resources cities across the country have spent,” said Morales. “Mostly young people out stealing cars, driving when they may not know how to drive, putting them at risk, and then using them potentially for other crimes, it just sort of compounds.”

In January 2023, Seattle led the way in filing the first lawsuit against the manufacturers. Since then, nearly 80 other municipalities have signed on. 

The Seattle City Council filed a resolution against the manufacturers in December. This nationwide coalition is the latest step in what Morales said is at its heart a manufacturing issue, not a crime issue.

“In Seattle between January 2020 and October 2023, over 1,800 cars were stolen, Kias and Hyundais were stolen in the 2015 model year while 96% of all vehicles in the U.S. were equipped with this immobilized tech,” she said. “Only 26% of Hyundai and Kia cars had the technology.”

KIRO 7 reached out to both Kia and Hyundai for a response. Kia never got back. 

Hyundai responded with:

Hyundai Motor America is committed to ensuring the quality and integrity of our products. A subset of Hyundai vehicles on the road in the U.S. today – primarily “base trim” or entry-level models – are not equipped with push-button ignitions and immobilizing anti-theft devices.

It is important to clarify that an engine immobilizer is an anti-theft device and these vehicles are fully compliant with federal anti-theft requirements. Thieves discovered a specific method by which to bypass the vehicles’ security features and then documented and promoted their exploits on TikTok and other social media channels.

In response, Hyundai has taken comprehensive action to assist our customers, including: 

(1) Made engine immobilizers standard on all vehicles produced as of November 2021;

(2) Developed a software upgrade to equip these vehicles with an “ignition kill” feature designed to prevent the popularized method of theft;

(3) Rolled out the free anti-theft software upgrade to all of the nearly 4 million vehicles involved – two months ahead of the original schedule – through a service campaign to affected customers who own or lease model year 2011-2022 vehicles;

(4) Launched a dedicated website HyundaiAntiTheft.com, toll-free number (888) 498-0390 and digital advertising to generate awareness of the software upgrade, help customers determine their eligibility, and schedule an appointment at their local Hyundai dealership;

(5) Initiated a program to reimburse affected customers for their purchase of steering wheel locks, including for a smaller group of 2011-2022 model year vehicles that cannot accommodate the software upgrade;

(6) Established a program to provide free steering wheel locks to law enforcement agencies across the country for distribution to local residents who own or lease the affected vehicles;

(7) Collaborated with AAA insurers on a program to offer insurance options for affected owners and lessees. As part of this collaboration, AAA insurers will issue new and renewal policies for eligible affected Hyundai customers. The program will be available in all states with the exception of those states where AAA does not offer insurance. (e.g., Alaska, , Massachusetts, Washington);

(8) Recently piloted mobile service centers in Washington, D.C., St. Louis County, MO, New York City, Chicago, Minneapolis, St. Paul, upstate New York and Baltimore with plans to replicate in additional markets to further scale and speed installation of the software upgrade.

Hyundai is committed to continuing our efforts in completing the software upgrade for all affected vehicles in the most effective manner possible. We are communicating with NHTSA on our many actions to assist our customers.

©2024 Cox Media Group