The Remote Smart Parking Assist (RSPA) equipping certain Hyundais, including the Sonata and Nexo, which helps them squeeze in and out of tight parking spaces all by itself, might not be so smart after all, as a software glitch could cause it to malfunction.
This is why the two vehicles are being recalled in North America. The action concerns the 2020 Nexo, made from August 16, 2019, to February 18, 2020, and 2020 Sonata, put together between October 22, 2019, and March 10, 2020.
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A total of 11,870 cars are included in the safety campaign, and an estimated 1 percent could have the defect that affects the ‘fail-safe’ mode that prevents vehicle movement upon detection of a malfunction during normal operation.
According to the NHTSA’s Description of the Defect, “an error in the RSPA software programming could cause the vehicle to continue to move in its last commanded direction even while a system malfunction is detected”. In other words, the vehicle could roll away, increasing the risk of a crash or injury to bystanders. Fortunately, the automaker is not aware of any accidents surrounding this condition.
The issue was discovered by Hyundai a couple of months ago, during the routine developmental testing of the feature. In March, they received a report of a Sonata in Korea indicating unintended vehicle movement, although the RSPA had an older software version. They continued studying the defect and conducted further testing until the beginning of April, when they announced the voluntary recall.
Owners of the affected Nexo and Sonata will be notified on June 4 and authorized technicians will reprogram the software free of charge. The new software has already been implemented in the production of the two models and is said to prevent the glitch. The automaker will reimburse those who have already repaired their cars.
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