I was told today because of recall 200, Hyundai wants buy back our cars

You don't need to record anything. This is not a court case. Hyundai has files with the NHTSA for the recall. If they do not perform it in a reasonable time, there is authority to force some action. Hyundai is not giving up selling cars in the US or anywhere. Take action that you need. I personally believe Hyundai is still trying to figure out what to do. Keep your eyes and ears open for the opportunity to do what fits your needs. When it comes along whether it is a new battery or a buy back, check out and make a decision.

 

I wonder if this may be due to the patent lawsuit that prevents them importing SKI cells to the US?

 

I'm not certain but I believe that the issues involving SK and importing of their batteries into the US has been resolved (or is in the process of being resolved).

 

Call me skeptical but this sounds dicey. What about the federal tax credits everyone got for purchasing a Kona? Those have been claimed long ago for most of us. We got a small state rebate too. And who's going to determine the value of your Kona? The local dealer? That sounds totally above board! More to the point...we've received an official NHTSA recall that states,...

"You will receive a second notification letter when the remedy is available,
and the Battery System Assembly will be inspected, and replaced—if necessary."
​

I'm thinking Hyundai is going to have a difficult time suddenly changing their solution now that they've already notified customers in this way. I suppose it could happen, but the rumored buy-back seems to me to be the path of greatest resistance for Hyundai.

 

Here's an update from what we've heard from our dealer in (Nanaimo,BC) Canada.

We received a flurry of phone calls from them (the local dealer) as news broke and they got their act together as far as how to move forward. They are offering both the buyback and battery replacement. They went so far as to say that they may rent another repair shop space so that they can continue doing regular servicing for all their customers plus dedicate two full bays in their store to the replacement process, one to store the new battery and one to do the replacement. They do not have a timeline, perhaps summer, on when they will start doing replacements. They expect the replacement process to take at least a week or two. They do seem sure that they will be doing replacements including on the models they buy back.

They definitely are wanting us to do the buy back instead though. They said we would still be eligible for the rebates that are available for new EVs (though they have dropped from $10,000 when we bought it to $7500 now), and said they would go through the normal used car assessment process. So I am not confident that we would be getting an acceptable deal when it comes to going all new.

We love our Kona and have as you know customized it with a trailer hitch so that puts us more firmly on the side of wanting to do the replacement. As far as I am concerned, I would not be willing to put down more than $2000 for a new Kona in a buyback. We own the car outright and want to use it to its fullest. We are going to go in and talk to them about the buyback anyway just to see what they offer, but that's where we are at.

If anything signicant changes Ill come back here and let you know.

 

First I heard of buybacks in Canada. If that were feasible, I would go for the Ioniq 5 instead though.

 

If true, I'm curious if they will reimburse the cost of the car, minus mileage, minus the federal and state rebates?

 

I did some research on the rebates in Oregon. Don't to how many states it may apply. In Oregon, the federal rebate is yours. You do not have to return the rebate if you sell the car (assume includes Buy Back). The state rebate however states if you own the car 2 years, you do not have to pay any back. Under 2 years it is prorated to how long you owned it. If we sell it back to Hyundai after owning it 1.5 years, we would have to give back 1/4 of the $2800 rebate or $700.

 

Too bad the credit is only good for the current year. It would have been nice if they allowed a carry over to the following year, when your tax liability might be higher.

 

That's great if you're Canadian. But I live in the US, and right now Hyundai of America might not offer the battery replacement option.

My bigger question is, even if they did replace your battery, you have no way in knowing if Hyundai will internally set your charge limit more than their current buffer. So instead of being able to achieve 100% charge like now, you will only get 90% and you don't even know it.

Another question is we are assuming that Hyundai had found the problem with the fires, which is the defect in the battery contacts being exposed. What if that is not the case? What if after mass battery replacements, some of those cars are still catching fire? What then?

So for me, even if they offer a buyback, I am not sure if I will move up to a newer model or another Hyundai.

Even though this experience with my Kona EV is not good, I would likely want to keep my car (or move to another electric vehicle) considering how gas stations are running out of gas in the Southeast after the Colonial pipeline ransomware attack. It's comforting to know I always have an electric transportation alternative if I cannot use my gas car.

Questions, questions, questions.

 

It might be worth noting that the Chevy Bolt (2019 model and earlier I think?) used the same LG batteries and have the same risk. This recent article,
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brookecrothers/2021/05/09/chevy-bolt-ev-battery-issues-and-fire-risk-two-cases/?sh=2a0d0c151bc0
relates a story wherein the author says:
"After several weeks of back and forth, GM has agreed to replace his Bolt with a new 2021 Bolt or buy back his Bolt (which falls within the 2017-2019 model range). The fact that GM is willing to go this far shows that GM is taking this seriously."

If their biggest competitor is doing it perhaps there will be three options from Hyundai in due time:
Replacement
Buy Back
Repair

 

Any of you guys have experience with buybacks, how much should we expect to be offered and how much will they deduce for the mileage. I do like the car but service since day 1 is not good here in Montreal compared to my old car (VW). With all that is coming I don't have high expectations

 

I just got off the phone with Hyundai to ask about the buy back vs. battery replacement. I don't know if the person I spoke with was confused/ill-informed or if her information was accurate, but she told me the following:
- Battery Replacement doesn't fix the problem so they will not be doing that
- Hyundai is looking into other solutions - so remedy is still unknown
- Hyundai is not currently initiating buy backs other than for customers who want it

So basically, this call created more questions for me than answers :-(