Kia issues Sorento recall over faulty eCall SOS feature

Kia has announced a recall of its latest Sorento model over an issue with the car’s eCall SOS function.

When operating correctly, the eCall system automatically transmits the car’s vehicle identification number (VIN) to an emergency call centre if the system detects that an accident has taken place.

However, in affected vehicles, if an airbag is deployed then the VIN would not be transmitted.

Kia dealers are able to reset the eCall system so it operates as it should and automatically sends out the VIN regardless of whether the airbags have been fired.

The Korean firm states that 965 cars – manufactured between September 1 and December 14 2020 – in the UK are affected and it is unaware of any injuries or accidents which have come from the issue. The carmaker is currently in the process of contacting owners with affected vehicles and arranging an appointment at nearby dealers for the eCall system to be reset.

All work will be carried out with social distancing measures in place and should not take more than 30 minutes, though Kia is asking customers to schedule up to one hour to take into account vehicle handling.

The new Sorento was revealed in full in March last year, bringing a striking new look to the firm’s large SUV. Wider and longer than the car it replaces, the Sorento is available as a diesel or a new hybrid setup, while a plug-in hybrid model is also on the way,