Kia Recalls 2025-2026 EV9 Vehicles for Front Passenger Air Bag Defect
Kia is recalling 2025-2026 EV9 vehicles because the Occupant Detection System may fail to deactivate the front passenger air bag for child seats.
What this means for you
Real risk of harm even if no illness or injury has been reported yet. Stop using the product and follow the agency's guidance.
Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a risk-of-harm product where injury has not yet been reported, fitting the 'High' severity criteria for potential injury without confirmed fatalities or hospitalizations.
Plain-English summary
Kia America, Inc. is recalling certain 2025-2026 EV9 vehicles. The recall addresses a defect in the Occupant Detection System (ODS) caused by improper routing. This issue may prevent the system from deactivating the front passenger air bag when a child or child seat is present in that seat. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
The defect poses a safety risk because a child in the front seat may be at a greater risk of injury if the air bag deploys during a crash. The recall affects 21,290 vehicles.
Dealers will inspect and replace the ODS mat and bladder tube with a new one and ensure proper routing as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters will be mailed beginning October 20, 2026. Owners may contact Kia Customer Service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC379. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on September 4, 2026.
The recalled product
- Product
- KIA EV9
- Brand
- KIA
- Manufacturer
- Kia America, Inc.
- Category
- Vehicle — Air Bag System
- Affected units
- 21,290
Is your product affected?
Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.
Model numbers (1)
- EV9
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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