Hyundai Motor America is recalling a total of 281,000 vehicles in North America – 42,000 of which are in Canada – over an issue involving seatbelt pretensioners that could explode and propel metal fragments into passengers, causing injuries.
The recall covers Hyundai’s Accent, Elantra, and Elantra hybrid cars from the 2019-2022, 2021-2023, and 2021-2022 model years, respectively.
It was noted by the automaker that in the event of a crash, the seatbelt pretensioners on the front driver or passenger side of the affected cars could explode upon deployment. These components are part of the vehicles’ systems which lock the seatbelt in place during a crash, to offer additional protection to passengers.
As reported by Reuters, three injury reports have already been filed in connection to the seatbelt issue.
Hyundai is asking owners of the affected cars to bring them to their nearest dealer, where a cap will be installed to secure the assembly.
In a release, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that Hyundai’s latest recall expands and replaces four other previous recalls. This means that all Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles already repaired under the previous recalls will need to undergo new replacements.
The NHTSA first informed Hyundai of the issue last September, following an incident involving an Elantra from the model year 2021. In that case, the driver-side seatbelt pretensioner purportedly deployed abnormally, and it projected metal fragments into the driver’s leg.
