Seoul, April 22 (IANS) Hyundai Motor, Kia and two other carmakers will voluntarily recall over half a million vehicles in South Korea to address defective components, the transport ministry here said on Wednesday.

The four companies, which also include KG Mobility Corp. and Toyota Motor Korea, will recall a combined 532,144 units across 17 models, according to the ministry.

Hyundai Motor will recall 239,683 units of four models, including the Santa Fe sport utility vehicle (SUV), over a seat belt issue that could fail to properly protect passengers in a crash. Separately, 202 units of the Elec City commercial bus will be recalled due to potential structural cracks in the upper body frame.

Kia will address 220,059 units of the Ray compact vehicle over potential engine shutdown due to a software problem, reports Yonhap news agency.

KG Mobility will recall 51,535 units of six models, including the Torres SUV, due to a software memory overload issue that could cause the instrument panel display to freeze or shut down.

Toyota will recall 2,132 units across three models, including the Prius 2WD, due to a faulty rear door handle that could cause the door to open while driving.

In February, Hyundai Motor, Kia and BMW Korea voluntarily recalled 107,158 vehicles across 37 models due to manufacturing defects that could pose fire risks.

According to the ministry, 37,690 units of four Hyundai models, including the Kona Electric, were subject to corrective measures over a battery management system (BMS) software issue, which could prevent early detection of fire risks.

Kia recalled 1,590 units of the Niro electric vehicle (EV) over the same BMS software issue, reports Yonhap news agency.

Separately, BMW Korea recalled 67,878 vehicles across 32 models, including the 520i and 320i, over defective starter motor components that could lead to possible fires.

—IANS

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