TUCSON / SPORTAGE RECALL

Hyundai and Kia recalled about 38,000 Tucson and Sportage SUVs to fix a
possible problem with the stability-control system, the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration says.

According to the agency, the vehicles' electronic stability program can
become too sensitive and set itself inaccurately.

If that happens, the system could cause the engine to lose power and
apply brakes to only one of the wheels. That could cause a crash.

Information on the NHTSA's Web site said dealers will reprogram the
control unit, starting on April 3.

Anyone with questions can call NHTSA at (888) 327-4236.

 

See what happens when you try to make cars too "smart"? ;-)

 

Indeed! Anyone who has been involved in software development and the
debugging cycle should get the willies when looking at cars with
computer-controlled throttle and brakes. Fortunately the wife's 2000
Sonata doesn't fall into this category. (Articles like the one about
this recall make me appreciate my '75 Hornet even more!)

 

The service info for this recall is already available at Hyundai dealers.
I downloaded the programming info yesterday and we've already reprogrammed
a couple stock units today.

All Hyundai dealers should have what they need to perform this recall at
this time. You should be able to call and set up an appointment. Have
your VIN in hand so they can verify the recall applies to your vehicle.

If they haven't yet downloaded the reflash onto their reprogramming
cartridge, you may need to wait a significant period of time. The
download time yesterday was about 1.5 hours to update our card.

 

I really have to wonder if things like ABS and TC are really creating
more problems than they're solving by further "dumbing down" of an
already incompetent population of drivers. The more divorced we become
from the driving process and the knowing the limits of performance of
our cars, the less able we are to deal with difficult driving
situations. Add to that the increasing size and power of the current
offerings here, poor driver training and the public perception that
airbags, ABS and TC are all you need to drive safely, and it's no wonder
that the number of fatalities on our highways is so high, despite the
fact that our cars are getting increasingly "smarter".

 

id love to have tc and esp in a new accent , but doesnt mean i wouldnt drive
any less cautiously.
i drive with 4 blizzaks in the winter and still take care.
Guess driving up heres tought me a lesson (northern canada).

 

Unfortunately, most drivers in northern climates (at least in the US)
don't put snow tires on their vehicles, for one of several reasons:

- They've been lulled into believing the myth of the "all season" tire.
There is no such thing, unless you consider tires that are equally bad
under all conditions to be "all season".

- They think that FWD/ABS/TC is the answer to driving safely in the
winter. None of the above will prevent an incompetent driver or a
vehicle with inadequate traction from ending up in a ditch.

- They have never driven a vehicle with snow tires and have no idea what
a huge difference it makes.

- They don't want to spend the money.

Over the years, I've managed to convince a few people to put snows on
their cars (ALWAYS on all 4 wheels) and every one of them has been
stunned at the difference it makes. If more people bought snow tires
rather than SUVs, there'd probably be far fewer accidents in the winter.

 

i find 500 .00 is nothing compared to your life...
use snow titres people, all seasons go hard innthe cold and if you ever walk
on ice with runners with rubber that hardens in the cold youll know what im
talking about.
ass over tea kettle =)

 

youd be amazed at hot many people here use all seasons and argue with me
about the whole thing...
hell, i see people with bald tyres in the winter.
people always complaing about the highway conditions here ...
I say partial blame is on them and their crapo tyres.
this winter we had to drive to thunder bay ont (4 hr drive)
the roads were packed snow polished to to a lovely gleaming shine.
not once did the accent falter, then i get arses on my ass when iim slowing
ahead for a cuve.. go figure....
i dont remeber how many 4x5 and suvs were in the ditch ..

 

Yeah, I hear ya.

No doubt about it and the tires don't even have to be particularly worn.
I bought my Elantra GT last April and due to tight finances, decided to
try to get through this winter without buying snows. After struggling
through a couple of months of frequent snow storms, I bit the bullet and
bought Nokian snows on steel wheels for it. Of course, the difference
was night and day, and driving the rest of the winter was a breeze.

That's what I see a lot of every year. The average driver is simply
clueless about vehicle dynamics and people are convinced that four wheel
drive makes them invincible. For many, it's actually much LESS safe. The
added traction it provides when accelerating makes them think it's safe
to drive faster than is prudent. Unfortunately, they don't realize that
FWD doesn't help them when you have to corner or brake. Some FWD systems
actually hamper braking, making the problem even worse. The end result
is a trip to the ditch for many of them. The lucky ones stay upright and
don't hit anything hard. The unlucky ones, oh well...