LAKELAND, Fla. — Hyundai notified Peggy and Charlie Campbell late last year of a possible engine fire risk associated with their nearly new SUV.
Since September, the automaker has recalled more than half a million SUVs over an electrical short in the brake system that could cause the vehicle to catch fire.
The recall notice says a Hyundai dealer will install a fuse kit in the couple’s 2020 Tucson but that’s not what happened — at least not right away.
The Campbells, who live in Lakeland, say they took their SUV to a local dealer but were told there were no parts available to do the repair.
“They inspected it and put me on a waiting list,” Peggy said.
The couple parked the vehicle outside away from their house as instructed in the recall notice. And Peggy bought a fire extinguisher just in case. After a two months wait, they made a call for action.
“This is a major problem and you are telling me you can't fix it,” Charlie said of the situation with the dealer.
The Center for Auto Safety says it is possible one dealership may be out of the part but another is able to do the recall repair. Executive Director Jason Levine suggests asking for a loaner vehicle or contacting the automaker's corporate office when running into trouble with a recall repair.
“It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to make that recall happen,” Levine said.
In the Campbell’s case I-Team Investigator Jackie Callaway, who first exposed fire danger in Hyundai and Kia vehicles in 2018, contacted Hyundai’s corporate office regarding the Campbell’s recall repair.
A Hyundai spokesperson wrote in a statement: ”Our customer service team and the dealer are following up with this customer to address their concerns," adding that the part is generally available around the country.
You can report delays in recalled parts to federal regulators who oversee recalls by visiting https://www.safercar.gov/.
