Hyundai and Kia Announce Recall For Loose Bolts Inside The Engine
Hyundai and Kia are recalling certain 2025–2026 Hyundai Tucson and Santa Fe models and 2025 Kia K4 and Sorento models in the United States due to a potential engine defect that could lead to stalling, damage, or even oil leaks.
Key Points
- The defect may lead to a loss of drive power, engine damage, or in some cases a potential fire risk.
- Dealers will replace the engines free of charge, with owner notification letters set to be mailed starting October 24, 2025 (recall number 281).
According to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the connecting rod bolts inside the engine may not have been properly tightened during assembly. The automaker says connecting rods that have been installed with low torque could result in abnormal knocking noise from the engine and/or illumination of the oil pressure warning light.
Over time, if the vehicle is continually operated with a loose connecting rod, the engine could become damaged and eventually result in a loss of drive power and internal damage, creating a risk of catastrophic engine failure during operation.
To address the problem, Hyundai and Kia dealers will replace the entire engine at no cost to owners. Notification letters are scheduled to begin mailing on October 24, 2025.
Luckily, the recall involves a relatively small vehicle population—on the Hyundai side, it includes 22 Tucsons and 7 Santa Fes, while Kia sees 29 K4s included and just one Sorento.
This article was co-written using AI and was then heavily edited and optimized by our editorial team.
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