Hyundai Knew The Palisade's Seats Had A Problem Before Tragic Accident

Hyundai is officially recalling more than 61,000 Palisade SUVs in the United States following a fatal incident tied to an issue with the vehicle’s power seats. Hyundai had already issued a voluntary stop-sale late last week.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the recall affects certain 2026 model year Palisade and Palisade Hybrid models, where the second- and third-row power seats may not properly detect contact with an occupant or object.

The recall follows a tragic accident in Ohio on March 7, in which a two-year-old child was killed. In response, Hyundai had already taken the precautionary step of halting sales of some new Palisade models in the U.S. and Canada while the issue was being investigated.

According to NHTSA's recall documents, Hyundai received 20 different field claims relating to the issue since August of last year, with 4 injuries reported before the tragic accident finally prompted action. There have also been injuries outside of North America, with several incidents reported in Korea.

Regulators say the problem stems from the seat system’s failure to recognize resistance as intended, which could prevent it from stopping or reversing when encountering an obstruction. That raises the risk of injury, particularly in situations involving small passengers or objects in the seat’s path.

Hyundai says a permanent fix is currently being developed. In the meantime, the automaker plans to update the power seat control software as an interim measure to improve detection performance.

Hyundai is also warning owners to exercise extreme caution when operating the second and third row power-folding seats. Ensure that small children are not in the seat or near the seat-folding area during operation.

Additionally, the automaker is advising owners to avoid using the “one-touch” tilt-and-slide button located on the second row seatback—it allows for easy walk-in access to the third row during entry. Owners of affected vehicles will be notified once a full remedy is available.

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