EV nightmare
- Thread starter Steve1962
- Start date
I think I would opt for a Nio, they have replaceable battery packs where you drive into a Nio Center and within 10 minutes at most your discharged pack is replaced with a fully charged one.
What an awful situation. Sounds like the owner (Kyle) was caught between an incompetent dealer and a lack of policy and process in Hyundai Canada. This reflects more on the dealer and manufacturer network and relationship than on the car, which sounds like it was probably perfectly ok...
I would love to know what Hyundai UK make of the this tale, and what a UK Hyundai dealer would do in a similar situation.
Can you imagine the furore if an ICE engine were to be declared dangerous because of scratches on the oil sump protection plate, requiring a whole replacement engine! Crazy.
I would love to know what Hyundai UK make of the this tale, and what a UK Hyundai dealer would do in a similar situation.
Can you imagine the furore if an ICE engine were to be declared dangerous because of scratches on the oil sump protection plate, requiring a whole replacement engine! Crazy.
You have to wonder if the situation has arisen in view of possible future claim should a battery related issue occur?
Scratches to a cover and distortion of that cover might be argued to have been the cause of any possible battery issues (dare I mention a fire caused by damage to a part of the battery) whilst rather unlikely that an ICE engine had to be replaced because of a scratched and dented sump.
Whatever the reasons you can't help but feel sorry for the customer but safety and functionality issues related to a battery can't be compared with a dent in the sump of an ICE engine.
I am sure thats exactly what the dealer did, avoided a future claim - with no actual investigation of the real problem.
This is my point - you wouldn't replace a whole engine because of a damaged sump, and certainly not because the sump guard was damaged, without looking to see what _actual_ damage had been caused (which is what happened here).
I think there are parallels to be drawn. Both the engine and battery pack are modular. Both are covered with some protection. If the protection is damaged, the obvious and sensible thing to do is look to see if the damage is of the protection cover only, or the all or part of the item it is protecting. If the modular part is damaged, that can then be replaced.
Here - in ICE terms - what has happened is the sump cover is damaged, and the dealership has declared the engine dangerous because of potential damage to the engine caused by damage to the sump (eg loss of oil pressure or actual oil, or physical damage to the lower parts of the engine) without ever actually examining the sump or engine for damage.
If an examination were carried out, and say the sump was dented, but the rest of the engine intact - you would replace the sump - not the whole engine. The same applies to the battery pack. If the battery pack outer casing, were damaged, but the cells fine, you would replace the case. If one or two cells were damaged, you may replace those.
Battery packs are large complex _modular_ systems in their own right (much like a modern ICE) and like an ICE have large numbers of sensors embedded to keep track of the status of the different components. These are not normally accessible to the user, but with an ODB reader and the right software - all sorts of information is available.
Discarding the entire pack because the protection (not the casing, or cells, but protection) is damaged, without looking any further is ridiculous.
I doubt anyone feels the outcome of this issue is fair. Of course the least the garage could do is investigate but their reluctance suggests, as we both agree, a stance that avoids any future liability.
A battery is a complex item that is also "eye-wateringly" expensive. I really can't see any garage being unwilling to pass an opinion on a dented sump or, indeed, replace it at a tiny fraction of the possible costs the battery repair/replacement might incur. The repair of replacement of a battery is not in the same league.
I didn't watch the whole video but seem to recall it was the change in the space between the protection and the battery underside that was cited as the reason for the need to change the whole battery. Of course neither of us can make an informed judgement on that stance and yes, it seems outrageous that such a seemingly unimportant piece of damage should be so significant. However, I for one have no idea why this apparently minor damage was/is apparently so important that it appears to make further investigation futile.
I would have expected the garage to have access to the "all sorts of information that an OBD and the right software" could provide and it certainly seems ridiculous that detailed investigation was not deemed necessary.
I suspect anyone watching the video will be gobsmacked at the costs involved. Surely, all else aside, a battery replacement costing as much as the new car is outrageous. Except I have no idea what exactly is involved in a "repair" process which may include specialist equipment and testing alongside stringent safely standards and so on.
What is certain is that car batteries in the current stage of development are not without difficulties. Hopefully in time that will gradually change and these situations will not arise.
Who knows. I and millions of others are waiting to see!
A battery is a complex item that is also "eye-wateringly" expensive. I really can't see any garage being unwilling to pass an opinion on a dented sump or, indeed, replace it at a tiny fraction of the possible costs the battery repair/replacement might incur. The repair of replacement of a battery is not in the same league.
I didn't watch the whole video but seem to recall it was the change in the space between the protection and the battery underside that was cited as the reason for the need to change the whole battery. Of course neither of us can make an informed judgement on that stance and yes, it seems outrageous that such a seemingly unimportant piece of damage should be so significant. However, I for one have no idea why this apparently minor damage was/is apparently so important that it appears to make further investigation futile.
I would have expected the garage to have access to the "all sorts of information that an OBD and the right software" could provide and it certainly seems ridiculous that detailed investigation was not deemed necessary.
I suspect anyone watching the video will be gobsmacked at the costs involved. Surely, all else aside, a battery replacement costing as much as the new car is outrageous. Except I have no idea what exactly is involved in a "repair" process which may include specialist equipment and testing alongside stringent safely standards and so on.
What is certain is that car batteries in the current stage of development are not without difficulties. Hopefully in time that will gradually change and these situations will not arise.
Who knows. I and millions of others are waiting to see!
Totally agree that these sorts of issues are going to govern the outcome of the future of the technology. It’s all about the training, and processes and procedures that the dealer and manufacturer level. They absolutely have to get this right for the confidence of the consumers in the mass market.
Idiots like me are happy to jump in with both feet and test stuff “just because “. But for most people, you have to trust the technology is going to be up to the rigorous of real life. And in this case, it absolutely was not. And i think we absolutely agree Kyle did not deserve to be caught is such a mess.
Again we don't have all the necessary information to come to a firm conclusion but it would seem neither did the garage, insurance company Hyundai Canada or the owner.
What was wrong is the process that was used to determine the state of the vehicle, a fact that Hyundai Canada agreed, and has apparently addressed.
The way Canadian Car insurance is run differs significantly from the process in the UK, so its unfair to make direct comparisons with what might have happened here in the UK.
I would hope that if a EV battery was needed to be purchased, that there would also be some substantial scrap value to old battery which would offset some of the new purchase price.
What was wrong is the process that was used to determine the state of the vehicle, a fact that Hyundai Canada agreed, and has apparently addressed.
The way Canadian Car insurance is run differs significantly from the process in the UK, so its unfair to make direct comparisons with what might have happened here in the UK.
I would hope that if a EV battery was needed to be purchased, that there would also be some substantial scrap value to old battery which would offset some of the new purchase price.
As soon as I saw it was Canada I smelt a rat.
My Son In Law is involved in his Company’s new phamara factory in Canada. All the engineering kit is being made in Germany . SIL and his team are not allowed to turn one screw in the installation . It has to be done by a Canadian National, member of a Union. SiL watch and advise. The process is taking ten times longer than it would in the U.K. or Germany. I suspect something similar is behind this Hyundai story.
My Son In Law is involved in his Company’s new phamara factory in Canada. All the engineering kit is being made in Germany . SIL and his team are not allowed to turn one screw in the installation . It has to be done by a Canadian National, member of a Union. SiL watch and advise. The process is taking ten times longer than it would in the U.K. or Germany. I suspect something similar is behind this Hyundai story.
This is simply incredible. I can only assume no one is buying the Hyundai any more over there as the risk is just too high.
When I worked in Canada in 1985-86 one thing that struck me was the high level of bureaucracy in both the private and public sector. One Canadian colleague who I had know for several years told me that in Canada "mañana" is too soon for many organisations, and conveyed too much urgency.
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