KIA SPORTAGE Incident

*10/6/23: 5-Day Incident Report* Customer contacted Kia's Customer Care Center on October 3, 2023 indicating she "hit the vehicle in front of her "while driving her 2023 Kia Sportage and that the by the time she realized it, the vehicle did not stop and was not able to apply the brakes quick enough. Specifically, the customer reported that she was driving on in traffic on [XXX] for about 10 mins and cruise control was on and set to 65mph and "was fine before with slowing down and picking back up." Customer indicated she was going 25mph when she hit an 18 wheeler truck in front of her. She reported the front was of Sportage was "caved in" and that she could not drive the vehicle. The airbags did not deploy. There were no reported injuries. The vehicle was towed. When asked by Customer Care, the customer reported that HDA and cruise control were engaged at the time of the incident but customer did not allege that either of those systems caused the accident. Customer requested that Kia repair the vehicle if not totaled by her insurance company. The subject Kia Sportage is equipped with Highway Driving Assist (HDA). HDA is a supplemental system that helps maintain a set distance and speed from the vehicle ahead when driving on a highway and helps keep the vehicle between lanes while driving. HDA may not be able to recognize all traffic situations and may not detect possible collisions due to limitations of the system. Obstacles such as vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians, unspecified objects and structures that may collide with the vehicle may not be detected. Based on the customer's comment of "by the time she realized it, I was not able to apply the brakes quick enough", it appears that the customer may have been distracted at the time of the incident. Kia is currently working with the customer to retrieve the vehicle's ACU but has no further information at this time. * 10/13/23: 10- Day Update* There are no new updates. Kia continues to work to obtain the ACU. * 2/15/23: February Monthly Update* On 2/15/2024, Kia submitted an update to Mr. Teitelman via NHTSA's SLFTS portal. The update stated that the EDR report has not yet been retrieved from the customer and Kia will send the EDR report to Mr. Teitelman when it is received. In addition, as of 1/23/2024, the dealership requested and was provided the customer's information, and Kia Customer Care notified the customer that the dealership will contact the customer to schedule a new appointment.