The new Kia EV3 opens its doors when parked for a wash at the car wash. Kia is not yet able to fix the problem.
A bug in the new Kia EV3 allows the car's doors to open when it is in a car wash.
This is what Vi Bilägare , who has had the car for a test drive, tells us.
The journalist who took the car to the wash described to the media how the Kia's doors unexpectedly opened when the automatic car wash started.
The episode took place in an OKQ8 car wash in Piteå, while a journalist from Vi Bilägare was on his way to a winter tire test in Älvsbyn.
The journalist drove a Kia EV3 Long Range Plus, which is part of Vi Bilägare's test fleet. After covering about 870 kilometers, the journalist thought the car needed a quick wash. However, it turned out to be a stupid idea.
In the middle of the wash program, the driver's door suddenly opened and one of the rotating wash brushes began cleaning the car's interior.
"Stop the washing!" was shouted. But because of the noise, it is uncertain whether anyone even heard what the journalist wrote in the article.
The journalist tried to hold the door closed with both hands while the brush rotated around the left side of the car. Fortunately, the car wash had working sensors, and the pressure on the door was enough to stop the wash.
Shortly afterwards, however, it was discovered that the front passenger door had also opened ajar. According to Kia, the explanation must be found in the automatic door handles.
The washer brushes had touched the handles, which the car registered as human fingers, and that someone therefore wanted to enter the unlocked car.
The problem is only made worse by the fact that the car does not have a special "wash mode", which would otherwise have prevented the doors from opening.
When Vi Bilägare reviewed the car's manual, it emerged that Kia is actually aware of the problem. At least the brand states that there is a risk of the doors opening in car washes.
However, there was a reference to a car wash function that was not present in the car. Kia Sweden confirmed that the wording in the user manual is incorrect when asked about it.
– There is a wording in the user manual that describes a function that is not found in the car, says David Lilja, PR manager at Kia Sweden, to Vi Bilägare.
However, he will not go into how Kia could have written that in the manual.
Kia Sweden has forwarded the matter to its European headquarters, which is investigating the error. For now, Kia recommends that car owners manually lock the doors before entering an automatic car wash.
– As soon as we have received a response from Kia Europe, we can change the manual so that it becomes clearer for the customer, says David Lilja.
