by Chris Chilton
- Hyundai is recalling Tucson SUVs with trailer hitch option.
- Faulty trailer harness may short and cause a fire risk.
- DIY harness kits sold by dealers are also being recalled.
Daytime temperatures in Tucson, Arizona, can reach a balmy 64F (18C) in December, but temperatures at the back-end of more than 50,000 Tucson SUVs are at risk of feeling summer-like and then some.
The Korean brand is recalling 51,587 of the compact utilities built for MY22-24 due to a problem with the wiring harness on models fitted with the optional towing package.
Hyundai found that the harness attaches to the car at a point where water ingress is likely to occur, and that could lead to a short circuit if water gets into the wire harness control module.
Related: Hyundai Just Teased Its Largest EV Yet, But It Might Not Be So New
One result could be inoperative trailer lights or vehicle stop lights, which could potentially cause a crash if the driver behind doesn’t realize the Tucson is braking. But another possible, and maybe more deadly, outcome is a fire in the harness itself from a short circuit.
Park with care
So although Hyundai says it’s happy for owners to continue driving their SUVs until they’re fixed, it is also advising them to park away from structures until the recall work is carried out, which won’t be until the second half of February 2026 at the earliest.
DIY danger
And it’s not only owners of Tucsons optioned with the trailer harness from the factory that need to stay vigilant. Hyundai also sold 1,338 harnesses over the counter at US dealers for DIY install, and owners of those cars will also need to have their SUVs checked.
That poses a bigger challenge for Hyundai because it could be more difficult to pinpoint which vehicles had the mod installed if it happened outside of the dealer network.
This latest recall is just the latest in a series of Hyundai wiring issues we’ve written about recently. In October Hyundai issued a recall for 136,000 Santa Fes due to a starter motor harness boot cover that isn’t fully seated over the starter’s “B+” terminal.
And last month 143,000 examples of the boxy MY24-25 SUVs were caught up in a recall over glitchy reversing cameras.
