Kia flagship EV has a battery problem

[MountainAlive]

I know some of us Lightning owners (myself included) have considered the Kia EV9 as well. A lot of these issues sounds familiar, but with higher frequency and worse service times than Ford.
The EV9 has a big battery that’s proving to be unreliable.

Sponsored

 

[RLXXI]

I know some of us Lightning owners (myself included) have considered the Kia EV9 as well. A lot of these issues sounds familiar, but with higher frequency and worse service times than Ford.
The EV9 has a big battery that’s proving to be unreliable.

Pay wall.

 

[MountainAlive]

Pay wall.

Darn. Here’s a PDF.

 

[hturnerfamily]

well....

again, click bait


it's talking about a little $120 12v battery


though the 'headline' would lead you to instantly read into it something else...



I have both - a 2022 Lightning, and a 2024 EV9...and NEITHER have had a single 12v battery issue in over 69,000 miles on the truck, and 51,000 miles on the SUV.


But, I guess I'm just lucky.

 

[MountainAlive]

well....

again, click bait


it's talking about a little $120 12v battery


though the 'headline' would lead you to instantly read into it something else...



I have both - a 2022 Lightning, and a 2024 EV9...and NEITHER have had a single 12v battery issue in over 69,000 miles on the truck, and 51,000 miles on the SUV.


But, I guess I'm just lucky.

It starts with the 12v but it’s actually the high voltage battery modules having issues. Similar to what a few Lightning owners have seen where it charges only partially but “says” it fully charged.

 

[Garyl]

Here is a solid explanation of the E-GMP platform issue
https://egmpfiles.com/iccu-report.html

 

[Heliian]

So it's the iccu?

Not the battery?

 

[Garyl]

The ICCU is a well known issue in the Kia /Hyundai community.
Judging by what Im hearing failure rate will approach 100% over time
I’m not sure if the battery module issue is specific to the EV9

 

[Heliian]

voltage battery modules having issues

At least a dozen

 

[evowner]

We have had a Kia EV6 for over 3 years now. Just like our 2yr old Lightning no problems.

 

[CavRider]

well....

again, click bait


it's talking about a little $120 12v battery


though the 'headline' would lead you to instantly read into it something else...



I have both - a 2022 Lightning, and a 2024 EV9...and NEITHER have had a single 12v battery issue in over 69,000 miles on the truck, and 51,000 miles on the SUV.


But, I guess I'm just lucky.

Same here. 2023 LER and a 2026 EV9. Only issue at all with either is that occasionally I need to put a maintainer on the F150 LVB. It does not get used every day and when it does it rarely goes over 40 miles for the day.

At 11,000 miles on the EV9 though we are going to be swapping out those OEM tires next week. Fronts are almost down to the wear bars. No, I will NOT be putting another set of Kumho on.

 

[MontanaLightning]

I’m picking up my wife's new Kia EV9 in about four weeks, and I’ve been doing a deep dive into the recent headlines about their high-voltage batteries failing. I know a few folks here have cross-shopped the EV9 or are looking at adding a 3-row to the driveway alongside their Lightning, so I wanted to clear the air on what's actually happening.

If you just scroll through the news or Reddit, it sounds like the EV9 is a ticking time bomb. The reality is that the failure rate for the main traction battery is hovering around 0.02% to 0.5%—which is right in line with the industry average for Ford, Tesla, and Rivian. Every mass-produced platform has a tiny percentage of early-life factory defects.

Here is the breakdown of what is actually causing the panic and why it's getting so much press.

1. The ICCU Vulnerability (Not the Main Battery)
The vast majority of the "dead car" horror stories you read are not related to the main high-voltage pack at all. They stem from the Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU).

• The ICCU controls how the high-voltage pack charges the standard 12V accessory battery.
• Due to voltage spikes and thermal cycling, a component inside the ICCU can blow, which physically stops the 12V battery from receiving a charge.
• The 12V battery drains out, completely bricking the vehicle and throwing terrifying "Stop Vehicle" or "Check Electric Vehicle System" warnings on the dash.

This is a well-documented flaw across the Hyundai/Kia E-GMP platform. It requires a software and/or hardware update, but it is fundamentally an electronic charging module failure, not a catastrophic drivetrain failure.

2. The "Dead Module" Reports
There is a real issue with the main 99.8 kWh battery pack, but it involves isolated individual modules dying, rather than the whole pack degrading.

• The Symptoms: The car charges normally on AC power to around 80%, then suddenly jumps to 100% in minutes. The total estimated driving range instantly plummets, sometimes down to double digits.
• The Cause: The EV9's software is highly sensitive. If an OBD-II scanner is hooked up, it usually shows that one or two of the 38 individual battery modules have prematurely died. The vehicle immediately restricts the pack to protect against thermal runaway, grounding itself before a larger failure can occur.

3. The Real Issue: Repair Logistics & Supply Chain
So if the failure rate is on par with the Mach-E or the Lightning, why is it making global news? Wait times.

Most local Kia dealerships are not authorized or equipped to tear down a high-voltage pack to swap out a single dead module. Instead, their current protocol is to order an entirely new replacement pack. Right now, Kia's supply chain is struggling heavily to keep up with those specific warranty replacements. Owners with a dead module are facing wait times ranging from three weeks to several months to get a new pack shipped and cleared through dealer logistics.

A 0.02% failure rate doesn't make the news if the truck is fixed in a week. But when an owner is stuck in a gas loaner for three months waiting on a brand-new $70k EV, the community gets extremely vocal.

The Takeaway
The underlying lithium-ion chemistry and long-term degradation rates for the EV9 are highly robust. The odds of getting a factory-defective battery module are statistically the same as our trucks.

If you're picking one up or already have one, the main priority is making sure the ICCU recall campaigns are fully up to date to prevent a 12V bricking event. Beyond that, it’s just a matter of hoping you don't hit the tiny statistical lottery for a bad cell while Kia is still sorting out their replacement parts pipeline.

 

[CavRider]

I’m picking up my wife's new Kia EV9 in about four weeks, and I’ve been doing a deep dive into the recent headlines about their high-voltage batteries failing. I know a few folks here have cross-shopped the EV9 or are looking at adding a 3-row to the driveway alongside their Lightning, so I wanted to clear the air on what's actually happening.

If you just scroll through the news or Reddit, it sounds like the EV9 is a ticking time bomb. The reality is that the failure rate for the main traction battery is hovering around 0.02% to 0.5%—which is right in line with the industry average for Ford, Tesla, and Rivian. Every mass-produced platform has a tiny percentage of early-life factory defects.

Here is the breakdown of what is actually causing the panic and why it's getting so much press.

1. The ICCU Vulnerability (Not the Main Battery)
The vast majority of the "dead car" horror stories you read are not related to the main high-voltage pack at all. They stem from the Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU).

• The ICCU controls how the high-voltage pack charges the standard 12V accessory battery.
• Due to voltage spikes and thermal cycling, a component inside the ICCU can blow, which physically stops the 12V battery from receiving a charge.
• The 12V battery drains out, completely bricking the vehicle and throwing terrifying "Stop Vehicle" or "Check Electric Vehicle System" warnings on the dash.

This is a well-documented flaw across the Hyundai/Kia E-GMP platform. It requires a software and/or hardware update, but it is fundamentally an electronic charging module failure, not a catastrophic drivetrain failure.

2. The "Dead Module" Reports
There is a real issue with the main 99.8 kWh battery pack, but it involves isolated individual modules dying, rather than the whole pack degrading.

• The Symptoms: The car charges normally on AC power to around 80%, then suddenly jumps to 100% in minutes. The total estimated driving range instantly plummets, sometimes down to double digits.
• The Cause: The EV9's software is highly sensitive. If an OBD-II scanner is hooked up, it usually shows that one or two of the 38 individual battery modules have prematurely died. The vehicle immediately restricts the pack to protect against thermal runaway, grounding itself before a larger failure can occur.

3. The Real Issue: Repair Logistics & Supply Chain
So if the failure rate is on par with the Mach-E or the Lightning, why is it making global news? Wait times.

Most local Kia dealerships are not authorized or equipped to tear down a high-voltage pack to swap out a single dead module. Instead, their current protocol is to order an entirely new replacement pack. Right now, Kia's supply chain is struggling heavily to keep up with those specific warranty replacements. Owners with a dead module are facing wait times ranging from three weeks to several months to get a new pack shipped and cleared through dealer logistics.

A 0.02% failure rate doesn't make the news if the truck is fixed in a week. But when an owner is stuck in a gas loaner for three months waiting on a brand-new $70k EV, the community gets extremely vocal.

The Takeaway
The underlying lithium-ion chemistry and long-term degradation rates for the EV9 are highly robust. The odds of getting a factory-defective battery module are statistically the same as our trucks.

If you're picking one up or already have one, the main priority is making sure the ICCU recall campaigns are fully up to date to prevent a 12V bricking event. Beyond that, it’s just a matter of hoping you don't hit the tiny statistical lottery for a bad cell while Kia is still sorting out their replacement parts pipeline.

Well, like I stated earlier, 11,000 miles in and blissfully ignorant of everything you just posted. Going to elect to stay that way.

 

[chl]

well....

again, click bait


it's talking about a little $120 12v battery


though the 'headline' would lead you to instantly read into it something else...



I have both - a 2022 Lightning, and a 2024 EV9...and NEITHER have had a single 12v battery issue in over 69,000 miles on the truck, and 51,000 miles on the SUV.


But, I guess I'm just lucky.

read the whole thing

 

[chl]

Hyunda and Kia has a pretty bad record with their ICE vehicles' engines failures.
Two of my adult kids had engines fail.

In one case there were so many failures the dealership was dealing with, they could not get a new engine for months!

In the other case, the vehicle had the same failure, but because it was not one of the specific model year ones in the class action law suit, Hyunda/Kia said tough luck, and they just scrapped the car.

The problem was rod bearing failure and engine lock up due apparently to manufacturing debris blocking internal oil flow.

While the EV9/Ionic 9 may have a comparable failure rate to other manufacturers, it is always a good idea to know about these things before you buy.

We know there have been safety recalls and battery failures in the Ford Lightning line, and because of that we know to watch for the warning signs.

Sponsored