Biz: Hyundai and Kia's Electric Infernos: A Grim Reminder of Corporate Apathy and Fading Hype
11 July, 2024
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| Firefighters work to extinguish an electric vehicle that caught fire on a road in Poseung-eup, Pyeongtaek-si, on the afternoon of July 9. 2024.7.9 Provided by Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Management Center |
Hyundai and Kia Motors’ electric vehicles have become notorious death traps, with drivers being burned alive in a string of fiery accidents. Consumers have mockingly dubbed Hyundai’s flagship model, the Ioniq, the "Fireoniq." The enthusiasm for electric vehicles in South Korea is dwindling, thanks to the woeful lack of charging infrastructure.
In the latest fiasco, a Kia EV6 collided with a curb in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi-do, instantly transforming into an inferno and claiming the life of its driver. Firefighters, using mobile extinguishing tanks, battled the blaze in Poseung-eup, but the driver, pulled from the flames, succumbed to full-body burns.
According to Pyeongtaek Police, the accident occurred around 7:31 p.m. when the electric car skidded on a rain-slicked road and slammed into a 30-centimeter-high boundary stone. The car erupted into flames, sealing the driver's fate. The police are now scrambling to pin down the exact cause of this tragic incident.