Hyundai Recalls Ioniq 9 EV Because Rear Seats Could Trap Children

The carmaker has received five consumer complaints, including two about alleged minor injuries.

Photo by: Mack Hogan/InsideEVs

By: Iulian Dnistran

Sep 21, at 8:59am ET

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Hyundai is recalling certain 2026 Ioniq 9 EVs in the United States.
The big electric family SUV’s rear seats could trap children when the power-folding function is activated.
A software update fixes the problem, but over 5,000 cars are affected.

The Hyundai Ioniq 9 electric SUV is one of the best family cars out there, but it’s now affected by a potential issue that can put a dent in its family-friendly character.

A total of 5,360 2026-model-year Ioniq 9s sold in the United States may trap children in their second-row seats when the power-folding feature is activated because the cars can’t properly detect if there’s someone sitting in them.

Photo by: Suvrat Kothari

The automaker has launched a safety recall that affects Ioniq 9 EVs with the Limited, Calligraphy, or Calligraphy Design trim packages, and the fix is just a software update away. However, until the fix is applied, Hyundai is urging owners of potentially affected cars to “exercise caution when operating the second-row power-folding seat functions.”

During a three-month investigation, the South Korean company found that the anti-pinch behavior in the second row of seating in the Ioniq 9 was not up to par, so it decided to roll out a safety recall to address the issue. While investigating the problem, five complaints were filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), including two for alleged minor injuries.

The remedy is a revised logic for the software that controls the anti-pinch protection for the rear seats. Hyundai said that dealers will inspect the seats and install the updated Seat Controller software for free. Owners who have opted to get over-the-air software updates through Hyundai Bluelink will get the fix as a wireless update to their car’s brain.

Hyundai is not alone in this problem, though it seems to have figured out a solution from the get-go. Earlier this year, General Motors recalled over 14,000 Vistiq electric SUVs because their third-row seats could trap kids, but GM’s fix included a new seat control module that wasn’t available yet when the recall campaign started. The temporary solution was to disable the power-folding seats altogether, which didn’t look great on an $80,000+ luxury SUV.

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This is the third and biggest recall by far for the Hyundai Ioniq 9, which has proven to be quite problem-free. The first recall, affecting just 27 vehicles, was related to the high-voltage battery, while the second recall, with 172 cars, was over potentially loose rear suspension fasteners.

But even with such a relatively clean record, Hyundai is having a pretty hard time selling its biggest EV. Through the first eight months of 2026, the electric SUV sold 6,147 units in the U.S., with only 589 cars going to new owners in August.