Battery Recall for cars with E400 high-voltage battery.

[ksoul2084]

Interesting.

For the affected 2015-2017 MY SOUL EV vehicles manufactured from July 15, 2014 through June 30, 2017
that had their high-voltage battery replaced under warranty with an E400 battery,

So it seems like they are only concerned about the E400 batteries. When I had my 2016's battery "repaired" under warranty I was told they replaced the cells (or at least some of them) so I assumed that I didn't have the newer E400 battery at all. However, I did receive the recall letter earlier this year.

 

[CanadianLurker]

Got the letter finally and booked in for Thursday next week. Will update with how it goes.

Not confident with hearing a few days ago that they didn’t know anything about it to now the know what it do and I’m booked in. Fingers crossed.

 

[Kish]

The image above is from a PDF :- SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN : SC267

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This is the first I'm hearing about a software update being ready. Zero communication from KIA since the initial recall letter in May 2023.
Did not receive any letters telling me to bring my car in for the software update, which has been apparently ready since Aug 2023! (based on the PDF above).

I'm going to wait for a formal letter to come. If I try to book an appt at the dealer now, they're going to feint any knowledge of any software update available for my car.

 

[IanL]

I'm puzzled by the document. In the beginning, it says that MY 18-19 BPA must be inspected and replaced if necessary, but the inspection process later in the document appears only to apply to MY 15-17. Am I reading it wrong?

Can someone please remind me what the E400 cells are? Are they the original cells which were used in the 27 kWh batteries?

 

[JejuSoul]

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The E400 cells are 40A. They are used in the 30kWh packs. There are 100 cells.
The original E375 cells are 37.5A. They were used in the 27kWh packs. There are 96 cells.
Replacement batteries for the 27kWh packs since 2018 use E400 cells. There are still 96 cells.

This recall is for all cars with E400 cells.
All cars will get a BMS software update. And all will get a replacement battery if necessary.
( Chance for getting a new battery immediately is very low I guess. Less than 1/10000. But this safety issue will last for the lifetime of the vehicle ).

The difference between the old cars and the new is that the old cars get new BMS hardware and a new wiring harness.
The 2018MY must have improved the BMS hardware that measures the battery.
I have no idea what this difference is. It has never been mentioned on the forum before.

 

[jray3]

I had the recall done on my 2016 last week. As the battery was replaced under warranty a year ago in the same service dept., you'd think they might know better, but the first scheduled visit was a failure- "We have to order new BMS hardware, can't reprogram your 2016." I went back a week later and the hardware, wiring harness and reprogramming apparently went in according to plan. No noticeable RR or other differences yet. The biggest question in my mind is, now that I'm past the 100k mileage warranty, what recourse do I have if this one year old pack with a brand new BMS fails? The recall notice said that if the new BMS detects a fault, it will trigger limp mode and the dealer will replace the battery pack for free. Overall mileage or original warranty dates were not mentioned, so I called the customer hotline and they say 12 months and 12,000 miles coverage on any warranty repair.

 

[ksoul2084]

I have my recall appointment early next week. I'm wondering about the same thing, that they won't have the BMS in stock when I get there. My experience with KIA service in the past has been, well, abysmal.

 

[kimdavi]

My vehicle underwent the BMS software update as part of a recall in mid-September. Today, I noticed that after the first post-BMS update, the DC-Fast charging is limited to 80% instead of the previous 94%. Is this an expected behavior?

 

[JeroenE]

My vehicle underwent the BMS software update as part of a recall in mid-September. Today, I noticed that after the first post-BMS update, the DC-Fast charging is limited to 80% instead of the previous 94%. Is this an expected behavior?

On the page https://www.ksoulev.com/quick_charge_description_and_operation-3028.html it says the very first quick charge is limited to 84% and subsequent charges are up to 95%. So perhaps the next time it will charge more?

 

[JejuSoul]

... On the page https://www.ksoulev.com/quick_charge_description_and_operation-3028.html it says the very first quick charge is limited to 84% and subsequent charges are up to 95%. So perhaps the next time it will charge more?

An original MY 2015 with the original BMS has the following fast charge behaviour.

It uses 2 stages. You must restart after the first completes. Firstly from 0 to 84% (390v target) and then from 84 to 94% (394v target).

All later model years or cars with any BMS upgrade will not need the 2 steps. They charge directly to 94%.

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Charging to 80% after the recall sounds like a precaution protecting a bad battery.

Kia dealers will diagnose the issue using a software update that can detect abnormal cell voltage before a short circuit occurs.
Following installation of the new software, if the abnormal battery cell voltage is detected, the EV warning light will illuminate, charging will be limited to 80 percent, and the vehicle will enter limp home mode. If this occurs, dealers will replace the battery free of charge.

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[kimdavi]

Here is an essential update regarding my previous post:

It has now been two weeks since I received the BMS software update due to the battery recall. Today, as I started my electric vehicle, I received an alert with the "Check electric vehicle system" warning and the EV icon illuminated in the center dashboard. Shortly after, a second message appeared, displaying "Power Limited" along with a turtle symbol. Fortunately, I was only 5 miles away from home and managed to return home in limp mode.

I'm currently in the process of scheduling an appointment with my local Kia Service, the same team that performed my BMS update. I'll keep everyone in the group updated on the outcome.

One additional detail. A few days earlier I had DCFC but tapered early at 80% instead of the usual 94%, foreshadowing perhaps.

 

[CanadianLurker]

The software was updated successfully and no immediate issues found. Will have to watch the next few charging cycles but seems ok so far. The dealer said that they've done over 20 so far and haven’t had any vehicles with issues.

 

[jray3]

Anybody notice reduced DCFC performance after the software update? I don't DCFC very often, but my 30 kWh warranty replacement battery has stopped at 67% on the last two sessions, and didn't pull more than 50 kW EVen though the station was rated for much more on CHAdeMO.

 

[ksoul2084]

I had my recall completed on my 2016 Soul EV Luxury (+) yesterday. The KIA dealer kept my vehicle overnight to complete the job.
The work order says they replaced the BMS, 2 different wiring harnesses, and reprogrammed the OBC.

When I received the car it was charged to 80%, but showed 122km on the guess-o-meter. Before this work, my range at 80% would have been approx. 96km. Nothing else changed in terms of my kwH consumption, etc. so not sure why the estimate range has jumped so much.

I did have my battery reconditioned a couple of years ago under warranty.

 

[andrew1joe]

Got the update done today. The upgrade itself took about half an hour. The worksheet just says:

"BMS S/W UPGRADE RE performed BMS S/W update complete"

No noticeable change but haven't had a chance to look at Soul Spy or Torque yet. Will do that tonight.

 

[IanL]

I had my recall completed on my 2016 Soul EV Luxury (+) yesterday. The KIA dealer kept my vehicle overnight to complete the job.
The work order says they replaced the BMS, 2 different wiring harnesses, and reprogrammed the OBC.

When I received the car it was charged to 80%, but showed 122km on the guess-o-meter. Before this work, my range at 80% would have been approx. 96km. Nothing else changed in terms of my kwH consumption, etc. so not sure why the estimate range has jumped so much.

I did have my battery reconditioned a couple of years ago under warranty.

The reason is that the replaced BMS will be using default data to calculate the GoM value. The default data reflects a new battery, so you will have to cover 5 or 6 cycles of recharge before it reflects the SoH of your battery.

 

[kimdavi]

What is the mileage warranty given by Kia on EV battery replacement? Secondly is the mileage warranty limit from original driven miles or mileage after the battery was replaced.

I'm asking because this is my current situation.
My Soul has 112,480 miles, 10/19 battery replaced under warranty at 58,000mi. 9/23 Battery recall done. I've now driven 54,480 mi on 2nd battery. Abnormal battery condition triggered 2 weeks later. I received check EV! warning & turtle mode. My understanding is that Kia won't replace my battery because it's beyond warranty, is this true? I would appreciate advice on how to best deal with Kia service if they reject replacing the battery due to out of warranty reasons. Wondering if I can argue I have mileage warranty left from 10/19 my 2nd battery.

 

[ksoul2084]

What is the mileage warranty given by Kia on EV battery replacement? Secondly is the mileage warranty limit from original driven miles or mileage after the battery was replaced.

I'm asking because this is my current situation.
My Soul has 112,480 miles, 10/19 battery replaced under warranty at 58,000mi. 9/23 Battery recall done. I've now driven 54,480 mi on 2nd battery. Abnormal battery condition triggered 2 weeks later. I received check EV! warning & turtle mode. My understanding is that Kia won't replace my battery because it's beyond warranty, is this true? Anyone with any insight, highly appreciate some advice.

No worries. This most recent recall is a safety recall, and your current warranty status is irrelevant. That is, you will receive a free new battery pack because your current one suffers from the condition that could result in a fire.

 

[ksoul2084]

I had my recall completed on my 2016 Soul EV Luxury (+) yesterday. The KIA dealer kept my vehicle overnight to complete the job.
The work order says they replaced the BMS, 2 different wiring harnesses, and reprogrammed the OBC.

When I received the car it was charged to 80%, but showed 122km on the guess-o-meter. Before this work, my range at 80% would have been approx. 96km. Nothing else changed in terms of my kwH consumption, etc. so not sure why the estimate range has jumped so much.

I did have my battery reconditioned a couple of years ago under warranty.

The reason is that the replaced BMS will be using default data to calculate the GoM value. The default data reflects a new battery, so you will have to cover 5 or 6 cycles of recharge before it reflects the SoH of your battery.

So you're saying the new BMS isn't unlocking the full, previously untapped potential of my batttery?

 

[IanL]

So you're saying the new BMS isn't unlocking the full, previously untapped potential of my batttery?

No, the BMS is simply guessing how many miles that number of kWh will represent in use. The jump in range shows that the BMS is using default data for how many miles that represents. The previous BMS used data it had learned during your journeys, but that data is not available to the new BMS. Your new BMS will have to learn your usage pattern before the GoM becomes even vaguely representative.