No Hyundai recall in UAE

No Hyundai Sonata cars in the UAE will be recalled as a recently-detected steering column problem haunts only models sold in the US.

According to a press statement issued by Essam Abu Nabaa, head of Hyundai at the company's UAE dealer Juma Al Majid, the recall of Sonata’s 2011 model does not cover those sold in the UAE since the local market is supplied with cars that come from the factory in South Korea.

The South Korean automobile major is recalling 139,500 of these cars in the US because of a problem that the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) fears could lead to "a loss of, or reduction in, steering capability increasing the risk of a crash.”

The NHTSA said that dealers "will inspect the steering column intermediate shaft universal joint connections for proper assembly and torque," and will update the power steering software.

According to Nabaa, the cars sold in the UAE market is fitted with steering parts made by Namyoung Industrial Co. Ltd and hence does not warrant any action since they were not the ones affected by the US recall.

He also said the defect found in the Sonata model sold in the US has not led to any accidents at all and was just a precautionary recall to ensure the cars were fully safe to drive.