The Design Flaw That Made Hyundais Absurdly Easy to Steal

Next episode: a collab with Legal Eagle on whether sending your employee to steal a car is technically "illegal" and could result in "jail time".

My son's Hyundai was stolen in July, and it took SIX WEEKS to get it repaired because ... SO many Hyundai's are being stolen that the auto repair shops can't get replacement drive shafts and windows anymore. On the night his car was stolen, the small town of 20,000 people he lives in had 19 reported car thefts. Bottom line: This is out of control!!

Let's be clear: this was NOT a design flaw. It was an accounting flaw. The engineers didn't cause this. The bean counters upstairs demanded it be done. Big difference. Lesson to be learned? Never let an accountant have a say in the final design.

Three of my college classmates had their cars stolen in a month. 2 Kias, one Hyundai. When I explained to them how the technology described in this video is exploited, they were blown away and asked why I would know how to steal their vehicle. I told them that thousands of teens across America literally make videos on TikTok showing people how to do it and that it has become common public knowledge. They were horrified, and sure enough, they returned to school with Toyotas.

The current 'fix' for this according to Kia is a software upgrade. I do not see how software prevents bypassing the ignition switch, especially if there is no immobilizer in the first place.

"To show how easy it is to steal a hyundai, i sent my outside correspondent Amy into the world with a USB cord"😂

I remember back in the "good old days" when TikTok challenges were things like "plank in unusual places" or "pour a bucket of ice water over yourself". I've got to admit, I didn't see the trend steering in the direction of "car theft"

BTW Kia and Hyundai are technically one manufacturer. They're two different brands from the same company. In case anyone was wondering why those two companies both did the same thing -- they're one company.

In 2004 I got a Hyundai and the dealer was already having so much trouble with them being stolen off the lot they installed aftermarket immobilizers on every car on arrival.

I remember when no French cars had immobilisers but were almost impossible to steal because the steering wheel would come off in your hands if your tried to snap the steering lock 😂

1:55 mad props to the editor for assembling the entire video so far in Windows Movie Maker just to get this shot

Even if there is a security flaw, the problem is only prevalent in inner cities in the US. We do not see rises in Kia thefts in other parts of the world selling those same cars. The real problem is the lack of arrest and prosecution of crimes in US cities.

"The cheapest way to get a car" -agreed

I went over to Nebula, and was sorely disappointed that there was not a longer video that included Amy stealing cars. WTF am I even paying for?! 😘

It's funny how US does not mandate immobilizer and EVEN amazing how Hyundai/Kia actually let customers choose as an option

This only applies to low end trims with a traditional key. All Hyundais and Kia’s that have pushbutton start and keyless entry are equipped with an immobilizer by default.

As a Hyundai owner, I have bypassed this problem by having a stick shift.

I had a car that had a broken ignition for years. Nobody could steal it because they didn't know how to start it. Even though you didn't need a key. I had a notched piece of wood that would turn the ignition, hidden in the car. Also a switch to a solenoid that cut off all battery power because it had a small drain and would kill the battery if you didn't run it every day. You also needed to turn the solenoid off to turn off the car. You needed yo know where the switch and piece of wood is to start it. I parked it at a hiking trail for 6 days and it was still there when I got back. Obviously had several attempts to try and steal it.

Thank you for skipping the boring parts about how to actually do the thefts. I was getting worried you thought we were a bunch of idiots!

This has made me turn away from hyandais and kias, especially how they handled the situation was terrible. This didn't affect newer models, but how they handled this shows me they don't care about their current customers.