2024 Niro EV Battery Replacement… Is $27K Really Needed?

We leased a 2024 Niro EV this summer, and my wife hit a curb while turning at under 10mph the other day. It popped the sidewall of a tire, so after towing it over for a new tire, it threw some codes on the 1-mile drive home. Had it towed to the dealership, now they’re quoting $27k for a whole new battery? Is this for real?

These cars can’t handle a low-speed impact from a small curb? Is the battery system really a single piece that has to be replaced as one unit? This seems crazy to me.

Has anyone been through this and found an alternative solution? I’m waiting to hear back from our insurance company, but it seems like they could total the car without it even being scratched.

Just to add, dealerships don’t always know how to properly diagnose problems. They mostly just read error codes. I had this happen before with my 2008 Highlander, the dealership said I needed an entire new hybrid drive system, just because they read an error code wrong. All it turned out to be was a frayed cable.

I’m sure you don’t need a new battery. I’ve bottomed out my 2020 Kia Niro plenty of times on curbs, and it’s still fine.

@MALIA
I’ve been looking for local EV repair options (Portland, OR) to get it towed elsewhere for a second opinion. That seems like the least I can do to figure this out. It’s a bit complicated with the lease and what the insurance company will cover, though. We probably won’t get them involved unless it’s a repair we can pay for ourselves.

@Vail
Just a heads up, if you go with a cash-paid repair, it could affect the car’s warranty. If you plan on returning the car to the lease/finance company, they might make an issue out of it.

Skyler said:
@Vail
Just a heads up, if you go with a cash-paid repair, it could affect the car’s warranty. If you plan on returning the car to the lease/finance company, they might make an issue out of it.

Good point… Leases can tie you down to using the dealer, making things a bit trickier.

Try disconnecting the 12v battery for about an hour, then reconnect it, or use an OBD2 scanner to clear the codes. If the codes come back, you might have a real issue, but it’s probably just the tire that confused the system.

@Denny
Also, make sure the 12v battery is good. If it’s low on voltage, it can cause all sorts of alerts in different parts of the car. It could help to check that as well.

Could the damage have happened during the towing process?

Amir said:
Could the damage have happened during the towing process?

No, there was no damage from the towing. It was on a flatbed, and I watched the whole process closely.

Vail said:

Amir said:
Could the damage have happened during the towing process?

No, there was no damage from the towing. It was on a flatbed, and I watched the whole process closely.

Then that’s really unfortunate.

Vail said:

Amir said:
Could the damage have happened during the towing process?

No, there was no damage from the towing. It was on a flatbed, and I watched the whole process closely.

Just to be thorough, did you follow the proper process during the towing, like putting the car in neutral and waiting before opening the door? Not that it would cause much damage, but it might not have helped the situation.

@Teal
It rolled onto the flatbed smoothly, so I doubt there was any issue from the tow.

I really don’t think you need a new battery. Dealerships can be very overzealous with these things.

If you do need a new battery, I think insurance should cover the collision damage, right?

Ren said:
I really don’t think you need a new battery. Dealerships can be very overzealous with these things.

If you do need a new battery, I think insurance should cover the collision damage, right?

Insurance is covering it, assuming they don’t total the car. This quote for the replacement is more than what we paid for the car. Plus, they did a full wheel alignment without asking us, which gives you an idea of what kind of place we’re dealing with. Either way, they won’t be working on our car.

hit a curb while turning

She definitely hit the battery pack on the curb. The battery is usually the lowest point on these cars.

If the pack housing is damaged, it will need to be replaced because it’s part of the cooling system. You might be able to just replace the damaged cells, though. Good luck, hope it works out. Use your insurance for sure.

@Zyler
We’ll definitely use insurance, but this quote is more than we paid for the car.

If this is how fragile these things are, we might just go back to gas. This whole situation is ridiculous. My wife’s old Honda Fit survived way worse issues and ran for 150k miles before we traded it in.

The car is still under warranty for the battery. Why is the dealer insisting on a full replacement? Something seems off.

Call Kia customer care to see if this is normal.

Sky said:
The car is still under warranty for the battery. Why is the dealer insisting on a full replacement? Something seems off.

Call Kia customer care to see if this is normal.

Accident damage is never covered by the warranty. That falls under the car’s collision coverage.

@JackJohnson
True, but the battery itself should still be covered under warranty.

Sky said:
@JackJohnson
True, but the battery itself should still be covered under warranty.

No, if it’s damaged in an accident, it’s not covered. It’s the same as an engine. If you knock it off hitting something, there’s no warranty.

I worked at a dealership, seen it happen.