Yup, my 12v battery is dead. Add me to the list.
Are more people having this issue, or am I just noticing it more now?
What year and trim is yours? And did you get the ICCU replaced or do the software update from the recall?
Justice said:
Are more people having this issue, or am I just noticing it more now?
What year and trim is yours? And did you get the ICCU replaced or do the software update from the recall?
I think it’s just that a lot of people are finally catching up to the issue. The ICCU fix did help, but if people waited too long to get the update, it might have already damaged their 12v batteries.
Zen said:
@Washington
EVs don’t need ‘cold cranking amps’ like traditional cars. They mostly need consistent low power draw.
The battery I got has a high storage capacity, so it can run longer without needing a recharge.
@Justice
Same here. Two months off the road with five different issues, and Kia’s customer service has been terrible each time. If anyone’s thinking about getting one, I’d advise against it.
Tobin said:
@Justice
Same here. Two months off the road with five different issues, and Kia’s customer service has been terrible each time. If anyone’s thinking about getting one, I’d advise against it.
Yeah, I’ve been getting awful customer service from Kia too.
Tobin said:
@Justice
Same here. Two months off the road with five different issues, and Kia’s customer service has been terrible each time. If anyone’s thinking about getting one, I’d advise against it.
Just to share another perspective: I have a First Edition, and apart from a set of misaligned tires and a bad 12v battery, I’m satisfied. It’s Kia’s first go at an EV, so I expected some issues going in.
@Ming
Honestly, I think the issue is bigger than it seems. I’ve seen at least one or two reports of 12v battery failures per day for the past two months, especially for 2024 EV6s. And older EV6 owners are having problems even after their ICCUs were replaced. It’s probably a mix of a bad battery and poor charging patterns that are causing the 12v batteries to degrade faster.
Since most owners don’t report issues online, I bet it’s a much bigger problem than Kia is admitting. This sounds like something that should be recalled. At the very least, Kia should switch to AGM batteries and replace the old ones.
Justice said:
Are more people having this issue, or am I just noticing it more now?
What year and trim is yours? And did you get the ICCU replaced or do the software update from the recall?
It’s a 2024 Wind with tech package. The dealership updated the software in June.
My 12v battery died earlier this week too. Kia wouldn’t install an AGM battery and wanted us to wait 6 hours for a regular flooded battery. I went to Costco, bought an AGM battery for $180, and installed it myself. Not happy with my dealership right now.
@Amanda
Do you have the model number of that battery? Is ‘AGM’ enough to know or is there something specific?
Jace said:
@Amanda
Do you have the model number of that battery? Is ‘AGM’ enough to know or is there something specific?
It’s an Interstate H5 (47).
Jace said:
@Amanda
Do you have the model number of that battery? Is ‘AGM’ enough to know or is there something specific?
It’s an Interstate H5 (47).
Thanks for the info!
Jace said:
@Amanda
Do you have the model number of that battery? Is ‘AGM’ enough to know or is there something specific?
Check out the EverStart AGM at Walmart. It’s $180 with a 4-year warranty, and they’ll install it for free. If it fails, you can replace it at any Walmart nationwide. I’ve stopped buying Costco batteries because the warranties are shorter and they don’t install them.
@Amanda
My car is at the dealership for the 12v issue right now. I asked about using an AGM battery, and the rep said only Kia’s battery would be covered under warranty. He said some other stuff that I’m pretty sure was nonsense too. Do you know if using an AGM battery would really void the warranty?
@Bailey
An AGM battery is just a standard H5 (47) size. The advantage of AGM is it prevents some of the problems that happen with regular flooded batteries, and it has the same charging characteristics. I think the dealership rep was mixing it up with lithium batteries, which would be more complicated to install. Honestly, I’d rather pay now for a better battery than deal with another failure later. I suspect Kia knows there’s a problem with the 12v batteries and is just trying to avoid a recall.
@Amanda
They should start putting AGM batteries in all their EVs, and recall the ones with the bad lead-acid batteries.
Welcome to the club!
My 2022 EV6’s battery died recently too. I was worried at first, but it turned out to just be an old battery.
Tavi said:
My 2022 EV6’s battery died recently too. I was worried at first, but it turned out to just be an old battery.
Batteries should last at least five years, even in cold climates.