Hyundai slashes Q4 sales projection after electric car recall

After a massive global recall of electric vehicles, Hyundai Motor Co was left with no choice but to trim down its fourth-quarter sales projection. But reports said LG Chem Ltd would shoulder the bulk of the expenditures.

Hyundai reported on Thursday it was slashing its fourth-quarter operating profit by 300 billion won ($265 million) or nearly a fifth to 1.3 trillion won.

Its partner LG Chem trimmed its operating profit by more than 80% to 119 billion won. Based on reports, LG will cover 70% of the estimated $900 million costs to replace battery systems in some 82,000 electric vehicles globally.

The recall on Kona EV, Hyundai’s best-selling electric car, is one of the first mass battery pack replacements conducted by a huge carmaker. The recent recall applies to nearly 76,000 Kona Electric Vehicles made between 2018 and 2020, including around 25,000 units sold in South Korea.

The projected 1 trillion won ($900 million) in costs includes 38.9 billion won that was spent on the first recall.