Kia flagship EV faces battery issue
▼ Summary
– The author discovered a dead 12-volt battery in their Kia EV9 when the key and app failed to unlock the car.
– The author used the manual key to access the frunk and a booster to jump-start the 12-volt battery.
– The EV9’s 12-volt battery powers low-voltage electrical systems, similar to internal combustion engine cars.
Last year, a troubling discovery about Kia’s flagship EV9 hit home when I stood in my driveway facing a completely dead vehicle. The massive three-row SUV was unresponsive: the key fob did nothing, the smartphone app had lost all connection, and I was already running late. Fortunately, I had anticipated this exact scenario after hearing about widespread 12-volt battery problems plaguing the EV9.
Using the manual key that Kia provides, I managed to pry open the car. From there, I accessed the front trunk to reach the 12V battery and revived it with a booster I had bought for just such an emergency. As in many traditional gas-powered cars, this smaller battery handles all the low-voltage electrical systems in the vehicle. When it drains unexpectedly, the entire car can become inoperable, leaving owners stranded.
(Source: The Verge)
