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Owners Of The Kia EV9 Are Reporting Battery Failures

Published

2 months ago

May 30, 2026

Ehijie

Despite the Kia EV9’s remarkable features, an increasing number of owners are facing significant battery pack problems and having to wait a long time for repairs. Given that several other EVs from the larger Hyundai Group have also experienced significant powertrain-related issues in recent years, Kia will be quite concerned.

A UK writer from The Verge, who coincidentally owns an EV9, has personally experienced the reports from EV9 users that have been circulating online since at least last year. It began with a minor problem: he couldn’t open the car because the 12-volt battery was dead. He had to manually access the frunk and connect a booster to the battery in order to get it operating. As it happens, this flaw would soon be the least of his concerns.

After a few weeks, he claims that when the SUV was connected to his home AC charger, the battery would abruptly increase from 82% to 100%. The anticipated driving range of the EV at full capacity also drastically decreased. After acquiring an OBD-II scanner, he found that although the Kia had a 99.8 kWh pack, it was only holding 71 kWh when it showed 100 percent charge. Some of the 38 separate modules in the pack were found to be dead by the scanner.

Extended Wait Times for Battery Replacements

Soon after, a Kia dealership confirmed that the high-voltage battery pack in the SUV needed to be replaced. It has been included in Kia’s battery repair programme and is covered by the UK’s eight-year battery guarantee, but there is no set timeframe for when it will be fixed.

According to the Verge writer, he has spoken with over a dozen other EV9 owners nationwide who have experienced comparable issues, some of whom have been unable to drive their cars as they await a new battery. According to him, at least one person has witnessed their EV9’s range decrease to a mere 30 miles (48 km). Battery pack failures have also been reported by many US owners, suggesting that this may be a worldwide problem.

Extended Wait Times for Battery Replacements

Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis EVs have also experienced Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU) malfunctions for years. Before taking action in 2024 and recalling all e-GMP-based EVs sold in the US, the carmaker remained silent about the issue for a considerable amount of time.

That didn’t make things better. Hyundai eventually extended warranties for electric cars with ICCU-related issues after owners kept reporting issues. As of right now, there isn’t a recall for EV9 battery pack malfunctions. However, the South Korean automaker might be compelled to take action if more owners begin to have issues and these complaints attract more public attention.