The feds over at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have launched a preliminary investigation into Kia's 2010 Soul crossover after receiving a complaint about a steering shaft that literally fell off from the steering wheel on a two-month old model with just 4,300 miles on the odometer. NHSTA said the issue could potentially affect more than 51,000 Kia Soul cars.
"The steering shaft de-coupled from the hand wheel resulting in a complete loss of steering capability. The de-coupled steering shaft reportedly fell into a position that interfered with brake pedal application," said NHSTA in a statement.
Even though the government agency doesn't usually open an investigation based on a single complaint, it did this time because the car was almost brand new and the problem could have led to an accident (luckily, that didn't happen to the driver who filed the complaint).
NHTSA said it was "very concerned about this failure in that it occurred without warning on a new vehicle at low mileage and resulted in a complete loss of steering as well as a compromised brake system."
The Korean automaker responded with a statement saying it is "committed to sharing information and findings with NHTSA on an ongoing basis in order to reach a prompt resolution."
Source: Yahoo / NHTSA
