— A Kia Carnival sliding door sensor lawsuit alleges the power sliding doors were never fixed during a previous recall.
West Virginia plaintiffs Rachel Langerhans and Andrew Langerhans filed the class action which alleges 2022-2023 Kia Carnival power sliding doors are dangerous and defective.
The majority of automotive class action lawsuits are not filed until after a recall is announced or after the government opens a formal investigation.
This Kia Carnival lawsuit is a good example because it wasn't filed until the minivans were both investigated and recalled.
According to the class action, the 2022-2023 Kia Carnival power sliding doors are equipped with defective pinch sensors that do not cause the power sliding doors to reverse automatically.
The Kia Carnival sliding door should automatically stop closing if an obstacle blocks the path, but the lawsuit alleges a child or person can be injured if the sensor fails.
"The level of force required to prevent the Class Vehicles’ doors from closing is extremely high, higher than a child, pet, or person with a disability may be able to apply." — Kia Carnival sliding door sensor lawsuit
The lawsuit says the allegedly defective sensor is installed along the rubber seal on the edge of the Carnival sliding door.
According to the sliding door sensor class action lawsuit, the problem "substantially diminishes the value" of the minivan.
The two owners who sued contend Kia dealerships deny warranty coverage by saying the power sliding doors are operating normally.
Kia Carnival Sliding Door Sensor Lawsuit — The Plaintiffs
Plaintiffs Rachel Langerhans and Andrew Langerhans purchased a new 2022 Kia Carnival SX in November 2021, but they assert within a few months they noticed the automatic sliding side doors were not reacting to obstacles, people, or small children.
In April 2023, Kia recalled the Carnival minivans due to the sliding doors, and the following month a dealership performed the recall repairs on the minivan.
Dealer technicians checked the sliding door sensor and found no problems, but the plaintiffs claim they must closely watch their small children when opening or closing the power sliding door.
Although their minivan was repaired under the recall, the plaintiffs complain they "continue to have concerns about the safety of their children" and filed the class action lawsuit for more than $5 million.
Kia Carnival Sliding Door Sensor Lawsuit — The Investigation and Recall
In April 2022, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into 2022 Kia Carnival sliding door sensors.
Prior to the federal investigation, Kia engineers were joined by a third-party engineering company to investigate 2022 Kia Carnival power sliding door sensors following complaints about the doors injuring children.
In addition, Kia also mailed 2022 Carnival owners to remind them about the auto-reverse features and how the power sliding doors function.
This was at the same time the engineering company could find no problems with the sliding doors or sensors.
In October 2022, the third-party engineering firm and a separate third-party biomechanical firm tested a 2022 Carnival sliding door and a sliding door from a peer vehicle and determined other similar sliding doors worked the same as the Carnival doors and sensors.
In a test using a child prosthetic arm that was designed and built for the test, testing confirmed no difference between Kia Carnival power sliding doors and doors from peer vehicles.
All the companies determined the problem seemed to be caused by people, not a defect.
"The power sliding door (PSD) auto-reverse feature in the subject vehicles is a supplemental feature and may not activate in all situations. Kia has become aware of a small number of injuries during closure of the PSD. Although a cause related to a manufacturing design issue has not been identified, Kia believes the cause of injuries may be associated with customers’ unawareness that the PSD is closing." — Kia
Although no sliding door or sensor defect was discovered, Kia recalled more than 51,000 model year 2022-2023 Carnival minivans "in an effort to increase customers’ awareness that the PSD is closing in order to mitigate the risk of injury."
Out of 51,000 minivans, Kia was aware of nine confirmed injuries, including a broken thumb, broken arm, bruises, scrapes, cuts and incidents of swelling.
Because Kia, federal safety investigators and two engineering companies could find no defects, the recall didn't involve specific repairs to the sliding door sensors.
The Kia Carnival sliding door sensor recall had dealers updating the power sliding door control module software. Because engineers believed people were injured because they didn't know the sliding doors were powered, the updated software added two warning chimes when the power sliding doors begin to open or close.
The recall also slowed down the speed of a closing sliding door to move slowly as the door approaches its latching point.
NHTSA approved the recall and associated repairs and closed its Kia Carnival sliding door investigation in June 2023.
According to the class action lawsuit, Kia has "refused to provide an adequate or lasting remedy for the Defect under the express and implied warranties, leaving Plaintiffs and Class members with no effective remedy."
The Kia Carnival sliding door sensor class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland: Rachel Langerhans and Andrew Langerhans v. Kia Corporation, et al.
The plaintiffs are represented by Migliaccio & Rathod LLP, and Levin Sedran & Berman.
