Lemberg Law is investigating complaints about critical issues with the Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU) of the 2022 Kia EV6. Kia’s first edition, all-electric vehicle, the 2022 EV6 has been plagued with problems since its launch in 2021. But the ICCU issue is by far the most serious to date. Owners state that they are unable to charge their batteries, many finding their vehicles shut down suddenly on the road. Because an explanation is that the charging and/or battery management system is overheating, there are also fears that cars will explode or catch fire.
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Is There a Problem with the 2022 Kia EV6 ICCU?
There appears to be a major problem with the 2022 Kia EV6 Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU). Owners are complaining about ICCU failures that result in an inability to charge their cars, sometimes leaving them stranded. Some say that Kia has acknowledged the failure and stated that the ICCU needs to be replaced. The problem is that replacement parts are not readily available.
Numerous consumers have lodged complaints about EV6 ICCU failures and battery malfunctions with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The topic has also been ongoing in Kia EV Forums since the EV6 was launched, with many frustrated owners sharing their experiences.
One owner who got an error warning that there was “a critical problem” with his car’s electric battery, said that the dealer had no idea what was wrong. They needed to generate “a higher level repair request,” but the computer system wasn’t working. A week later, the system still wasn’t up and running. “I don’t know if my car will explode, burn, or just stop immediately on (the) road. Kia is not trying to fix my new Kia problems.”
One of the major selling points of the Kia EV6 is its all-electric range performance. A press release issued by Kia on July 21, 2021, boasts that it has a range of 528 km (more than 328 miles) on a single charge. It also incorporates the world’s first multi-charging system that is capable of fast charging at 800V and 400V. It states that “Kia’s EV6 has removed the perceived barriers that prevent many from making the switch to electric.”
But consumers experiencing ICCU failure are disillusioned, particularly those who have been waiting for replacement ICCUs for long periods of time.
Kia’s ICCU Promises “Portable Power”
Although Kia operates independently, it is owned by Hyundai Motor Group. As such, Kia benefits from Hyundai’s dedicated EV platform, E-GMP, the company’s first dedicated Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) platform. Unveiled in December 2020, the first BEVs, including Hyundai IONIQ 5 and Kia EV6, incorporate the E-GMP’s newly developed ICCU. Hyundai explains that it “represents an upgrade from existing On-Board Chargers (OBC), which typically only allow electricity to flow in a single direction from an external power source.
The Kia press release goes on to say that the new “ICCU enables a new vehicle-to-load (V2L) function, which can additionally discharge energy from the vehicle battery without additional components.” This V2L function allows users to charge other electrical items too, including laptops, home appliances, even a 55-inch television or mid-sized air conditioner, for up to 24 hours. The system can also be used to charge another EV using its vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) function. This is what Kia dubs “portable power.”
A safeguard the automaker cites is that the EV6 battery “is preserved by ensuring (the) state of charge doesn’t fall below 20%.”
And yet, according to consumers, there are an increasing number of Kia EV6 batteries that aren’t charging at all because of ICCU failure.
What ICCU & Related Battery Issues are EV6 Owners Experiencing?
Complaints to the NHTSA and discussions in Kia EV Forums speak for themselves. A recurring complaint from owners of EV6 cars that have experienced ICCU failure is that dealers have to wait for parts, often with no indication of an ETA. They also highlight the safety risks involved when there is ICCU failure while driving.
Example Complaints to the NHTSA
After driving on a busy two-lane highway for about an hour, an owner suddenly got a “check electrical system” error message. The car lost power and the speed dropped to 25 mph … and then shut down completely. “I was able to navigate the vehicle from the busy roadway to the roadside, but I barely made it. Under different conditions, such as travel on an interstate at high speeds, this would have proved very dangerous to have a car stop completely dead like this.” Emergency Roadside Assistance couldn’t start the car and it was towed to the dealer. A few days later, the owner was notified that the parts needed to repair the EV6 would take about 7 weeks to be delivered by the automaker.
An owner driving a 1-year-old Kia EV6 First Edition with only 10,000 miles first got the “Check Vehicle Electric System” error message. After driving another couple of miles, there was a warning to “Stop Vehicle and Check Power Supply.” Then the vehicle throttled the speed to 20 mph on a 55 mph road. “I was able to pull off and into a parking lot, but when I turned the vehicle off, it was completely dead and would not restart. Note, the battery was charged to 83% at the time of this incident.” The EV6 was towed to the dealer. After 5 days, they notified the owner that the ICCU had failed but had no idea when a replacement part would be available.
Yet another complaint states that according to the dealer, “there is a fault where the battery management system or (the) charging system is overheating, which causes the vehicle to stop charging.”
What Members of Kia EV Forum Are Saying
There are several threads in Kia EV Forums. One that was launched in February 2023 was started by the owner of an EV6 GT-Line who experienced ICCU failure after 12 months. After being with the dealer for 3 weeks, the problem worsened. The fast charge had been working, but after the 3 weeks, the main drive battery fuse blew. Kia instructed the dealer to replace the fuse and ICCU. The part wasn’t available in Europe and he was waiting for it to be imported from Korea.
The owner of a EV6 77kW in Spain had a “check electrical system” warning and then another to stop the car immediately. After 3 months, the dealer hadn’t been able to fix the vehicle. It was supposedly “a problem with the electronic board that controls the auxiliary 12-volt battery. But after (they) replaced it the problem persists. Dealer and main Kia headquarters in Spain are totally lost. They don’t know how to fix it…”
Eventually, he got the car back, supposedly fixed. But “the 12V battery was almost dead.” So, they replaced that too. The final diagnosis was that the car was charging in a 10 kW post and probably, “a sudden high voltage malfunction burned both the ECU module and a high voltage fuse.”
Complaints About Charging
An owner from California found that his EV6 with only 500 miles on it would charge for less than 3 minutes before he got the error warning, “suspended charge.” He could only load half a kW with each new charging cycle. “The dealer charged it with his 300 kW DC fast charger.” But when the owner used his Level 2 charger again, the battery failed to operate. “They replaced the entire battery in the end with threats from my attorney using the California lemon law.”
In another thread launched in April 2023, a member who had read about IONIQ 5 ICCU failures said his EV6 had the same problem. “I can charge at DC fast charge but not at home AC charge.”
Another owner states that his wife can wirelessly charge their EV6 with her phone, but he can’t with his. But, they were both “getting warnings about our phones overheating and I’m not sure if it’s because they were partly in the sun or if it had something to do with the wireless charger.”
An NHTSA complaint from an owner in Florida states that the EV6 draws excessive current from his Level 2 EVSE portable charger. This causes the charger to shut down and detect a short-circuit. “I’ve done lots of reading online and this is a problem EV6 and Ioniq 5 owners are having with a variety of charger brands. Some owners state that the same charger, when used with other vehicles like the Mustang Mach E, doesn’t draw more current than the charger is set to. It seems to me like this is a HUGE safety issue, as excessive current draw is causing the charge cable to get hot and could cause a fire.” All Kia would do was a software update they didn’t help.
What Should You Do if Your EV6 has ICCU Problems?
If you are experiencing issues with your ICCU and/or can’t charge your battery, you might qualify for help under the Lemon Laws. Lemberg Law will assess your problems and provide you with an evaluation. Every year automakers buy-back or trade in thousands of problem vehicles. Yours might be one of them.
All you need to do is call our Helpline or complete a contact form. The law says that Kia/Hyundai must pay the costs of lemon law cases, so you’re not going to be out of pocket.
About the Author:
Sergei Lemberg is an attorney focusing on consumer law, class actions related to automotive issues, and personal injury litigation. With nearly two decades of experience, his areas of practice include Lemon Law (vehicle defects), Debt Collection Harassment, TCPA (illegal robocalls and texts), Fair Credit Reporting Act, Overtime claims, Personal Injury cases, and Class Actions. He has consistently been recognized as the nation's "most active consumer attorney." In 2020, Mr. Lemberg represented Noah Duguid before the United States Supreme Court in the landmark case Duguid v. Facebook. He is also the author of "Defanging Debt Collectors," a guide that empowers consumers to fight back against debt collectors and prevail, as well as "Lemon Law 101: The Laws That Lemon Dealers Don't Want You to Know."
