Software Update Could End ‘The Kia Boyz’

2018 Hyundai Accent. Photo by Kevauto, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Milwaukee’s epidemic of motor vehicle thefts could end, maybe.

Kia and Hyundai, makers of the most commonly stolen vehicles, will begin offering a free software update that is intended to circumvent a key vulnerability in millions of their vehicles that rely on a traditional turn-key-to-start configuration.

Milwaukee, since 2020, has seen record levels of vehicle thefts because of the relative ease with which many vehicles made by Kia and Hyundai can be stolen, the viral nature of information on social media about how to steal them and the difficulty of catching and punishing the thieves.

Many Kia and Hyundai vehicles lack an immobilizer key (key fob) and have an ignition that can be started by breaking the steering column and using a USB cable to gain the torque to turn a metal piece. More than two thirds of all vehicles stolen in Milwaukee in 2021 were made by Kia and Hyundai.

More than half of those arrested for vehicle theft are under the age of 18. Known locally as “the Kia Boyz,” the moniker refers to those who steal those vehicles, but not a specific gang.

The software fix is available now for some Hyundai vehicles and is to be available for vehicles made by Kia, of which Hyundai owns a significant stake and partners with on engineering. It includes three notable changes, according to Hyundai: the vehicle will no longer start without a key present in the ignition; using the keyless entry fob to lock the vehicle will activate an “ignition kill” feature preventing the vehicle from starting until disabled; and the alarm is to be extended to one minute from 30 seconds.

The update will take about an hour to install, says the company, and includes a sticker on the vehicle’s exterior.

The fix is available now via dealerships for owners of Hyundai Elantra (2017-2020), Sonata (2015-2019) and Venue (2020-2021) vehicles. In June it will roll out to 13 more Hyundai vehicle types. Vehicle owners can go to hyundaiantitheft.com to confirm vehicle eligibility.

Kia owners will be eligible for the update “over the next few months,” said the company in a statement.

“We are pleased to see this potential fix to the Kia and Hyundai theft crisis, and we are looking forward to seeing the impact of the adjustment here in the City of Milwaukee. Far too many unwitting Kia and Hyundai owners here have been victimized and have had their lives negatively impacted – some multiple times,” said Common Council members Milele A. Coggs and Khalif Rainey in a joint statement. The two have repeatedly called on the companies to protect consumers and be part of the solution to the problem.

Kia and Hyundai have previously provided free steering wheel locks to the Milwaukee Police Department to be given away, but that hasn’t stopped many vehicles from being broken into or having locks broken off. Hyundai, in 2022, began offering a kit fix that cost several hundred dollars to purchase and install. The kit, made by Compustar, includes both an alarm and a kill switch. The former addresses an issue where vehicles are frequently broken into without an alarm activating because not all windows are hooked into the system. The latter prevents the vehicle from starting once the alarm activates.

All Hyundai vehicles produced since November 2021 have included an immobilizer key. The vulnerability is present in many Kias made between 2011 and 2021 and Hyundais between 2015 and 2021.

“We have prioritized the upgrade’s availability for owners and lessees of our highest-selling vehicles and those most targeted by thieves in order for dealers to service them first,” said Hyundai Motor American CEO Randy Parker in a statement.

“Some 2011-2022 model year vehicles without engine immobilizers cannot accommodate the software upgrade. For these customers, Hyundai is finalizing a program to reimburse them for their purchase of steering wheel locks. Hyundai will provide these customers with more detail in the very near future,” says the company’s statement.

Even without the change, vehicle theft has declined somewhat in Milwaukee. There were a record 10,487 thefts in 2021, but that total fell by 23% in 2022 (8,098 thefts) and is down another 24% year-to-date according to MPD data. It is still above pre-surge levels. The problem, which effectively started in Milwaukee, has spread to become a national issue.