Hyundai recalls Santa Fe, Sonata on air bag issues

REUTERS

First posted: Monday, July 30, 2012 10:22 AM EDT | Updated: Monday, July 30, 2012 11:26 AM EDT

Hyundai Motor Co is recalling some Santa Fe SUVs and Sonata sedans for separate air bag issues, U.S. safety regulators said.

In the United States, Hyundai is recalling 199,118 Santa Fe SUVs from the model years 2007 to 2009 that were made from April 2006 through July 7, 2008 because the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a filing.

Separately, Hyundai is recalling 22,513 Sonata sedans in the United States for the model years 2012-2013, made from January to June this year, because the side air bag may inflate, to the surprise of the driver.

The Santa Fe SUVs may have difficulty detecting “small statured adults” in the front passenger seat so that the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash, the NHTSA said.

Hyundai told regulators it needed to update its software on the Santa Fe and would do so without charge. It has not yet given the NHTSA a schedule for notifying customers.

The curtain, or side air bag, in the Sonata sedan “may inflate without deployment command and increase the risk of injury to occupants of the vehicle,” NHTSA said. Also, an air bag deploying when there is no crash or other normal cause for it doing so can hinder the driver’s ability to control the vehicle, the agency said.

Hyundai will replace the side air bags on the Sonata free of charge. The recall is to begin next month, the automaker told the NHTSA.

Scenes from underground show in New York City

By Jim Genia, Cage Writer

Just another day at the underground fight show.
Earlier today there was an edition of the Underground Combat League (UCL), New York City's long-running, unsanctioned MMA promotion. Unlike most of the other states in the country, New York has deemed professional MMA to be illegal. But a loophole in the law has allowed amateur events to flourish — albeit in a quasi-hush-hush world where fighters sometimes use aliases and the locations of shows are kept secret from the athletic commission.
Choke out.
Please, don't judge them too harshly. The UCL, for instance, has churned out over forty events since its debut in 2003, and can count among its alumni such fighters as former UFC lightweight champ Frankie Edgar and International Fight League heavyweight Bryan Vetell (as well as a slew of dudes who went on to fight in Strikeforce, the WEC, Bellator and top regional promotions). And before you accuse anyone of exploitation, remember this: everyone from promoter Peter Storm to the fighters to the fans wants to see New York State sanction the sport; it's only because New York won't that events like this exist.
Right hand of doom.
The ol' stanky leg.
You're probably about to ask something along the lines of "Well, don't you think underground shows like this one are setting the sport back and keeping it from being sanctioned?" That's a clown-question, bro. The politicians who favor MMA in New York have cited the state's thriving underground fight scene as a reason why the sport must be sanctioned.
Another choke.