Lucid has issued its first recall of 2024 over concerns the high voltage coolant heater (HVCH) may fail, impacting over 2,000 Air sedans in the US.
The recall will be addressed with an over-the-air (OTA) software update, but may require the HVCH being replaced if it fails.
According to the recall documents posted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website, the HVCH serves two functions, supplying warm air to the cabin and also defrosting of the windshield. If the part fails, the windshield might not be defrosted, obscuring the view of the driver, representing a potential safety hazard. (via Reuters)
Lucid says it first received reports of loss of cabin heat as early as March 2022. In January 2023, their supplier informed them about HVCH delamination issues. However, Lucid says it was not made aware of a Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) recall for the same issue, or the safety concerns related to HVCH failures.
It wasn’t until near the end of 2023 when the NHTSA informed Lucid of the JLR recall, which was posted July 27, 2023, that the automaker became aware of the potential issues of the HVCH failures. As a result they launched an internal investigation in mid-November, the results of which turned into a recall.
Lucid will be able to tackle the problem with an OTA software update, which will be deployed in mid-January. Once installed it will monitor and identify any HVCH failures, warning the driver with a message on the glass cockpit. If the unit does fail, Lucid will replace it free of charge.
The recall impacts 2,042 Air sedans, but it is suspected only 1% or less will require parts replacement.
You can read the full recall notice below. No similar recall has been posted yet by Transport Canada.
