Hyundai Class Action Alleges Defective ‘Smart Trunks’

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A class action lawsuit filed on Wednesday alleges that car manufacturer Hyundai Motor America “aggressively” promotes its “Smart Trunk” feature even though they know it’s defective.

Starting in 2014, Hyundai introduced its “Smart Trunk” feature, which is a trunk that opens when the owner stands behind the car with the key fob.

The class action states that consumers must stand 20-40 inches behind the vehicle for three seconds, and then the key fob sends a radio signal to the trunk.

The class action contends that Hyundai Smart Trunks are supposed to open “fully” and in a “hands-free” way, so that consumers can place items in the trunk without having to set them down.

To support this claim, the complaint contains pictures from Hyundai advertising which shows consumers carrying items in their hands near a fully-opened or at least half-opened trunk.

In addition, the complaint cites videos Hyundai has put online that show its Smart Trunk feature opening a trunk halfway.

The Hyundai class action lawsuit argues that those advertisements are false and misleading because Hyundai’s Smart Trunk is defective.

According to the complaint, the Smart Trunk “will frequently fail to open more than a few inches.”

The class action argues that this makes the Smart Trunk feature worthless, because “[i]nstead of automatically opening as advertised, they simply unlatch, requiring consumers to manually push open the trunk lid, thereby failing to provide the ‘hands-free’ convenience the Smart Trunk is advertised to deliver.”

Plaintiff Joshua Riaubia states that he purchased a 2015 Sonata Limited, which comes standard with a Smart Trunk.

Riaubia claims that he saw the Smart Trunk ads before purchasing the vehicle, and that the Smart Trunk feature was important to him because he and his wife were expecting a baby.

Riaubia asserts that he discovered his Smart Trunk was defective shortly after purchasing the vehicle, because the trunk would merely crack open and “Plaintiff could barely fit a finger under the trunk lid.”

The complaint states that Riaubia took the vehicle to the dealership at least eight times to fix the trunk, but the defect was never fixed.

According to the invoice Riaubia received from the dealership, no repairs were done because the trunk “opens as far as it is designed.”

The class action asserts that the Smart Trunk comes as a standard feature on the “2015 Sonata (Sport, Limited, and Sport 2.0T);1 2015 Azera (all trims); 2015 Genesis (all trims); 2016 Sonata (Limited, Sport 2.0T, and Limited 2.0T); 2016 Azera (all trims); 2016 Genesis (all trims); 2017 Elantra (Eco and Limited); and the 2017 Sonata (Limited and Limited 2.0T).”

In addition, the Smart Trunk was an extra option costing between $950 and $1,900 on the Hyundai 2015 Sonata (Eco), 2016 Sonata (Sport), 2017 Sonata (Sport), and the 2017 Elantra (SE).

Riaubia seeks to represent a Class of all purchasers in the United States of those models of Hyundai equipped with a Smart Trunk. The class action requests damages for all Class Members, punitive damages, and an injunction stopping Hyundai from continuing its false advertising.

Riaubia is represented by Noah Axler and Marc A. Goldich of Axler Goldich LLC, James C. Shah and Natalie Finkelman Bennett of Shepherd, Finkleman, Miller & Shah, LLP, and Robert P. Cocco P.C.

The Hyundai Defective Smart Trunk Class Action Lawsuit is Joshua Riaubia v. Hyundai Motor America, Case No. 2:16-cv-05150, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

UPDATE: October 2019, the Hyundai Sonata Smart Trunk class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.