You should report this to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration -
nhtsa dot gov on their report a safety problem page. (The forum won't let me post the link)

Honestly, this is a major safety issue and could be life threatening. Imagine a collision where the 12V is damaged! Climbing over the seats and releasing the tailgate with a "flat instrument" is absurd. Do they provide the flat instrument and instructions? If I had known about this issue I would not have purchased the car! I'm getting a glass break tool to have a way to get out if this happens to me.

 

OP is in the UK, NHTSA isn't the right place to complain. Further, it would appear UK spec models work different, it doesn't seem an issue in the US, or Australia.

 

Well here is an interesting update from my visit to the Hyundai dealer Today.
I went in essentially to have battery tested again. They say it was reading healthy on their systems.
I made reference to the help and advice received from the forum regarding testing in US, UK and Australia. (Many thanks to those who contributed).
The Hyundai technician said that he had himself tried to replicate my situation by opening window, then locking the vehicle and then disconnecting the battery. Initially he said that the car did open from the inside.
However, he decided to conduct the same test whilst I was there onsite.
It has to be said that when the window was opened the car was locked with the key fob.
The test was conducted with the battery connected and with it disconnected. In both situations the car could NOT be opened by the handles (Inside or out). He was left scratching his head.😰 He had thought that with the battery connected the Deadlocking System would still be operational but without the battery connected it would have deactivated the deadlocking. This was not proved to be the case.
When your testing was done, was the car locked by the interval lock switch or the key fob. Could this be a vital ingredient to what has gone wrong?
I know when i went into my car last week, i would not have locked the car door with the key fob.

I have again spoken to Hyundai UK and they are beginning to understand the seriousness of my event. I’m informed that my case has been escalated to Management Level.

if anyone has further observations or can run tests again by locking car with the key fob then I would be interested to hear your feedback.

 

Well here is an interesting update from my visit to the Hyundai dealer Today.
I went in essentially to have battery tested again. They say it was reading healthy on their systems.
I made reference to the help and advice received from the forum regarding testing in US, UK and Australia. (Many thanks to those who contributed).
The Hyundai technician said that he had himself tried to replicate my situation by opening window, then locking the vehicle and then disconnecting the battery. Initially he said that the car did open from the inside.
However, he decided to conduct the same test whilst I was there onsite.
It has to be said that when the window was opened the car was locked with the key fob.
The test was conducted with the battery connected and with it disconnected. In both situations the car could NOT be opened by the handles (Inside or out). He was left scratching his head.😰 He had thought that with the battery connected the Deadlocking System would still be operational but without the battery connected it would have deactivated the deadlocking. This was not proved to be the case.
When your testing was done, was the car locked by the interval lock switch or the key fob. Could this be a vital ingredient to what has gone wrong?
I know when i went into my car last week, i would not have locked the car door with the key fob.

I have again spoken to Hyundai UK and they are beginning to understand the seriousness of my event. I’m informed that my case has been escalated to Management Level.

if anyone has further observations or can run tests again by locking car with the key fob then I would be interested to hear your feedback.

Thanks for continuing to pursue this! I hope some good comes out of your experience. As horrifying as it was, it was mild compared to what it could be in other circumstances. If it prompts changes, or even a recall that could save a life, we all stand to benefit.

 

Interesting observation. I wonder why UK version is made different than US/Australia versions. Or is OP's car may be one of the earlier builds of the car? (Which year is your car? I am not sure whether you mention it)

 

2023 Ioniq 5 Ultimate 4WD

 

I keep a steering wheel lock in the car at all times and one end has a glass breaker. In case of interest, this is the one:

Tevlaphee Steering Wheel Lock for Cars,Wheel Lock,Vehicle Anti-Theft Lock,Adjustable Length Clamp Double Hook Universal Fit Emergency Hammer Window Breaker Self Defense Heavy Duty Secure (Red) : Amazon.ca: Automotive

Tevlaphee Steering Wheel Lock for Cars,Wheel Lock,Vehicle Anti-Theft Lock,Adjustable Length Clamp Double Hook Universal Fit Emergency Hammer Window Breaker Self Defense Heavy Duty Secure (Red) : Amazon.ca: Automotive

www.amazon.ca

 

This is a good safety purchase. There are also small hammer-shaped glass-breakers, which usually also include blades that can be used to cut seat belts. I keep one in my car's center console. I don't recall where I bought it, but the one I've got is similar to this one.

 

 

To clarify the tests I did:
1. Opened drivers window and released frunk latch.
2. Locked car with key fob and moved it about 3 metres away.
3. Opened frunk and disconnected 12v battery.
4. Reached through the open window to operate the inside door handle (it opened easily).
Also tried it with me sitting in the car and locking it with the fob, which I kept in my pocket (it opened easily).

I also compared the feel of the front and back door handles and the action felt the same, with an easy pull which then met a little extra resistance as the tension came on the cable to the latch, then the click as it released. I then operated the child lock and the back door felt the same initially, but then there was no extra resistance and the handle operated all the way without releasing the latch. In other words, it felt like the mechanical link (via cable I think) between the handle and latch was disconnected, rather than the action being blocked, when the child lock was activated.
Can the OP remember how the front handle felt when it was locked? Did it move freely all the way without opening the door (like a child locked rear door), or was its movement blocked by being locked?

Later, I went back to the car to get something (without the fob as its normally left unlocked in the garage) and found I'd left it locked with the window open, so I just reached in and pulled the interior handle, then nearly shat myself when the alarm went off!!

 

When I was locked in the car, the handles in the front moved freely with no resistance or any sign that a mechanical action was trying to take place. I did not attempt rear doors as I could not reach them.

 

Just thought: Maybe there is a need to prevent the front doors being opened if the car is moving, so I tried it by turning the car on and letting it 'creep' slowly, then tried the front door handle. The door opened as normal, but the transmission immediately went into Park and the car lurched to a stop. I'm not game to try it at higher speeds!
So why is there a need to disable the front handles at all?

 

I have been following a thread on another forum about a UK Niro owner who locked his wife in the car accidentally. Despite the tendency to be inclined to rewarding him for doing so (JK), apparently in EU and UK, there is a concept of deadlocking to prevent theft, and insurance companies seem to be pushing the idea. The way it supposedly works is clicking lock twice on the Fob, which disables internal door latches. Unsure why deadlocking would happen in the course of operating the car as occupants would obviously need to exit in certain situations.

So, perhaps a failing 12V triggers a deadlock situation? But why? If the 12V is dead, car won't start and thieves will be thwarted regardless of how they gained access to the car.

 

.......thieves will be thwarted .........

One of my favourite words right there. I had a famous comedian relative in the 1950's who used 'thwarted' a lot in his sketches. It has that certain comedic ring to it.

On the lock-in theme I have just butchered the handle from a small plastic brush to create a 'prong' that neatly fits into the slot in the boot lid to open it if you are ever locked in the car. Then taped it to the inside of the boot lid near to the slot to create a handy implement for use there in dire need. The ultimate belt-n-braces fitment.

 

I see posts here mentioning the safety of having a glass break hammer.

Please note that the Ioniq 5 has laminated glass, also the (front only?) side windows. The glass won't break. You will have to go to the rear window, or possibly the rear side windows. These are normal, hardened glass. They will break.

 

I see posts here mentioning the safety of having a glass break hammer.

Please note that the Ioniq 5 has laminated glass, also the (front only?) side windows. The glass won't break. You will have to go to the rear window, or possibly the rear side windows. These are normal, hardened glass. They will break.

Thanks.

I asked ChatGPT about breaking a laminated window. They said this -

Quote -

"Yes, a laminated window can be broken with a spike hammer, but it will likely take more force compared to regular tempered glass. Laminated glass consists of two layers of glass with a layer of plastic (usually polyvinyl butyral, or PVB) sandwiched in between. This makes the glass much tougher and resistant to shattering upon impact, as the plastic layer holds the glass together, preventing it from breaking into sharp shards.

That said, while laminated glass is more resistant to breaking, it’s not unbreakable. A spike hammer, which is designed to concentrate force on a specific point, could eventually penetrate or crack the glass, though it might take several strong strikes. The advantage of laminated glass is that even if it breaks, the fragments tend to stay attached to the plastic interlayer, reducing the risk of injury compared to standard tempered glass."

Sounds like we need a family training session on how to recline the seats to get into the back and use my modified spike toffee hammer to break a rear side window.

 

I would also test the famous manual rear unlock, it doesn't seem that simple to do.

This is a video with a test of such pointed hammer on laminated glass. It gives rise to concern. No English, took this from a Dutch channel. Hammer demo starts at 3:50 minutes, and you have to endure 2 commercials before that, sorry. They end with a sledge hammer, to no avail.

Gelaagd glas in auto’s breekt niet in noodsituaties - BNNVARA

<p>Steeds meer auto’s in ons land zijn uitgerust met gelaagde zijruiten voor extra veiligheid en comfort. Maar is dit glas niet té veilig, want wat gebeurt er als je met je auto te water komt?</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://www.bnnvara.nl/kassa/artikelen/gelaagd-glas-in-...

bnnvara.nl

 

Some of you obviously need to see this video.

 

Just checked our Australian 2WD "Dynamiq" spec. Front and rear side windows are laminated.
It seems Hyundai hadn't got the specs well sorted for Aus models in 2022. Our "Dynamiq" has the interior power outlet and HUD, but friends who bought a more expensive "Techniq" spec 2WD got the sunroof and memory seats with footrests, but no power outlet or HUD.

 

Not certain what you mean by power outlet and HUD. Can you clarify?

 

We have a 240v power point under the back seat and a heads up display (that's on the windscreen, not under the seat!)

 

FYI, to others wondering, in the States, the power outlets are 120V 60Hz AC, and there is no N-G bond in the vehicle. The Hyundai-branded charge-port AC adapters do provide an N-G bond, though. Also, the Hyundai adapters have an "extra" Ground pin hole above the blades. DO NOT plug in a 5-15 plug upside down, with the Ground pin up. Doing so will reverse the Hot and Neutral wires, which can be a very bad thing. It's recommended to somehow cover or plug the upper ground pin hole, to prevent this from happening.

 

Given all the concern about the 12V going dead, I picked up a jump starter, stashed it in the frunk, and felt perfectly covered.

Every car should have one.

Never considered the possibility that the door would lock me in

Since you don't live in the UK, you don't need to consider the possibility.

 

Every car should have one.


Since you don't live in the UK, you don't need to consider the possibility.

If this theory is true that the UK is different this way and if it was my car, I would make Hyundai take that death trap back and refund my purchase price. Door latches have to be easy to operate in any emergency situation.

But I cannot really believe that such a safery lapse is even possible under national safety regulations, It would be a very bad bargain indeed to let the occupants die in the case of a battery failure/fire, just to thwart potential car theft.

Tell me it ain’t so!

 

But I cannot really believe that such a safery lapse is even possible under national safety regulations,

I'm stunned that this would be even something they would consider.

apparently in UK, maybe EU, theft risk is high and OEMs have responded with a deadlock scenario where the door handle is immobilized with two pushes of the lock button on the remote.

Maybe unintended consequences? But, as I recall, in the OP's case, the remote wasn't used to lock the car.

 

Thank you for the information. I'm glad you are alright!

What year and trim line do you have? My 2024 Ioniq 5 SEL AWD Extended Range seems to have mechanical door handles. I'll verify that next time I'm in the car.

 

If you read all of the posts in this thread, you will see several folks in USA and Australia have confirmed this isn't an issue. It seems to be a UK/EU anti-theft thing that deadlocks or disables the handles with two clicks of the lock on the fob, and perhaps when the 12V is not providing power to the car. You should be ok here in the US.

 

I think we should edit the title of the thread since so few people look at anything except the original post.

 

Likely due to browsing the forum in nested view!

FYI: Nested view puts replies under the posts they are replying to, and collapses them. Viewing the forum in nested view has it's +- impact, but it is very easy to miss a lot of great posts unless you expand each post/reply sequence.

To demonstrate the difference, in Nested view, the thread appears to be two pages long:

But in Original view, 7 pages:

To toggle between views, Click on More, then click on Nested view to see collapsed replies, or Original View to see all replies:

In this screenshot, you would know you are in Original View because the option to change to Nested is visible. If you are in Nested view mode, this entry would read Original view meaning clicking on it would change your view to Original, or flat view.

 

I must be the outlier here, but I like nested view. If someone posts an off-topic comment that I have little interest in, I can skip the replies.

And I'm an old fart, who doesn't do social media or Reddit.

 

I always switch off nested view (I find it hard to follow the thread) - thankfully it seems to remember once you are logged on different devices.

 

(Aren’t we getting off topic….just saying)

 

We are, but it was in reply to a member not finding content above due to Nested View.

We can return to the original topic now!

 

On the subject of door-latch design, this, from the Ioniq 6 service and repair manual, where there is no mention of electrical door latching, only door locking/unlocking:

This image shows the (white) connecting rod for the driver door:

This view includes the identification of the connecting rod.

 

Ok so if the car locks with the fob or automatically because of a period of inactivity then the deadlocks activate and you cannot exit the vehicle.

if the car is being driven (auto locks) or is locked using the centre console button then the doors can be opened from the inside by the mechanical handle or the drivers door can be opened from the outside

it sounds like you were really unlucky

just tested mine today

deadlocks only from the fob or if the car locks after inactivity with doors shut