MILWAUKEE — Hyundai says it’s come up with a solution to prevent its vehicles from being stolen. Starting Saturday, the automaker says its dealerships will begin installing special security kits.
Some Hyundai owners tell TMJ4 News that they are frustrated about who has to foot the bill.
Police data shows an average of six Hyundai vehicles have been stolen each day in Milwaukee so far this year. Blanche Galloway says she always uses a steering wheel club on her Hyundai SUV so it isn’t targeted next.
"It's very frustrating,” she said. "You go somewhere and hope that your car will still be there when you come back out."
Hyundais have become a top target for thieves in Milwaukee and across the country because many of its vehicles over the past decade were made without engine immobilizers. That means no key is needed to get them to run. Hyundai says engine immobilizers became standard in its vehicles after Nov. 1, 2021.
In an effort solve the problem for previous model years, the automaker says Hyundai dealerships will offer security kits to its customers.
"Is it going to work? That's the next question,” Galloway said.
Hyundai says it’s partnering with a company called Compustar to combine a kill switch and an alarm system into a security kit.
"This is made for Hyundai itself,” said Alarmtronix owner Randy Torgrud.
Torgrud is a Compustar authorized installer and is set to attend training on the new Hyundai-specific security kits next week. He says the alarm will automatically sound if someone tries to break into the vehicle. Torgrud says if the thieves aren’t deterred by the blaring horn, they won’t be able to get the car to start without the key.
"The way that they are stealing them, this is going to take care of that,” he said.
But not all Hyundai owners will be able to get one. The automaker says it will only be available key-start vehicles that are model years 2016 through 2021.
When asked if these security kits are going to be a car theft game changer, Torgrud replied, “Yes and no. It's still a balance because there's so many of them out there, we're talking about tens of thousands that are out there without this already on so we've got to continue to push and get alarms and kill systems on these types of vehicles."
Additionally, Hyundai says the security kits have to be purchased at the vehicle owner’s expense. Torgrud says it will cost between $200-$300.
Galloway says she can’t believe Hyundai isn’t covering the bill.
“This was something that they didn't put there, so why should we have to pay for it?” she said.
Police data shows about 400 more Kias have been stolen this year in Milwaukee than Hyundais. Kia says it won’t be offering the same security kits to its customers. A Kia spokesperson said the company is more focused on offering steering wheel clubs because they serve as a visual and physical deterrent.
