The first generation of Hyundai’s award-winning Palisade SUV came to an end this year with the launch of Generation Two. But the Korean automaker has just announced a recall affecting all of the first generation’s model-years. The recall affects 43,990 2020-2025 Palisades in Canada, as well as nearly 570,000 units in the U.S.
Transport Canada’s recall number for this campaign is 2026-23 .
The problem
The issue that prompted the recall relates to the side curtain airbag, which could in some cases fail to properly protect third-row passengers in the event of an accident, in particular their heads. Obviously that increases the risk of injury or worse.
The problem was discovered during compliance testing, the company says. Specifically, the NHTSA first observed last year, during a crash test of a 2025 Palisade, that the head portion of a crash test dummy in the third row moved beyond prescribed limits during a collision. Follow-up testing by Hyundai and the NHTSA led to the conclusion that the third-row side-curtain airbags were insufficient to adequately protect the heads of occupants in that row.
The solution
Hyundai has not advanced any particular fix for the problem as of yet, saying it is still studying the problem and fine-tuning its solution.
Hyundai plans to contact owners of affected vehicles once that solution is settled on.
Some will recall that a recall last fall to address an issue with potentially faulty seatbelts had affected the same model-years of the same model. Of note, counting that recall as well as the new campaign just announced, the first-generation Palisade has been subject to 11 recalls in all.