Hyundai owner blames 'Kia Boyz' for her stolen car, found totaled

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Recently there was a massive settlement for owners of numerous Hyundais and Kias - but it's too late for the countless drivers who had their cars stolen thanks to a viral video.

"He just told me I got some bad news and I got some good news for you," said Gwendolyn Buchanan. "We found your car, but it’s totaled."

Gwendolyn Buchanan’s Hyundai Elantra was stolen, taken for a joy ride, and totaled. It was recovered by police and taken to an impound lot on Grand River.

"It looked like somebody ran into something and my car was folded up like a hamburger," she said. "It didn’t make any sense."

It happened Thursday in Detroit. Gwendolyn and her son think she is the latest to be targeted by "The Kia Boys," thieves in Michigan and across the country stealing Kias and Hyundais and taking them for joyrides — something they learned how to do from watching TikTok videos.

It’s called "The Kia Challenge" and it exploits a security loophole using a USB cable.

"You stole from a lady that had two bibles in the car and a diamond ring that is a curse on you, you are going to get caught," Buchanan said.

Hyundai and Kia have now agreed to pay out approximately $200 million to settle a class action lawsuit in connection with the Kia challenge.

Earlier this year the manufacturer began implementing software updates to make the cars harder to steal

"So now even though they break the window, let’s say I’m going to put in the key, as soon as I put in the key, an alarm goes off," said a KIA dealership garage technician.

But that won’t help Buchanan or the thousands of other Kia and Hyundai owners who have already had their cars stolen.

"I almost had a panic attack so I had to calm myself down," she said.

Her message to the thieves: "Get your own car, get a job, if you aren't in school, go back to school - and stop stealing folks' cars."