AKRON, Ohio — A photograph shows Ashley Groussman all smiles when she leased a 2026 Hyundai Palisade with the Calligraphy trim package in August of last year.
But her excitement turned to fear on the first day she had the SUV.
Groussman, who lives in Los Angeles, drove to pick up her 9-year-old daughter at a friend's house.
The daughter jumped into the second row of the Palisade, while the friend sat in the third row. Groussman said that's when something alarming happened.
"He pressed the button on top of the seat that she was sitting on, and the seat started to close on her, and it wasn't stopping, and she started screaming, and I turned around and literally pulled her to safety," Groussman said.
Groussman said, in the months that followed, she tried to get her dealership and Hyundai to take the vehicle back.
In September, she wrote an email to Hyundai to express her safety concerns, stating, "This is an urgent matter that cannot be delayed, as it directly impacts passenger safety." She added, "Families, including mine, rely on this vehicle daily, and it is critical that Hyundai addresses this immediately to ensure no risk of harm."
She also tagged Hyundai in a post on X: "2026 Palisade Calligraphy. Serious safety issue: 2nd row seat keeps moving forward when 3rd row button is pressed even if a child is seated. No sensor to stop it. My daughter was at risk of being crushed. Unacceptable & unsafe. Help!"
"That's how dangerous I felt in my bones— how dangerous— how dangerous this was," Groussman told News 5.
Groussman said an inspector, sent by Hyundai, looked over the SUV in October.
In November, she received a letter from a National Consumer Affairs Specialist from Hyundai indicating that her claims and the findings of the inspector were reviewed.
"We see that the inspector demonstrated to you that the seat mechanism was operating normally. Therefore, we appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns and are closing your file at this time," the specialist wrote.
More than six months later, and 2,400 miles away in Akron, a 2-year-old girl from Cuyahoga Falls was killed by a power seat in a Palisade, prompting Groussman to contact News 5 about her previous concerns.
RELATED: Death of 2-year-old girl in Akron leads to nationwide recall of Hyundai SUVs
"I saw the story about this child that was crushed by the seat, and my heart just sank. I am so heartbroken for this family," Groussman said.
The tragedy happened outside of a business on Sweitzer Avenue on the morning of March 7.
Lt. Michael Murphy said a mom, the 2-year-old girl, and an older sibling were inside the parked SUV while the father went inside the business.
But during that time, the power seat somehow folded forward, and according to the police report, "The automatic seat collapsed on the child, pinning her."
It took bystanders several minutes to free the toddler, Murphy said.
"There were attempts to release the seat, and they were unable for quite some time to get the seat to retract back to its original position, which caused the child to essentially be crushed and suffocate," Murphy said.
On March 17, News 5 sent an email to Hyundai to ask about the concerns that Groussman raised.
On March 19, Hyundai responded with a statement: "While we cannot comment on individual customer matters, we are aware that some customers raised concerns regarding the operation of second and third-row power seat functions, and we take all such reports seriously."
The statement added, "Hyundai continuously reviews vehicle performance from multiple sources, including field reports, customer and dealer feedback, and other data as part of its ongoing safety evaluation process."
Groussman said Hyundai contacted her last week, offering her what she asked for last year: to take the SUV back.
"No one should have to sit in fear of a child pressing a button and being killed in the back seat of their family car," she said.
Since our initial inquiry into the Akron case, Hyundai has stopped selling 2026 Hyundai Palisades with Limited and Calligraphy trims and issued a recall affecting 68,500 vehicles in the U.S. and Canada.
RELATED: Hyundai issues recall after death of 2-year-old girl from Cuyahoga Falls
The recall, posted on the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration's website last week, indicates "power rear seats may trap a person."
A company spokesperson said Hyundai has started to roll out interim software to improve contact detection and enhance system safety, although the automaker noted the update is not a permanent recall repair.
