Several law firms are objecting to the proposed settlement of a class-action suit seeking damages for the inflated fuel economy claims of South Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia.

The attorneys said the settlement is designed to discourage owners of the vehicles from filing claims and then allows the automakers to keep any uncollected money.

Attorneys at Consumer Watchdog and a group of law firms representing owners of Hyundai and Kia vehicles whose fuel economy (miles per gallon) was misrepresented by Hyundai and Kia say the terms of a proposed settlement between the vehicle manufacturers and two other plaintiffs’ law firms should be improved, according to a lengthy analysis prepared by the Consumer Watchdog team.

38 plaintiffs' firms take issue with $400 million offer over claims

LOS ANGELES - A proposed $400 million settlement in a class action lawsuit involving allegations that automakers Hyundai Motor America and Kia Motors America inflated the fuel economy of their vehicles is running into opposition from some plaintiffs' attorneys unhappy with the terms of the offer.

Santa Monica, CA -- Consumer Watchdog will closely scrutinize the formal settlement, filed on December 23, between Hyundai, Kia and two law firms that would resolve dozens of lawsuits brought on behalf of 900,000 consumers whose gas mileage did not meet the miles per gallon advertised by the South Korean car companies, the California-based non-profit organization said today.

Settlement over MPG claims seen as 'sweetheart deal' by some plaintiffs

Last Thursday, February 14, Federal District Court Judge George H. Wu held an initial hearing on class action lawsuits filed against Hyundai and Kia across the country for falsifying gas mileage estimates.

Federal District Court Judge George H. Wu will hold his first hearing Thursday in the litigation over the MPG fraud by Hyundai and Kia.

Orlando, FL -- Consumer lawsuits related to Hyundai’s misrepresentation of vehicle mileage moved a step closer to court today when a special panel of federal court judges meeting in Orlando, Florida held a hearing on a request by Consumer Watchdog lawyers to centralize all such lawsuits in a Southern California federal court.

Washington, DC – United States Senator and Commerce Committee Chairman John D. Rockefeller has written the president and chief executive of Hyundai Motors America to answer questions about the company’s false “Mile Per Gallon” window sticker claims that were exposed by an Environmental Protection Agency audit.

Washington, DC – Consumer Watchdog today called upon leaders of the House and Senate Commerce committees to hold hearings into the revelation by the EPA that for the first time in American history large numbers of vehicles carried window stickers with false MPG claims.