This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Hello. My sunroof glass was shattered while I was driving with a large boom sound. My vehicle has a total mileage of less than 70000 miles an it was under extended warranty. Hyundai refused to bear the repair cost.
Summer of 2020, my engine needed to be replaced for an unknown reason, that work was done at the Herb Chambers Hyundai service department. On 4/22/2022 my car hesitated to start, it did start, I traveled about 12 miles and my engine light came on. I traveled about 3 more miles and then my car stalled in the middle of the highway, I headed to the breakdown lane very quickly. As soon as I put the car in park, the car started to smoke, I ran down the highway on foot, called 911, I turned around and my car was engulfed in flames. This whole incident went awry very quickly, about 5 minutes. I am writing in as I was offered $16000 as a settlement for my vehicle and all losses from Hyundai. My insurance company is offering about $1500 more than Hyundai. Hyundai is not even performing an inspection which was not what they communicated initially. I was told an inspection needed to be done prior to any settlement decision. Their is a known recall, I understand, recall #205, which I had not yet been notified of. I want to reiterate that no inspection on Hyundai's part was done to confirm damage/recall issue. At this point I do not have a vehicle and not in a position to buy a new car.
The driver side door latch stopped working. The door cannot be opened from the inside OR the outside. This is a huge safety risk. In an emergency, not being able to exit the vehicle could put the driver and entire car at risk of injury and death. Consider having two child seats in the back, and the child locks active. This leaves one functioning door. And if this mechanism failure is systemic, consider multiple latch failures in conjunction. Multiple passengers would have extreme difficulty exiting the vehicle safely, especially in exigent circumstances.
The navigation/backup camera screen gets stuck on the loading page. This problem began right after the warranty period ended, which appears to be a common complaint on the message boards. When it first became a problem, it eventually would load, but would take approximately 15 minutes. Now, it fails to load at all (just continuously displays "loading"), which renders the backup camera, navigation system, maps, radio, satellite, clock and all associated controls useless. A backup camera is essential for me--I will not drive a car without one, since it a safety concern due to kyphosis. Having the navigation on a large screen (versus my phone or a printed map) is another reason I chose this car. So, not repairing it is not an option. It is a safety issue. When trying to find a solution, I found hundreds upon hundreds of complaints for the same issue with the same model as my car. The dealership also was aware of it. So, I figured I would report it since it is so common, hoping to save others from the $1000+ bill I received to repair it.
- Rutherfordton, NC, USA
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While driving my car on the highway, the entire electrical system shut-down including my cruise control, GPS, radio etc. Also on this same trip, the engine completely stopped (also while on the highway). Luckily I was just turning off an exit ramp and was able to barely steer it to the side of the road. The starter light was still on, but the vehicle was completely dead. Had to punch the starter light again to turn it off and then back on again. A second incident occurred while my husband was driving my car in the city just this past week. Driving on streets (not highway driving) and the car shut down unexpectedly 4 different times: once climbing a hill; once trying to pass another driver; twice for no reason. I've taken this to the dealer since it's still covered under extended warranty but since they can't find any issues, the next time I take this in it will cost me money. Of course, since the engine completely stops, nothing is recorded with sensors or computers. Help please.
At around 55,000 miles, my family vehicle displayed signs of concern by rattling and shaking- especially when I would turn the vehicle. When bringing it for regularly oil maintenance my mechanic had me listen to clear signs of distress within the engine. Knowing I drive my two children with me regularly in this vehicle, he asked me to bring it to Hyundai-€™s local dealership. On 3/12/2020, I waited approximately an hour and a half to be seen for my scheduled appointment only to be shooed away and told there is no issue. Nobody bothered to run testing or evaluate the issue besides a quick walk by. 7 months later, the problem has worsened and continues to leave me worried that my children and I will be left stranded due to an unreliable engine. The shaking has worsened and the car has produced concerning smells of burning. Hyundai finally admitted that I do need a new engine, but since I am not the original owner, they are not providing replacement. Hyundai engines appear to be a problem in many instances, and I fear this is another situation. Engine failure at 55,000 miles on a 5 year old car is unacceptable and proves safety is not on the forefront of Hyundai-€™s mission. I appreciate any assistance recalling Santa Fe engines on the 2015 model so the many families who drive this vehicle can do so safely.
On July 14, 2021, while the vehicle was MOVING, the cable in the spare tire hoist snapped resulting in the spare tire dropping to the ground and getting wedged between the ground and the trailer hitch. Fortunately, this occurred on a side street and the net effect was that the spare tire was partially dislodged from metal wheel and the wheel was knocked slightly out of round. Had this failure happened on the freeway, it could have been a very serious accident, perhaps even a fatality for us or other drivers on the road. This vehicle is kept in a garage, has never been used for off-roading and the spare tire has never been removed/used. Our local Hyundai service department confirmed that there was no observable indicator that would have caused this to happen. There were no noises, warning lights or symptoms prior to the cable snapping.
On 5/28/21, while driving vehicle noticed a knocking/banging when in reverse then also began when driving. Took to local Midas dealer and was told rear differential gear was broken and needed repaired. Upon further research, Midas discovered that an upgraded coupler had been replaced on other Hyundai Santa Fe's as the old coupler wasn't protecting the gear. The coupler on my vehicle was therefore not protecting the gear in the rear differential causing it to break in half. I work in a manufacturing company (Honda of America) and could not miss work due to strict attendance policies. Local Hyundai dealership could not assist me in repair asap so had no choice but to have it repaired with Midas so that it would be ready for me to drive to work on Monday. Filed case with Hyundai to ask for reimbursement since vehicle wasn't recalled for defective coupler. They advised me to take to a local Hyundai dealership to ensure work was performed properly and correct parts were used. This cost us an additional $99 on top of the $5066 for the repair. Hyundai then told us after having the local dealership look at the work performed that because we didn't have it repaired at authorized dealership they could not provide assistance. After not accepting this response, I escalated the issue and was told Hyundai Consumer Affairs would contact us. We have yet to hear from them on any type of financial help with this costly repair that was through no fault of our own. This is a truly awful customer experience with Hyundai and am pursuing for some or all financial reimbursement.
the remedy shown for the current recall is the same as the last recall. my vehicle was inspected as per last recall recommendation and no action was performed by the dealer. why is hyundai still using the same the same remedy as per recall 194 CUSTOMERS CAN CONTINUE DRIVING THESE VEHICLES; HOWEVER, DUE TO THE POSSIBILITY OF A FIRE ORIGINATING FROM THE ABS MODULE WHILE PARKED, HYUNDAI RECOMMENDS PARKING THESE VEHICLES OUTSIDE AND AWAY FROM STRUCTURES UNTIL THE RECALL REMEDY IS COMPLETED. HYUNDAI PLANS TO NOTIFY OWNERS TO BRING THEIR VEHICLES TO THE NEAREST HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP FOR INSPECTION OF THE ABS MODULE AND IF NECESSARY, REPLACEMENT WITH A NEW ONE. IN ADDITION TO ABS MODULE INSPECTION, THE ABS MULTI-FUSE WILL BE REPLACED WITH A REVISED ONE TO MITIGATE THE RISK OF A FIRE CAUSED BY AN INTERNAL ELECTRICAL SHORT. THE REMEDY PROCEDURE WILL BE PERFORMED AT NO CHARGE TO THE CUSTOMER. HYUNDAI WILL PROVIDE REIMBURSEMENT TO OWNERS FOR REPAIRS ACCORDING TO THE PLAN SUBMITTED TO NHTSA ON MAY 16, 2018.
The rear passenger door will not open either from the inside or outside. This happened out of the blue. Car is a 2015...and not covered under warranty. In researching many people have had the same problem with Hyundai models and years. We have talked with the dealership, taken it to a locksmith (couldn't open with a slim jim and an independent that used to work for Hyundai who said he would have to destroy the panel to get inside to check the assembly and repair. Definitely a safety issue if a fast exit is needed. Hyundai forums have the issue being asked about frequently involving one door or with multiple doors
There is one recall out on my 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe sport having to do with risk of engine compartment fire. The ABS system can leak onto an electrical motor and cause an engine compartment fire. I have never received an official word on this recall - only word of month/ radio. There is no remedy yet until end of October 2020.
A portion of the sunroof inexplicably shattered. The vehicle was stationary and parked at the time, though there was nothing above, around or even near the vehicle to cause the damage.
I was on ground floor of a parking garage and already in the parking spot---I had my brake on and was actually ready to shift the vehicle into "park". there was a sudden reving of the engine and the car began to move forward at a high rate of speed through a steel lattice work barrier and through a flower bed into an extremely wet surface. I hit the brake as hard as possible and believe that the brake finally held. The left front tire became mired down in approximately 12-14 inches of mud. I believe the combination of the mud and the brake caused the vehicle to actually stop. No airbags deployed during this accident. Both sides of the car were damaged from the front fender to the rear fender, including 1 headlight unit, and the outside mirror on the driver's door (I do not know for certain if the other outside mirror was damaged). I looked up "sudden unintended acceleration" online and it is looking more and more like the throttle position sensor (tps) may have been the cause of this accident. I do have a police report and pictures but cannot scan them as I have on capability to do so. No other vehicle and no other individuals were involved. We had a wrecking company come to pull the car out and take to an auto body shop for estimate and possible repair. The estimate that was given to the police officer for the actual property damages (steel lattice work replacement and lawn repair) was listed as $5000. It is unknown at this point whether there was any damage to the undercarriage of the vehicle as a result of going over the large concrete block that was in front of the parking spot. I am waiting for the estimate to know this.
While driving my Hyundai Santa Fe down a highway at normal speed, the panoramic sunroof on the vehicle shattered. There were no cars ahead of me to cause a rock to fly into the roof and crack it. There was an extremely loud pop sound when this issue occurred. This happened while my family and I were driving back from a holiday trip. Read online that many others are having a similar situation with their panoramic sunroof on their Hyundai Santa Fe.
The screen on the gps unit cracked as I was cleaning it. I had the car for 10 months with 7000 miles on the car. Hyundai has refused to replace the unit. I am unable to download updates, the continuity is broken. The car was parked and in my driveway as I was cleaning it.
The electronic key system of this car has a big flaw. The doors do not lock even after multiple activation through the lock button of the electronic key when the engine is left running. The behavior is unlike other cars such as Nissan Altima, which locks the door.S. this behavior makes it much more likely for someone to inadvertently walk away from the car with engine running leaving the doors unlocked.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Burbank, CA, USA