CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2011 Sonata has a seriously defective engine that seizes without warning. It was awarded the dubious honor of being the first CarTalk / CarComplaints Turd of the Week in late September 2015.

A class action lawsuit was filed in May 2015 against Hyundai that claims the 2.4L Sonata engine is defective. More info here.

2.5

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
60,500 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2011 Hyundai Sonata brakes problems

brakes problem

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2011 Hyundai Sonata Owner Comments

problem #4

Aug 112020

Sonata

  • 131,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the brake warning light failed to disengage with the traction control warning light illuminated. The vehicle was turned off when the failure occurred. The contact stated that he pumped the brake pedal a couple of times in order for the brake light to function properly. The vehicle was taken to edwards Hyundai (1029 32nd ave, council bluffs, ia 51501) where it was diagnosed that the brake pedal stopper failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact mentioned NHTSA campaign number: 15V759000 (service brakes, hydraulic) as a possible solution to the failure however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 131,000. The VIN was not available.

- Couli Bluf, IA, USA

problem #3

Jan 092019

Sonata

  • 92,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. While driving 20 mph, the steering wheel seized and the traction control warning indicator illuminated. The contact was able to coast the vehicle over to the side of the road and the engine was powered off. The vehicle was restarted and was able to drive normally, but the failure recurred. The contact stated that the failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to lee Hyundai of florence (located at 2542 w palmetto St, florence, SC 29501, (843) 667-3317), but was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer stated that the vehicle was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 92,000.

- Florence, SC, USA

problem #2

Apr 012011

Sonata 4-cyl

  • 16,000 miles
I have a 2011 Sonata limited. Earlier this year I began having a starting issue where the car would say "apply brake pedal to start" even though my foot was firmly planted on the brake. Took the car in and they couldn't duplicate so I just kept on working around it. In June, it got worse so I took it back, spoke to the service manager at the dealership and they ordered a brake switch and new push button ignition on June 20th or thereabouts. The parts finally arrived on August 17th..yes..it took that long apparently. I dropped the car off that morning and went back that afternoon around 5. I was informed that they had replaced the brake switch and push button but when they went to test drive, they lost steering control and the eps and traction control system had failed. They took a part off a new Sonata in their lot and put it on my car but that did not correct the problem. After 2 days of troubleshooting they managed to correct that issue but as soon as they did, the ABS light came on and it stated the ABS system had failed too. I am now waiting on a part for the ABS as of 8/22. None of these systems had issues prior to the drop off date. This concerns me that there may be a serious problem with the electrical system. We will see when they replace the ABS module if something else goes wrong.

- Victoria, TX, USA

problem #1

Feb 112011

Sonata

  • 3,000 miles
Vibration in steering, grinding noise in transaxe, low tire pressure (by dealer), refusal to perform 3,750 mile maintince secdule (dealer refused).

- Mcadoo, PA, USA

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