Car stalls when taking off and turning, either direction, like you have to do to get out in traffic! Very dangerous. Orange traction control light comes on briefly each time.
Does not happen predictably, so I can't be sure Service Dept can duplicate it - and then I am out $150 for "diagnostics". They tell me that even if it is a known problem, Hyundai won't pay to fix it unless they can duplicate it ON MY CAR. Catch 22.
I bought a new 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited Ultimate in July of '16. I haven't had any issues with it until recently. I got a phone call from my wife saying that her Santa Fe will not accelerate when she's merging onto a highway etc. She actually had to pull over and restart the engine where it seemed to run better but then started again. Like everyone else has been saying it's almost like when you have an alternator go out on your car and you lose complete power except when you hit the gas it eventually comes back and then the entire car TAKES OFF to the point where you might rear end someone. Luckily the check engine light just came on so hopefully I can find out what is wrong with it and give some advice for those who have dealers saying there's nothing wrong. Stay tuned......
The vehicle shut off while driving in a parking lot. Driver lost the ability to control the vehicle creating a hazard. The vehicle was unable to be restarted for at least 10 minutes.
Upon acceleration at an intersection the vehicle shut off and we were not able to restart it for at least 15 minutes. This created a hazard to traffic and to ourselves.
Car intermittently hesitates when the gas pedal is pressed to accelerate. Happens at slow speeds and once attempting to pass a car on toll road. When you press the pedal to give it gas, NOTHING happens for about 2 seconds. Really dangerous situation!!! Hyundai service says they have never seen this before but I find MANY complaints when searching Google. Maybe they don't know how to use Google. They offer no solution. Obviously Hyundai will not recall this issue until many deaths are reported as a result of loss of acceleration. Shame on you Hyundai !!!!
- santafeuser,
McKinney, US
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Purchased the car new from the dealer. The engine and safety issues can make this car somewhat dangerous to drive.
ISSUES:
- From a complete stop and then turning right uphill, the car stalls/hesitates during acceleration, can come to a complete stop and can even start rolling backwards during acceleration uphill. Specifically, when turning right and accelerating uphill, the traction control switches on automatically, which can cause a complete loss of torque and also pushes RPM's to well over 6000 while the car is attempting to shift from first to second gear. This creates a dangerous stall situation and also causes the steering and handling to become unpredictable. This could lead to a potentially dangerous safety condition of the car rolling back into another car or over-steering into traffic/curb.
- The "Eco Mode" is dangerous. The steering is much too loose during this mode and can lead to over-steering while driving at higher speeds. I've tested this mode extensively and there also appears to be absolutely no fuel savings between it and the standard driving mode. This mode can also cause a complete loss of torque/acceleration and creates a stall/hesitation during acceleration from a stop while trying to enter and merge onto freeways. Avoid ever using this mode as it is definitely not worth the risk and is not saving much if any fuel. The Hyundai manual claims the car has "260 ft lbs of torque", but this may be an inaccurate claim.
- Did not realize that the collision avoidance systems and automatic braking are not standard on the premium trim package for the Ultimate. They are only standard the "Ultimate Tech Package". These features are prominently displayed on the Hyundai USA website, but are not featured with the premium package. These safety systems are going to be standard on all new vehicles starting in 2022. Why they did not include these as standard safety features with their premium package is beyond me. Hyundai also indicates that they do not offer a standard safety features upgrade with the premium package, as it is only sold with the "Ultimate Tech Package".
POSSIBLE SOLUTION?
- One solution may be to reprogram the computer, so when the car is started, the default is "Sport" mode with traction control turned off. Also, the gear ratio from first to second gear is too high/wide and needs to be set to start shifting at around 4-5000 RPMs from a stop during acceleration (as it should not be going over 6000 RPMs while attempting to shift from 1st to 2nd gear).
CONCLUSION
Overall, I really like the premium features this car offers (panoramic sunroof, push-button start, auto lift-gate, overall driving comfort, etc.), however I'm very disappointed and concerned with this car overall and I feel that Hyundai has not been very receptive to my concerns. I'm taking it to back to the dealer to see if any of these issues can be worked out. A $40k car should not have these issues and I'm also frustrated at the lack of standard safety features, and that this was not disclosed during purchase.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Car stalls when taking off and turning, either direction, like you have to do to get out in traffic! Very dangerous. Orange traction control light comes on briefly each time.
Does not happen predictably, so I can't be sure Service Dept can duplicate it - and then I am out $150 for "diagnostics". They tell me that even if it is a known problem, Hyundai won't pay to fix it unless they can duplicate it ON MY CAR. Catch 22.
- Don S., Wildwood, US