Have about 2,400 miles on this vehicle now. The hard brake peddle pressure started out immediately on an occasional basis but now occurs almost every morning on first start of the day. Press on the brake pedal - it's very hard to deflect - and if you don't overpower it to deflect the pedal enough to activate the brake lights, it won't start. Once you get it started the first time, brake operation will be normal for the rest of the day. For a while, I thought this was just a quirk of this particular vehicle and just applied the extra pressure while trying to coach my wife, but she did have one morning where she had difficulty making the first start. Then I started researching.
According to a specialty blog on this subject: hyundaimaintenance.com/hyundai-santa-fe-wont-start-brake-pedal-hard/, it is likely caused by a malfunctioning brake booster or vacuum leak and recommends taking the vehicle to your dealer for diagnosis and repairs. I would find it hard to believe that Hyundai America is unaware of this problem.
This is apparently a common problem across multiple Hyundai models since there are several threads on this subject on Hyundai-Forums.com:
I took my vehicle to the dealer where I purchased it and left it with them for a couple of days, The Service Rep would not even acknowledge that I was experiencing this problem, let alone try to fix it. Said they had thoroughly tested the vacuum line and found no leaks or problems and that the vehicle was performing as designed. When I picked up the vehicle, it had been sitting since the previous day and was experiencing the hard brake peddle pressure that I was complaining about and asked the Service Rep to try it while I was standing there. The Rep did, but still refused to acknowledge the problem, saying that operation was normal.
Since the pedal does operate normally after the first start of the day, and my wife and I both know what's required on that first start, I don't know whether this is a significant problem or not. But since it involves the brakes, I do have some concerns.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Have about 2,400 miles on this vehicle now. The hard brake peddle pressure started out immediately on an occasional basis but now occurs almost every morning on first start of the day. Press on the brake pedal - it's very hard to deflect - and if you don't overpower it to deflect the pedal enough to activate the brake lights, it won't start. Once you get it started the first time, brake operation will be normal for the rest of the day. For a while, I thought this was just a quirk of this particular vehicle and just applied the extra pressure while trying to coach my wife, but she did have one morning where she had difficulty making the first start. Then I started researching.
According to a specialty blog on this subject: hyundaimaintenance.com/hyundai-santa-fe-wont-start-brake-pedal-hard/, it is likely caused by a malfunctioning brake booster or vacuum leak and recommends taking the vehicle to your dealer for diagnosis and repairs. I would find it hard to believe that Hyundai America is unaware of this problem.
This is apparently a common problem across multiple Hyundai models since there are several threads on this subject on Hyundai-Forums.com:
https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/brake-pedal-very-hard-at-start-up.684323/
https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/hard-brake-pedal-before-starting-vehicle.163831/#post-1305889
https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/brake-pedal-fully-hard.610689/#post-5546017
https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/brake-pedal-hard-to-push-down-before-starting-car.144572/#post-1107296
https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/hard-brake-pedal.686024/
I took my vehicle to the dealer where I purchased it and left it with them for a couple of days, The Service Rep would not even acknowledge that I was experiencing this problem, let alone try to fix it. Said they had thoroughly tested the vacuum line and found no leaks or problems and that the vehicle was performing as designed. When I picked up the vehicle, it had been sitting since the previous day and was experiencing the hard brake peddle pressure that I was complaining about and asked the Service Rep to try it while I was standing there. The Rep did, but still refused to acknowledge the problem, saying that operation was normal.
Since the pedal does operate normally after the first start of the day, and my wife and I both know what's required on that first start, I don't know whether this is a significant problem or not. But since it involves the brakes, I do have some concerns.
- David V., Bradenton, US