I have a 2017 Hyundai Veloster Turbo that I purchased March 3, 2018. - On Tuesday, April 10, 2018 just after 7pm the sunroof exploded - without warning - while I was driving at 70 mph on Interstate 10 just East of Houston. I'm thankful that I did not wreck as my heart skipped a beat as glass showered down on me.
I drove straight to my dealership where they were skeptical of my report that the roof exploded, without being struck by an object and without warning. They claimed they had never heard of this happening - only when the General Manager was aware of the situation did I receive immediate action and a loaner car.
This was the start of many headaches, several trips back to the dealership and 2 weeks of frustration. The parts and service department continued to be in denial of any knowledge of an existing or former problem and acted as if I had somehow shattered the roof by some fault of my own. I even asked them to go to Google and start typing Hyundai and if you begin to type "explode" or "sun" after - every link is to videos and reports of incidents involving the problem for years.
After 1 week I was notified that my car was repaired. I went to the dealership to pick it up. The parts & service manager again seemed dumbfounded that the incident happened and questioned me again about the details. Said he'd never heard of this happening. He asked who had authorized the use of a loaner car and if I was charged the daily rate of $25. I told him that the GM instructed the staff to give me the best available car and send me on my way at no charge. He expressed that they had done me a favor by having the work covered under the warranty and acted like they had gone above and beyond by claiming that they had even cleaned all the broken glass out of the car. I told him that was the least they could do and that I would certainly hope it would be covered by warranty being that the car was only 1 month old.
After picking up the vehicle, I noticed that the repair was carelessly done at best - with large chunks of glass visible in the back seat and center console and even in the driver's seat. The trunk liner had been pulled out (I'm assuming to vacuum) but was not installed back in the vehicle correctly or completely. I went to a car wash to clean the car correctly. I discovered part of a socket set was left resting in the well of my windshield wipers. The next day, I noticed the sunroof was slow to open and close, seemed to vibrate and rattle and the 1-touch feature no longer worked.
I waited a few days and returned to the dealership to have my first oil change. I asked them if they could look at the sun roof again and that I was having problems with it. Again, the head of parts & service made me feel as if I had done something wrong and that I was a moron. After some time, the parts & service manager came to the waiting room and said were going to send you home in a loaner car. I asked what the problem was, he explained to me that the tech opened the sunroof and could not get it to close. We walked back and looked at the vehicle together, he assured me that they would keep it inside and under cover since the roof was open. At that time, I noticed a series of scratches and nicks in the paint and along the rear spoiler, all from where it was struck by shattering glass as I drove. I pointed that out to the service manager. He said "oh, how'd you manage to do that“. I looked at him stupid, shook my head and said you figure it out! A toddler could make the connection between exploding sunroof at 70 mph and chips in the paint immediately behind the sunroof and along the vehicles spoiler.
After another week, I was contacted that the Veloster was repaired. I picked it up and asked what my next steps should be to have the spoiler replaced and scratches buffed out or painted. By that point, I had only made 1 payment on the car and it was damaged by a defect that's widely documented. Instead of listening to the run-around, I just told the guy I'd attempt to deal with Hyundai directly and take it to another dealership for service.
The GM of the dealership was the only one that provided / offered stellar customer service. I was all too happy to share that info in the follow-up survey that I received.
I'm not looking for compensation as other than the initial shock of the explosion, inconvenience, wasted time and having to drive a Hyundai Sonata for 2 weeks, I was fortunate. I'm another voice though that can bear witness to the fact that this problem is exists - and people should be warned that it can happen - had I been informed of the possibility of my sunroof exploding, without warning, I'd be driving a Toyota CHR instead of Veloster.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
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I have a 2017 Hyundai Veloster Turbo that I purchased March 3, 2018. - On Tuesday, April 10, 2018 just after 7pm the sunroof exploded - without warning - while I was driving at 70 mph on Interstate 10 just East of Houston. I'm thankful that I did not wreck as my heart skipped a beat as glass showered down on me.
I drove straight to my dealership where they were skeptical of my report that the roof exploded, without being struck by an object and without warning. They claimed they had never heard of this happening - only when the General Manager was aware of the situation did I receive immediate action and a loaner car.
This was the start of many headaches, several trips back to the dealership and 2 weeks of frustration. The parts and service department continued to be in denial of any knowledge of an existing or former problem and acted as if I had somehow shattered the roof by some fault of my own. I even asked them to go to Google and start typing Hyundai and if you begin to type "explode" or "sun" after - every link is to videos and reports of incidents involving the problem for years.
After 1 week I was notified that my car was repaired. I went to the dealership to pick it up. The parts & service manager again seemed dumbfounded that the incident happened and questioned me again about the details. Said he'd never heard of this happening. He asked who had authorized the use of a loaner car and if I was charged the daily rate of $25. I told him that the GM instructed the staff to give me the best available car and send me on my way at no charge. He expressed that they had done me a favor by having the work covered under the warranty and acted like they had gone above and beyond by claiming that they had even cleaned all the broken glass out of the car. I told him that was the least they could do and that I would certainly hope it would be covered by warranty being that the car was only 1 month old.
After picking up the vehicle, I noticed that the repair was carelessly done at best - with large chunks of glass visible in the back seat and center console and even in the driver's seat. The trunk liner had been pulled out (I'm assuming to vacuum) but was not installed back in the vehicle correctly or completely. I went to a car wash to clean the car correctly. I discovered part of a socket set was left resting in the well of my windshield wipers. The next day, I noticed the sunroof was slow to open and close, seemed to vibrate and rattle and the 1-touch feature no longer worked.
I waited a few days and returned to the dealership to have my first oil change. I asked them if they could look at the sun roof again and that I was having problems with it. Again, the head of parts & service made me feel as if I had done something wrong and that I was a moron. After some time, the parts & service manager came to the waiting room and said were going to send you home in a loaner car. I asked what the problem was, he explained to me that the tech opened the sunroof and could not get it to close. We walked back and looked at the vehicle together, he assured me that they would keep it inside and under cover since the roof was open. At that time, I noticed a series of scratches and nicks in the paint and along the rear spoiler, all from where it was struck by shattering glass as I drove. I pointed that out to the service manager. He said "oh, how'd you manage to do that“. I looked at him stupid, shook my head and said you figure it out! A toddler could make the connection between exploding sunroof at 70 mph and chips in the paint immediately behind the sunroof and along the vehicles spoiler.
After another week, I was contacted that the Veloster was repaired. I picked it up and asked what my next steps should be to have the spoiler replaced and scratches buffed out or painted. By that point, I had only made 1 payment on the car and it was damaged by a defect that's widely documented. Instead of listening to the run-around, I just told the guy I'd attempt to deal with Hyundai directly and take it to another dealership for service.
The GM of the dealership was the only one that provided / offered stellar customer service. I was all too happy to share that info in the follow-up survey that I received.
I'm not looking for compensation as other than the initial shock of the explosion, inconvenience, wasted time and having to drive a Hyundai Sonata for 2 weeks, I was fortunate. I'm another voice though that can bear witness to the fact that this problem is exists - and people should be warned that it can happen - had I been informed of the possibility of my sunroof exploding, without warning, I'd be driving a Toyota CHR instead of Veloster.
- Rick B., Baytown, TX, US