Hyundai Santa Fe Complaints

8,019 consumer complaints on file.

#11545225September 18, 2023
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION, BACK OVER PREVENTION: REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
Beginning the evening of 8/21/2023, this 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe HEV began displaying warning messages: "Check Blind Spot Safety System" and "Check Rear Cross-Traffic Safety System." Simultaneously, the car would not register a "Ready to Drive" and could not be shifted into Drive or Reverse. The car could be shifted into Neutral. After turning off and restarting the car several times, the warning messages did not recur, and the car could be shifted and driven normally. The problem recurred in the following days. It appeared that the issue was unrelated to cleaning the sensors but may have been related to the car being left in the sun. The car had to be towed to a dealer on 8/23. This dealer claimed to be unable to reproduce the problem. It is believed that the dealer kept the vehicle in a shaded garage during this time. After retrieving the vehicle from the first dealer, the problem recurred the following day, 9/2, again after having been parked in the sun on a warm day. The vehicle had to be towed to another dealer who was able to reproduce, but not diagnose, the issue. As of 9/18, the dealer states that they have identified a connector that appears to be causing the issue, but they say that they don't know what the connector does, because it does not appear in manufacturer wiring diagrams corresponding to the VIN. Because of the dealer's and manufacturer's inability to diagnose the issue, it is unclear if the issue actually implicates the operation of the blind spot and rear cross-traffic safety systems identified in warning messages. Hopefully it is possible for NHTSA to work with Hyundai to figure that out. The vehicle is with the dealer in Chantilly, VA and is available for inspection.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544896September 16, 2023
ENGINE, SEAT BELTS
Seat belt on drivers side does not retract without assistance. I took it to Hyundai and they refused to fix it while the car was under warranty. The engine started burning excessive amounts of oil around 60K miles. We changed the spark plugs and found them to be covered in oil and corroded. We changed them again and they are worse. (Recommended every 100K miles.) The engine stalled once in traffic and continues to nearly stall when driven. The car has been burning in excess of 1 quart every 1000 miles since turning 75K miles. We were never notified of the engine failure issues with our SUV. At 96K mile it became so bad we took it in to Hyundai in Perrysburg OH Taylor Hyundai. We were informed about the engine issue and they began an oil consumption test. However the technicians when instructed to add 2 1/2 quarts of oil they added 5 ruining the testing. Then they claimed that the engine was only consuming 1/2 quart however we took a picture of the dip stick prior to brining it in and the oil was as always below the "L". We were then told we had to pay for an $800 engine flushing followed by 3 more consumption tests. Even if the tests show more than 1 quart of oil burning Hyundai may still refuse to replace the failing engine under warranty.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544777September 15, 2023
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that she depressed the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact attempted to steer the vehicle off the roadway, but the vehicle stalled. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle and after numerous attempts was able to restart and drove the vehicle to a nearby service station. A mechanic at the service station checked the vehicle and found metal shavings in the oil filter and determined that the engine had seized. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V226000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The failure mileage was approximately 144,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544448September 14, 2023
VISIBILITY/WIPER
I had been driving my vehicle for about 5 minutes when I heard what sounded like a loud bang or gunshot followed by the sound debris falling. I realized the front piece of my panoramic sun roof had literally exploded. When I got out to look at it the glass around the hole was pointed upwards so it looked like it exploded from the inside out. The glass had no prior damage and nothing hit it before the explosion. I was on a paved road by myself.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544648September 14, 2023
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
During low speeds the car stalls out which could cause a safety issue for my family
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544411September 13, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Issue # 1 - Door open light flashing on instrumental panel. I checked out the door and it was closed tightly. It continues to flash today (09/13/2023). During the end of April 2023, I could not lock my doors and the interior dome light stayed on. I was not aware of this and it drained my battery a couple of times in which my vehicle would not start. I now keep my interior dome light in the "Off' position. Now, when I drive at night, it get in and out of a dark vehicle. This is a safety concern since I am a female and I care for my disabled mother. I also cannot keep my doors locked when I am driving due to this issue. For safety reasons, I prefer to drive with my doors locked and I am unable to due this. I took it to the dealer and they believe the door actuator is the root cause. They gave me an estimate of $850 for parts and labor. I declined the repair, I thought it is too costly. Issue # 2 - Air Conditioner stops blowing cold and starts blowing nothing but hot air. This started in July of 2022. The AC works intermittently. I believe the blower needs to be replaced.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543854September 11, 2023
STEERING
The vehicle had 67000 Aprox miles. The rack and pinion and the intermediate steering colum needed to be replaced. This was done before any accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543954September 11, 2023
POWER TRAIN
when I tried accelerate, the car jerked and then the transmission began to slip and I coasted to a stop. I cranked the car and slowly began to drive the car while it felt like the transmission was slipping. My first thought was that the transmission was low on fluid but later found that this is a sealed transmission. Luckily there was no traffic during this incident. There was no warnings lights or any warnings whatsoever.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543928September 11, 2023
ENGINE
I have experienced a sudden loss of power when accelerating and then sudden vehicle slowdown and engine shutdown. Twice this occured at either hiway speed or accelerating to highway speeds. In both of these cases I easily could have caused or been involved in a serious crash. The third time happened on a city street and was not as egregious. There was no forewarning this might happen...no warning lights on the dash, etc. The vehicle is currently in a dealership service department after the last occurrence , and has been for five days with no knowledge of the current status. The prior times the dealership, Kolar Hyundai in Hermantown, Mn. has only cleared the error codes stored in the computer, but not identified a cause. The three times it was in the dealership were 2/15/22, 6/28/23, and 9/5/23. The second time it had to be towed in. The car currently has 9200 miles on the odometer. I am now afraid to drive it, as I consider the problem to be dangerous to my safety, as well as other vehicles. I have contacted Hyundai Customer Care, but received no response as of today.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543701September 10, 2023
ENGINE
We have had issues with our 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited that culminated in effectively lose of the car. The engine has a knocking, and is leaking coolant now. This started with the car sometimes sort of stuttering when you press the gas, or sometimes sudden lose of power while driving. It now sounds like a rod may. E bad, I’m no expert. Hyundai has said I need a new engine. The car which I bought new in 2015, has 116k miles on it. It has been well kept. I have older Hyundais that still have great engines at much higher mileage. I am registering this complaint, because it seems strange to loose an engine of a well maintained car at 116K miles. I know there are investigations and recalls on the smaller Santa Fe engines. But I suspect there is an issue with the larger 3.3L engine too. I’m registering the complaint so attention can be garnered for the 3.3L engine too. I suspect I’m not the only one with 3.3L engine having an issue. Regards
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543545September 9, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On my 2017 Santa Fe equipped with a power lift gate, when the power struts start to fail, it is without warning and intermittent. The lift gate will fully open, then suddenly drop down about a foot before stopping striking the top of the head. At first the drop down would occur several seconds later when one was already under the lift gate and bump the head when moving back. This started about 2 months ago. Hyundai had to replace both power struts where the total job cost just over $1,700.00. The part were $1,244.08. Although I took a video of this with my cell phone, it is too large to email to my Gmail or AOL inbox. Eventually the lift gate could fail completely possible trapping a small person under same.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
2
Deaths:
0
#11543558September 9, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
All safety lights AEB, TMPS, ABS, on. The car breaking as driven due to this issue. Reported to Hyundai Headquarters. They said it was a major safety issue but not willing to pay for repairs especially since it's a safety issue.There many reports online of people experiencing the same issue with new cars as well. Having to pay for this is not very noble of Hyundai.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543477September 8, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
On several occasions, the Automatic Emergency Braking System engages even though there is no evidence of a dangerous situation or imminent crash. It usually occurs during highway driving or at speeds over 40mph. In each case the brakes engage, the steering tightens, the AEBS notification appears on the dashboard and an alarm sounds. After a few seconds, the brakes and steering return to normal. This occurs even when there is no evident traffic issues. I googled the situation and found that other drivers of this car have had similar problems. Here are links to that result: https://www.santafeforums.com/threads/emergency-braking-system-activates-intermittently.17221/ https://www.carproblemzoo.com/hyundai/santafe/automatic-emergency-braking-problems.php I suggest that the NTSB open an investigation into whether this is an ongoing problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542917September 6, 2023
ENGINE
We recently had the car to the local dealership for engine problems. It took over 3 months, but they finally determined that the camshaft was "bent" and they had to remove the engine to replace it, costing almost $5000. We had it back for about 3 months but didn't drive it much since my wife works remotely from home now. My son was driving it on the interstate and the engine threw a rod, spilling oil onto the exhaust, which caught on fire. He managed to pull over and get out of the car and by then another motorist had called 911. There was a firetruck at the exit he had just passed who showed up in just a few minutes and put the fire out before the fuel system caught on fire, thankfully. While I'm glad my son was uninjured, I'm still very upset by this, especially since they just worked on the engine. After some searching on the internet, I have found that this is a very common occurance for this vehicle (and other Hyundais) yet the company is not doing anything about it. I also read that there is a separate class action lawsuit for this particular engine (in addition to the one for the smaller 4 cylinder engines), but I'm afraid it will be settled too late to help us out.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542947September 6, 2023
EQUIPMENT
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe Plug-In Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact became aware that the driver's side floor mat was the incorrect fit for the year, make, and model vehicle. The contact stated that the floor mat was obstructing the brake and accelerator pedals, presenting a possible safety issue. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The floor mats were not replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact was informed that there were no floor mats currently made for the year, make, model to replace the present floor mats. The manufacturer opened a case. The failure mileage was 28,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542972September 6, 2023
ENGINE
2014 Santa Fe 3.3L with 108,000 miles. Sudden total loss of power on the highway. Check engine light came on, was able to pull onto shoulder and shut off vehicle. Towed to dealership, engine code ended up being P0304 and engine was completely seized - would not rotate. Safety of my family and others on the highway was compromised when the vehicle lost all power and had to immediately veer off the road onto a narrow shoulder. Problem was confirmed by a Hyundai dealership. Vehicle has not been inspected by the other listed parties. No warning whatsoever was seen, felt or heard. Check engine light came on after the engine had seized.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542441September 4, 2023
ENGINE
Loud knocking noise in engine Had to have a tow
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542467September 4, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SERVICE BRAKES, STEERING
I am having a serious issue with my car that mechanics are unable to figure out. On multiple occasions, while driving at low speed in preparation for making a turn, my car has completely shut off, making it impossible for me to steer, brake or accelerate. I lost all control of my vehicle. I noticed the ‘check engine’ and ‘battery’ lights illuminated each time, but this information, along with incident descriptions, has proven less than helpful when I’ve taken it into a shop for inspection/repair as mechanics have been unable to reproduce the event or to accurately identify the problem. This has happened on the road (at intersections and once at a traffic circle) and on two occasions while I had a passenger in the vehicle with me. I currently have my vehicle back in an auto shop because it happened most recently about a week ago. However, since the problem has yet to be successfully identified and since I feel as though this is a serious safety issue that could impact others with the same type of vehicle, I am filing this official complaint.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542427September 3, 2023
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, STEERING, SERVICE BRAKES
While driving at 65 mph on an urban expressway, the engine quit without warning and would not restart. This resulted in diminished steering and braking control as well as exposure near the edge of traffic on a narrow berm of an overpass bridge. Full tank of fuel, good battery, the engine would not crank or restart. All electrical accessories work fine.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542293September 2, 2023
SEAT BELTS
Upon exiting a parking lot at low speeds, the driver’s seat belt disengaged from the buckle. Despite multiple attempts to fasten the seat belt, it would not stay buckled throughout the drive, which was at speeds 40mph and below. Warning chimes sounded each time it unbuckled. It seems like a mechanical failure because the seat belt would become unbuckled if just a little force was applied to pull on the seat belt such as when making a turn.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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