10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
2,366 miles

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problem #41

Mar 052025

Santa Fe

  • miles
The car has shut down unexpectedly for at least six times while driving at roads and highways. When this happens, engine stalls and nothing works and all alarms and check lights turn on and activated. Driver has to pull the car to the roadside which cannot be imagined when in a highway with all cars driving at 65-70mpH and the car suddenly slows down to stop. The other problem is that when the car is turned off and on again, all alarm and faults go away, and it can be driven again! It clears all safety and alarm checks and lights and behaves like nothing has happened. Car was bought on June2023. The first incident happened on Aug2023 and the next one on Sep2023. The next incidents on Feb2024, Sep2024, Nov2024 and the most recent on March 2025. The car has taken to the Sport Durst Hyundai dealership (Durham, NC) after incidents, however dealership did not perform any repairs in first four times claiming they could not duplicate the incident! (service reports attached for 3) After the third incident, we opened a case with Hyundai company trying to invoke the Lemon law, but our request did not go through despite all evidence we provided. Shamefully, their final suggestion to us was to sell the car! This was around March/Apr 2024. (Final decision letter attached) On fifth time, the driver did not shut down the car and towed it to the dealership while leaving electrical system on. They checked the car and claimed they found the cause and changed a part from car claiming it has been fixed. This was on Nov.2024. At the time we did not notice but, apparently that was a lie to make us quiet. The last time (sixth time) the same incident happened on [XXX]. The car was towed to dealership and is left there. We do have all screenshots from engine failures, although the dealership tried to wipe the history at some point. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Durham, NC, USA

problem #40

Mar 122025

Santa Fe

  • 55,917 miles
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred, and the vehicle was towed to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The approximate failure mileage was 55,917.

- Wallingford, PA, USA

problem #39

Oct 082024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Two issues with powertrain/transmission: 1- The powertrain/transmission fails intermittently- vehicle RPM goes sky high but vehicle receives no power, seems to fail/lose power. Has happened in very dangerous road conditions where unexpectedly was struggling to get the motor to engage/get power to the vehicle. Check engine and check hybrid system lights accompanies the problem. 2- The car should be driveable in electric only mode without use of gasoline. The powertrain/transmission seems to struggle to shift between electric and gas motors. HYUNDAI cannot seem to correctly diagnose or fix the issue. Does not seem they have proper diagnostic process included on the car- despite finding error messages stored in computer, they initially said they could not recreate the problem and therefore could not fix. 3 different trips to Hyundai dealership repair center, in total they have had my car for 10 weeks. They have replaced the transaxle and sent the car home, but that did not cure the issue. They now have my car again. It just does not seem they know how to identify or fix the issue. From online forums, I have learned MANY owners are experiencing the same problem and the same challenge to diagnose.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #38

Jan 052025

Santa Fe

  • 18,192 miles
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the message "Shifter System Malfunction - Service Immediately" was displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to shift into the park or reverse. The contact activated the parking brake and turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 18,192.

- Fort Pierce, FL, USA

problem #37

Dec 172024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Automobile approached and stopped at stop sign. When accelerator pressed to continue, car remained in place, shuddering (as if transmission were slipping),and making significant noise. Car would not shift out of gear, nor move. Operator shut off car and then restarted car. Car started normally and was in park without shuddering. Expectations at busy intersection was that it was my turn to move and did not do so, creating doubt on what my car might do next. Traffic flow was briefly confused and some drivers honked and were unsure what they should do. This could have caused an accident with an impatient driver re-ending my car, or with others going through the intersection "out of turn" and unclear on my situation. No lights or other warnings were displayed before this incident. It has not re-ocurred. I brought into the dealer who had no other reports of this type of behavior.

- Winter Garden, FL, USA

problem #36

Aug 202024

Santa Fe

  • miles
While travelling at highway speed, attempted to accelerate to pass slow traffic. Rather than accelerating, the car hunted for a gear, and wouldn't shift properly. The car downshifted but engine would not go beyond 4000 RPM and speed remained the same. This has happened multiple times. By unexpectedly not accelerating, this created a risky situation by not allowing car to pass slower traffic as expected creating a potentially dangerous situation. (Video of one of the instances exists). No warning lamps, messages or symptoms occurred up to that point. Car was brought to dealer but since no codes were contained in the computer, they said there was no trouble found.

- Winter Garden, FL, USA

problem #35

Sep 302024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Shuddering Issue with Current Vehicle: - Problem: Progressive shuddering during take-off, accelerating, slowing down, and braking uphill.

- Seattle, WA, USA

problem #34

Dec 022024

Santa Fe

  • miles
First- it has been reported to dealer at least twice when car was in for other service. They said they could not reproduce. When speeding back up from a stop on near stop, especially in a right turn, the engine will not accelerate. After a second or two it finally takes off. During this time, I fear getting hit by another vehicle, either from behind or to the side. It is very scary and puts me and my passengers at great risk! There was no warning indication at all. The date mentioned was the most recent time, but the issue has been happening since the car was brand new. Again, NO help from the dealer.

- Kennesaw, GA, USA

problem #33

Oct 252024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Santa Fe will randomly experience inability to accelerate. I will hit the gas pedal, the engine will rev all the way up to power, it will slowly crawl forward and than violently accelerate. From the time I hit the gas pedal to the time it actually starts moving takes several seconds. It does this every time I come to a stop once it starts. It has done this 4 occasions now. It puts me at significant danger trying to turn across traffic. In general, it not accelerating as you would expect is a very dangerous situation. Dealer has had the car for over a month and has had the car reproduce the issue. The HEV light and check engine light had come on a couple of the occurrences.

- Cudahy, WI, USA

problem #32

Nov 142024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Vehicle has gone into limp mode 2 times in the past week. Power when accelerating would not exceed 30 mph when pushing the gas pedal to the floor. Had to pull over as I was getting onto the highway and stop/ power down the car and restart.

- Mebane, NC, USA

problem #31

Oct 192024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Twice, the car refused to switch from EV mode back to gas mode. This resulted in the hybrid battery dying and the car losing power. The first time, I was merging onto the freeway and the gas pedal was all the way at the floor, but I was only maintaining speed (not accelerating). Both times, the car was driveable for approximately one mile on the hybrid battery alone. However, a warning came on the dash, -??Check hybrid system. Stop safely.-?? The second time, I was able to pull into a parking lot before the hybrid battery died. The next day, I was able to drive the car normally. The dealership is unable to pull any codes or replicate the issue. Unfortunately, it only happens intermittently and we have not identified a common theme for the failure.

- Parker, CO, USA

problem #30

Oct 082024

Santa Fe

  • miles
I have pinging sound coming from the engine when I accelerate. Transmission seems to skip during acceleration. Took it to the dealership for repair since the car is under warranty. Dealership replaced a bearing in the axle and replaced the turbo. I-??m still having the same issues. Dealership had my car for 5 weeks dealing with this issue. I feel they don-??t know what-??s causing the problem.

- Stillwater , MN, USA

problem #29

Nov 012023

Santa Fe

  • 9,500 miles
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle failed to respond or accelerate as intended. The vehicle started to decelerate and lost motive power. The contact steered the vehicle to the shoulder and parked the vehicle. After restarting the vehicle, the failure was self-corrected, and the vehicle operated normally. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred several months later. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 9,500.

- Weldon Spring, MO, USA

problem #28

Sep 092024

Santa Fe

  • miles
I was driving the car moving in reverse to exit my driveway. I placed the car in Park and while the engine was running I exited the car. Upon exiting the car, the car immediately started to roll forward and crashed through my garage door leveling it to the ground. The car continued moving forward into the garage and came to a stop blocked by built in shelving at the back end of the garage. I could have been injured had the car started to roll while I was exiting the car or had some been in front of the car. No warning lamps or messages prior to the incident. The car has a safety feature if moving in Drive or Reverse and the driver door is opened the car shifts into Park. That feature failed. The car was inspected by a Hyundai dealer and claim no error codes found and dismissed any other information as provided in this report

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #27

Apr 302024

Santa Fe

  • miles
It started in April 2024. After the dealership performed an oil change we heard a strange noise whenever we accelerated. The dealership said it was either the transmission or the hybrid motor and both were on back order (usually an indicator that these parts are in great demand). After several weeks both parts arrived but they only replaced the transmission because that took care of the noise. A few days after we got the car back, we heard a clunking sound whenever we shifted. I tried to take the car to a different dealership but they said we had to return to the place that installed the transmission because bolts were missing. We went back to that dealership and they said no bolts were missing but they did need to be tightened. After that the clunking stopped, however, the next day we started experiencing other problems. The check engine and master system lights came on and the car would hesitate when accelerating. This was extremely dangerous when we were on the freeway and/or trying to accelerate from a traffic signal. Also, it had trouble shifting into reverse. The dealership said the codes were indicating the hybrid system battery needed to be replaced. The car has less than 20k miles.

- Rancho Mission Viejo, CA, USA

problem #26

Apr 152024

Santa Fe

  • 9,000 miles
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated after starting the vehicle, the transmission would only shift into neutral and would not shift into any other gear. In addition, the contact stated the vehicle failed to turn off as needed. The contact activated the parking brake to exit the vehicle safely. The contact stated prior to the failure, the vehicle had failed to shift into reverse; however, the failure was self-corrected. The contact stated several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated an independent mechanic was able to release the emergency hatch and disconnect the battery to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was temporarily repaired. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer for additional diagnostic tests. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.

- Riverside, CA, USA

problem #25

Jul 052024

Santa Fe

  • miles
There is an extreme amount of hesitation/delay from when you depress the accelerator and when the vehicle accelerates. I have had multiple incidences (both from a complete stop and while already moving) where I depress the accelerator and there is a concerning amount of lag time before the vehicle initiates movement. This has almost led to multiple accidents. This defect happens in all drive modes. This issue appears to have gotten worse over the time we have owned the vehicle. We did not notice this issue earlier on. We bought the vehicle brand new in Dec. 23.

- Castle Rock, CO, USA

problem #24

Jun 222024

Santa Fe

  • miles
Several times lately of extended crank. Saturday evening, car had been parked for 4 hours, did remote start and had extended crank of about 2 seconds. Car ran for about 3 minutes before we left. We left home and hit main road, tried to accelerate and vehicle seemed to go into limp mode. Would keep cutting the fuel out if tried to accelerate even above 40 mph. No check engine light came on. Put in neutral, could not get above about 3500 rpm. Vehicle was in smart mode where decides which mode to be in (normal, fuel economy or sport), when would try to accelerate it would try to change to sport as it knew power was not there. Was on a 6 lane highway and could not get up to speed. Finally was able to pull to side of road, shut engine off, waited a few seconds, restarted and issue went away, still no check engine light. I have contacted my local dealer, they said they have seen on another vehicle, was not sure of outcome, having service manager call me. Lots of complaints online forums of similar issues.

- Parrish, FL, USA

problem #23

May 182024

Santa Fe

  • miles
As I was driving today my Santa Fe Hybrid lost all power while on the road. The hybrid battery gauge went from 3/4th full to empty in 20 second and I could not get the vehicle to move. Thankfully there was no one behind me and I could safely pull off. When I stopped and restarted the car, the system said ready to drive but the car wouldn't move

- Haslett, MI, USA

problem #22

Jan 102024

Santa Fe

  • miles
See attached document for complaint

- Geneseo, IL, USA

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