10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 5
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
41,500 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

problem #14

Sep 212025

Santa Fe Sport

  • miles
What happened: While driving in Montana on September 21, 2025, the cabin suddenly filled with gasoline fumes and the accelerator pedal stopped responding. After pulling over, flames erupted from under the hood and the vehicle was completely destroyed within minutes. The passenger-side door could not be opened from the inside at first, delaying escape and creating a serious safety risk. No warning lights or messages appeared before or during the fire. (1) While driving, gasoline suddenly filled the cabin and the accelerator pedal stopped responding. Within seconds, the vehicle caught fire. The cause appears related to the fuel system, and possibly the ABS module. The vehicle was completely destroyed but remains available for inspection in a private tow lot. (2) The fire spread extremely quickly. Both occupants were nearly trapped inside when the passenger-side door would not open from the inside, delaying escape. The vehicle burned on the shoulder of a busy highway in Montana, posing danger to us and to surrounding motorists. (3) Not after this fire, but a similar problem occurred in 2023 when gasoline filled the cabin and caused the engine to stall. At that time, Hyundai replaced the engine under warranty. (4) No. The vehicle has not yet been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance. It is secured in a private tow lot and is available for inspection. (5) No. There were no warnings at all before or during the failure. Even as gasoline filled the cabin and the vehicle caught fire, the check engine light stayed off and no alerts appeared. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Madison, WI, USA

problem #13

Jun 242025

Santa Fe Sport

  • miles
Hello, To whom this may concern, The ABS light turned on the dashboard on a Tuesday evening. My wife kept driving. In the next couple of days, it would feel like the car was all over the road, under braking. It seemed very hard to take off. On Friday, I was outside and heard the car was making a noise. As an automotive technician, I knew the ABS module was cycling nonstop. I pulled the fuse out of the fuse panel to make sure it wouldn't catch fire. We took the car back to the dealer when the bulletin came out for these cars catching fire due to an ABS issue years ago. I went to the dealer on that Saturday and informed them of the ABS module cycling nonstop. They told me that the bulletin had been done already and there was nothing they could do for me. I called Hyundai customer support, and they forced me to pay a diagnostic charge of $220 to tell me it was a failure internally in the ABS module and that they wouldn't cover the repairs. I found it very surprising that Hyundai only had to change a fuse to prevent cars from catching fire. It doesn't make sense to me how the NHTSA allowed them to only change a fuse and not the module that Hyundai said was faulty. This puts every car that I drive next to in danger, with the module going off nonstop while I drive down the road. This has all happened in the last month. Please hold Hyundai truly accountable for this nonsense. It is unacceptable that they can get away with just changing a fuse to prevent a fire, and not fix the actual issue, the ABS module. Thank you,

- Fairfield Township, OH, USA

problem #12

Apr 282025

Santa Fe Sport

  • miles
I own a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport 2.0T which has had door latch issues.? Recently, the front passenger side door latch needed to be fully replaced due to a failure which caused the door to be loose latching and the latch sensor always showing open.? I paid out-out-pocked for this repair as the Hyundai dealership said there are models which this exact issue was identified, but they said the parts extension had not been placed for my exact vehicle.? They were also confused as to why this was not being covered as they see so many of these same repairs. Now, less than one month later, the front driver's side door is now experiencing?lock issues in which a loud grinding?noise is occurring?when the vehicle attempts to lock or unlock the door.? Additionally, the door does not unlock some of the time from the external and the manual door handle on the interior is getting harder and harder to open.? Both of these issues are consistent with other recalls for other Hyundai models and consistent with the door latch module?and actuator?failure.? I would like to file a complaint regarding this issue as it seems to be a common issue with Hyundai models using this door latch module.? I believe the parts extension and repairs for these door latches should be covered by Hyundai especially as this becomes a large safety issue with driving the vehicle with concerns of door latch stability and security.

- Des Plaines, IL, USA

problem #11

Apr 012025

Santa Fe Sport

  • miles
Parts of the ABS system under the hood burned, while the vehicle was parked in my garage, affecting electrical and other parts. I found information online about a recall for this same problem. I have never received a notification of this recall before. I went that same day [XXX] to my local dealer. They gave me an appointment for service for the next day and left the vehicle with them on 04/03/2025. I called the dealer after one week and they told me they already verified the vehicle and notified Hyundai company and are waiting for them to approve the repair. I called the dealer again today 04/23/2025, after 3 weeks and the they told me they are -??still waiting for Hyundai Company to approve the repair. That they don-??t know how much time this may take and that it may take a lot more time-??. In the meantime, and after the bad and risky experience, I have one car less in my house. I understand this is a process but also, considering that this was caused by a factory defect I understand they should be responsible and solve the problem in a timely manner. Thank you. [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- San Sebastian, PR, USA

problem #10

Jul 152024

Santa Fe Sport

  • miles
Car hesitates, lagging at stop lights/slow traffic has completely shutdown while moving in traffic. Several episodes include complete shut down unable to crank following a stop multiple times in last 7 months. 2 Hyundai Dealerships have not been able to duplicate or repair specific issues or stop from occurring. Other repairs were attempted by Dealerships in efforts to correct problems. Car has been towed 5 times under extended warranty.75K- 83K miles. Battery discharge warning still appears even after new battery, plus other engine parts were replaced. Anxiety PTSD is my status.

- Lumberton, NC, USA

problem #9

Oct 012015

Santa Fe Sport

  • 21,000 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, several warning lights randomly illuminated. The ABS and check engine warning were among the lights that were illuminated. The contact indicated that the failure was intermittent. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on several occasions for the same failure but no cause for the failure was found. No further information was available. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 21,000.

- Lady Lake, FL, USA

problem #8

Dec 022019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 41,000 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that his wife tried to start the vehicle however, the vehicle failed to crank or start-up. The contact stated that the vehicle was jump started. The vehicle was taken to rick case Hyundai (3550 weston road, davie, fl 33331, (954) 377-4100) where the battery and battery cables were replaced however, 7 months later the failure recurred. The battery was replaced at the owners expense. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 41,000.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #7

Sep 152020

Santa Fe Sport

  • 140,000 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe sport. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 20V520000 (service brakes, hydraulic). The contact stated that pearson Hyundai (9530 midlothian turnpike, richmond, va 23235) and West broad Hyundai (8903 w broad St, richmond, va 23294) were contacted and informed her that the parts were not available to remedy the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the issue and informed the contact that parts were available however, the contact called the dealers again and they stated that the parts were not available. The contact stated that the ABS warning and other warning lights were illuminated. The contact also stated that when she was near the vehicle with the keyfob, the door locks opened and closed automatically. Upon entering the vehicle, the push to start button failed to start the vehicle. The approximate failure mileage was 140,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

- North Chesterfield, VI, USA

problem #6

Nov 212020

Santa Fe Sport

  • 120,000 miles
Having not driven the vehicle in over 24 hours, we were woken up to an explosion and the entire hood up in flames in the driveway. This happened at about 445 in the morning and the fire department was called to come extinguish it.

- Mandeville, LA, USA

problem #5

Jan 282020

Santa Fe Sport

  • 52,006 miles
The wiring harness which connects to the braking systems down hill and track, and ABS breaking and warning light of oncoming cars when passing wires which are made of soybean based causing wiring to be eaten by rodents. Second time to fix another $55 dollars. This is scaring me when driving.

- Bragg City, MO, USA

problem #4

Jul 052019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 78,000 miles
On July 5, 2019, the car suddenly stalled while in motion in city driving. I immediately attempted to re-start the car: It did not restart, no cranking of the starter. I then pushed the hazard light button: No response. There was no electric power, I.e., no lights, no radio, no A/C, no steering, etc. After 2 minutes, I re-attempted to restart the car, but it did not start, no cranking. The hazard light button then worked. Electricity came back on. Aaa came and jumped the battery, but car no start. Car went to Hyundai dealership. Service manager, the engine seized because of major breakdown. "we could not turn the engine manually." He stated: "we have seen this before in other Hyundai, but your vehicle was not in recall." Please urgently investigate. This is a dangerous situation. If I was driving on the highway, or high speed city driving, the seized car could have flipped, endangering myself, passengers and other nearby vehicles and people.

- Oakton, VA, USA

problem #3

Jan 302019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 44,000 miles
About 20 minutes after parking my vehicle at an office location, it caught on fire. I could see the fire by the right front wheel, between the tire and the body; smoke was coming from all around the hood. We put out the fire with a fire extinguisher. We could see damaged wires. I had noticed warning lights on my display panel when I got into my vehicle to start driving. I called clay cooley Hyundai of rockwall and informed them of the messages: Beeping followed by flashing messages about ABS, ESC, & downhill brake control; plus down below were two red circles (exclamation mark in one and the letter P in the other) and the word brake below. I asked Hyundai if the car was safe to drive and they said yes. I proceeded to my 12 noon appointment in richardson, tx. About 20 mins after parking the car, the fire was noticed by an employee. The day before this, on tue, 01-29-2019, I had noticed 3 amber warning lights (ABS, ESC & dbc). I called Hyundai, informed them of this and made an appointment for thur Jan 31, 2019 at 9:30 a.M.

- Garland, TX, USA

problem #2

Dec 222018

Santa Fe Sport

  • 35,000 miles
2014 Hyundai Santa Fe sport- brake light/ ABS light/ hill descent control light came on in vehicle and after a day or two never turned off. Took car to dealership and was asked to make appointment. The next day a triangle with exclamation point light turned on along with a steering wheel with exclamation point light and the steering wheel became loose at this time. Drove myself home and after parking I turned vehicle off but the engine continued to make humming noises like something was still running. Restarted car and then turned off engine again and the noise stopped. I went inside my house and less than 5 minutes later there was a loud banging on my front door- a neighbor that ran up to inform me my car was on fire. I completed regular maintenance on this vehicle and it only had 35,000 miles. Please look into this situation so that no others go through this devastating situation that I faced today.

- Sunrise, FL, USA

problem #1

Oct 142018

Santa Fe Sport

  • 50,000 miles
I had 2 issues with this vehicle and I believe that these might be a common recall issue. The back up camera on my Hyundai Santa Fe 2014 sport stopped working entirely I could still drive my car but it the screen turns blue when I put it in reverse. And I had another issue I used my emergency break in my car and the breaks jammed, I did drive my car because it wasn't completely locked up it was jammed and it caused my rear breaks and rotors to get so hot that they were smoking, at that point I did have to get my car towed because I dodnt want to risk a fire.

- Waunakee, WI, USA