10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
100,659 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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problem #23

Jul 262023

Santa Fe Sport

  • 94,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power however, the driver was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle seemed to return to normal functionality, but the failure recurred. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer however, the dealer was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 94,000.

- Texas City, TX, USA

problem #22

Jun 142023

Santa Fe Sport

  • 121,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. While making a right turn, the vehicle stalled. The contact noticed smoke coming from the engine compartment. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact called the local dealer who referred her to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no additional assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 121,000.

- Clearwater, FL, USA

problem #21

Aug 032022

Santa Fe Sport

  • 115,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled without warning. After replacing the battery and starter, the vehicle remained inoperable and would not start. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 115,000.

- Joliet, IL, USA

problem #20

Jul 302022

Santa Fe Sport

  • 71,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated he took the vehicle to the dealer to be serviced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V303000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 45 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and the contact was informed that the knock sensor detected a failure and shifted the vehicle into SAFE mode. The manufacturer was contacted by the dealer. The dealer was asked to continue performing tests on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 71,000.

- Cypress, TX, USA

problem #19

Feb 102022

Santa Fe Sport

  • 90,088 miles
The contact's mother owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that while her mother was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. The contact's mother was able to drive to her residence; however, the vehicle was not able to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced and that there was a Service Campaign Number: 953 (ECM & Cluster Update - Engine Monitoring Logic Product Improvement) associated with the VIN that was unrepaired. The contact's mother did not receive notification of the Service Campaign. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that the vehicle was out of warranty. The failure mileage was 90,088.

- Miami Gardens, FL, USA

problem #18

Oct 162021

Santa Fe Sport

  • 71,000 miles
The contact's sister owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that while his sister was driving and following him on the highway at 60 MPH, the vehicle shut off without warning. His sister managed to pull the vehicle off to the side of the road and had the vehicle towed to the residence. Prior to the failure, the contact had taken the vehicle to a dealer where she had the vehicle serviced under an unknown recall. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 71,000.

- Fairfield, CA, USA

problem #17

Aug 102021

Santa Fe Sport

  • 147,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving 60 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed however, the vehicle would not exceed 60 mph. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to Pepboys who diagnosed that the engine had failed due to vibrations caused by the damaged connecting rod bearing. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 147,000.

- Hampton, VA, USA

problem #16

Jan 062021

Santa Fe Sport

  • 38,496 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe sport. The contact stated while driving 15 mph, the vehicle loss motive power and stalled. The contact stated that the oil warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer win Hyundai carson (2205 E. 223rd St, carson, ca 90810, (310) 971-2114) where it was diagnosed with sludge in the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and the contact was still awaiting a response. The failure mileage was approximately 38,496.

- Carson, CA, USA

problem #15

Jul 012019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 91,588 miles
While accelerating the engine started to make noise. The noise almost sounded like metal stuck spinning around in a metal fan. It stopped when I let off the gas and was fine for another mile. It then started sounding again but did not stop when I let off the gas. I barely made it into a parking lot then had to call to have it towed. You can hear the noise when the car is turned on and especially when it is accelerating. The vehicle moves very slowly and the noise becomes very loud when accelerating. I have a video of the sound but cannot attach to this. It kind of sounds like the marble in a spray paint can when shaking it. I was driving up a hill on a rural 1 lane hyway.

- West Point, CA, USA

problem #14

Apr 242019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 62,000 miles
Major engine failure. Dealer is replacing the engine per powertrain warranty.

- Henderson, NV, USA

problem #13

Apr 092019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 133,000 miles
On Tuesday April 9, 2019 my wife called me during her drive to work and told me her car was running very rough while traveling to work on a local NY parkway. She said the check engine light also came on. When she came home I tested the obd and saw that the reader said the code was P0302 which signifies a #2 cylinder failure. I was able to bring the car to a repair shop yesterday. The repair shop just called and said the #2 cylinder has no compression. After reading numerous complaints filed here and on other forums, I believe my car has experienced the type of engine failure occurring at an alarming level.

- Wappingers Falls, NY, USA

problem #12

Feb 192019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 51,000 miles
We were on a trip from Nebraska to Michigan and return. When traveling along the toll road express South of Chicago at about 65mph 02/1we both smelled "something burning". determining that it was not anything on the interior, we closed the outside air vent control and felt that it was kind of a hot electrical wire burning smell coming from the engine compartment. When we could finally exit the expressway we tried to smell around the front wheel wells and the odor seemed to have gone away. We ate lunch, let the car sit for 45 minutes and drove on, not smelling that again. The "burning odor" was present for 5-8 minutes.

- Papillion, NE, USA

problem #11

Mar 312019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 85,000 miles
Vehicle completely turned off when driving on the highway occurred 2018 vehicle has engine and electrical problems doesn't turn on even after car was jumped with cable 3/31

- Homestead, FL, USA

problem #10

Feb 012019

Santa Fe Sport 4-cyl

  • miles
Dear National Highway Traffic Safety Administration personnel, I received the attached 'product improvement campaign' notice from Hyundai for my 2015 Santa Fe sport vehicle. If you read the campaign, I think, it reads like it should be a safety recall. They state the engine can have excessive connecting rod bearing wear. How can you believe them that the engine will not happen quickly and cause an accident. I think, as usual, they are looking more at the dollars than possible loss of life. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration should be protecting the driver, not the manufacturer. Hyundai is placing the burden of their mistake on the customer. I had the software update done, but that does not solve the safety problem. This condition limits where you can drive this vehicle. The customer cannot be too far from a dealer. They do not state how far you can drive the car once the engine light blinks on! however they do threaten you, if you drive too far, you may void the warranty. Then they ask you to accept their apologies. They do not state if they will pay to toe the vehicle to the dealer. [xxx] I could not figure out how to attach the copy of the campaign. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #9

Jan 102019

Santa Fe Sport 4-cyl

  • 50,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe sport. While the contact's daughter was driving at an unknown speed, a knocking sound was heard from the engine and the vehicle stalled. In addition, smoke was seen from the engine compartment. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to auto land Hyundai (20 E fayette St, uniontown, pa 15401, (724) 437-9999) where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000. Consumer stated engine blew out and had to be replaced.

- Roscoe, PA, USA

problem #8

Jan 272019

Santa Fe Sport

  • 99,200 miles
Hyundai Santa Fe sport 2.0 engine 2015 as I was driving down the highway going about 75-80mph I started to hear a weird noise. When I decreased my speed the noise disappeared as I began to increase my speed the noise started again. It sounded like ticking/rattling noise. There was no indication lights that something was wrong. Nothing! I had to spend money to have the SUV towed to the dealership and for the dealership to tell me that the motor is gone and that it will cost me $5,500 to have it fixed. I am not a happy camper.

- Florence, SC, USA

problem #7

Oct 012015

Santa Fe Sport

  • 10,000 miles
My vehicle has the 2.0 turbo engine, purchased new, and since about 10,000 miles the engine/transmission has been sluggish in accelerating smoothly. Sometimes there seems to be a delay in accelerating even after the gas pedal is depressed, and then the acceleration is not smooth. It is most noticeable when needing to accelerate on an on ramp to highway or stop light and up to the 55 mph speed limit.

- Papillion, NE, USA

problem #6

Aug 052018

Santa Fe Sport

  • 85,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe sport. While driving approximately 70 mph, a metal noise was heard from the engine compartment. The vehicle was pulled over to the side of the road and the engine shut off without warning. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that there was no recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.

- Aubrey, TX, USA

problem #5

Jul 232018

Santa Fe Sport

  • 30,000 miles
On 7/19/2018, after starting the vehicle, I noticed the engine would not rev more than 4000rpm while in park. Thought this might be a safety feature so didn't give it much thought. I drove the car that day approximately 80 miles, and about 1 mile from my house, while stopped at a stop sign on a city street, the engine died. I was able to get the car started but it immediately died again. I was able to again get the vehicle started and drove it the rest of the way home. No check engine light ever illuminated! drove the car about 20 total miles over the next 3 days with no problems. On 7/23/2018, my wife drove the car to work and the engine stopped running while she was still moving on a busy city street. She was able to pull to the side of the road. The engine would not start again and she had to have it towed to the local Hyundai dealership. Still no check engine light! we bought this vehicle on 7/11/2015. A 36 month old vehicle with approx 30K miles and it breaks down? this problem is not an annoyance. This problem is a safety issue! NHTSA should be ordering a mandatory recall, especially after the problems they had with prior year Hyundai engines.

- California, MD, USA

problem #4

Jun 152018

Santa Fe Sport

  • 93,751 miles
I was driving on the highway when the engine seized and turned off. Luckily I was able to pull off to the side of the road. The car had to be towed to the Hyundai dealership. They told us that the motor is locked and will not turn over because of internal engine failure and there was sludge and metal in the oil pan. The assistant manager then told us that this was also a problem found within the 2013-2014 models that had gotten recalled, but there was nothing they could do for us and we have to pay out of pocket for a new engine.

- Rock Hill, SC, USA

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