10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
10 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
34,676 miles

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #37

Jul 302017

Sonata

  • 100,000 miles
Electrical issue is causing traction control light to remain on and the burning out and melting of brake light socket. Short is causing extreme heat to the tail/brake light housing.

- Upper Marlboro, MD, USA

problem #36

Jun 292017

Sonata 4-cyl

  • 39,500 miles
The brake pedal and accelerator pedal are so close together as to interfere with each other. Specifically, as one comes to a stop, the brake pedal is so close to the accelerator both laterally and vertically, that the operators foot may hit both pedals at the same time just before coming to a stop, causing an unintended sudden acceleration. This is a significant safety issue for the driver, occupants, pedestrians and other vehicles or items in the path of the car. I have has 4 such incidents, one involving a rear end bump. The Hyundai dealer inspected the car for sudden acceleration and found nothing and dismissed the concern. Hyundai customer care representative erin thompson stated " I did not design the car, it operates as designed and there is nothing I can do for you". further, she stated "I will not say it again" when I tried to offer clarification of the issue. I believe this problem is a fundamental design defect in the car and violates the implied warranty of freedom of design and manufacturing defects and fitness of purpose. It may also not meet federal specifications for ergonomic considerations. Can you help? thank you the consumer requested a copy of the examiner's report.

- Saratoga Springs, NY, USA

problem #35

Jul 262017

Sonata

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. While driving 10 mph, the brakes were applied, but failed to respond. The contact's vehicle crashed into the rear of a Ford Explorer. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: 10462825. No further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Ewing, NJ, USA

problem #34

Jun 202017

Sonata

  • 43,000 miles
This has occurred twice in the last year, only in the morning after starting the car for the first time. I have applied the brakes at the end of my (city) street, only to have the brakes engage for a moment, then disengage, allowing the car to coast for several feet, before finally re-engaging and stopping. This last time it occurred, I almost drifted into oncoming traffic. I took the car to my mechanic and they can't find anything wrong. I now have it at the dealership, but they haven't been able to re-create the issue.

- Buffalo, NY, USA

problem #33

Jun 182017

Sonata

  • 92,000 miles
My break lights went out so I ended up changing the bulbs and the fuse come to find out its the break switch which caused the wires to break and the bulbs melted the tail end coverings

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #32

Jun 112017

Sonata

  • 45,208 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the brake pedal was applied, but failed to respond. The vehicle accelerated without warning. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 45,208.

- Rochester, NY, USA

problem #31

Jun 072017

Sonata

  • 55,000 miles
Vehicle does not recognize either key fob and will not start just goes into accessory mode. When placing foot on brake pad it is extremely hard. Yet every time we let vehicle drift down our driveway and get level it starts no problem. We are worried when our daughter is driving the vehicle it won't recognize the key fob and shut down. It has happened at least 5 times

- Lakeland, FL, USA

problem #30

Apr 092017

Sonata

  • 42,000 miles
Every-time I start driving, I can hear a grinding noise so I changed the front breaks and the noise never went away. Then out of know where the back breaks and rotors went out fixed them and noise is still there. I hear a small knocking and squealing and when I stop, I can hear a grinding. I haven't even had the car for a year yet. I can hear it whenever I'm driving.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #29

Dec 152016

Sonata 8-cyl

  • 81,684 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the exterior brake lights failed to work without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer (homer skelton Hyundai; 8145 craft rd, olive branch, ms 38654; (662) 890-0100) where it was diagnosed that the light bulb socket and housing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted at 800-633-5151 and stated that the vehicle was not under warranty. Case number: 10261518 was provided. The failure mileage was 81,684. Updated 07/11/17 updated 12/5/2017

- Memphis, TN, USA

problem #28

Apr 072017

Sonata

  • 107,075 miles
The master cylinder failed while in a parking lot. A hard stop by hitting the curb.

- Cedar Rapids, IA, USA

problem #27

Jun 012016

Sonata

  • 33,000 miles
Can not hold the car in a straight line at highway speeds.car will drift left and right and needs constant corrections. These result of these corrections have a varying result in the car over correcting or under correcting. Main safety issue is the car wanders on its own with the steering wheel centered and results in drifting into other lanes.the drift seems to be more apparent on flat stretches of freeway as compared to roads with a bigger crown which you can hold the steering wheel into to stay centered. The feeling in the steering wheel is tight and hard while going straight then requires a good solid pull to correct the drift, the steering will then correct or over correct mostly over correct.I actually feared taking this car on a trip last weekend due to the fact that we were going to be driving in snow, luckily at 30 mph with chains on the drift was minimal. Thank you for reviewing this letter

- Modesto, CA, USA

problem #26

Dec 172016

Sonata

  • 80,217 miles
Upon start up the vehicle is pretty loud to be fairly new, the noise increased by day. Brakes would grind. No control over steering car would pull and drift as driving. Remote barely worked radio would randomly increase and decrease.

- Ofallon, MO, USA

problem #25

Jan 202017

Sonata

  • miles
I took in for brakes after having it only 3 months. I almost got in accident because brakes failed. Amco told me it was the calibers and said it was a manufacturer defect because after changing pads, the caliber was stuck and would not close. He said vehicle was too knew for this type of problem. It had to be fixed because it was a safety issue so it was fixed for $900. Want to report as safety issue. Could have caused multi vehicle crash.

- Huntington Beach, CA, USA

problem #24

Nov 122016

Sonata

  • 61,000 miles
The contact owned a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. The brakes failed while driving 60 mph and the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The driver pulled the vehicle to the side of the road and all the warning indicators illuminated. In addition, once the driver was able to pull the vehicle over to the side of the road, the vehicle was turned off but the engine remained operable. Upon inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed flames. The fire department extinguished the flames. The driver did not see any smoke. The vehicle was towed to a salvage yard where it was deemed destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.

- Baldwin, NY, USA

problem #23

Aug 312016

Sonata

  • 40,250 miles
We bought the car in September 2012. Within days, we started to notice rust spots on the body of the car that appeared to be coming from brake dust. We contacted the dealer and informed them of the issue, and our concern that it would damage the clear coat or paint. Dealer stated they could not do anything. We started to notice brake noise. May 16, 2013; at 6,400 miles, we took the car to the dealer for service, and again complained of grinding noise when braking; dealer inspected brakes and said everything was fine. August 9, 2013; 7,589 miles. Took car in to dealer for service, again complained about brake noise; dealer inspected brakes and said everything was fine. June 16, 2014; 16,176 miles. Took car in to dealer for service, again complained about brakes, dealer inspected brakes and said everything was fine. May 10, 2016; 37,247 miles. Heard severe grinding noise coming from brakes, took to dealer to inspect. I asked a mechanic to ride with me while I drove to make sure they heard the noise, and mechanic did hear it. Dealer kept car for 7 days, inspected brakes, and said could not replicate noise. August 31, 2016, 40,400 miles. Heard severe grinding noise on brakes again, took to dealer, again had dealer rep listen to noise. Dealer inspected the brakes, and stated there was severe wear on the inside brake pads, that had damaged the rotors to the point they had to be replaced. There was no warning that the brake pads were worn prematurely, and the dealer failed to identify the issue with braking system until it was too late, creating a safety hazard. There was a problem with the braking system from the beginning, and we documented it at the dealer, where we had all service done.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #22

May 112016

Sonata

  • 34,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. When the brake pedal was depressed, the brakes made an abnormal noise and felt as though that they were dragging. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the calipers were getting jammed, which damaged the rotors. The rotors needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 34,000.

- Schaumburg, IL, USA

problem #21

May 012016

Sonata

  • Automatic transmission
  • 22,500 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. While depressing the brake pedal, a grinding noise was heard coming from all four wheels and the stopping distance was extended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the brake drums, brake pads, and brake rotors were rusted and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was invalid. The failure mileage was 22,500. Updated 08/03/16

- Southfield, MI, USA

problem #20

Mar 042016

Sonata

  • 21,085 miles
Vehicle was not used for about 4 weeks in February. Then the car was started in reverse with the foot on the brake pedal. Pedal went mushy with little to no pressure resulting basic loss of brake function while making loud noises. Had to stop vehicle with parking brake. Had vehicle towed to dealer. Service manager drove vehicle, acknowledged the problem, and indicated that rust had accumulated on rotors. He said high/low spots due to rust can result in loss of brake pressure, and loud noise was a result of brake pads rubbing on uneven surfaces. After dealer technician drove several miles and applied brakes, rust wore off and brake function returned. The dealer service manager said the car should be driven every couple days or at least once a week to prevent this from happening. He indicated he could turn the rotors but the rust would just return. I have never owned a vehicle in 30 years where the rotors are so prone to rust resulting in brake failure if not driven for 4 weeks, much less a week. Thankfully this was not noticed at higher speed on a road or this was an accident in the making. I believe there could be a rotor material design or quality issue that is promoting corrosion at such a rapid rate. Dealer's invoice is attached for reference.

- Northville, MI, USA

problem #19

Feb 262016

Sonata

  • 41,000 miles
My brake light on the driver side went out. While trying to change it I found it very hard to take the brake lights out on both sides of the car. Upon finally getting the light bulbs out I found that the brake light housing on both sides had melted and warped making it difficult to get the bulbs out. Along with this the light bulbs had fused themselves into their sockets. I had to break the bulbs to get the complete bulb unit out of the socket. I was able to get the new bulbs into the socket relatively easy. However, when I tried to put them back into the brake housing I had to force them back in. This happened on both sides of the car. My concern is the housing could melt more and ignite on fire. I do not have pictures of it but I do have video of the issue. I found this out when trying to change the bulds in a parking lot close to a local automotive parts company where I work.

- Pomona, CA, USA

problem #18

Oct 052015

Sonata

  • 22,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that when the brake pedal was depressed, the vehicle would continuously stop without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the brakes needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 22,000.

- Cottage Grove, MN, USA

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