CarComplaints.com Notes: We're not used to seeing any major problems with Hyundai, which makes the early signs of trouble with the 2013 Elantra very surprising, in a bad way.

Early trends show problems with the steering wandering / pulling to one side along with premature tire wear. Elantra owners have tried sensor adjustments, wheel alignments, even replacing axles, most with no luck. Hyundai has made vehicle buybacks through arbitration, but that rarely works out well financially for owners in the end.

Also there is a pattern of complaints about the 2013 Elantra brakes grinding at very low mileage. It seems there was a bad batch of OEM pads & rotors, but so far Hyundai is not doing a recall. Instead Hyundai issued a TSB & dealers have been replacing pads & rotors on a per-complaint basis.

The final straw is that for several years in a row, Elantra owners report significantly lower gas mileage than the EPA estimates, & there's a small trend of engine problems.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
28,162 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2013 Hyundai Elantra windows / windshield problems

windows / windshield problem

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2013 Hyundai Elantra Owner Comments

problem #19

Jan 112022

Elantra

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Panorama sunroof exploded while underway on highway. Glass collapsed into vehicle interior.

- Abingdon, MD, USA

problem #18

Oct 182019

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 106,441 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that the sun roof exploded while driving on the freeway. As a result, the contact crashed into a concrete rail. The contact sustained minor glass injuries to the arm, but did not require medical attention. A police report was filed. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to cardenas motors (1500 North expressway 77, brownsville, tx 78521, (956) 205-0370) where it was repaired per the contact's insurance. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and provided case number: 15765657. The cause of the failure was not determined. The failure mileage was approximately 106,441.

- Brownsville, TX, USA

problem #17

Jul 042017

Elantra

  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while the vehicle was operated at highway speeds, the vehicle's sun roof shattered. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

- Cypress, TX, USA

problem #16

May 102017

Elantra

  • 103,917 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. While driving approximately 60 mph, the sun roof exploded without warning. The contact coasted the vehicle to the side of the road and closed the cardboard cluster to prevent the glass from falling into the vehicle. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 103,917.

- Columbia, OH, USA

problem #15

Jan 282017

Elantra

  • 55,000 miles
While driving on the freeway at around 70mph I heard a loud bang upon looking around realized my sunroof had blown outward from the center. I know nothing hit it from the inside and nothing fell on top of it either. I was left driving on the freeway with a large hole in the middle of my sunroof with cracked glass all along the sides.

- San Jose, CA, USA

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problem #14

Mar 072016

Elantra

  • 34,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 70 mph, the sun roof shattered into the vehicle. That failure occurred on two occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the sun roof needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired for the initial familiar. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 34,000. The VIN was not provided.

- Hammond, LA, USA

problem #13

May 252015

Elantra

  • 20,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. While driving approximately 45 mph, there was a loud noise coming from the vehicle. The contact inspected the vehicle and discovered that the sun roof shattered into pieces. A police report was filed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000.

- Hammond, LA, USA

problem #12

Apr 202015

Elantra

  • 17,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra.while driving at 65 mph, the contact heard a loud noise and the sun roof fractured. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 17,000.

- St Louis, MO, USA

problem #11

Jul 242014

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 39,000 miles
At approx. 7:20 am on July 24, 2014 the sunroof on my 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT with panoramic roof exploded while traveling on rte 495 in MA. It sounded like a shotgun blast in the car. All windows were up and the sunroof was closed. The shade was open. I estimate 75% of the glass blew up and out of the vehicle. Some remained in the frame of the sunroof and some fell down into the car, a small amount upon my head and down my back. There was no vehicle in front of or next to me in the three lane stretch of highway. The road conditions were perfect, the highway has been re-paved in the last few months. The outside temp. Was in the mid 70's, no rain, no heavy winds, not too warm or too cold. There was a commercial van behind that experience a spray of tempered safety glass. As I pulled over they passed me with looks of astonishment on their faces. They were checking to see if I was ok and concern for my safety. They did not stop after seeing I was not injured. After checking everything out I continued to drive the car to work. I called the dealership and they arranged to get me a loaner car and to pick up the vehicle for inspection and repair. After seeing the vehicle I was told it was not a warranty issue (really?) and that the Hyundai representative said there was no apparent indication if the sunroof was struck or not struck with anything. But that "glass just doesn't break by itself" so it will not be covered under warranty. I called Hyundai customer affairs and they gave me a case number and told me they would look into it. They were also surprised a Hyundai engineer was available to inspect the sunroof so quickly since it typically takes several days to schedule one to go see the car in person. 5 days later they told me they spoke to someone at the dealership and that they were told the same thing that the Hyundai representative had reported.

- Portsmouth, RI, USA

problem #10

Jul 282014

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 10,000 miles
Sun roof (moon roof) exploded. While traveling at 65 mph, with the sun roof closed and the internal ceiling shade closed, an extremely loud pop came from the roof of the car. Very loud! then, the sound of wind and broken glass streaming over the car and onto the cars traveling behind us. We pulled over and found the sun roof shattered from edge to edge. We made our way to the nearest Hyundai dealer and persuaded them to vacuum out the glass. They told us that this was due to a rock hitting the top and would not be covered by the warranty. We made our way home with no top but talked to many different Hyundai representatives who all claimed that they'd never heard of such a thing. Our subsequent research has suggested otherwise. This is a major concern for the safety of those driving and occupying these cars and for the other drivers on the road as well.

- Kingston, WA, USA

problem #9

May 192014

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 3,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving on a ca highway in the slow lane at approx. 50mph, in the morning time (60-65F degrees), I heard a sudden boom noise. It sounded like a gun shot. I was not near any overpass, nor were any vehicles in close proximity. I did not see any debris, projectiles or rocks hit the car. I pulled over on the highway, after swerving a few lanes, thinking I had blown a tire. To my surprise, the Elantra GT panoramic sunroof had exploded. There were breaks along three of the four edges of the rear standing portion of the panoramic sunroof, not the moving portion of the sunroof. The breaks were near the edges only, and not in the center at all. There were no projectile holes anywhere, and the breaks were straight in nature. This seems to be an issue with Hyundai panoramic sunroofs, as I know there was a 2012 recall for this issue on another model. I have also read about several 2013 Hyundai panoramic sunroof explosion incidents on this NHTSA website. This is a definite safety hazard and needs to be addressed. I am fortunate there were no vehicles around me, as the loud boom caused me to swerve within two lanes. Had the sunroof cover been open, the glass would have penetrated the interior of the vehicle, and the tempered glass could have caused severe lacerations, with the possibility of death, due to the speeds traveled. This issue needs to be addressed and fixed before it results in the loss of life. On a brighter note, since the vehicle only had 3K miles on it and was two months old, the dealer gave us a loaner and has agreed to fix the window at no cost; however, this doesn't remove the apprehension I will have while driving the vehicle once it is fixed, thinking it may happen again. Updated 12/5/2014

- Gilroy, CA, USA

problem #8

Feb 032014

Elantra

  • 825 miles
Driving on the loop 101 and heard a loud noise inside the car almost like a gunshot, pulled over and noticed that the sunroof had shattered into tiny pieces, it was not extremely cold and I have only had this vehicle for 2 weeks.

- Glendale, AZ, USA

problem #7

Jan 312014

Elantra

  • 29,000 miles
I was driving down the interstate at about 68mph all of a sudden I heard a large boom. Pulled over to see what happened and notice that my moonroof/sunroof had shattered into a million pieces. The intriguing part was that I was alone with no cars around when the incident happened. The weather was cold, but not extreme the temperature was around 24 degrees.

- Fountain, CO, USA

problem #6

Aug 152013

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 7,980 miles
I heard an explosion and started feeling something falling down on me as I was driving. I looked up to see the sunroof part of my panoramic roof had shattered and shards of glass were falling down on me. This was in the morning, nothing above me or around me, no trucks.. just a random break. I called the dealership and was told to contact my insurance. I looked online and see there have been many issues with the sunroofs doing the same thing on different models. The dealership is ordering the replacement right now.

- Modesto, CA, USA

problem #5

Jun 212013

Elantra

  • 3,036 miles
We were driving on highway 101 South about 60 mph when it sounded like someone shot at us only to find that the sunroof imploded on us. Chunks of glass were falling on us while we were driving! shards of glass were everywhere. My sister found some under my eye, I had to dig glass out of my hand and later the next day I still had glass in my body.

- Tacoma, WA, USA

problem #4

May 102013

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 1,900 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 mph the panoramic sunroof suddenly shattered. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 1,900.

- Rochester, NY, USA

problem #3

Feb 232013

Elantra

  • 4,973 miles
Driving along at 40mph there was a loud explosion. The panoramic sunroof exploded. Stress crack along its entire perimeter, shattering glass, and creating a convex crack in the middle of the glass. This is the static-non-movable part of the sunroof and was closed at the time. Glass fragments entered interior of vehicle. I have brought this to the attention of local dealership and Hyundai Consumer Affairs. I have also noted there is a recall with same issue of the Hyundai veloster and others have the same experience with the Elantra as documented on your website. This has been documented when both vehicles described have been moving or parked. Obviously the glass is of fault or there is a flaw in the design putting the glass under stress. I do not feel safe driving the vehicle and expect Hyundai to offer an engineered solution as I am of the same discipline. I have photographs documenting the incident. Dealership is prepared to replace glass. However, I worry of future incidents that could create an accident resulting in a vehicle crash or personal injury from flying glass.

- Warren, MI, USA

problem #2

Oct 012012

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 3,000 miles
I had just gotten onto the freeway when I noticed things flying off the back of my car. I wasn't sure what it was so I opened my sunroof slider a little and saw that my sunroof had shattered. I did not go under an underpass so I cannot be sure what happened. All I know is it cost me $500 deductible to get it fixed. My car is only 3 months old, so that doesn't seem right. I have had 4 cars with sunroofs and never had anything like this happen. Please advise me as to my options. I'm afraid to drive it now!

- Carmichael, CA, USA

problem #1

Oct 052012

Elantra

  • 16,000 miles
While driving on I80 in Indiana I heard a loud noise in the roof area, so I slid the cover on the sunroof open and found the glass spiderweb. By the time I pulled over the glass was totally shattered. At the time of the incident there were no trucks near me nor was I near an overpass.

- Chicago, IL, USA

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