3.9

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
31,181 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.

2003 Hyundai Elantra body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2003 Hyundai Elantra Owner Comments

problem #8

Nov 142014

Elantra 4-cyl

  • miles

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

2003 Hyundai Elantra. Consumer writes in regards to passenger side control arm corrosion recall reimbursement.

- Allentown, PA, USA

problem #7

Dec 072011

Elantra 4-cyl

  • miles
I was driving, came to a stop. I then began going around 35 mph the hood on the car came open. I could not see the road. I stopped the car only to realize the hood was damaged. The hood was dented and the fenders were damaged. The windshield was cracked in two places. I had to pound the hood and fenders out just to get the hood closed. When I got home the hood latch was not working. I then noticed that the cracks in the windshield were 5 to 6 inches long. The hood needs replaced, also the windshield needs replaced, the fenders need fixed also.

- Wendel, PA, USA

problem #6

Dec 112009

Elantra

  • 93,132 miles
During service on 2003 Hyundai Elantra GT to repair the subframe and lower control arms due to corrosion damage (this was part of recall campaign), the dealer indicated that the 2 hoses to and from the power steering pump were corroded and leaking. Subsequently, the dealer broke the high pressure line when attempting to determine the location of the leak. Both the high pressure and return hoses had corroded beyond repair and required replacement.

- West Sand Lake, NY, USA

problem #5

May 222008

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 78,234 miles

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

I was driving downhill to a stop sign (from about 20mph), and pressed the brake pedal, at which point I heard an awful crunch noise, and the front right corner of my car jolted, shook, and sounded like something was grinding together. I got out of the car to look at the front right wheel, and saw that it was turned in towards the center of the car, and bent under the front of the car, about 1/4" away from the back of the wheel well, while my other front wheel was aimed straight ahead. I drove the car 100 feet to a safe place off the street, during which trip the steering wheel tried to spin wildly in various directions, and the crunching, jolting noises and motions continued. The car was not drivable, so I called a flatbed tow truck, who towed it to my mechanic.. when the mechanic was able to look at the vehicle, he determined that the control arm had completely snapped in half, as a result of rust corrosion from the inside out. Visual inspection of the control arm confirmed that the metal it is constructed out of was corroded down to a thickness of approximately 5 or 6 sheets of paper. Water kicked up from wet roads by the tires had gotten inside the control arm (through a faulty seal) and, as there are no drainage holes in the control arm, it remained inside, eating away at the metal until finally the weight of the car snapped the arm in half. This failure of the control arm also wrecked the suspension of the car, as well as the cv shaft, the right front axle, and the sway bar links. The control arm, the cv shaft, and the sway bar links had to be completely replaced, and the car needed a realignment.

- Phoenixville, PA, USA

problem #4

May 072008

Elantra 4-cyl

  • 73,083 miles
A truck stopped without warning, in front of me. I hit my brakes and turned the wheel to the left to avoid a rear end collison, my car felt like it had a flat tire. I checked and there was no flat, but the right front tire was not going straight as the left front tire was. I had the vehicle towed to a mechanic, where it was found that the A-frame had rusted and snapped. I had the A-frame replaced, and the mechanic also checked out the A-frame on the left side of the car, and found that there was no rust or damage on that side.

- Wales, MA, USA

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problem #3

Oct 012005

Elantra 4-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • miles
Consumer 2003 Hyundai Elantra has a design flaw, in the positioning of the brake pedal and its proximity to the gas pedal. ** answer required*** the vehicle suddenly backed down the driveway into the curbside mailbox. On another occasion the consumer stopped the vehicle, but the vehicle bucked and hit a vehicle in front of them. The consumer noticed how the pedal was considerably higher and not as close to the gas pedal.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #2

Oct 082003

(reported on)

Elantra

  • miles
Defective windshield-2003 Hyundai Elantra gls. There was a terrible glare from the sun hitting the windshield which made it extremely hard to judge the distance of objects. The dealer was notified and stated that the glare was a characteristic of the car. The vehicle experienced brake noise. The dealer did some work on the car but is was still noisy. The defroster took 15-20 minutes to clear the windows and heated mirrors. When it rained the water was on the inside the vehicle on the underside of the car door.

- Deptford, NJ, USA

problem #1

Feb 212003

Elantra 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,000 miles
Extremely loud wind noise when driving into or with a crosswind. Noise seems to emanate from front of vehicle. Dealer has been unable to repair.

- Edwardsville, IL, USA

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