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:
6 / 13
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
47,271 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.
Car has a ticking sound, car has died on me multiple times. The vehicle has stopped moving regardless of pressing on accelerator and died leaving me stranded, feeling unsafe. I have been driving at 40 mph and then seem to lose power, making it to where can only go 10 to 20 mph or totally dying. I was also having issues with key fobs not working. Door would open, unlock and then not, car stalling. No lights illuminating on dash. Battery in fob replaced after car being towed to shop after stalling, dying issue and I was basically told they didn't know what was up with the stalling, maybe fobs. I had an oil change done and full diagnostic, sent on way without answers. Happened again, electrical issues, fob not working, stalling, start hesitation and dying, no power. I had it towed to different shop and was told had couple of codes showing up even though no check engine light on, they stated a caliper was leaking along with other oil leak and crankshaft sensor needed replaced, which got fixed. The car has 98000 miles on it (around there) and I see safety recall posted. I finance this car and have literally only had it not even 5 months. I do not feel safe driving it. I've been stranded, at times key fobs and locks act up on it still, the ticking is definitely a concern, RPMS off and revs up at times while also lacking pick up and go. I contacted my local Hyundai and they stated no resolution on safety recall yet, can schedule an appointment and pay for diagnostic, which would make my 3rd diagnostic over the last month or so. I need something remedied. I transport myself and at times my children and I do not feel safe in this vehicle which again purchased just about 5 months ago from Car Max. Help please!
My car keeps breaking down whenever I slow down or press on the brakes. I have a malfunction indicator lamp and I was notified via letter to call Hyundai asap to get a service so that my car doesn-??t light on fire. I went to a mechanic who told me the engine is bad and it-??s also a real from Hyundai. I called numerous times, and every time I am told there-??s nothing they can do about it at this time. They keep telling me to wait and they don-??t give me any options. This is a frustrating situation. I drive two small children in my car and I don-??t want anything to happen to them because the Hyundai dealership refused to fix their mistake.
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shook and then lost motive power. The contact stated that failure had occurred four times. The contact stated that the failure had previously occurred while her daughter was driving, stopped at a stop light, and in the middle of the street. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure because the check engine warning light was not illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.
UNKNOWN - The safety of myself and my kids are being put at risk with the recent fire risk recall not being resolved by Hyundai immediately. I do not feel safe driving this car and I have notified/called my insurance company/my finance company, and the local Hyundai dealership for assistance and no help was provided to me. I need this resolved immediately.
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, she heard an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine compartment, and the vehicle lost all motive power. The driver was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle then stalled and failed to restart. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a general engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 155,000.
- Florence, AL, USA
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The engine in my 2013 Elantra started making noises and the car stopped while my son was driving. He was able to get it to a nearby parking lot. We ended up driving it 1 mile to the mechanic who said -??it might be time to get rid of this car-??. It needs a new engine. Mechanic talked to the local Hyundai dealership, gave them the VIN and dealer said I would likely be eligible for an engine replacement under a recall or a factory warranty. I towed it to the dealer to do their own -??diagnosis-?? before they could give me the official word that my engine would be replaced. Dealer kept my car for five weeks. They ultimately provided an estimate of $3K worth of repairs that have little to do with the engine failing. I'm not sure they even looked at the engine. They told me the car has too many miles and would no longer be eligible for an engine replacement. I ultimately had the car towed back to my mechanic. The mechanic is estimating about $8K-$10K worth of parts and labor to replace the engine. The mechanic does not suggest using a used engine. My car is displaying the same issues as the other engine recalls, but my particular model is not covered (yet). The 2014 Elantra is part of the engine recall. My 2013 Elantra is not covered but is still displaying the same symptoms, and the engine knocking noise and engine failure are the same. The "Check Engine" light is on. I have this car parked in a parking garage, unable to be driven, while I pay off the remaining balance to Carmax. My mechanic says it could "blow up" if I drive it, and at a minimum, the engine can fail while driving causing a safety risk to the driver and passengers and any surrounding vehicles or pedestrians. I can provide mechanic's contact information if needed.
1. Coolant hose leaked into the engine causing the engine to smoke and head gasket to be blown. Available for inspection upon request until I sell the vehicle since I need a vehicle for work. 2. The engine failure could have occurred on a roadway, and the coolant in the engine could have combusted further. When the engine is on, you can smell smoke. 3. The problem was confirmed by an auto shop and they recommended that the Hyundai dealership perform a repair. 4. The component has not been inspected by anyone other than two auto shops at this time, who both confirmed that either the head gasket could be replaced as an attempted fix, but that the issue could remain/become worse if the entire engine is not replaced. 5. Check engine light came on, checked codes at a shop within 10 minutes - only code present was an engine thermometer. Drove 20 minutes home. Drove to shop in AM. Shop described issue and recommended taking it to dealership for repair. Drove home and engine was riding rough, and began to smoke. I have done research online and communities online refer to this as "sudden engine death" and an issue that occurs often with this make and year of vehicle.
The engine shut down while driving, it turns on again if I go neutral and turn it on but very dangerous since it already happens me on the freeway also when you-??re on a stop or light with the brakes on the car start to try to move even whit the brakes all the way down, engine make some noise when you start it when is cold. car has been well maintained
Car randomly shuts off while idling. Will restart, but will not go past 10 mph leaving me either stranded in the middle of the road or causing me to pull over in unsafe areas. When restarting, engine is very hesitant. Car will be very shaky so I have to keep the car off for about 5 minutes before I restart the car. At that time the check engine light will turn on, as well as the wheel alignment and the battery.
I dropped my 2013 Hyundai Elantra Limited off on 4/3/23 for an oil change and to diagnosis and repair my engine stalling and engine boggling and repair headlight restoration. When I picked up my car I was told that they found metal shaving in my oil and on the oil dip stick and that I would need a new engine. Might I add, I don't have any lights blinking or remaining on such as my oil, engine, etc. I have kept up with all my maintenance over the years and have had my car service when it was due. While driving my car, it'll lose power and jerk forward. Other times, the car will start up with no RPMs registering while the car is moving up to 60 miles. The car has also displaced the sluggish barely moving forward action when the car's RPMs are not registering. The car back fires and putts along and during a traffic lights or stop sign the car will shut off. It even started shutting off while back-up into my parking space. There is clearly something wrong with these engines and should be covered under the manufacturer warranty. I am still in disbelief about my vehicle and have been getting the run around from a couple different Hyundai dealerships saying my particular engine was discontinued and I should check with the service department to see if my car qualifies for the manufacturer warranty repair but no one will answer the phone so I decided to call another dealership well outside my area for service. This car is by far DANGEROUS to drive and without having any codes generated or light indicators advising me of an engine issue is extremely upsetting. I use my vehicle to take my mother to her many doctor appointments, my grandson to various places and I use the car to get to and from work each day. Well before all of these issues, my break lights and some other lights in the rear continued to blow and had to be replaced and no one said anything about there being an issue and I did not have the appropriate direction to submit an issue.
Catastrophic engine failure at 75k miles due to metal shavings in oil. Had a recent oil change, had no engine light come on or any issues beforehand. I was driving on the highway when my 2013 Hyundai Elantra started to not accelerate until stalling. I couldn-??t pull over at the time of it starting due to construction blocking off any pull off side lane. Luckily was able to have it roll until a safer area to pull off highway, but if it had stalled completely when it started I would of been stranded on a highway with limited room for cars to go around due to construction. When it did stall out I had to put it in neutral and physically push it into a parking lot after it gave up at a busy 4 way stop light. Towed to shop where they reported issues with the bearings and piston causing metal shavings in oil. Engine replacement required. Called dealership, denied warranty to replace engine.
My transmission had to be fixed due to stopping unexpectedly due to gear changing automatically by itself, brakes keep leaking fluid then touching the ground with a tire popping sound underneath, and engine is messing up without warning of any problems with
I have taken my 2013 Hyundai Elantra to 2 different shops where they have both informed me that the engine knock that is occuring is a known issue with this make and model. Unfortunately, it was brought to my attention that my VIN is not part of that recall. I am hoping to have my vehicle included in recall number TXXM warranty. My vehicle has approximately 92,700 miles on it. Thank you for your consideration Amanda Maldonado 720-876-8289
I have replaced the lights and battery many times and something keeps draining it. The outside brake lights sometimes stay on. So does the front running lights. The car sometimes wants to stall and when I press on the gas pedal it finally catches but still seems like it is going to shut down. The steering column has a really bad clicking in it and doesn-??t seem to be tight anymore.
Vehicle randomly stalls without warning due to a manufacturer defect commonly known as Hyundai piston slap. The car stalled on me on the expressway 4 times on a single trip causing a potentially very dangerous situation. No engine warning lights before or after the stall. The vehicle was inspected by my local Hyundai service shop and the fix is to replace the small block. Hyundai is well aware of this issue with these vehicles.
Engine failure diagnosed on 2013 Elantra GT at 47,000 miles. No warning light only a ticking sound and in the original lawsuit however my state does not qualify in Nevada for a replacement. Thousands have failed per the lawsuit yet Hyundai appears to be denying claims left and right and many other types, years and models were excluded based on where you live. The lawsuit was a mere band aid with many loopholes that all Hyundai to deny claims and have customers driving in a vehicle that can stall any minute and cause bodily harm or death. Hyundai is keenly aware and I was told by dealership to have my towed in, but no way they will approve it. I am out of pocket $10,000 cash for a car that likely ends up being sold for scrap. Why on earth is your agency allowing this madness to continue? Every single Hyundai that an engine fails in involved in this lawsuit should be replaced or eligible for a buy back but that is not what is happening.
First engine replaced at ~ 60,000 miles under warranty by Hyundai due to bad bearings. My current engine, now at ~ 118,000 miles is exhibiting the same symptoms as the first engine, i.e., knocking and a burnt oil smell. Hyundai tested the engine and once again, determined via testing the bearings are bad again but now claiming they are not responsible for replacing the second engine under warranty. I've seen many reports and have spoken with personal contacts about Hyundai/Kia engines suffering catastrophic damage sometimes resulting in fires. I have three kids who regularly ride in this vehicle and so as a parent, I am concerned for their safety but also that Hyundai seems to be evading their responsibilities as it relates to the product warranty and the safety requirements of the NHTSA. No warning lamps or other vehicle indicators directed me towards this problem. Instead, I can hear the issue which prompted me to perform an independent oil analysis followed by a visit to the Hyundai dealership for an inspection. Now, it appears that I will be stuck with a defective, fire prone engine, that I may incorrectly become my financially responsibility to amend. If so, why should I expect this third engine, or the fourth, or the tenth to be any different or more safe. Thank you from a very concerned father and husband with extremely high mechanical aptitude.
My car tends to shut off on its own while driving. I-??ve fixed the fuel pump thinking that can be the issue due to the car passing -??green-?? on the machine stating everything is good. No lights on my dashboard, engine tends to shake. RPM arrow is all over the place. The car is well taken care of. I-??m spending a lot of money on mechanics fixing things that clearly aren-??t the issue with the vehicle.
Well not even at 100,000 miles yet suspension noise all four engine not good as its not work well with the way they have set up with no dip stick suspension clink clack crazy not even at 100.00
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Keizer, OR, USA