Fuel Sensors/Gas Gage 'intermittently' malfunctioned for a few years beginning in 2015 with approximately 80+k miles. Causes 'Check Engine' light to illuminate and when bringing vehicle in for state required annual emissions and safety inspection, even if the CE has been off for a while and the sensors are functioning, it causes the system to flag it and not able to conduct test via ridiculous PA laws regardless of CE code. Malfunction has nothing to do with emissions or safety. Only issue is tracking mileage between for fill-ups when the sensors decide to malfunction. They tend to be temperamental bitches.

Replaced defective Fuel Sensors in 2019 at a cost of over $800, much better than the dealer cost. Replacement fuel sensors went bad in 2022. No longer covered under auto shop/parts warranty. Fuel Sensor parts cost is relatively inexpensive, but the labor is costly. Mechanics have to remove cargo area tray AND the back seat in order to replace the two sensors.

Have owned various vehicles since 1975, racking up as many as 200+K miles on some, and never had to replace the fuel sensor in any vehicle other than this one. Love this particular Hyundai but this is a real PITA and I am not inclined to spend the $$$ to replace the sensors again. Hyundai should recall this for the defects and the cost to consumers.

I PUT UP WITH THE FUEL GAUGE NOT WORKING PROPERLY FOR ABOUT A YEAR. WHEN I FILLED THE GAS TANK, THE GAUGE WOULD SHOW EMPTY AND FUEL LIGHT CAME ON. AFTER DRIVING AWHILE, THE GAUGE WOULD NEVER SHOW FULL AND KEPT SHOWING DIFFERENT LEVELS, THEN THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WOULD COME ON. I RAN OUT OF GAS ONE DAY WHILE TRYING TO ENTER ON HIGHWAY FROM RAMP AND ALMOST GOT RAN OVER, TRYING TO MOVE INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC. I'M NO SPRING CHICKEN ANYMORE AND BOUT HAD A HEART ATTACK. THIS IS RIDICULOUS AND DANGEROUS, AND HYUNDAI NEEDS TO RECALL THE FUEL LEVEL SENSORS DUE TO SAFETY PURPOSES. BECAUSE OF THIS NEAR ACCIDENT, I WENT AHEAD AND REPLACED BOTH SENSORS, COST $400.

NOW I'M REALLY UPSET, GOT CAR BACK AFTER MY MECHANIC REPLACED SENSORS AND GAUGE STILL NOT READING PROPERLY. WHEN I REFILLED TANK FOR FIRST, IT DID THE SAME THING AGAIN, GAUGE DROPPED TO EMPTY AND FUEL LIGHT CAME ON. THEN AFTER DRIVING A FEW MILES, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME BACK ON ALONG WITH BATTERY LIGHT TOO. IS HYUNDAI PUTTING FAULTY NEW PARTS OUT ALSO? I WILL REPORT TO ALL SAFETY SITES. I'M AFRAID TO DRIVE MY CAR LIKE THIS. HYUNDAI TAKE NOTE!

I bought a used 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe with 99, 387 miles on it from the original owners. I have not had it very long at all, and I noticed right after I bought it that the fuel gauge wasn't reading correctly when I filled it up. As I was driving it, and hadn't went no more than 10 miles I noticed the "low" fuel light was on and the fuel gauge showed empty. Since I just filled up 10 miles ago, I knew that the vehicle has an electrical problem. Shortly thereafter, the "check" engine light came on and stayed on.

A couple of days later, I disconnected the battery to clear the code for the check engine light, and noticed the fuel gauge was working again, but still not accurate though. Just a few short days later, the same thing happened all over again. Since then, from August 13 until the current time (September 5th, 2018) the problem has occurred 4 times!

After during some research on the Internet, and some research with Hyundai mechanics in the local dealerships in the St. Louis area, I discovered that this is a routine problem with Hyundai's, especially this model year and the repair is quite expensive (around $700 to $800 dollars).

This problem can be a safety issue for some consumers who isn't mechanically inclined or for those who are religious about checking the fuel level regularly! I've decided NOT to let my daughter or my finance' drive this vehicle due to this unsafe condition. Since this is an obvious common product failure on almost all of these Hyundai models, one would think that the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) would step in and require Hyundai to fix this issue of an safety issue.

I know of one incident that the vehicle ran out of gas while the woman was coming home late at night from her shift as a nurse. Unfortunately, she had to drive through an area on her way home that is considered to be very dangerous area of Illinois. The vehicle had ran out of gas in this area and left her stranded alone. She phoned her husband to come and get her right away, but it took him 20 minutes or so to get there, and the police very rarely patrolled the area due to known drug transactions and severe violence in this area!

She considered herself to be lucky, but it caused her to get rid of the vehicle for good! And she shares her story with everyone she meets and tells everyone NOT to buy a Hyundai Santa Fe because of Hyundai's reluctance to do anything about this issue! Wake up Hyundai...this will cost you in the long run much more than the repair!

DO the RIGHT thing and recall these vehicles before someone files a class-action lawsuit!

I am also experiencing issues with my gas gauge. I first noticed the problem while sitting in my car with the engine running, the gauge went from 90 miles of gas left, to 80, to 60, to 30, and then to empty and my gas light had then came on, all in a matter of 3 seconds. Now the check engine light is on, and I have to continuously guess how much gas is left in my car because once I fill up it will state the correct amount of gas for a few miles and then drop right back down to empty. One time I miscalculated and my car ran out of gas in a not so safe area, so this is a safety issue and needs to be recalled by Hyundai. Lastly I called the dealership and was quoted $600 to fix. This is insane! I bought the car used and have only had it for 2 years, so I should not have to pump this kind of money into it already.

Fuel gauge shows empty almost all the time and check engine light is always on.

Update from Aug 24, 2016: I went for a NH state inspection/emissions sticker yesterday and it failed. Check engine light being on due to the fuel sensor problem. The technician says the vehicle has NO safety issues but due to the check engine light they have to fail me. They quoted $600. to fix.

I'm not sure if I am more mad at the state of NH due to their stupid laws, or Hyundai for not recalling this problem.

This problem started on a long vacation to the east coast. We thought we had a major problem since the Check Engine Light comes on when the gas gauge goes bonkers also. This problem now is a constant but not willing to spend over $700 to get it fixed since I know of at least 3 other people with same problem with their 07 or 08 Santa Fe. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL ITEM!!!! Why isn't it?

When I talked to service dept. at our local Hyundai dealer he agreed with me and said he wouldn't get it fixed either but to just keep track of the mileage so I know when to fill up the tank again. What a hassle!!!! This should have been recalled a long time ago and I can assure you that neither I or any of my friends will ever buy another Santa Fe unless they fix this problem!!

Duane Beers

I've waited at least three years for Hyundai to put out a recall on this as I see multiple complaints about the problem. I really did not want to shell out $500 to fix this known issue. Since I never know how much gas I really have, I reset the odometer to 0, fill the tank and fill up every 200 miles. A pain, but it was working. Until a gas station attendant didn't fill my tank all the way and I ran out of gas on a dangerous entry ramp last week. I ordered the part and am getting it fixed next week. How can Hyundai ignore this very dangerous problem?