10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
1,081 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.

2023 Hyundai Santa Fe drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2023 Hyundai Santa Fe Owner Comments (Page 2 of 2)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #18

Dec 112023

Santa Fe

  • miles

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

While parking my 2023 Hyundai Sante Fe, I hard pressed the break and pushed the Park button. The engine revved up and the vehicle took off instead of going into park; smashing into a building. The parking block was 6ft from the building. The engine accelerated to a high enough speed that it totaled the vehicle completely out. The engine code readings after the vehicle was towed to a repair shop was P0112 and P0114. The mechanic says that's the initial cause of the accident. The insurance reps are supposed to be following up on the mechanics diagnostics currently. There were no warning lights or anything on before the issue occurred as this was a brand new vehicle with only 8,000 miles on it.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #17

Feb 012024

Santa Fe

  • miles
While merging into the highway at approximately 49 to 52 mph, acceleration was applied to merge into the highway between moving vehicles. The vehicle responded by greatly increasing the rpm but not applying the power to the wheels. The engine revved up with very little acceleration. After 5 to 8 seconds, the power was finally transferred to the wheels and the vehicle sped up. The vehicle behind me had to apply the brakes since I basically cut them off. This was the second incident of this type.

- Peoria, AZ, USA

problem #16

Jul 242023

Santa Fe

  • miles
This same scenario has happened 3 times since I purchased this vehicle - first event at mileage of 6273, 2nd event @ 7586 miles, and 3rd event @ 12,506 miles. All events were the same - while driving, dash board light start to flash and the vehicle looses all ability to accelerate. For each event, we have been able to coast out of traffic, turn the car off & restart. Once the car is restarted the acceleration works again, but the check engine light remains on along with an error code of P065312 Possible Power Train Issue. We have been very fortunate each time that we were on a road where we were able to coast out of traffic, but if this happened on a busy Interstate or Hwy traveling at high speeds we could have been rear-ended. The vehicle has been to the dealership twice for service and no problems have been found. The vehicle will be returned to the dealership tomorrow for 3rd service attempt.

- College Station, TX, USA

problem #15

Dec 092023

Santa Fe

  • miles

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

vehicle fails to accelerate, engine is -??sputtering-?? and making a rattling sound and battery is draining to nothing on the freeway driving at normal speeds. vehicle is lurching and engine does not appear to be shifting as it should - car losing power and failing to accelerate despite being full of gas. transmission doesn-??t feel like it is shifting properly. vehicle only has 8000 miles.

- Tacoma, WA, USA

problem #14

Sep 302023

Santa Fe

  • miles
My 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe have a recall to fix the trailer hitch, since that I notice some issues with the shifting with a loss of power while driving, my car is 15k miles and showed a check-engine light. I made an appointment for the dealership the next morning. After two days, I was told that the car needs a new transmission. After 3 days still waiting for the car to be fix.

- Cedar Hill, TX, USA

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problem #13

Oct 092023

Santa Fe

  • miles
My 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe Calligraphy with 14k miles showed a check-engine light. I had noticed some strange behavior in the shifting with a loss of power while driving at low gears. I made an appointment for the dealership the next morning. Was told today that the car needs a new transmission.

- Katy, TX, USA

problem #12

Oct 022023

Santa Fe

  • miles

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

Vehicle has just over 4k Miles on it. Several times I tried to accelerate and while the engine RPMs would increase, the vehicle would not accelerate. Very dangerous when turning right on a red light and when merging into traffic. I came close to getting T-Boned on 4 occasions, and rear-ended on 3 occasions. This vehicle is not reliable and puts passenger lives in danger. Today the "Shifter System Malfunction-Service Immediately" warning came on and I was not able to shift into any gear and the vehicle put itself into neutral. Looking at the forums, this has been a problem throughout the Hyundia vehicle lineup for years with the DCT transmission. I don't understand how they can continue to sell these vehicles when there is a known safety issue with the DCT transmission. I have tried to contact Johnson Hyundia in Cary NC and left multiple messages with the service dept, but they have never returned my calls.

- Holly Springs, NC, USA

problem #11

Sep 032023

Santa Fe

  • miles
when I tried accelerate, the car jerked and then the transmission began to slip and I coasted to a stop. I cranked the car and slowly began to drive the car while it felt like the transmission was slipping. My first thought was that the transmission was low on fluid but later found that this is a sealed transmission. Luckily there was no traffic during this incident. There was no warnings lights or any warnings whatsoever.

- Warner Robins, GA, USA

problem #10

Apr 042023

Santa Fe

  • miles
I purchased a new 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe and on multiple occasions when trying to accelerate the vehicle has failed to go above 30 mph. I have put on about 6,000 miles. When I pull over and restart the car. The issue seems to resolve. This is quite dangerous when trying to get on the highway or accelerate to pass for myself, passengers in the car and others. The dealer has not been able to repeat the issue. No warning or error codes appear. After repeated returns to the dealer, the dealer has now refused to review the vehicle without a $200 charge to investigate. I am happy to make the vehicle available for inspection.

- Spring, TX, USA

problem #9

Jun 142023

Santa Fe

  • miles
On nine separate occasions between mid-June 2023 (mileage appx. 600) and July 21, 2023 (mileage 1994), my vehicle lost power (decrease or loss of power and/or hesitated, sputtered, or stalled) when I was accelerating from a stop or slow speed. During these times, I have noticed that the air conditioner starts blowing only warm air. The only way to correct the issue has been to turn off the engine and then restart it. No error codes have ever been generated, and only twice did warning lights come on (engine oil light and battery light). I will upload my documentation file (to date) with the specifics of what happened along with dates and mileages this has happened. This happened one time on the freeway; I had to pull over to the side to stop/restart my engine. It was very unsafe and put my family at risk. This is a significant safety issue, and I do not feel comfortable driving because if I pull out into traffic and experience this loss of power, I could easily get hit by oncoming traffic. The vehicle has been at the Hyundai dealer since July 5, 2023 (three weeks tomorrow), and it is still there. They had not been able to replicate the problem. I went to pick up the vehicle on July 21, 2023, and as soon as I left the parking lot, the problem happened. I did a U-turn to come back to the dealer, and the vehicle lost all power. I had the vehicle in reverse, and there seemed to be no engagement of the transmission. Even with the gas pedal pushed all the way to the floor, there was no engine revving and no movement of the vehicle. The Hyundai technician and service advisor came to see the issue firsthand (since they had not been able to replicate it). The issue was only resolved when the vehicle engine was turned off and restarted. The vehicle remains at the dealer for further testing. Yes, I will gladly make my vehicle available for inspection upon request.

- Atwater, CA, USA

problem #8

Jul 012023

Santa Fe

  • 2,689 miles

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

The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at 75 MPH, the vehicle stalled and decelerated to 25 MPH as several warning lights flashed on the instrument panel. After multiple attempts, the contact managed to restart the vehicle and drove to her destination. The contact sustained severe emotional trauma due to the failure but did not seek medical attention. The contact drove the vehicle to the dealer where they informed her that the throttle body was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 2,689.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

problem #7

Jun 142023

Santa Fe

  • miles
This is related to Complaint Number 11526621 filed June 13, '23. Today I experienced the same issue described in my previous complaint but under different circumstances. I was at an intersection of two 2-lane highways, one going east-west and the other going north-south, and was facing oncoming traffic as I waited for a gap in the oncoming traffic that would allow me to make the left turn. Once a gap appeared (perhaps 4 or 5 car lengths long), I pressed the accelerator to turn left but there was zero propulsion for about 2 seconds. I was simply stalled in the path of the oncoming traffic. At the end of the 2 second delay, as the vehicle transitioned from EV (electric) to internal combustion (gasoline) mode of propulsion, my vehicle GRADUALLY accelerated just enough to allow me to complete the turn; however, I came very close to being broadsided by the oncoming traffic. This is a dangerous fault of the 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid vehicle and needs to be addressed asap! There is obviously something wrong with the EV/internal combustion synchronization/communication causing the momentary loss of power!

- Big Canoe, GA, USA

problem #6

Jun 122023

Santa Fe

  • miles
The issue I'm about to describe has occurred multiple times during the seven (7) months I've owned the vehicle - including again today. In all cases, I was attempting gradual acceleration to merge onto a highway or high-traffic street (e.g., when exiting a mall parking lot onto a busy city street). When I press the accelerator nothing happens - NO power whatsoever for at least two seconds! And on three of these occasions, I was almost broadsided by oncoming high-speed traffic! I've reported this issue to my dealership (both sales and service) and their response was that this is a known problem with the Hyundai hybrid models BUT that there is NO fix available nor, to the best of their knowledge, is there one in the process of being developed! As stated above, there is sometimes as much as a 2-second delay from when stepping on the accelerator (even when fully depressing) to when the vehicle slowly starts to accelerate. And there are no warning lights to indicate that there is a problem. I've observed that in all cases when this issue occurs, it does so when the power train is transitioning from the EV (electric) mode to the internal combustion mode of propulsion. This should NOT be a difficult issue for Hyundai to resolve and should be addressed with utmost urgency before someone is seriously injured or killed! NHTSA - please intervene by directing Hyundai to launch an immediate recall campaign to resolve this very dangerous issue, or offer to refund the affected owners' purchase price!

- Big Canoe, GA, USA

problem #5

May 152023

Santa Fe

  • miles
While driving under normal conditions with vehicle in Drive, transmission shifting into Neutral with no driver input or action and the engine remained running. Transmission indicator remained in Drive, and engine would rev, without forward propulsion. This occurred three times is close proximity, within 30 minute period. Each time, shutting down the vehicle, waiting approximately 5 minutes to restart, the vehicle would then shift into Drive normally and move under power. There were no warning messages or indicators prior to or during the three episodes. Dealer was unable to diagnosis any errors, even using GDS. If the vehicle had been moving at highway speed or on a more congested roadway, this could have posed a significant safety risk to the occupants and any nearby vehicles, as the driver may have not been able to safely pull off the roadway when the vehicle lost propulsion (shifted to neutral).

- Charlotte, NC, USA

problem #4

Mar 232023

Santa Fe

  • miles
Car was purchased January 21st had 3000 mile on it when service was needed for these issues. On march 23rd as I started driving my car wouldn't go above 30 mph, when pressing on the gas pedal the car wouldn't accelerate, the rpm gage would go to 4 but engine wouldn't make noise car wouldn't speed up. I put the car in park and back in drive with no improvement. I pulled off at a gas station restarted the car and it was fine. During this time the auto on off button was orange on the cluster which I had never seen it that color before. Was looked at by the dealer but wasn't reproducible. Not sure the cause, but safety was in jeopardy due to not being able to go with speed of traffic. Also a couple weeks after purchase brakes began to squeal, took car to dealer on march 28th was told brake pads were sanded and cleaned, upon leaving dealer brakes continued to squeal, car is now back at dealer, supposedly needing front rotors and pads replaced. Dealer won't drive car until rotors replaced. Safety was in jeopardy cause of possible brake failure and resulting accident.

- Wilmington, OH, USA

problem #3

Mar 012023

Santa Fe

  • miles
2023 Hyundia Santa Fe bought brand new from the dealership. During the course of the last month and a half the vehicle has done things with unknown origin. The panic alarm will randomly go off when the vehicle is turned off, no one is in it, or even near it. By locking the vehicle with the remote, the alarm will tend to go off about 20-30 seconds after the vehicle is locked and will sometimes not stop until the vehicle is restarted. The transmission will shift very roughly almost to the point that it feels like you are driving a manual transmission vehicle. The transmission lags in gears between 60-70 miles per hour and you feel a very rough back and forth shifting with in the transmission. Next the emergency break would engaging and then not releasing or reengaging when parked on a hill, flat service or anywhere. The break light on the dash would light up, blink, then it would go off, making it unknown if the emergency break was acting engaged or not. The dealership I purchased it from did replace the EMS module along with breaks and rotors on the vehicle. The auto shut off or the idle shut off will also randomly work, and not work. it will cut on and off even if the button is pressed to shut it off or prevent it from coming on. Now the air condition, along with the heat and heated seats has started to not work, randomly cut on, will not cut off etc. While driving i have had the heated seats turn on, along with the heat and not go off, nothing would cut off until the vehicle was physically turned off and restarted. No codes have ever been displayed or found by the dealership.

- Hope Hull, AL, USA

problem #2

Feb 072023

Santa Fe

  • miles
Car has a SEVERE Life threatening Hesitation, sometimes as much as almost 2 seconds delay from when you fully step on the accelerator to when it slowly starts to go. No warning lights or bells whatsoever. Regardless of driving mode it dose it. Seems to be especially pronounced when at a dead stop in sport mode. Problem seems to have gotten progressively worse the more we have driven it. The Dealership is denying that there's any problem or issue & didn't want to make an appointment to look at it & keeps trying to tell me this is normal. Car is unsafe to drive like this & has nearly gotten me & my family killed on numerous occasions. I have driven other hybrids by other manufacturers & none have had this issue.

- Palm City , FL, USA

problem #1

Dec 112022

Santa Fe 4-cyl

  • miles
On December 11 and 12, 2022, my 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited Hybrid failed to accelerate in traffic. In both cases I was attempting gradual acceleration to change lanes, or merge onto an another high traffic street and when I pressed the accelerator nothing happened. On second occasion I could not get any power for several seconds. In both cases I activated hazard signals to avoid a collision by vehicles rapidly approaching me from behind in a 50 Mph speed zone. The vehicle has 900 miles on it and I took delivery November 14,2022. I see where this has occurred to other Santa Fr Hybrids, yet when I called the dealer they seemed unaware of any problems.I am scheduled for a long driving trip to Michigan in a week. 567 miles and I am very concerned about driving on the Turnpikes with this problem. I am going to Pohanka Hyundai of Fredericksburg VA tomorrow.

- Locust Grove, VA, USA

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