10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
96,831 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.

2007 Hyundai Sonata engine problems

engine problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2007 Hyundai Sonata:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2007 Hyundai Sonata Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #40

Dec 172022

Sonata

  • miles

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

2007 Hyundai Sonata- Consumers son is emailing on behalf of his elderly mother. He is requesting any kind of help in reference to a catastrophic engine failure. Complaint has been filed with the MA Attorney Generals Office and the email mentions a current NHTSA investigation into the 2007 Sonata.

- Attleboro, MA, USA

problem #39

Feb 052023

Sonata

  • 114,000 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while performing a daily check on the vehicle, the contact became aware that oil was leaking onto the alternator. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the mechanic replaced the driver-??s side valve cover gasket. The dealer was contacted, and the dealer stated that the vehicle was not under recall and referred the contact to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was contacted, and the manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not under recall. The failure mileage was 114,000.

- Plantation, FL, USA

problem #38

May 012022

Sonata

  • 151,000 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds the vehicle drove sluggish and unresponsive and would not properly accelerate. Upon inspection it was discovered that engine oil from the valve cover gasket had leaked onto the alternator. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the alternator was damaged due to the presence of oil inside and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The contact indicated that the vehicle was previously serviced by the manufacturer to prevent the failure from occurring but the failure had occurred on two separate occasions. No further information was available. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 151,000.

- Saugerties, NY, USA

problem #37

Jun 052020

Sonata

  • 67,000 miles

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

Valve cover leaks onto alternator, can cause sudden power loss and premature alternator failure. I've been researching this issue and other people have had this exact thing happen. Apparently once you get the valve cover gasket fixed, it will fail again in another year or so. There is a defect either in the gasket or the valve cover mating surface. Currently my car is only at the stage of oil leaking from cover gasket and getting onto the alternator. No further failure has happened yet. My car has 67,000 miles.

- Toms River, NJ, USA

problem #36

Mar 012021

Sonata

  • 99,800 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, she heard rattling and tapping sounds. The vehicle loss motive power while accelerating. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and informed that there was a rod knock and valve tap present and that the engine needed to be replaced. Kearny mesa Hyundai (4797 convoy St, san diego, ca 92111) was contacted and informed that the vehicle had to be repaired out of pocket. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 99,800.

- El Cajon, CA, USA

problem #35

Feb 102019

Sonata

  • 185,000 miles
On October 18, 2019 my fuel pump broke it happened at a plaza parked and then on February 10, 2019 was involved in a car crash due to a ball joint from the front end passenger side. My ball joint broke and everything else detached it happened on the highway I was with my kids and thank god I didn't crash into a car but it was a very scary traumatic moment for all of us. I keep replacing the inner and outer tie rod, also the ball joint and now it makes sense why, it has to do with the control arm. I'm reporting this now because I looked into the safety recalls today and found so many my vehicle falls under these listings and I never received a letter stating the safety recalls to bring my car to the dealership. I have pictures taken when my car broke down, but don't have it available right now I can provide it afterwards and I had my car towed.

- Worcetser, MA, USA

problem #34

Mar 202020

Sonata

  • 109,000 miles

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

This is totally dangerous I could've lost my life period I'm on freeway and my wheels just started sticking and my car was smelling like electricity or electrical fire so I go google of course and youtube low and behold recall on bad fuse boxes on theses particular cars

- Cleveland, OH, USA

problem #33

Nov 282017

Sonata

  • 156,092 miles
I first noticed the valve cover gasket leaking onto the alternator at about 121,000 miles and at 140.000 miles I had the valve cover gasket replaced, thermostat, intake plennom gasket also. And had the alternator replaced after it failed because of the oil leaking onto it at 156,092. Luckily I just drove by my mechanics garage at about 50 mph and about a mile passed his garage the car started to buck and stall and all the dash board lights were flashing along with the cd turning on and off along with the seat belt light which was flashing on and off when it was buckled for about 1 month prior to this failure. I actually made it to his garage before it shut down in his parking lot.

- Bethel, PA, USA

problem #32

Jul 202019

Sonata

  • miles
My transmission went

- Paterson Nj, NJ, USA

problem #31

May 182019

Sonata

  • 111,000 miles
I had been driving on the turnpike for almost an hour when I started to hear a clicking noise. I was driving about 70 mph and pressed down on the accelerator. When I did so, there was a loud bang and suddenly, smoke filled under the hood and also came out the exhaust pipe. I also saw debris flew out from under the car, looking like it was coming from the tail pipe. I pulled over and opened the hood to find oil everywhere, more smoke flooding out of the hood and bits of metal debris all over. Oil was leaking all over the side of the road. The mechanic has judged that the engine burst while I was driving it.

- Norristown, PA, USA

problem #30

Jan 012015

Sonata

  • miles

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

1. the check engine lights continually goes on and stays

- Cleveland, OH, USA

problem #29

Mar 032019

Sonata

  • 140,000 miles
Oil leak from valve cover gasket dropped on alternator. Damage to alternator caused vehicle to shut off while going 60mph on an interstate. Multiple lights on the dash illuminated (including the engine and battery lights, the seat belt light started flashing), I lost power to the radio and the lights inside the car stopped working, quickly after these two issues started I lost the ability to accelerate (again, while going 60mph on an interstate). Verbatim text from complaint 14V415000 for the Hyundai veracruz (including the model year 2007)- "an unexpected failure of motive power while driving increases the risk of a crash." I believe that this recall should be expanded to other Hyundai vehicles as there are a number of other complaints online for Sonatas for multiple years, including 2007. My local dealership quoted me $1372.43 to replace the alternator, valve cover gasket, and battery (attached).

- Charleston, SC, USA

problem #28

Sep 122018

Sonata

  • 119,000 miles
Timing chain tensioner want it replaced

- Coquille, OR, USA

problem #27

Jun 022018

Sonata

  • 113,980 miles
Rear cross member, not good, transmission, and engine oil pan podrido, air conditioner not to good, door handler problem, ,, etc

- Bronx, NY, USA

problem #26

Oct 192017

Sonata

  • 106,000 miles
Hyundai replaced original engine that exploded with a rebuilt engine that suffered same fate while daughter was evacuating from hurricane irma on interstate

- Fleming Island, FL, USA

problem #25

May 012017

Sonata 4-cyl

  • miles
2007 Hyundai Sonata. Consumer writes in regards to engine failure.

- Hugo, MN, USA

problem #24

Jan 092018

Sonata

  • 207,000 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Sonata. While stationary, the vehicle caught fire and the contact noticed smoke underneath the dashboard. After exiting the vehicle, the contact noticed flames under the hood of the vehicle. A police report was filed. The contact called the fire department, but the fire extinguished on its own. There were no injuries. White water motors in West harrison, Indiana was made aware of the fire and stated that there was no recall on the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the fire. The failure mileage was approximately 207,000.

- New Trenton, IN, USA

problem #23

Jan 192018

Sonata

  • 127,640 miles
Vehicle in motion on freeway in rush hour traffic, speed varying from 0-30 mph. Engine spontaneously began making loud metallic knocking noise when accelerator was pressed. No engine warning light activated. Mechanic found no loss of oil pressure. Front end disassembly showed metal bits in the oil pan. Engine considered to be unsafe to drive due to threat of fire. Cause believed to be crankshaft bearings.

- Tampa, FL, USA

problem #22

Nov 282017

Sonata

  • 160,000 miles
Vehicle was in motion and engine began knocking. Stopped driving it. Removal of engine has shown that it has thrown a rod and spun the insert out of it. This has happened on other Hyundai vehicles but the recall isn't going back far enough.

- Trenton, UT, USA

problem #21

Jun 302017

Sonata

  • 132,000 miles
For the second time, I have had oil leaking out of the valve cover or timing belt cover onto the alternator. So much so, that the alternator becomes soaked and "shorts out" according to a Hyundai dealer. Mechanics who have repaired this all agree that this is a hazard and public safety issue. "fire risk" and "sudden complete loss of control at highway speeds" were both mentioned. Hyundai states that my vehicle is out of warranty due to mileage and says that there is no recall for this problem despite the obvious risks that their mechanics and other mechanics mention. After very little effort in researching this problem on the internet, it immediately became obvious that this is a common recall for Hyundai concerning this engine(3.3L V6). The recalls name other Hyundai products but for some reason skip my vehicle even though two reps at Hyundai customer service state that "you are describing the exact same problem". we have spent close to $1000 on this one issue in the last year. It nearly caused my wife to be stranded on the interstate 10hrs from home. And Hyundai admits that it is an issue but because my VIN is not listed, they refuse to help fix or refund any thing that has already been spent on this manufacture defect. Again, I emphasize that this is a public safety hazard that needs to be addressed. Despite recent repair, this problem still continues. The vehicle was traveling at 70mph each time this issue occurred. I have records of repair from independent mechanics and statement from Hyundai stating this problem. This occurred at 118,000 and 132,000 miles. It seems like it occurred prior to this as well(looking for records).

- Lafayette, LA, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »

Not what you are looking for?