CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2011 Sonata has a seriously defective engine that seizes without warning. It was awarded the dubious honor of being the first CarTalk / CarComplaints Turd of the Week in late September 2015.

A class action lawsuit was filed in May 2015 against Hyundai that claims the 2.4L Sonata engine is defective. More info here.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 14
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
63,389 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.

2011 Hyundai Sonata fuel system problems

fuel system problem

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2011 Hyundai Sonata Owner Comments (Page 3 of 5)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #59

Jul 192019

Sonata

  • 135,000 miles

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

I had smelling a gas smell coming from the vents on Friday July 19th andi took it to Firestone for a new battery and a oil change. I called the Hyundai dealership because Firestone told me about a new recall for the fire pressure fuel regulator and they highly suggested I take it into them. I called Hyundai and they said for me to bring it in and I didn't need an appointment so I told them I would be there around 3-4pm yesterday. So I left work early, picked up my car from Firestone and headed to the dealership which was about 10 miles away. I got on I-35 doing about 40mph or so because of traffic. All of a sudden the car next to me starts honking and waving saying my cars of fire. I try to apply the break but there was no pressure. My instrument column lit up like the 4th of July and then almost immediately smoke starts coming in from the vents, dashboard and floor. So my only option is to tuck and roll doing about 35-40mph on one of the busiest highways in austin. So I tuck and roll, people are stopped to help. I see my car continue to roll into the barrier and while car burst into flames.

- Bastrop, TX, USA

problem #58

Jul 102019

Sonata

  • 145,000 miles
Vehicle will shut down while driving down the road. No warning lights or sounds. The engine will just shut down completely. Engine starts up again but will again shut down while driving. No codes will come up on the ECM when scanned at a mechanic shop. No way to tell what is going on. Hyundai dealer has no answers for me.

- Rochester, MN, USA

problem #57

Jun 212019

Sonata

  • 125,913 miles
7/19 bought my 2011 Sonata then two days later check engine light came on. Took to dealership they said gas cap was loose and if it came back on to bring back in. 2 weeks later went to gas station, came back out car wouldnt start. No click or anything. All power worked as well. Walked home started researching, other owners had the same issue. Walked back determined to try some things I read about. Car started without me doing anything. No check light came on. Next day driving check engine light came on and thats when I took back to dealership. Of course it started up whenever they tried it so they wrote could not duplicate customer concern. They ran diagnostics and they said purge valve was found to be shortned internally. Code P0455. 500 bucks later because no warranty (as is vehicle) not even a month off the dam lot...my instructions were when filling up with fuel do not top off beyond when the fuel pump shuts off. Fuel could enter the purge valve/canister via vent tubes. Wtf....they wouldnt cover even though the dealership put the gas in when I bought it so it wasnt me....lucky me :(

- Converse, TX, USA

problem #56

Jun 052019

Sonata

  • 98,727 miles

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

The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. On several occasions, while driving, the vehicle loss power. The contact also stated that the vehicle vibrated abnormally while driving. The vehicle was taken to hanlees hilltop Hyundai (located at 3285 auto plaza, richmond, ca 94806, (510) 222-8882) where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump and fuel sensor modules needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 98,727.

- Richmond, CA, USA

problem #55

Jun 222019

Sonata

  • 197,260 miles
I was driving West on sunnyside road after leaving the parking lot of new seasons. I could see that the light was red and I pulled out onto sunnyside road. It was about 200 feet to the traffic that was stopped. I was doing about 20 mph when I realized that my car was not going to stop. I pushed hard onto the brakes but the car continued foreward under the pickup in front of me. Even with the airbags deployed I had no control. I was pushing the truck foreward. The other driver turned onto 157th ave and I was still unable to stop the car. I also turned right onto 157th ave. It was up hill I turned off the key and it came to a stop. My wife was pannicking and so was I. the car was filled with smoke and a lot of heat. My wife was screaming for someone to call 911. The driver of the truck rushed back to see if we were all ok. He called 911. My wife was sore as the airbags deployed and hit her in the chest. She had pain in her neck too. I was ok at the moment. I was worried about the other driver. He said that he was fine. He said that he had to honk his horn to get the car in front of him to move. They did and he was able to turn right. I am upset with ron tonkin Hyundai as I have had to wait almost a month to get an appointment for my oil change and the recalls taken care of. The first recall was for the air bags. The second recall was for the high pressure fuel pipe may have been damaged misaligned or improperly torqued when the engine was replaced allowing the fuel to leak. I am very upset with ron tonkin Hyundai as I have had to wait for almost a month to get an appointment. Jennifer lopez the service advisor. My appointment was set for June 26th 4 days after the accident. I went in to change the cars as I have a 2004 elantra. I have free oil changes on both cars. She told me that the recalls were not the reason and asked me if I was going to buy another Hyundai.

- Damascus, OR, USA

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problem #54

Apr 262019

Sonata

  • 92,000 miles
The fuel gauge on the dash board stopped accurately showing how much fuel is in the tank. The tank may be full, but the gauge will show it as half full, or three-quarters full. Sometimes it changes mid-drive, and starts to go up. I can't trust the gauge anymore.

- Oakland, CA, USA

problem #53

Feb 212019

Sonata

  • miles

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

Went in for a recall about my fuel system line and they had no remedy to fix my vehicle, I recieved notice there was a recall and scheduled an appointment but they told me there was no remedy available been almost a week and im scared my car will catch fire as said in the recall this is a ticking time bomb.

- West Sacramento, CA, USA

problem #52

Feb 012019

Sonata

  • 103,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. While the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed fuel fumes inside the vehicle. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was towed to harbor Hyundai (3720 cherry ave, long beach, ca 90807, (866) 967-2242) where the fuel line was repaired. The dealer also repaired the vehicle per NHTSA campaign number: 15V568000 (engine). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 103,000.

- Huntington Beach, CA, USA

problem #51

Nov 302018

Sonata

  • 100 miles
Hyundai dealership replaced engine and starter in my 2011 Sonata in November 2018 got car back radio bluetooth usb electrical and ac didn't work and it cut off on me numerous times as well as tire exploded on me that they 'forgot to tell me about' and have had more problems car does not run and I can't get any answers or solutions! I spent $500 on new fuel injector still won't run! dealership in montgomery, al replaced engine and did sloppy work and didn't value my safety at all! do I have to have it towed back to the same dealership" do I have to pay for towing for a 3rd time that is clearly on them! mechanic told me electrical was hooked up properly and/or wiring burnt when engine seized! also I've had to buy 3 tires when mine were fairly new because the speed wheel sensor is puncturing them, I've seen a lot of people have had same problems is their a recall on the speed wheel sensor" I've been without away to go since November & have spent more money than I have trying to get it to run & paying for a car that don't run! im on disability & don't have money to continue putting in this car that should run as it did prior to engine seizing! im no mechanic but I don't know how they put engine & starter in 3 days or how they released my car without anyone in service in to go over paperwork or tell me about the tire stated on paperwork 'needs immediate attention tire separated ' they said they forgot, tire exploded on me so they definitely didn't care about my safety!! paperwork also stated was test drove, 'if it was' again I don't know how they released it! 2nd time at dealership they were suppose to check & see why my radio, bluetooth, usb, ac electrical didn't work & did prior to engine seizing! when I picked it up they had no answers or solutions why! back at dealer wants $8,000 for problems I never had til they worked on it and for pending recalls with no remedy

- Prattville, AL, USA

problem #50

Feb 022019

Sonata

  • 138,460 miles
Takata recall.on 2/2/2019 my car stalled out why I was driving and when I lifted the hood it's was a electrical burning smell with smoke coming from under the motor I had the car towed and the tow driver also said he smelled like something. Electrical was burning I was coming off a main highway to get an a city street had a friend check out the starter which he replaced, and I replaced it with a new battery.and my friend said the motor is locked

- Durham, NC, USA

problem #49

Jan 032019

Sonata

  • miles

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

Driving one day and started smelling gas. Seemed like gas was inside the car because the smell was so bad. I was told by the dealer that the fuel injector went bad and had to be replaced costing me over $1100. I would like research done to see if this is indeed a problem with these cars. The replaced my engine when it suddenly cut off on the interstate while I was going 65mph! they paid for that repair but I still feel like this last one had something to do with the engine as well. Since it's been fixed I still have that lingering odor of fuel in my car! I could have blown up in it except that I refused to drive it until I could get it repaired.

- Hampton, VA, USA

problem #48

Dec 212018

Sonata

  • 164,000 miles
Fuel level sending unit fails constantly. You never know how mich fuel you have in the vehicle. Estimating the mpg is nearly impossible because it varies greatly. I've ran out of gas several times in dangerous highway situations.

- Fife, WA, USA

problem #47

Dec 152018

Sonata

  • miles
I drove my 2011 Hyundai Sonata on the highway, while trying to accelerate my vehicle to match the flow of traffic I noticed that the vehicle would not accelerate past 40 mph. I pulled my vehicle over to the break down lane and engaged hazard lights. I released the hood latch and opened hood to engine compartment. I saw smoke and could smell burning plastic. I checked my oil levels and did a quick inspection of fluid levels. When I tried to restart my car the vehicle would not start. I had the car towed to a mechanic, the mechanic stated that the starter was burned out. He replaced the starter and when attempting to start the car the new starter began to smoke as well. He stated that it was good that I pull the car over so quickly cause the car could have caught on fire. This happened recently and he has stated it will require further investigation but he is pretty sure the engine has seized.

- Pawtucket, RI, USA

problem #46

Aug 252018

Sonata

  • 119,000 miles
Our car was in the number 2 lane of a 5 lane freeway when it all of a sudden lost power and the gas pedal didn't work and then a very sudden, hard jolt in the car. I wanted to downshift, but the shift lever went to park with no effect. I turned on my turn signal to get to the shoulder on the right. I let the wheels drag along the asphalt curb of the shoulder until I applied the emergency brake and turned off the ignition, by then, the smoke was filling the cabin coming through all of the air vents and my wife and I got out as quickly as we could. It wasn't until then that I found that we had been followed by a tow truck with its emergency lights on and blocked the slow lane of traffic for us and who had his dispatcher call the fire department. The engine in this car had been replaced in March, 2018 under a recall for engine knocking noise. The tow truck driver tried his fire extinguisher, but it had no effect and he stated it would not work because it was a gasoline fire. No injuries were sustained.in order to install the new engine they have to bend the fuel lines out of the way and a fuel line could have been kinked, or was never installed properly. No one had done any work on the engine since it was installed by the Hyundai dealer. I have a fire report, but it is 8 pages. Highway patrol was present, but they do not make a report when only 1 car is involved.

- Rancho Cucamonga, CA, USA

problem #45

Sep 082018

Sonata

  • 106,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. While the vehicle was stationary and while driving various speeds, a strong odor of fuel was present inside the cabin. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent and unrelated to filling up the fuel tank. In addition, the contact described that there was a strong, indistinct odor similar to that of burning chemicals also inside the vehicle. Hiley Hyundai of fort worth (9000 West fwy, fort worth, Texas 76108, (817) 796-8993) was made aware of the failure and stated that there were no recalls related to the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.

- Fort Worth, TX, USA

problem #44

Oct 232018

Sonata

  • 93,000 miles
Twice now car had just stopped running took to dealer said it was fuel pump two weeks later same thing at dealer now being towed I thank god I wasn't in an accident

- Cobleskill, NY, USA

problem #43

Sep 152018

Sonata

  • 125,000 miles
High pressure fuel pump and brakes

- Winston Salem, NC, USA

problem #42

Aug 282018

Sonata

  • 102,381 miles
My wife was making a U-turn in a friends driveway when for an unknown reason the car accelerated on its own propelling her down over a steep embankment landing in the creek below. Fortunately she was not injured but the car was deemed beyond repair by the insurance company. We notified Hyundai about this situation and they gave us a file # and requested more information by fax or email. Since emailing them we have not heard back and have not been able to contact them, only getting a message that the voice mail box is full. Our insurance company was holding the car for them so they could inspect it, of which Hyundai said they wanted to do, but after ten attempts by the insurance company to reach the Hyundai representatives they can no longer hold the car.

- Reedsville, PA, USA

problem #41

Sep 072018

Sonata

  • 45,000 miles
Engine stalls at high speeds and slow down dramatically. Have taken to hyudai twice, they say the engine recall has nothing to do with stalling only knocking and they want to charge me $104 diagnostic charge when clearly all the newspaper say that it possibly has debris which can clog fuel lines and cause stalling, they said this in not covered under the warranty or recall. It has happened numerous times in the past three years, but they won't do anything about it. Last time is listed below

- Oviedo, FL, USA

problem #40

Jun 222018

Sonata

  • 120,000 miles
The vehicle has always had a slight knocking noise coming from the engine. I thought it was just a sound from the engine rev as you accerate. Then as I was accelerating pulling from my drive way there was a loud knocking noise coming from the engine. You can hear it after slowing down under 7-10mph, then accelerating again. Now you can hear the knocking noise as the vehicle is warming up in the morning. The noise fades after 10mph.

- Miami, FL, USA

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