Hyundai and Kia Account for 69% of Oil-Burning Complaints Since 2022

9,414 complaints filed with NHTSA describe an engine burning or consuming oil. The number has risen in almost every year on record, and since 2022 two brands account for most of it. Of 4,458 complaints filed since then, 3,080, or 69%, are about a Hyundai or a Kia.

Each period has had its own culprit, usually a single four-cylinder engine used across several models: Nissan's 2.5 in the early-2000s Altima, Toyota's 2.4 in the 2007 to 2009 Camry and RAV4, and GM's 2.4 in the 2010 to 2017 Equinox and Terrain.

The current leaders

The worst model years are the 2017 Santa Fe (158 complaints), the 2017 Tucson (148), the 2017 Sonata (138) and the 2016 Optima (135). By rate, the Santa Fe Sport stands out: one complaint in six about that model is about oil consumption.

The list is not only old four-cylinders. The 2020 Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade, both with a V6, add 79 and 74 complaints.

How much oil

Where owners put a number on it, the median is a quart every 1,000 miles, and a quarter report a quart every 500 miles or less. That sits close to what manufacturers have long called acceptable. 12% of these complaints say the owner was told the consumption was normal, and 17% describe an oil consumption test, the dealer procedure that decides whether a repair is covered.

Why it matters

Burning oil is rarely dangerous in itself: 0.5% of these complaints involve a crash, against 5.75% across all complaints. The risk is what happens when the level drops between changes. 6% of these complaints mention a replacement engine, and quoted repair bills have a median of $2,500, with a quarter above $5,500. Those are in line with the costs owners report across all faults, but here they land on an engine that usually seemed healthy.

The typical car was six years old, often just past the end of the powertrain warranty.

Buying one used

Pull the dipstick when you view the car. A low level halfway through an oil change interval tells you more than any history report. Look for blue smoke on a cold start and ask for oil change records with mileages.

For Hyundai and Kia models of these years, ask whether the engine has been replaced or covered by an extended warranty. Both brands extended engine coverage on many of these cars after class actions and recalls, and a dealer can check that from the VIN. Read the full Sonata complaint record or the one for the model you are considering, and run the VIN for open recalls.