Owners have filed 6,859 complaints on the Hyundai Santa Fe, covering 2001–2026. The system named most often is Engine (1,346 reports). Worst years by volume: 2017, 2013, 2007; cleanest: 2026, 2006, 2018. 317 reports describe a crash, 201 a fire, 8 a death. On average the car was 5.6 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Hyundai Santa Fe
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 6,859 Santa Fe complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Engine 1,346 Read
The contact owned a 2012 hyundai santa fe. While driving approximately 20 mph, the contact was alerted of flames under the vehicle as black smoke poured from the engine. The contact crashed into a pole. The air bags deployed. The contact received bruises on the face and chest and experienced trouble breathing. Medical…
We were at full stop with Auto Hold feature enabled. Car lurched / jumped forward with no depression of the gas pedal. This caused us to strike the car in front of us
The contact owned a 2020 hyundai santa fe. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph the power steering suddenly failed causing the steering wheel to become very difficult to turn. The contact stated while stopping the vehicle it suddenly stalled. The contact stated various warning alerts illuminated. The…
Power Train 535 Read
On December4th 2024 my car rolled forward into a barrier post. I stopped to get air in my tires and the Parking Allert went off as I got near the barrier post. I then parked my car. I left my car running and driver door partially opened. I dropped the valve cap between the spokes of the last tire being filled. So, I…
The contact owns a 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while the vehicle was turned on and shifted into park, the vehicle unexpectedly rolled away with no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle then collided with a tree. The contact also stated that the air bags did not deploy during…
I was driving the car moving in reverse to exit my driveway. I placed the car in Park and while the engine was running I exited the car. Upon exiting the car, the car immediately started to roll forward and crashed through my garage door leveling it to the ground. The car continued moving forward into the garage and…
Electrical System 342 Read
12v connector for phone charger melted my phone cord. Reported to Centennial Hyundai Las Vegas and High Desert Hyundai Kingman Az. Both service departments said my vehicle cannot detect the problem because I purchased a substandard plug-in. I have worked as an operator of high voltage electrical systems. I understand…
- the contact stated that 2 years ago he started having stalling problems with the 2003 hyundai santa fe .s while driving at 55 mph or about 15-25 mph the vehicle will stall. He stated that the dealership had the vehicle on numerous occasions, and they could not find anything wrong with the vehicle. The dealership…
The vehicle experienced a significant failure of the Body Control Module (BCM). This resulted in multiple electrical malfunctions, including don't detected the Key, Despite the low mileage (12,000 miles), the electronic systems have proven unreliable, and the vehicle is currently undergoing warranty repairs at the…
Service Brakes 257 Read
The contact owned a 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that as his daughter was driving at 20 MPH on the highway, she depressed the brake pedal, the brakes failed to respond, and the vehicle started to smoke from the engine and into the cabin. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact's daughter…
ABS failed while merging causing a collision that ended up totaling my car
The contact owned a 2014 hyundai santa fe. The contact stated that while driving at a low rate of speed, her brakes failed to operate as needed and collided into another vehicle. The contact was uncertain if any warning lights had appeared on the instrument panel prior to the failure. The contact stated that all…
Steering 225 Read
My steering would work while I was driving with my kids in the car, my breaks were barely working, the hood started smoking and something under the hood in the engine caught on fire, there was a horrible smell when I was breaking and the breaks would jolt. The engine and cooling was not turning off even with my key…
The contact owned a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at about 35 MPH, The steering wheel was seized on a winding road; the steering warning light had also appeared on the instrument panel. The vehicle began to veer to the right direction as the contact forcefully steered the vehicle back to…
While turn left into a subdivision the steering would not re-center thus the car ran over a couple of large stones lining the roadway at the entrance. The ABS did not engage. Finally the car stopped about 30 feet later. I was able to finally steer the car back on to the street. There is damage to the undercarriage,…
Vehicle Speed Control 145 Read
On May 17th, I had an oil change completed on my 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe at a Hyundai dealership. On May 18th, I was parking my Santa Fe in a parking lot with which I am very familiar. I parked in front of the building, but realized that I had not pulled up far enough to the curb. I went to pull up a couple feet and as…
I was backing out of a parking spot and suddenly the car accelerated backwards into a wall. The floor mat was NOT on the accelerator pedal. Obviously, I might have accidently pressed the gas pedal. But, I strongly believe I did not. For me to be mistaken, all three of the following would have to be true: 1) I would…
Vehicle experienced sudden unintended acceleration as we slowed and turned into a parking space at a local restaurant parking lot. Engine reved, car accelerated rapidly, brakes did no hold and the vehicle plowed into and then on top of a safety barrier stopping just short of a chain link fence guarding a set of large…
Air Bags 120 Read
I was recently involved in a front side swipe accident where a person ran a red light and hit me while I was passing through an intersection. The impact was all in the front of the vehicle where the air bag had deployed. The air bag caught on fire within seconds after it had deployed. Thankfully I was conscious to…
On february 3, 2004, thomas ashfield, my husband, was driving to the high school to pick up our daughter. While driving southbound toward the high school two vehicles were traveling north. The first car was traveling at a higher rate of speed than what the elements called for, hitting the second car and shooting the…
The contact owned a 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, a deer jumped out in front of the contact's vehicle. The contact's vehicle crashed into the deer, where it came to a stop by the side of the roadway. The contact stated that none of the air bags deployed. The…
Structure 91 Read
The vehicle caught fire while driving due to unknown cause. The vehicle was unable to break as smoke began coming into the vents. Car came to a stop and the flames were present underneath the vehicle before engulfing the entire hood. Vehicle has been deemed total loss by insurance
In stop and go traffic, I took my foot off the brake to coast towards the car in front of me. This pattern had been going on for several miles. I was not touching the accelerator and in fact, my foot was not on the brake either, and the car suddenly accelerated full throttle. I had just a couple of seconds to try to…
I was turning into a parking lot doing about 5mph when the vehicle suddenly accelerated to a high rate of speed, took me over a cement barrier, a curb, went airborne, landed in a bush which it tore in half and took with me, across the sidewalk and spun in the middle of a busy intersection before the tire blew off the…
Santa Fe years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Electrical System,forward Collision Avoidance | — | — | |
| 2025 | Air Bags | 5 | — | |
| 2024 | Air Bags | 10 | — | |
| 2023 | Air Bags | 11 | 3 | |
| 2022 | Air Bags | 8 | 1 | |
| 2021 | Air Bags | 4 | 1 | |
| 2020 | Air Bags | 12 | 7 | |
| 2019 | Air Bags | 15 | 11 | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 5 | 3 | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 13 | 22 | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 6 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 7 | 12 | |
| 2014 | Air Bags | 16 | 30 | |
| 2013 | Air Bags | 13 | 41 | |
| 2012 | Air Bags | 20 | 17 | |
| 2011 | Air Bags | 12 | 8 | |
| 2010 | Air Bags | 7 | 6 | |
| 2009 | Air Bags | 24 | 3 | |
| 2008 | Air Bags | 16 | 7 | |
| 2007 | Air Bags | 28 | 8 | |
| 2006 | Air Bags | 10 | 3 | |
| 2005 | Air Bags | 14 | — | |
| 2004 | Air Bags | 26 | 7 | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 23 | 3 | |
| 2002 | Air Bags | 9 | 2 | |
| 2001 | Electrical System | 3 | 4 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 2,060 |
| Average complaints per series | 3.3 |
| Worst single series | 32 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 5.6 years |
A model average of 3.3 hides a worst series at 32. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Santa Fe?
By complaint volume, 2017, 2013, 2007 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Santa Fe years are the cleanest?
2026, 2006, 2018 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Hyundai Santa Fe have?
6,859 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2001–2026. Of those, 317 describe a crash and 201 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.