2009 Hyundai SANTA FE: complaints, problems and recalls

THE LIGHT EMITTED BY THE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS IS SO FOCUSED AS TO CREATE A TUNNEL EFFECT. THIS NON-DIFFUSED LIGHT DOES NOT ALLOW FOR ANY ILLUMINATION OTHER THAN STRAIGHT AHEAD AND NO HIGHER THAN THE LEVEL OF THE HEADLAMP. IN CONDITIONS OF TOTAL DARKNESS, IT IS AS IF YOU ARE WEARING A LONG BRIMMED CAP AND BLINDERS. AS YOU DRIVE UP OR DOWN A HILL, THE LIGHT SHINES "INTO" THE RISE OR DIP IN THE ROAD. WHEN GOING AROUND A CORNER, THE LIGHT DOES NOT "LEAD" THE VEHICLE AROUND THE BEND, IT "LAGS" BEHIND CREATING A DARK ZONE AS THE CAR GOES AROUND THE TU…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10283803 at NHTSA ↗

THE RANGE OF VISION ON THE LOW BEAMS IS SUB-STANDARD. GOING UP HILLS, THEY SEEM TO SHINE INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE HILL AS IF THEIR LONG RANGE AIM WAS DOWN, NOT UP. GOING DOWN A STEEP HILL , THEY APPEAR TO SHINE ON A HORIZONTAL PLANE - NOT DOWN ON THE ROAD. THE HIGH BEAMS ARE FINE, BUT IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO SEE USING JUST THE LOW BEAMS. HYUNDAI SAYS THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE FOCUS OF THE LIGHT EMITTED BY THE LAMPS OR WITH THEIR AIM. HOWEVER, THEY ARE NOT FIT FOR NIGHTTIME DRIVING. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10283972 at NHTSA ↗

MY 2009 HYUNDAI SANTE FE JUST PURCHASED WITH 50 MILES ON IN 07/29/09, BLEW UP ON ME WHILE I WAS DRIVING AND TOTALLY BURNED THE FRONT AND ENGINE. I HAVE AN EVALUATION FROM 21ST CENTURY APPRAISERS REQUIRED BY GEICO WHOM DIAGNOSED A TOTAL LOSS. VALUESCOPE GEICO CLAIM SERVICES MARKET REPORT REPORT REFERENCE NUMBER: 42157015 ADJUSTER: HUFF…

Owner-reported narrative. 1,200 miles reported. Look up ODI 10284035 at NHTSA ↗

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS A FACTORY DECAL INDICATING THAT THE LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY WAS REDUCED. HE CONTACTED THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD THAT THEY DID NOT PUT THE DECALS ON THE VEHICLE AND HAD NO KNOWLEDGE HOW TO UPDATE THEM. THE MANUFACTURER WAS ALSO UNABLE TO ASSIST THE CONTACT ON HOW TO CORRECT THE DECAL. THE VEHICLE ALSO HYDROPLANED WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE IN THE RAIN WHICH CAUSED HIM TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT THE TIRES. THE TIRES WERE BRIDGESTONE DUELER H/T TIRES SIZE P235/60/R18. THE DOT CO…

Owner-reported narrative. 300 miles reported. Look up ODI 10292873 at NHTSA ↗

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 75-80 MPH THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO ACCELERATE WITHOUT INTENTION. EVEN AFTER REPEATED BRAKE APPLICATION THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT DECELERATE. HE HAD TO SHIFT THE VEHICLE INTO NEUTRAL TO DECELERATE. 5 DAYS PRIOR TO THE FAILURE THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 25-35 MPH IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. THERE WAS NOT INTERFERENCE BETWEEN THE FLOOR MAT AND THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. THE TECHNICIAN HAVE INSPECTED THE VEHICLE, BUT COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE M…

Owner-reported narrative. 20,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10296110 at NHTSA ↗

HYUNDAI SANTA FE PURCHASED ON 12 SEPT 2009. DVD SCREEN NOT FUNCTIONING, COULD HEAR MOVIE NOT SEE IT. DEALERSHIP REPLACED SCREEN IN OCTOBER 2009. SINCE THEN, THE DVD RSE SYSTEM HAS INTERMITTENTLY CHANGED FROM DVD TO XM OR CD AT WILL. REAR PASSENGERS ARE NOT ABLE TO REACH THE DVD BUTTONS DUE TO AGE AND CHILD SAFETY SEATS. RSE IS LOCKED FROM FRONT CONTROLS. DVD SYSTEM CONTINUES TO SWITCH FROM DVD TO XM OR CD AT LEAST ONCE PER DAY CAUSING THE PASSENGERS TO BE BLASTED WITH HIGH VOLUME MUSIC. IN OCTOBER 2009, THE INTERNAL ELECTRICAL CONTROL SYSTEM (F…

Owner-reported narrative. 1,370 miles reported. Look up ODI 10302521 at NHTSA ↗

UNEXPLAINED ACCELERATION BETWEEN 30 AND 35 MPH. THERE WAS NO FLOOR MAT INTERFERENCE AND COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE ERROR TODAY. THIS WAS THE FIRST OCCURRENCE. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 6,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10304948 at NHTSA ↗

ON 01/02/2010, I BOUGHT A HYUNDAI SANTA FE LIMITED FROM A CAR DEALER NAMED SOUTHERN STATES IMPORTS IN RALEIGH. A FEW DAYS LATER, I NOTICED THAT THE FRONT SEAT PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF RED LIGHT STAYED ON OCCASIONALLY REGARDLESS OF THE WEIGHT OR POSITION OF THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT. AROUND THE SAME TIME, I NOTICED THAT THE CD PLAYER OCCASIONALLY AUTOMATICALLY TRIPPED OVER TO THE RADIO AND VICE VERSA. I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP AND RECEIVED CONFLICTING ADVICE ON WHAT I SHOULD DO AT THIS TIME. HOWEVER, I CHOSE THE ADVICE OF MY FIRST CONTACT PERSON AT …

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10308637 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2012-07-25 (July 25, 2012)

Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2007 through 2009 Santa Fe vehicles manufactured from April 19, 2006, through July 7, 2008. The occupant classification system (OCS) may need recalibration to accurately detect small statured adults.

Consequence: Improper classification or detection may cause the front passenger airbag not to deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger.

Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will update the classification software free of charge. The safety recall began on September 7, 2012. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.

Reported: 2013-04-01 (April 1, 2013)

Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.

Consequence: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.