2009 Hyundai SONATA: complaints, problems and recalls
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
460 owner complaints analyzed
2 distinct recall campaigns
68,000 mi median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2009 model year. Data snapshot: . 374 complaints include usable failure mileage.
Most common problems
Service Brakes is the most frequently named component, appearing in 64 of 460 complaints (13.9%). A complaint can name multiple components.
| Topic | Matching reports | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Braking behavior | 132 | 28.7% |
| Transmission and shifting | 35 | 7.6% |
| Steering behavior | 32 | 7.0% |
| Electrical and battery issues | 27 | 5.9% |
| Engine operation | 24 | 5.2% |
| Fuel system concerns | 6 | 1.3% |
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Service Brakes | 64 |
| Electrical System | 57 |
| Engine | 56 |
| Electronic Stability Control (Esc) | 51 |
| Unknown Or Other | 48 |
| Power Train | 37 |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 31 |
| Structure:Body | 31 |
Service Brakes: 64; Electrical System: 57; Engine: 56; Electronic Stability Control (Esc): 51; Unknown Or Other: 48; Power Train: 37; Service Brakes, Hydraulic: 31; Structure:Body: 31
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 63 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 70 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 76 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 64 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 71 |
| 150,000 and above | 30 |
Under 25,000: 63; 25,000 to 49,999: 70; 50,000 to 74,999: 76; 75,000 to 99,999: 64; 100,000 to 149,999: 71; 150,000 and above: 30
50,000 to 74,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (76). 86 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 5 |
| 2009 | 12 |
| 2010 | 24 |
| 2011 | 38 |
| 2012 | 28 |
| 2013 | 65 |
| 2014 | 49 |
| 2015 | 45 |
| 2016 | 55 |
| 2017 | 33 |
| 2018 | 23 |
| 2019 | 27 |
| 2020 | 20 |
| 2021 | 12 |
| 2022 | 7 |
| 2023 | 5 |
| 2024 | 4 |
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2026 | 4 |
2008: 5; 2009: 12; 2010: 24; 2011: 38; 2012: 28; 2013: 65; 2014: 49; 2015: 45; 2016: 55; 2017: 33; 2018: 23; 2019: 27; 2020: 20; 2021: 12; 2022: 7; 2023: 5; 2024: 4; 2025: 4; 2026: 4
Pattern summary
Service Brakes leads the component reports. Braking behavior appears in 132 complaint narratives. Transmission and shifting appears in 35 complaint narratives. Steering behavior appears in 32 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Examples from the source records
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 10237213 · 2008-08-06 (August 6, 2008)
NEW 2009 HYUNDAI SONATA UNLOCKS ALL DOORS ANYTIME CAR IS PLACED IN PARK. THIS FEATURE IS IN THE DESIGN AND CANNOT BE DISABLED. THIS FEATURE PUTS ALL PASSENGERS AND DRIVES AT RISK ANYTIME THE CAR IS STOPPED AND PLACED IN PARK, ESPECIALLY ONCE THE CRIMINALS FIND THIS OUT *TR
Owner-reported narrative. 40 miles reported. Look up ODI 10237213 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10237219 · 2008-08-06 (August 6, 2008)
2009 HYUNDAI SONATA ALL DOORS UNLOCK WHEN CAR IS PLACED IN PARK. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY DESIGN PROBLEM AND CANNOT BE DEACTIVATED OR CORRECTED BY DEALERS. THIS PROBLEM IS PUTTING ALL PASSENGERS AND DRIVERS AT RISK, WHEN CAR IS PLACED IN PARK ESPECIALLY ONCE THE CRIMINALS HERE ABOUT THIS DEFECT. HOW MANY CARS WILL BE HIJACKED AND OR ROBBERIES OCCUR BEFORE SOMEONE REALIZES THIS IS A MAJOR PROBLEM WITH THIS FEATURE!!! *TR
Owner-reported narrative. 40 miles reported. Look up ODI 10237219 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10237499 · 2008-08-08 (August 8, 2008)
I BOUGHT A NEW 2009 HYUNDAI SONATA LIMITED- I TOOK IT THE HYUNDAI SERVICE IN YONKERS NY TO TEST DRIVE MY NEW CAR . IT SEEMED TO ME THE CAR HAD BAD FRONT SHOCKS ABSORBERS. AFTER BEING DRIVEN BY ONE OF THEIR SERVICE MEN HE AGREED THAT SOMETHING WAS VERY WRONG. I WAS TOLD TO BRING BACK THE CAR WHEN THE NEW SHOCKS ARRIVE. THE MANAGER AND HIS SERVICE MEN WERE VERY COURTEOUS TO ME AND HANDLED THE SITUATION VERY PROFESSIONALLY. UNTIL THE TIME THE NEW SHOCKS ARRIVE I WILL NOT USE THE CAR, BECAUSE I CONSIDER IT A DANGER ON THE ROAD. I'M HOPING THAT WILL…
Owner-reported narrative. 200 miles reported. Look up ODI 10237499 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10244892 · 2008-10-08 (October 8, 2008)
NEW CAR WAS DELIVERED TO ME WITH A MAJOR ENGINE OIL LEAK. COULD HAVE RESULTED IN ENGINE FAILURE AND LOSS OF CONTROL OF CAR. CAR HAS BEEN IN DEALERS GARAGE FOR 10 DAYS WITH NO REPAIR YET MADE. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. 197 miles reported. Look up ODI 10244892 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10245002 · 2008-10-09 (October 9, 2008)
LOUD NOISE OVER BUMPS. SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING IS LOOSE. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10245002 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10254321 · 2009-01-08 (January 8, 2009)
NEW CAR WAS DELIVERED TO ME WITH A MAJOR ENGINE OIL LEAK. COULD HAVE RESULTED IN ENGINE FAILURE AND LOSS OF CONTROL. ENGINE WAS REPLACED BUT HAS CAUSED POWER TRAIN VIBRATION AND STRONG ODOR WHEN THE ENGINE IS WARM. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10254321 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10256944 · 2009-01-30 (January 30, 2009)
2009 HYUNDAI SONATA SOUNDS LIKE IT NEEDS NEW SHOCKS/STRUTS RIGHT OFF THE LOT CAR HAS LESS THAN 300 MILES ON IT WENT TO DEALER THE SERVICE TECH SAID MANY HAD COMPLAINED ABOUT THE SAME THING BUT NO FIX HE TOLD ME TO COMPLAIN TO HYUNDAI CALLED AND THEY SAID SORRY THAT'S THE WAY THEY ARE THAT ITS OPERATING AS DESIGNED THIS WILL BE MY LAST HYUNDAI. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. 50 miles reported. Look up ODI 10256944 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10259534 · 2009-02-21 (February 21, 2009)
SATELLITE/FM/AM DIGITAL RADIO DOES NOT FUNCTION PROPERLY. RADIO HAS BEEN REPLACED AND ALL CONNECTIONS CHECKED. SATELLITE WORKS FINE, FM ONLY WORKS WITH STRONG SIGNALS AROUND AND THE AM DOES NOT WORK AT ALL. CAR DEALER DOES NOT HAVE ANY SOLUTION AND ONLY SAYS THAT THE PROBLEM SHOULD WORK IT SELF OUT ONCE THE ALL DIGITAL SIGNAL ARE UTILIZED. DEALER SAYS AN NON-DIGITAL RADIO CANNOT BE INSTALLED. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10259534 at NHTSA ↗
Recall history
2 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.
13V113000 · Exterior Lighting:Brake Lights:Switch
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.
NHTSA campaign record ↗13V354000 · Suspension:Rear
Reported: 2013-08-12 (August 12, 2013)
Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 Sonata vehicles manufactured March 1, 2005, through January 21, 2010; and model year 2006-2011 Azera vehicles manufactured September 27, 2005, through November 22, 2010 originally sold in, or currently registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. Road salt and water can enter portions of the rear crossmember, leading to corrosion of the crossmember steel. This may lead to detachment of one of the rear control arms.
Consequence: Control arm separation may suddenly change the rear wheel alignment, affecting the handling of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will repair or replace the crossmember assembly. The recall began on October 8, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai Customer Care Center at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall number is 113.
NHTSA campaign record ↗