2021 HYUNDAI SANTA FE

What owners reported to NHTSA, ranked by how often and how seriously.

This is complaint data, not a random sample.

It only includes owners who chose to file a federal complaint, so it over-represents dramatic and safety-related problems and under-represents minor issues an owner just had fixed without reporting. Read this as what NHTSA complainants report most, not as this vehicle's true failure rate. Full methodology.

Component ranking

  1. #1

    transmission automatic

    6 stranded, 25 unsafe

    31
    incidents

    Commonly reported, insufficient mileage data - n=10, median 13,000 mi, no reliable range below 25 reports.

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated upon attempting to drive the vehicle, she shifted into drive; however, the vehicle reversed inadvertently. The contact depressed the brake pedal and shifted into park. The contact shifted from park t…"~10,273 mi, complaint #1804792
    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while making a turn from a complete stop, the vehicle responded but suddenly stopped. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle 5 minutes later. However…"~11,900 mi, complaint #1858200
    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle experienced hard shifting while attempting to change gears, and the vehicle hesitated, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle…"~99,700 mi, complaint #2164385
  2. #2

    horn

    9 unsafe, 2 broken, 4 annoyance

    15
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the horn had become inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the failure was a common failure. The vehicle was not…"~55,000 mi, complaint #2070970
  3. #3

    adas collision warning

    12 unsafe

    12
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "THE FORWARD COLLISION SYSTEM IS AUTOMATICALLY BEING ACTIVATED WITHOUT ANY CAR OR OBJECT NEAR THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE. IT HAPPENED 3 TIMES WHILE ON THE FREEWAY AND HIGHWAY. THE SYSTEM AUTOMATICALLY SLAMS ON THE BRAKES, THE VEHICLE SWERVES A LITTLE TO LEFT AN…"~1,100 mi, complaint #1746745
  4. #4

    engine stall or no start

    2 stranded, 10 unsafe

    12
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled without warning. The vehicle was not able to restart and was towed to the dealer. The dealer stated that the engine needed to be replac…"~37,500 mi, complaint #1888870
  5. #5

    glass and windshield

    9 unsafe

    9
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=6)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while her vehicle was parked in her driveway, the rear windshield shattered without incident. The contact also mentioned that repairmen who happened to be on her property at the time of the fail…"~10,000 mi, complaint #1795160
  6. #6

    acceleration loss or hesitation

    8 unsafe

    8
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=5)

    • "The contact owns 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Num…"~40,000 mi, complaint #1931873
  7. #7

    backup camera

    6 unsafe, 2 annoyance

    8
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=5)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while the back-up camera was activated, the screen display turned to a green color and no image was visible, creating a visibility hazard for the driver. The contact indicated that the failure w…"~21,000 mi, complaint #1840364
    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V879000 (BACK OVER PREVENTION), but the failure occurred. The contact stated that the back over prevention camera displayed a distorted im…"~50,667 mi, complaint #2186929
  8. #8

    other

    6 unsafe, 2 annoyance

    8
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V524000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available and would not be available for another three months. The con…"complaint #1769258
    • "The sun visor does not meet the A Pillar. There is a large gap there. This gap frequently allows the sun glare to impact the driver."complaint #1831833
    • "I have been aware of this SAFETY DEFECT/RECALL for over 2 months now yet Hyundai has no remedy planned thus placing owners and others on the road in serious danger. This is unacceptable and I wish to file a formal complaint with the NHTSA. (NHTSA recall numb…"complaint #1858413
    • "THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT ISSUED A REMEDY FOR THIS RECALL #22V746000 SINCE THE INITIAL FILING OF THE RECALL ON 10/6022. "complaint #1862359
    • " On two different occasions the car is rolled away from me and while I was out of the car and walking away from the vehicle. The first time it rolled backwards across the parking lot and into a flagpole and the second time it was a McDonald's parking lot and I…"complaint #1979644
  9. #9

    sunroof

    4 unsafe

    4
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY WITH THE SUNROOF CLOSED WHEN I HEARD A VERY LOUD BANG. I PULLED OFF TO CHECK THE EXTERIOR BUT SAW NOTHING. I DRIVE FOR ABOUT AN HOUR MORE WHEN IT STARTED SOUNDING LIKE THE SUNROOF WAS OPEN. I PULLED OVER TO CHECK IT, AND IT WAS DES…"~500 mi, complaint #1746039
  10. #10

    battery and charging

    3 unsafe

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Car would not start; battery was too low to activate lights or locks, let alone starter. An attempted jumper cable connection to an older car was insufficient to make the motor turn, even after just running the assist car while connected for 20+ minutes. A sub…"complaint #1770639
    • "Car had a dead battery called road service they tested the battery said it had a bad cell they jumped it and I took it to the dealership they tested it by Hyundai protocol charged it for 60 minutes then load tested said it passed didn’t find anything wrong wit…"complaint #1800278
    • "Car was without power after 16 months and 7500 miles. Got it jump started. Two days after that, car would not start again. Second time jump started. Taken to the dealership (Alexandria Hyundai) where two days after that they found "nothing wrong with the car"…"complaint #1842946
  11. #11

    hv system fault reduced power

    3 unsafe

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "There were two warning (?) "bings" from the instrument cluster and then vehicle completely lost power and would not exceed maybe [REDACTED ADDRESS], but no willingness for engine to speed up beyond idle speed. Was like this for several city blocks until I was…"complaint #1857979
    • "Hyundai filed Recall Campaign 236 for the vehicle entering an unsafe state. On July 10th I took in our 2021 Santa Fe Limited with just over 15,000 miles, which had been operating normally with the serious safety defect and received the Remediation for this rec…"complaint #1915880
    • "While traveling Interstate 75in Florida en route to Venice Hyundai for routine oil change at 65 mph, vehicle rapidly slowed to 40mph, driver pressing on gas pedal but vehicle would not accelerate( while being tailgated by semi that was flashing warning headlig…"complaint #2142302
  12. #12

    airbag system

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving at various speeds with an occupant in the passenger’s side front seat, the air bag light off message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed tha…"~16,000 mi, complaint #1975204
    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the controls on the steering wheel became inoperable. In addition, the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mecha…"~60,000 mi, complaint #2137111
  13. #13

    brake hydraulics

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at various speeds, she had to depress the brake pedal to the floorboard to stop the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact called th…"~58,800 mi, complaint #1877904
  14. #14

    door latch and hinge

    1 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The passenger door has a sharp edge at the bottom exactly like the palasade hyundai recall. Both my daughter and my 82 year old mother have gashed their ankle on the door. In the case of my mother she was lucky we did not need stitches! I have a picture of t…"complaint #1822694
    • "The door to the gas tank is a push door which is temperamental. I can be at the pump and push the door to pop it open and it won't. I'm at the point where I have to pop my gas tank open before I even get to the gas station because to pull up to the pump and no…"complaint #2240102
  15. #15

    fuel tank and lines

    1 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I am writing to formally report an issue with my vehicle that I believe may warrant a recall investigation. The issue involves the fuel door, which is failing to open after the car has been turned off. This has occurred repeatedly and is preventing me from ref…"complaint #2102342
    • "Fuel door mechanism stops working leaving you unable to add fuel. Is a constant complaint in 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe vehicles. My vehicle's door mechanism as stopped working 53,000 miles as well. "complaint #2223294
  16. #16

    lighting exterior

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "DARK SPOT IN LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT FIELD CAUSES LOSS OF VIEW FOR DRIVER AS THE DARK SPOT PASSES FROM OBJECT TO OBJECT. PEOPLE OR ANIMALS, EVEN SIGNS LOSE ILLUMINATION AS THE DARK SPOT COVERS THEM. REFLECTIVE BARRELS IN CONSTRUCTION AREAS LOSE THEIR REFLECTIVITY…"complaint #1745632
    • "NOTICE: THIS CONCERN IS NOT THE RESULT OF AN ACCIDENT, IT IS AN ATTEMPT TO BRING ATTENTION TO WHAT I FEEL IS POOR ENGINEERING/DESIGN OF THE TURN SIGNAL INDICATORS ON THE BACK END OF THE 2021 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. We recently purchased this vehicle and just notic…"complaint #1754252
  17. #17

    parking brake

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "April 2022 My 2020 one, Honda Santa Fe started rolling backwards in rolling to a flagpole as I was walking away from the car. I tried to to catch up with the car. It had my family inside screaming. But I was unable to stop it from slimming into the fireplace.…"complaint #1930057
    • "My sante fe has shifted out of park and rolled away from me on 2 occasions. The first time I was about 30 feet away when my son and husband started screaming for me. The car we rolling across the parking lot. I tried to jump in and hit the brake but was uns…"complaint #1978261
  18. #18

    seat mechanism

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "17551 mileage. Parked vehicle. Placed in Park, set parking brake. Drivers seat moved full forward and leaned forward pinning me against the steering wheel forcing the breath out of me before I was able to stop the spontaneous movement. Restricted my breathing…"complaint #1827552
    • "Seat full forward, into the dash with no input from operator. SECOND OCCURRENCE 08/04/2022 at 1700 Central time when parking the Santa Fe in the garage. When turned off, the driver's seat ran full forward and reclined forward into the dash - unsafe and potenti…"complaint #1831088
  19. #19

    seatbelt and pretensioner

    1 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The driver side seat belt crosses at my neck. I have adjusted it as much as it will adjust and it still cuts into my neck. I am very concerned that if I am in an accident it will choke me or even decapitate me. In addition it is very uncomfortable but I a…"complaint #1967457
    • "The seat belt is incredibly slow to retract. Most times I need to help it along. I've tried pulling it out to check for kinks (none there) and tried cleaning it but it still won't retract "complaint #2063481
  20. #20

    abs module

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "For a few month now the light of ABS have been turning on. At the beginning there was no diagnosis specific, cause kept turning off. Two or three months ago again turn on and gave code of back caliper on the left and was changed. An now yesterday August 5, 202…"complaint #2117676
  21. #21

    ac compressor and refrigerant

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "My 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe (VIN starting with 5NM) began experiencing a significant failure of the air conditioning system during its third year of ownership. The vehicle developed a persistent refrigerant leak that now requires annual recharges to remain functi…"complaint #2200742
  22. #22

    adas adaptive cruise

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "This vehicle is the first Santa Fe that only comes with adaptive cruise control and there is no way to disable it and set regular cruise control. Here are just a few examples of the safety risk. We were on State Highway 29 which is a rural [REDACTED ADDRESS].…"complaint #1764104
  23. #23

    engine internal

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Car misfiring symptoms like rough or shaky idle, hesitation and loss of power during acceleration, stumbling, unusual popping/backfiring noises, poor fuel economy, and a lit Check Engine Light. Felt vibrations / heard sputtering sounds, as if the engine skippe…"complaint #2163615
  24. #24

    engine oil consumption

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=3)

    • "Problem #1 - At least 4 quarts of oil spewed from the oil tank and covered most of the engine for an unknown period time. There were no notifications, alerts, or any other indication concerning the oil tank having 1 or less quart of oil. Ultimately, there are…"~18,500 mi, complaint #1815435
  25. #25

    fuel injector

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "My 2021 Hyundai Santa Fe (VIN [XXX] ) is experiencing severe engine instability, including rough idling, hesitation upon acceleration, and intermittent stalling. These symptoms align with TSB 26-FL-001H regarding defective GDI fuel injectors. The vehicle has s…"complaint #2205354
  26. #26

    phone connectivity

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "WHILE IN DRIVE AND STATIONARY, MY VEHICLE HAS CONTINUOUSLY CAD CONNECTIONS ISSUES WITH MY MOBILE PHONE. I HAVE RECEIVED THE SAME ERROR MESSAGE STATING 'PHONE NOT RESPONDING. PLEASE RECONNECT IT AND TRY AGAIN.' THIS HAS HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING THROUGH AREAS I'M…"~1,500 mi, complaint #1735774
  27. #27

    power windows and locks

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The fuel door release button on my SUV has stopped working. It is a press and spring opening fuel door. While trying to get gas, it would not open, prohibiting me from putting gas in my car. (May 18, 2024) I went to the dealer on a Saturday in an emergency…"complaint #1996309
  28. #28

    throttle and pedal

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Problem first started on 3/31/22, car starting showing engine light as well as forward safety system off. Car would not accelerate and was shaking spuddering when foot was off the brake. Pulled into a safe location and called Towne Hyundai Genesis of Denville…"complaint #1818233
  29. #29

    transmission cvt

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "10/22/21, Mileage ~720, while driving on the highway I had two incidents when the car did not respond to throttle application. In the first instance while attempting to accelerate mildly on a level road the rpm went to 3500 with no acceleration. I backed off…"complaint #1774975
  30. #30

    transmission manual clutch

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "After jacking up the car to do a tire swap from winter tires and wheels to the OEM tires and wheels on the front passenger side using the factory supplied scissors jack the vehicle rocked slightly, causing the jack to fall over and the vehicle to drop. I had a…"complaint #1886276
  31. #31

    unintended acceleration

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The vehicle will accelerate unexpectedly without using the accelarator. Usually this occurs when releasing the brakes and on a slight incline.. To date no injuries or damage has occurred due to this. My dealer has not reproduced this defect as far as I know.…"complaint #1912530
  32. #32

    unknown

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Unknown vigorous shaking in rear of vehicle check engine light on. Stopped after turning car off and restarting. Hyundai found no causes and no codes when inspected for issue."complaint #1881950
  33. #33

    wheel bearing

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • " Ever since I have purchased these tires I have been experiencing extreme violent vibration between 60 to 75 Mi an hour on the highway at first I wondered if something was wrong with the balance on the tire so I had them checked at the dealership twice and the…"complaint #2094601
  34. #34

    wiper and washer

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The windshield wipers intermittently stop working. This has been occurring for 2 years and the 5dealership cannot find an issue because they always work when the car is in for service. They also now want to charge a diagnostic fee each time it's in since the c…"complaint #2223131
  35. #35

    wiring harness

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "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…"complaint #2067052

NHTSA investigations

Search NHTSA's own recall and complaint database for HYUNDAI SANTA FE directly.