NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026
Catastrophic engine failure while driving - engine rod punched a hole through the engine. Up to date on oil changes, no lights on until it happened.
2017 Santa Fe with 115k miles had its last oil change in June. It still has another 4k before it is due again. The motor started making strange noises. I checked the oil and had to add 4 quarts! Engine started knocking bad. Left me and my family stranded 2 hours from home. I had oil issues previously before my warranty went out. Hyundai is refusing to address the oil consumption issue and replace my motor. Please help! This isn’t right.
The panoramic sunroof spontaneously shattered while driving under normal conditions. It sounded like a loud gunshot and then shards of the glass fell into the car - luckily the liner caught the majority of the shattered glass. The vehicle is currently at a dealership to fix the damage. I am fortunate that no other cars were around me when the spontaneous shattering happened. The loud noise caused me to slow down considerably, and some glass shards fell backward. If the glass shards had fallen into the vehicle it could have cut me. The dealership has no idea why my sunroof spontaneously combusted, but after doing some research, I saw that Hyundai has had this happen to many other of their vehicles with panoramic sunroofs, and they have gone through a handful of class action lawsuits over the damage. As it is the holidays, I have yet to hear back from my insurance company, but I have started the process of filing a claim online - however, the online form said I would need to call since the damage is on the sunroof which fell under a specialty circumstance. There were no warnings, messages, or other symptoms before the failure. The shattered glass came out of nowhere and without warning.
Hyundai Is aware of the connecting rod bearings inside the engine may wear prematurely, which can result in engine damage. However, when I contacted Hyundai about having this issue with my 2017 Santa Fe, they said my vehicle year does not qualify for the extended recall (10 years/ 120,000 miles) which they have on other vehicles years that are experience. My vehicle currently has 92525 miles. My complaint is I believe Hyundai should cover my 2017 vehicle, knowing that they have this issue with their engine. Any enforcement action or advice that NHTSA can provide would be appreciated. Sincerely, [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
I loved my 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe and faithfully got my oil changes. In [XXX] days started my car and heard a knocking noise as I drive home the noise got louder and louder. I took it to a Hyundai dealer on 12/21/23 and dealer said Rod bearings failed and I need a new engine and I had to pay $12K cause it’s out of warranty. The engine is only 6 years old and should not fail with routine maintenance. Hyundai will do nothing. Hyundai had a recall on engines built 1/26/17-2/13/17 and my car was manufactured on [XXX] - just [XXX] days before and has the same exact problem as the recall but they won’t replace my engine. [XXX] it didn’t lock up and cause an accident while I was driving the car. There are many others with this failing Lambda 3.3 engine and we need help! [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). The contact wanted to add the engines fail with no warning lights. Hyundai doesn't have a sensor for the failing part and no low engine light.
Excessive oil consumption, loud knocking.
The engine in my 2017 Santa Fe failed without notice. Upon starting the vehicle on 12/12/23 it would not run and upon checking had burned through oil leaving none in engine. This resulted is burned out spark plugs and leaving the car no longer able to drive. I took vehicle to dealership where spark plugs were replaced and engine failed again on test drive with technician. Hyundai contacted multiple times and refused to asssit with repairs despite multiple engine failures.
My engine light has come on 5 times over last 6 months. Each time My car started hesitating as if it were going to just just stop in the the middle of the street. Each time I had it towed to dealership. The following were replaced: exhaust manifold, intake manifold, engine coil, head gasket. The oil consumption test could not be done because this occurred before it ever reached 1K. The engine is rapidly consuming oil. It is now at the dealership for the 5th time. Put 5 quarts of synthetic oil in car 3 days ago because dealership could not fit me in. Car began to suddenly decelerate again on MassPike . Fladhing engine light came on. Drove off ramp and had it towed. Waiting for a 5th diagnostic.
Steering wheel sticks and will not turn or adjust until forcefully manipulated , then snaps sharply causing a change in direction of the vehicle. Dangerous to our family while driving.
Oct 31 the car was diagnosed with very low to no oil. Dealership added oil and all problem went away. 1 month/2000 miles later, the car began to have a knocking sound while driving on the highway. I pulled over and the oil was low so I added oil to get my home. Re-entered the highway and the engine just stopped. I was able to pull safely to the side of the road.
knocking noise. check engine light came on. took to my mechanic and its a total engine failure. ball bearings are loose and leaking oil and could have catastrophic damage at any moment.
after taking my Hyundai 2017 Santefe sport car to dealership and told them about engine being sluggish they replaced the sparkplugs and changed oil . Six week later the engine died as I was driving on a highway I was able to pullover but could have been worse. There was no warning lights it just died. Looking on line I seen that this company has had problems with engines failing and had a class action against them ( my vin was not part of that). Dealership never mentioned that this could happen to my car. I think the dealer was negligent in not informing me about potential problem. I now have no car to drive and I am still waiting for dealership to tell me what my options are.
My engine failed with regular oil changes at less than 120k miles with NO warning. It was 9 at night and it completely shut down on the highway. The hazards, brake lights, etc were not operable! I was almost hit by traffic three times due to not being able to turn on hazards and brake lights not working. I could not even place the car in neutral. Thankfully, the local police department was finally able to assist me but it was a frightening experience and Hyundai is doing absolutely nothing about it.
air bag warning light repeatedly goes on and off. code B1764, B1490, sometime both.
While driving on the highway, the engine cut out and died. It appears the engine seized. This is similar to the issues with the Santa Fe 2.4L engines, however this engine is a V6. According to a mechanic that inspected the engine, it appears that the engine had been burning engine oil, which ultimately led to the engine failure. There was no warning prior to engine failure. The engine failed while driving on the interstate, and the car coasted to a stop on the hard shoulder and would no longer start.
While driving the vehicle there is a noticeable “locking or sticking” in the the steering wheel while driving. This issue is most notable at a driving speed over 35 mph. Due to the vehicle not having a steering fluid reservoir, it is not possible to see if the power steering fluid is below the recommended levels.
I own a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe and have noticed excessive oil consumption in between regularly, scheduled oil changes with my personal mechanic for the past 8-9 months. At NO TIME did any error or sensor codes or warning lights come on. At one point, it was down 5 qts of oil! I reached out to my local dealership for an oil consumption test, but they were booked out and I was told to watch it. The service rep indicated since I had an extended warranty, the powertrain is good for up to 100,000 miles. On Nov. 24, 2023, without any warning sensors going off, the engine suddenly went into limp mode - no acceleration from 70 mph to approx. 45 mph on Hwy. 5. We immediately exited and when we restarted the engine, the check engine light came on. We immediately called AAA to tow our car home 90 miles. Our mechanic confirmed from the error code that Master Cylinder #2 had loss of compression. The engine only had 74,400+ miles and the oil was low again, despite having it full when we left for our trip. We had a scheduled appt. with the local dealership for Dec. 18th, but were able to tow it in on Dec. 7th. Hyundai Corp had agreed to pay for the full diagnostic fee, however, when they inspected it, they too got the error code for loss of compression and that the car needed a longblock replacement. Hyundai Corp denied it on Dec. 7th. All recalls have been performed. I tried calling Corp for assistance and my case was escalated but they again denied any help due to no warranty. The dealership offered $2,500 trade-in value, however, I feel that this amount was low-balled and they claimed it would cost them $15,000 for it to be re-sellable to replace the engine and a laundry list of other items that needed replacement (i.e. battery, hoses, etc.). We immediately went to claim my vehicle from the dealership and have it parked in my driveway awaiting results of a BBB claim The vehicle is currently parked in my driveway and is inoperable. The value has decreased
I was driving down a busy road when engine seized, no warnings on dash prior to failure. Luckily, I was able to catch a break in traffic and safely cruised into an open parking lot. Otherwise, it could have easily resulted in a collision. The incident occurred on Wednesday 11/22/2023. The 2017 Santa Fe had regular oil services and did not show or indicate any signs it required attention. No check engine light, no oil pressure, light, absolutely nothing. The car simply cut out while driving at around 35-40mph. Santa Fe was towed and the dealership mentioned rod bearing failure and engine knock. The estimate to fix it was 18k which was not feasible for me at the time. Additionally, the dealership claimed it was a common problem with the make, stating they had received multiple cars that Thanksgiving weekend. I worked with the dealership, but they did not seem to want to do the replacement, so I purchased a used rebuilt engine and paid the labor to change it for approximately 8,500 dollars. I opened a claim with Hyundai and it was denied because I was the a second owner and the warranty expired at 60k and I was at 66k. I went about a month and a half without a car and it created financial and emotional burdens.
I was driving on the highway, and suddenly oil and battery light came on and engine stopped and I had to pull over. The only warning was the check engine light came on when I started it 10 minutes before the engine died.
Driving on highway going about 75 mph and engine powered down and went into limp mode and that is when check engine light came on. Had my kids and myself in the car and had to switch over multiple lanes at slow and unsafe speeds on highway with other vehicles traveling 70-80 mph. Have had oil consumption issues (go through a quart a week) that no dealer would look into unless covered by Hyundai. Diagnosed that cylinder 2 is dead in engine and engine is no good anymore. Only 107,000 on vehicle.
While I was stopped at a stoplight turn lane in my 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe sport, smoke started to come out of my engine. I removed myself from the turn lane and got my car into a parking lot, and within a minute, flames appeared from the engine. I do not recall a warning light alerting me, as I was focused on getting the car to a safe place. I called 911 and the fire dept put out the flames as it consumed the front of my car. The whole engine area is toast, so not sure of the cause, and insurance will be processing the claim as a 100% loss. I was up to date on my service/recalls and the car had just hit 90,000 miles. We had recently checked fluid levels, so that was fine, but I did notice when driving the day before and that morning on my way to my destination, that the engine/ car seemed to be a little off or running a little rough. That may have been the precursor to the engine fire I experienced.
My steering wheel locks up when I am driving and making turns.
On 11/6/ 2023, while drive on the turnpike my check engine light went on and vehicle went in limp mode. I was scared and felt unsafe as I did not know what was happening. Got vehicle to dealer and P1326 was the code. Vehicle needs new engine. BCT test failed. Hyundai not helpful even when documentation provided.
11/06/2023 I was driving down the hwy when I heard a loud knocking sound coming from the engine, so stopped at a gas station only to find out that the engine had no oil in the motor and the oil warning light did not come on and the engine started losing power so we had it towed to a dealership to have them diagnose the problem and they said we are going to have to put a new engine in the vehicle in which I'm going to have to do cause I have a loan on this vehicle. Good thing we were getting off the freeway before the vehicle started to loose power and catch us right in the middle of traffic. I was not alone in the vehicle at the time of this issue.
I purchased this vehicle 05/05/2019 as a certified pre-owned vehicle from the dealership. I have kept regular maintenance on the car. Three same day of purchase, the engine quit as I was driving it. I was making a left hand turn and it quit while I was in the intersection. My children were in the car. Hyundai replaced the engine, but about a year and half later, that engine did the exact same thing. This time I was coming off the freeway. I can't imagine the possibilities if this had happened while on the freeway. Now, the engine is making the same sound as with the first two engines. I took it to Hyundai, and they claim it's normal. The car has issues where I will be trying to safely merge into traffic and it will hesitate. There are multiple intermittent issues that occur, but the scariest is knowing how the first two engines felt/ran and sounded prior to their failure, and once again experiencing those exact issues. How many times should an engine have to be replaced in a four year period? It is very likely that one of my children could be fatally injured depending on where we happen to be when this most recent engine fails, because it will - guaranteed. Online forums are full of thousands of people who purchased vehicles from Hyundai that have the EXACT same issue. No check engine warning. Just a rough sounding engine, and then it will just quit as they're driving. Something needs to be done. Lastly, June 18th, 2023 I had a collision with another vehicle. I collided with another vehicle, my front end to the other drivers driver's side. My air bags did not deploy. Nobody was injured, but I truly feel my airbags should have went off for the amount of damage to my front end. Pictures will be included.
Engine failure at 145,000 miles. Has been having extreme oil consumption and taken to the dealership a dozen times. Repeatedly told there is not an issue. Car shut off at 70 miles per hour on the highway with myself and three passengers inside. The check engine light came on mere seconds before cutting off. Dealership now states there are two holes in cylinder 2.
Engine failed while driving. No warning lights. No check engine lights. Lost complete power whole driving at normal speeds. Complete engine failure. Regualr maintenance records kept. 104k miles
The engine oil drained out almost all at once. An independent mechanic found a hole in the valve cover. He said it would be expensive to take the entire engine apart but that something had clearly come apart and flown through the engine, causing a large crack. Oil had splashed all over the top of the engine. There was no fire, but there could have been. We stopped driving it right away. We have not yet brought it in to the manufacturer, but we have read that there are many failures of this engine (3.3 liter) around this mileage (124,000). The emission control warning light had come on a few days earlier, but not the engine oil warning light.
My engine randomly and failed one evening that we were driving. It made an Odd sound as we were driving 35 mph down a hill and it just shut off completely. After taking it to the dealership we bought it from we were told the engine needed replaced. We still owe $14,000 on this car and it only had 71,000 miles on it. There were no indications that this was going to happen, no warning signs or signals. This vehicle was maintained regularly and very well.
The car has 77k miles on it and has received regular maintenance and oil changes at or around every 5k miles. It was brought to the dealership after the engine was making noises and a check engine light came on. This is where they diagnosed it with a timing chain issue and metal shards in all of the engine fluids. We are the second owners of the car and because it was out of Hyundai’s warranty they would not cover it, leaving us with a $15000 lemon. Without getting it repaired, the engine can stall or combust at any time. There is no reason why this engine should need to be replaced other than faulty parts produced by Hyundai.
I was driving down the highway when my vehicle shut off. After pulling off on the highway and opening the hood, there was a notice that the engine had overheated. Upon inspection, there was no oil nor any coolant left in the engine. I have records to demonstrate regular maintenance, and oil changes every 5000 miles
The engine had oil consumption issues that were addressed with dealership. The engine then just seized up and stopped working one day while driving down the road.
Driving down rd at 35 mph felt a sudden jolt and loud noise, car lost power and all lights came on. Coasted to a safe driveway and shut it down. Tried to re- start and it was a loud racket so immediately turned back off. Crazy thing is the oil was just changed , no leaks in garage or warning lights. Now I’m stuck trying to replace an engine that should’ve lasted more than 5 years!
Vehicle has 139k miles, regular maintenance, and engine had catastrophic failure at city street speeds when crankshaft and/or connecting rods failed. Hyundai advises that our vehicle VIN is not covered by their recall for this same issue. They say it only pertained to a small footprint of that manufacturing year. We still owe several years on this vehicle, and the cost to replace engine (with an equally problematic engine) will cost almost as much as we still owe, basically causing us to purchase the car twice. There should be some kind of recourse on these 3.3l engines with all the same issues. Reddit is full of people with the exact same issues. Our local shop quoted us at $11k to replace the engine.
My vehicles 3.3l engine suddenly seized while pulling out from a stop sign in the intersection. Thankfully a group of guys saw this and were able to assist me in moving the vehicle out of traffic. Prior to this occurring I had noticed that it had begun to burn a bit of oil but I routinely checked it. Sounds similar to issues that Hyundai has had with some of their other engines that are now being covered under an extended warranty.
Morning of October 16th, wife said engine "clicked" at start and then stopped at idle. I checked oil as it had been changed week prior and all levels were normal, then performed diagnostic with Carista tool and app, no codes. That evening while on the way to my 4 year olds practice, the car stopped in a lane of travel on a main cross town thoroughfare in Charlotte NC in rush hour, my wife, 4 year old, and 1 year old in the car. No light or indicators AT ALL ever came on NOTHING, no check engine light, nothing. Had it towed to local shop and he said this is the 10th or 11th Santa Fe we have seen with the V6, it most likely is the motor. So he does prelim diagnostic and suspects a thrown bearing and recommended we tow to Hyundai dealership, just at 70k, how is this possible? We are second owners and our VIN does not qualify for campaign 168. Shocking to now realize this appears to be an ongoing issues with this engine
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH the vehicle had begun to make an abnormal banging and knocking sound from the engine compartment. The contact pulled over, turned the vehicle off, and checked under the hood for any debris or loose engine parts that could account for the banging sounds. The contact turned the vehicle back on normally and there was no engine noise, however when he placed the vehicle into drive (D) and depressed the accelerator the loud banging noise started. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle back to his residence and checked the oil and noted that the dip stick showed no oil at the tip. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer or independent mechanic. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.
Engine light came on and then the engine lost power and had to be towed to dealership. Dealership said it was internal engine failure. Requested oil change documents for the past 6 years. First/original owner and vehicle only has 74,139 miles on it.
I have had the 2017 hyundai santa fa for about 6 months. I've had regular maintenance on the vehicle and out of no where it got a loud knock and clunking noise. Upon researching I've found thousands or people with the same 3.3 engine as mine with the same exact problem. Maybe it's kind of the same deal going on as the 2016 engines. No there was not any lights on but now there is a engine light and loud knocking.
In October of 2022 my check engine light came on when I took it to Oreily's error code P1326. When I searched code it was part of a recall indicating excessive connecting rod bearing wear. I called Hyundai of Del Rio which is about 80 miles from where I live. They told me to bring it in to address the issue they fixed the issue and advised me that there was an additional recall for the breaks. (recall 22V056000) They told me the parts were ordered and they would call me when the parts arrived. Now October 2023 my check engine light is on once again, called Hyundai Corporate and opened a case with them. They told me to take it to the dealership, called the dealership and asked for a tow they said they did not have one available. They advised me to get a tow and a rental car if the problem was with the warranty I would be reimbursed. My car was towed 10/24/23 and as of today no one tell me what the issue with my car is. When I call, they give me the run around. Hyundai corporate said they have not heard from Hyundai of Del Rio and Hyundai of Del Rio says they are waiting on Corporate. Corporate assigned me a case manager who stated I will not be reimbursed for tow or rental which is placing me in a financial hardship. I have spent 1K so far case #[XXX], case manager said we do not know what's going on and have not heard from dealership yet. He stated I can call I asked him not too since I am afraid, they will delay the process more. 11/1/23 I spoke with Dewayne at the dealership he stated yeah, we heard you opened a case and Hyundai said you will have to wait until they decided what's going to happen. How can they do this? It's my car do I not have a say in what they do to it? Do I not have a right to know what's wrong with it? am I not entitled to reimbursement? I have asked repeatedly for a loaner to cut the cost of the rental which is almost $70 dollars a day. The parts for the break recall were there and I was never contacted to take my vehicle. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
When driving vehicle it turns off while driving. It simply cuts off. It has done this at least 3 times already.
We were driving down the road with zero warning noises started to come from the car and the entire car shut down. We drifted to the side of the road from the momentum. Tow truck was called and the mechanic states the engine is completely blown. How may people need to report before this is addressed?
I was driving down the freeway when all the hazard lights came on, the rpms went all the way to 6000 rpms and then I had no acceleration when I pressed the gas pedal. I somehow made it over to the right lane and pulled over. The car would not restart so I had a tow truck take it to the dealership. Hyundai will not honor their warranty because I couldn't come up with the receipts for my oil and filters. The engine, Theta II, is well known to consume too much oil and sieze engines.
Without any warning the car stopped running was able to pull over. Called for tow to dealership who after 30 days said it was the engine. Less than 50,000 miles
During normal acceleration, the vehicle lost all power. I was able to coast to a safe stop. However, this occurred while accelerating to merge on to a major highway. Fortunately, I was able to navigate the vehicle safely to the shoulder. The vehicle would not turn on again. After towing the vehicle to a Hyundai dealership, it was determined that the engine had seized. This vehicle has been maintained regularly according to manufacturer recommendations, and has never had any negative symptoms or issues prior to this engine seizing up. No engine warning lights, no messages, nor any abnormal noises during engine operation prior to the event.
The engine failed all of the sudden going down the freeway at 70 miles per hour. The engine has been maintained and there were no issues with it. The engine is available for inspection. My life was put at risk as I was on the freeway and the engine stopped working all of the sudden, I actually avoided an accident while driving because of this issue. The vechile has not been inspected by the manufacture since it got towed to my apartment and my insurance will not cover mechanical issues so they have not inspected it. No lights engine lights were on prior to this incident. Please help me.
The engine of my 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe started making a loud knocking sound on 9/29/2023. I took the car to a certified mechanic who said that the engine had “thrown a rod.” I researched the NHTSA website and found NHTSA Part 573 Safety Recall Report No. 17V-578 dated Sep 20, 2017. While I never received this notice, the Descriptive Information and Description Defect mirror the problem with my car exactly. The recall was for 3.3L “Lambda” engines produced at the Asan Plant (Korea) between January 26, 2017 and February 13, 2017. My car was produced February 7, 2017.
2017 Hyundai Santa Fe 7 seater died from engine failure due to no oil. Oil was checked by Earnhardt Hyundai 4,000 miles/10 months prior. Car never gave any indication that oil was needed or engine problem was imminent. It just died in the HOV lane and would not start up. Obviously it's very dangerous and unnerving when your car just stops out of the blue. Also since it's past 100,000 miles Hyundai is not offering any help with engine repair. On the internet there are numerous reports of this same thing happening to other 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe owners.
Paid off my vehicle at the end of 2022. Beginning of 2023, it started knocking. Had it towed to the Dealership and come to find out, the engine needed to be replaced. Well we had them replace it while I tried working with Hyundai. Explained that my 2017 has the 3.3 engine. Only 420 vehicles were recalled. However, mine was not one of them. It’s the exact thing that was happening with the recall vehicles. Now they want to charge me another $11,000 to get it back from the dealership. This is clearly a problem but they won’t assist.
I wrote two documents outlining my complaint and information about the service on this vehicle that might be helpful in understanding the big picture. I have filed a consumer complaint with the Attorney General's Office. They suggested I also file a complaint with NHTSA. I have uploaded my written statements and supporting evidence for this complaint. There was no fire in the vehicle but there was so much smoke coming from the engine the person driving could not see the rode, other vehicles, or a clear path to safely get the car off the freeway. Luckily she was able to move the car onto the shoulder of the rode as she was driving in the far left lane. She did not crash the vehicle into the median.