NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2016 Hyundai Tucson. 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
I have had 2 window regulators go out within a month due to them using cheap plastic and it's reaction to hear I assume.
I was at a stoplight waiting to turn right. When there was a safe break in traffic I began the right turn, but the engine made a clunking noise and stopped accelerating in the middle of the road. At this point, cars were getting close to me and my car wasn't speeding up, so I turned on my hazard lights and managed to inch onto the shoulder. I had my 5 month old baby in the car with me, so his safety, my safety, and the safety of others on the road were at risk. We took the car to our local Hyundai dealership and they said they couldn't diagnose the issue unless they took the engine apart. They checked all of the fluid levels and electrical connections, the battery, all of that was normal but we didn't have the $500+ they wanted to take the engine apart, so that did not get checked. This car had less than 100,000 miles on it and was in great shape. We had it for less than a year and did not even drive it every day. There were no warning lights or messages or anything to let me know that there was a problem. The engine starting making that clunking noise about five minutes before it died. I was on the highway and got off the nearest exit to check for problems but the car stopped moving before I could get someplace safe to take a look. Other than that, there was no indication of any issue, and no issues spotted during any routine maintenance/oil changes.
The Doors are failing. Eventually, the actuator fails and cables stretch due to use. The door cannot be opened from the inside nor the outside. In an emergency situation where a door needs to be opened from the exterior even when the doors are unlocked, an emergency responder would not be able to access the vehicle. Additionally, if the vehicle had an emergency situation where the occupants of the vehicle needed to disembark the vehicle, the vehicle doors do not open even though child locks are no engaged. This is a very serious and high risk of concern and issue and must be brought forward for review and resolved as soon as possible. Bringing this vehicle to the dealership for repairs does not always guarantee proper repair. If the actuators are at fault and that is being replaced with the same Original Equipment Manufacture parts, this is going to be an ongoing issue possibly deadly.
When the vehicles at a complete stop and you go to press on the gas To accelerate the car moving forward, the car stutters. It happens at stop signs, stoplights, anywhere that the car is at a complete stop. This happens every single time. The car has been taken into the dealership and they say everything is fine and nothing is wrong. However I’ve taking it to a local mechanic and he said that he can definitely feel the stutter in the vehicle.
Rear driver side door handle stuck and unable to open from outside or inside. Extremely unsafe due to not being able to exit the vehicle in case of fire or accident.
Rear passenger side door will not open from the inside or outside. Happened right after parking. Tried using the remote key and manually unlocking, flipped child safety lock on and off, nothing worked. The door won't budge. Passenger had to climb over our child's carseat to get out on the other side. Major safety hazard if the car were on fire or flipped over, especially for our child whose carseat is in the back. No warning or error message in the car. We've researched and found thousands of reports from other Hyundai Tucson 2016's with the same exact issue (often starting with one door and then spreading to all four others). I don't feel safe driving the car in case it spreads to the other doors. This needs to be a recall ASAP. Happy to have our car inspected if needed. Have not yet gone to a dealer but plan to soon.
2016 Hyundai Tucson rear passenger door is stuck closed. When door has been unlocked, door cannot be opened either from the inside or the outside of the vehicle using the door handles. The Passenger becomes trapped inside the car and should something happen, they cannot exit the car immediately if needed. Someone on the outside of the car is unable to open the door to assist any passenger trapped inside. A dealer or independent service has not yet reproduced or confirmed the problem and I will be contacting my dealer to have them address the issue. However, after researching this problem, I found numerous posts complaining that this fix is very costly and it is possible that all four doors will experience this same problem soon. At this time, no manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others have inspected the vehicle but based on the numerous complaints online, this issue should already be a recall on these vehicles. The only symptom was that the door did not open once it had been unlocked.
The driver side door will not open.. You can unlock with the fob or button on the door, or the mechanical Key. The same issue will all methods. Inside or outside latch, but the handle will not open the door at all or there is a long delay. Very dangerous if you needed to exit the vehicle quickly.
The contact's son owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while his son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, and the dealer replaced the spark plugs; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was then towed to Wiesner Hyundai (1645 Interstate 45 N, Conroe, TX 77304) and diagnosed with engine failure, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact to take the vehicle to a dealer. The failure mileage was 107,727.
Latch assembly-rear door LH failed. Could not open door from outside or inside. Replaced on 06/26/2021 Latch assembly-rear door RH failed. Could not open door from outside or inside. Replaced on 02/09/2018
1. Back passenger door won’t open from inside or outside 2. AEB AND BDS sensor light stays on on the dashboard. No wreck and cleaned all sensors but warning lights remains on.
Sensor default, ABS on dashboard, acceleration on dashboard, oil lights default on dashboard, electrical problems, and radio default. My vehicle is still under warranty however im trying to figure out will warranty cover for all of the problems within my vehicle.
The rear doors do not open from inside or outside. We have attempted to pull the battery for a potential reset, without success. Both doors became inoperable simultaneously. The electric locking mechanisms work. The electric windows go up and down. We noticed this on a multi state road trip with backseat passengers. In the event of an accident, the backseat passenger would not have egress from the vehicle.
Door actuators are failing causing doors to not open/be permanently locked. I have paid to repair one (which I don't have any confidence in), it's happening to another already, and countless others I've read are having the same issue. I hope that I don't run into the issue in a real emergency.
Rear passenger doors will not open even when unlocked, child safety feature is not on. This is a safety concern in an emergency situation. Doors will not open from the inside or outside.
My rear driver side door will not open from the outside or the inside. This is a serious safety issue. If a person or even a child is in the back of my car, how are they supposed to exit the vehicle in an emergency if they can't get the door open? Hydundai is saying the door not latching is not a safety concern, it is.
Driver's side rear door will not open. Was working fine - then suddenly neither the inside nor outside handle will open door when unlocked. This is a concerning safety issue since I use this vehicle to transport my 2 grandchildren in car seats - and creates a hazardous situation in an emergency. Internet forums are full of reports of this same issue with this particular year/model of Tucson. Also - there is evidence that Hyundai Korea is aware of this problem - and has initiated steps to offer owners replacement of all door latches to remedy the issue. Here is a weblink to the Korean page that spells out some of the details: http://www.consumerwide.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=37459 FYI - I have owned and driven cars for almost 50 years - and have never had a vehicle where the vehicle doors just stopped functioning like this....
The transmission on this vehicle has always functioned erratically. There has been a recall on the transmission control module. On June 12th, as I was driving the vehicle in traffic, I heard an odd clanking noise and felt a loss of power. I was driving up a hill with traffic behind me. The car stalled for several seconds, and I was unable to make it move. It then reengaged and lurched forward. It drove normally for several seconds and then did the same thing two more times, all while climbing this hill with traffic behind me. I was able to make it to a friend's house close by, but when I went to leave, it turned out that the transmission was non-functional. I was unable to put the car in reverse, or move it in any direction. It had to be towed to a Hyundai dealer and a new transmission installed. The vehicle had 81K on it when this happened.
Passenger side rear door lock failed at 71000 miles. Could not open door from outside or inside.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that when she was near her vehicle, she noticed that the driver's side window was down. The contact stated that she could not roll the window up. The contact stated that over the next month, the other three windows were lowered and could not be rolled up. Additionally, the contact stated that the headlights had failed, and she had them replaced. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the windows mechanism needed to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 53,000.
Left turn signal glitches and indicates right turn signal instead of left, like prompted. Driver window does not roll down or up. completely locked and does not respond to the switch
Brakes feel like ABS is always on. Feel unsafe to drive. Was told by Hyundai dealer that I need a new Steering Column and no explanation on how something like this can just break. Less than 60K miles when this issue started with brakes. I'm the first and only owner of this vehicle. The other safety issue is the doors not opening. 3 out of 4 doors have problems opening from inside and outside. This forum explains exactly what is happening to my doors. https://www.hyundai-forums.com/threads/rear-passenger-door-wont-open.603329/
Passenger door lock won’t unlock from inside or outside. 4-year old Grandson could not get out This happened before with the passenger front seat door. Took to dealer and fixed. I am seeing online that many people are having the same problem. This could be dangerous.
The drivers door and drivers Side back door doesn’t open from the inside or the outside. It opens after like 10 tries of yanking on it. This is a serious issue if I had to get out of there quickly or if I had someone in the back that couldn’t climb. I should have to climb out of my car. Recall this.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the front and rear driver’s side doors failed to open using the interior or exterior door handles. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.
When obviously unlocked, can feel lock disengage and see lock indicator pop out, door does not open unless handle is pulled multiple times. Driver side was repaired under warranty; both passenger side doors have the same problem but started after warranty.
UNKNOWN- the rear passenger door won’t open from the outside or the inside of the car. And now this issue is happening with both rear doors and the drivers side door. In order to get into the drivers seat, you have to get in through the passenger side door and crawl over. When I Google this safety concern, it seems like this has happened too many people. I’m concerned because if this has happened to others and if anyone gets into a car accident, no one can get out, without trying to break a window and crawl out.
I had a problem with my driver door not opening when I originally purchased this vehicle 2 years ago. The dealer fixed it for me that time. It happened again to my rear driver side door. It starts off taking a few pulls to open the door, then after a couple weeks, the door stops unlatching all together, can’t open it from the inside or outside. Rear passenger door went a few months after that, so I have no access to the back seat. Drivers door just started having the problem again too. Was told the problem was the door lock actuator when I initially got it fixed. From what I can tell, a lot of people have this problem, it’s a know issue with the 2016 Tucson’s, and a safety issue at that. What if there are children or elderly people in the back seat and this was an issue during a car crash? I can’t pay to replace a bad part every few months only to have the problem happen again. Hyundai needs to offer a solution to this problem, not just replacing the same faulty part.
Rear driver side door latch will not open when unlocked. Believe it is actuator issue. Will not open from inside or outside. Front driver side lock will intermittently not release lock/will not open.
1) Front right driver headlight warning message, keeps illuminating. Mechanic, noticed wires are burning inside compartment. Safety issue burning wires may cause entire electrical system to burn out causing a fire and not having headlights. Vehicle being serviced 10/29/21 2) Driver Brake light message illuminated, replaced light 2 mo ago, as of today 10-28-21, brake light out again. Vehicle being serviced 10/29/21 3) Purchased vehicle 3/21. Vehicle will not accelerate, it will jerk causing a slow start, safety issue. Vehicle taken to mechanic covered thru warranty, he stated vehicle drove ok, still having same problem since 3/21
I need to let you know my 2016 Hyundai Tucson is using oil so bad it's getting out of control. No matter what we do it continues to happen. It has been using more has then it use to also. Its getting ridiculous. I love my car but I'm ready to go back to a different make all together if they don't do something to fix these issues. My Tucson is not the only one that does it. I have a family member who has to put a new engine in here due to this. I can not afford to buy my car and then turn around and have to put a new engine in it. Something needs done asap. I'm contacting a lawyer due to the many other issues not listed. Like it trying to die going down the highway. This has been going on since around June 2021
Left passenger door will not open. I have found multiple examples on the internet. The door will not open using the inside or outside handle.
Three months ago my driver's side window stuck in the up position, the next time I drove it worked fine but the time after that it stuck again. The window lock is not on, it is now permanently stuck in the up position and will not go down. One month ago my passenger side rear door stuck in the closed position. No attempt to lock and unlock worked to release it and the child safety lock is not on. It seems the handle is not engaging. These issues are not covered under warranty or by recall. I think both these issues are safety hazards.
My back door on the driver's side does not open from the inside or out. I had the same issue with my driver's door but would open from the outside. I went to the dealership and replaced the door latch assembly. I am not under warranty, so it cost me alot to get fixed. Just one month later the backdoor stopped working completely. I got a letter in the mail form Hyundai saying this is a known issue and if your warranty has expired they'll fix it at no cost, that doesn't help me at all. This is a safety issue and needs to be a recall. I am worried the other doors will stop working. It is not affordable to get fixed.
The traction control system keeps randomly kicking on while driving.
The diver side rear door will not open. Does not open from outside or the inside. If this happens to the other rear door a person could get trapped inside the car.
When unlocking the doors with key fob, all the doors besides the driver's side, will open. The drivers side won't open at first. Have to unlock and relock the car several times just to open the door on the drivers side. The same thing is happening when sitting inside the passenger seat on the left handside of the driver, the door won't open from inside out. The door has to be open by someone on the outside. This is been happening a lot to many people.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that a week after purchasing the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The mechanic informed the contact that the warning light would be reset. While performing a final test drive, the mechanic became aware of smoke coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The mechanic pulled over and attempted to open the hood but was unable to do so. The mechanic then noticed fire coming from underneath the vehicle. The fire department arrived and extinguished the fire. No one was injured. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard by the police. The contact was made aware that the vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 20V543000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) which was the cause of the fire. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
When driving uphill on Vasco Rd between Brentwood, Ca & Livermore, CA started slowing down the more gas I gave the slower it went then suddenly there was a clattering sound all panel lights came on and engine died and would not restart. Tow truck driver said my engine blew. I usually get my oil changed between 5k & 7k . I just had my oil changed 600 miles ago. It is a 2.0 Hyundai 2016 Tucson. I read the NHTSA fined Hyundai for failure to recall engine failures on their 4 cyn and wondered if my car should have been included in any recalls.
My front passenger door and rear driver passenger door will not open from the outside or the inside. Issue with door latch mechanism. Mechanism was repaired approx. 1 yr ago on passenger rear door. Safety issue since doors can not be opened from inside if am emergency happened. Child age 5 rides in car regularly. Big safety concern.
Door handle mechanism won’t open the door. It started with one back door and now all but the driver door are stuck shut. It is a safety issue for passengers who cannot get out of the car. Please read the forums to see how many of us Hyundai owners are experiencing this issue making it an obvious problem with faulty equipment. Thanks
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the passenger’s side rear door had ceased in the lock position. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 89,362.
In my 2016 Tucson, the issue started with the front passenger door not opening even though you can hear the car unlocking when clicking the key fob. This issue has now started on the drivers side door, with both the key fob not opening the door as well as manually trying to open the door with the key. This is a serious safely issue and should not be happening. This issue runs the risk of someone being stuck in the car, with no way of getting to them. There was no pre warning of the issue starting. It just happened one day and from that point forward has been progressing to each door. Getting in and out of the car in the event of an accident or emergency poses an issue if the doors do not open. This is made worse by not being able to manually open the door with a key.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the rear passenger’s side door failed to open from the inside or outside while unlocked. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.
On May 17th my engine locked up as I was pulling out of a driveway. Check Oil light came on a split second before the car locked up. It was not even enough time for me to safely turn off the engine. Upon my own inspection there was no oil on my oil stick even though car receives regular maintenance. Car is now at the closest dealership for TOTAL ENGINE REPLACEMENT. Problem was confirmed to be an issue with the bearings. Communication with the dealership has been poor but I believe inspection is available. They have not completed the repair as they are waiting on a back ordered part. I was about 1.5 hours away from home about to head over a very dangerous 2 lane bridge with no shoulder. I think I would have lost it if I broke down on the bridge.
My rear passenger side door does not open from the inside of the car and also from the outside of the car when unlocked. This is a huge safety concern as anyone sitting in the back seat would be trapped inside the car in an emergency especially if my grandson were strapped in his car seat in the back and I had to get him out of the car as quickly as possible in an emergency. I called the dealership where I bought the car and they acted surprised even though this is clearly a known issue as I discovered while researching this problem on various blogs. I haven't taken my car to the dealership yet, I'm trying to determine if this will be covered under my 5 years/60,000 mile warranty as my car is right on the edge with my car having 55,000 miles and being 5 years and 2 months old. This problem happened very suddenly and we had no warning at all. The door worked when we left home for a trip and when we reached our first stop 60 miles later, the door would not open from inside or outside.
I'm mid may-end of may I took it in to Fort mill Hyundai the first time because it was starting to crank hard, sounded funny and my dashboard lights would come on saying I needed oil and there was an engine issue. When I idled too long the car would just die, I'd have to shift into park actually turn the car off and let it sit 1-3 mins turn it back on and all the lights would be off and it would drive like it did before it died, loud. They did testing on it and said these repairs (crankshaft sensor, spark plugs and I think an oil change) should fix it. This was less than a month after my previous oil change. Got the car back 3-4 days later and it sounded better but I still felt like it didn't drive and smooth as it should. 2-3 weeks goes by and my oil light again comes on only with sharp turns. The car over the next couple of days would do the loud cranking noise, didn't drive well over 60 and the engine light came on and gauges would go down but would be fine again once the car was turned off for a couple min like 5 . I set up an appt to hVe them look it over again because of the lights coming back on. Not even 2 days later twice going to and from work it completely died out on me (like the first time) but this time it would turn over once it was out in park and turned off correctly. First time I was in the middle of traffic at a red light waited 10 mins multiple times trying to turn the car on to move to the side and it wouldn't. I let it sit for 5 mins without trying to turn it on and it started the gauges didn't work and it was VERY loud stuck in like first gear wouldn't go above 20 mph. Pulled into a neighborhood turned it off to let it cool off again thinking it was over heating. It would crank but again lights still all on and the gear gauge didn't work (down at 0 liek the car was off). I waiting like 20 mins it still had the lights on but the gauges worked, when I tried to drive home it wouldn't go about 45mph or out of 2nd gear.
DOORS WON'T OPEN. DOOR LOCK ACTUATOR IS FAULTY. CURRENT REPLACEMENT DOES NOT FIX... AND PROBLEM REPEATS. HYUNDAI NEEDS TO FIX AND RECALL. THIS IS A WIDE SPREAD PROBLEM FOR THIS CAR AND A CRAZY SAFETY ISSUE!
CAR FAILS TO MOVE FORWARD FROM STOPPED POSITION. WHEN GAS PEDDLE IS APPLIED PRESSURE, CAR DOES NOT MOVE, ENGINE REVS UP AND THEN CAR LUNGES FORWARD. IN SLOW TRAFFIC, CAR LUNGES FORWARD WITH NO ACCELERATION ON THE GAS PEDAL. WHEN PULLING INTO TRAFFIC, CAR WILL CEASE TO MOVE FOR A COUPLE SECONDS AND THEN TAKE OFF. WE ARE EXTREMELY WORRIED ABOUT GETTING INTO AN ACCIDENT WITH THIS VEHICLE.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 HYUNDAI TUCSON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE REAR DRIVER’S AND PASSENGER’S SIDE DOORS ALONG WITH THE FRONT PASSENGER’S DOOR FAILED TO OPEN FROM INSIDE OR OUTSIDE USING THE DOOR HANDLES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER NOR AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS OR REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND ADVISED THE CONTACT TO HAVE THE FAILURE DIAGNOSED AT AN AUTHORIZED HYUNDAI DEALER. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 94,000.