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Hyundai · NHTSA safety record

2023 Hyundai Santa FE Plug-IN Hybrid

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 20 safety complaints about the 2023 Hyundai Santa FE Plug-IN Hybrid with the US government. Of those, 1 describes a crash and no death is recorded. 2 recall campaigns are open against it, covering the trailer hitch and the seat belts.

The most complained-about system is the electrical system, named in 5 complaints, 25% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers September 2023 to August 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

20 complaints on file

20

Complaints

1

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

0

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 5 · 25%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 4 · 20%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 · 15%
ENGINE 2 · 10%
POWER TRAIN 2 · 10%
SERVICE BRAKES 2 · 10%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 · 10%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 · 10%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 2 · 10%
AIR BAGS 1 · 5%
EQUIPMENT 1 · 5%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 · 5%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 20.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2024 at 9.

12 9 6 3
23 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2023 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA has not crash tested the 2023 Hyundai Santa FE Plug-IN Hybrid. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.

What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.

Recall campaigns

2 on file

TRAILER HITCHES

23V181000 · March 17, 2023

Park outside until repaired

The defect
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2019-2023 Santa Fe, 2021-2023 Santa Fe HEV, 2022-2023 Santa Fe Plug-in HEV and Santa Cruz vehicles potentially equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Hyundai dealership. Water accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.
The risk
A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
The remedy
Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the remedy is completed. Dealers will install a new fuse and wire extension kit as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed starting May 16, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 244. This recall is an expansion of previous recall number 22V-633.

Hyundai Motor America · up to 584,784 vehicles across all model years covered

SEAT BELTS:PRETENSIONER

22V816000 · October 31, 2022

The defect
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2023 Genesis G80 Electric, 2021-2022 Santa Fe Hybrid, and 2022-2023 Santa Fe Plug-In Hybrid vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.
The risk
An exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.
The remedy
Dealers will secure the seat belt pretensioners with a cap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 14, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 238/011G. This recall is an expansion of recall numbers 22V-354 and 22V-458.

Hyundai Motor America · up to 14,933 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

SUSPENSION

crash

My horn isn't working as designed but when I push on steering wheel feels like it's cracking or breaking behind it. My front axels from factory were out of balance causing a vehicle vibration from 80+km/hr. Dealer thought it was tires not driveline. Different dealer diagnosed it as both axels in front. Issue was repaired once parts were available. Vibration still is evident but think its tires. Trying to get hyundai to replace tires now as its consequential damage. In November 2023 I was involved in a accident where the front collision warning and assist system didn't engage properly as when it did inwas in the danger zone already. And when I applied the brakes the steering became stiff as

NHTSA complaint 11565471, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The fuel range calculation is often very wrong in our plug in hybrid. This issue has been brought to the attention of the manufacturer and dealer with no results but pointing at the other organizations. With a full fuel tank the gasoline range should be about 387 miles. Often the computer will show 610 miles but sometimes has other ranges but has never been correct after the first fill up. While this normally isn't a big problem, there is a danger for some people. Say you see a sign on a curvy mountain road with no shoulders showing the next fuel is in 100 miles. If the car computer says you have a range of 150 miles, you would think you can easily make it to the next gas station. However,

NHTSA complaint 11757840, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY

62,800 miles

The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at 40-45 MPH, the sunroof exploded outward without warning or impact, leaving the shattered glass rattling. There were no reported injuries. A local dealer was contacted but stated that they did not perform glass replacements. The vehicle was neither diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 62,800.

NHTSA complaint 11748830. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
While on the highway my car lost power, gradually slowing down to a stall. I was able to safely park on the side of the road. I got the car to a nearby dealership that kept it for 10 days. The dealership said that the problem was code P2118 (Throttle Actuator Control Motor Current Range/Performance) that the air "flap" was frozen stuck shut and the engine was disabled on the freeway in order to prevent damage. The resolution was "waited for it to thaw and cleared the code". The dealer has a service bulletin and a software update but it did not resolve the safety issue. I've noticed hesitation when accelerating the car from a dead stop as well, which started last year.

NHTSA complaint 11718953. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
While operating the vehicle, the cruise control turns off without any warning. The warning messages that come up only after the cruise control is turned off by the vehicle state "Smart cruise conditions not met" and "forward safety system disabled. Radar blocked". This disables the vehicle from utilizing cruise control in any manner. This happened on the highway with the cruise set at 72 mph, with a semi truck right behind my vehicle in moderate traffic! The semi slammed brakes on and after initial shock, I was able to accelerate the vehicle somewhat to avoid a collision. The dealership claims that "ALL" new vehicles do this when operated in wintery weather, snow, or mud kicked up from the

NHTSA complaint 11699000, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
Two issues with powertrain/transmission: 1- The powertrain/transmission fails intermittently- vehicle RPM goes sky high but vehicle receives no power, seems to fail/lose power. Has happened in very dangerous road conditions where unexpectedly was struggling to get the motor to engage/get power to the vehicle. Check engine and check hybrid system lights accompanies the problem. 2- The car should be driveable in electric only mode without use of gasoline. The powertrain/transmission seems to struggle to shift between electric and gas motors. HYUNDAI cannot seem to correctly diagnose or fix the issue. Does not seem they have proper diagnostic process included on the car- despite finding error

NHTSA complaint 11643753, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
>>>>What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? According to the Hyundai Bluelink app, the problem is caused by the battery management system, producing error code P0AA600. The result is that the vehicle does not get power to the wheels for a few seconds after giving it gas. It looks like the car is not moving, then it very slowly gains speed, followed by sudden acceleration. It is available for inspection upon request. >>>>How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? It is a safety issue because other vehicles on the road may not be able to stop in time when the car pauses unexpectedly. Also the driver cannot predict when

NHTSA complaint 11641064, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Hyundai Santa FE Plug-IN Hybrid

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2022 27 4 —

Other 2023 Hyundai models

Palisade 400 Ioniq 5 387 Santa FE 210 Tucson 133 Elantra 98 Sonata 87 Santa Cruz 79 Kona 65

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Hyundai on this site — 205 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst