2018 Hyundai Santa FE
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 109 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 24th highest complaint count among 25 Santa FE model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 6 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 6 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Service brakes, hydraulic, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, control unit/modulePark outsideFeb 3, 2022
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Santa Fe, 2017-2018 Santa Fe Sport, 2019 Santa Fe XL, and 2014-2015 Tucson vehicles. The Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) module could malfunction and cause an electrical short, which could result in an engine compartment fire.
An engine compartment fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.
Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will replace the ABS multi-fuse, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 31, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 218.
Campaign 22V056000 on NHTSA.gov
Steering, steering wheel/handle barFeb 17, 2018
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe and Santa Fe Sport vehicles. The steering wheel assembly may break, possibly resulting in the steering wheel separating from the steering column while driving.
A steering wheel separation while driving can cause a loss of vehicle control and increase the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will check the production lot number of the steering wheel assembly, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on March 26, 2018. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 173.
Campaign 18V118000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
109 reports, newest first.
Engine, Aug 8, 2023
This vehicle has 113,000 miles on it and the engine is blown. The warranty for these cars expires at 100 thousand miles. This vehicle was properly maintained and should not fail. I cannot claim this under auto insurance and the dealer wants to charge me 185 dollars to tell me on paper that I need to pay 20000 dollars for a new engine.
Air bags, Jun 29, 2023, crash
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at 30-35 MPH, the contact was rear-ended by another vehicle, hit on the driver's side by a truck, and rear-ended again; however, the air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained injuries and received medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not deemed totaled. The vehicle was towed to the tow yard. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 42,000. The VIN was not available.
Engine, Jun 9, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated while accelerating, and failed to exceed 65 MPH. The vehicle later lost motive power with the ABS and several other unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 144,000.
Air bags, May 20, 2023, crash
I was T boned on the driver then hit a pole. NO AIRBAGS deployed. I was traveling around 45 mph. Other vehicle speed unknown
Other or unspecified, Engine, May 12, 2023
I was driving about 60-65 mph on the interstate, and with no dashboard lights illuminated, the car started making a loud clanking noise. Without warning, there was 1 additional loud noise and the engine froze, excessive smoke came from the front of the car and underneath the car. I pulled over to the side of the road. There was an oil trail behind the car and under the car. The car is now being inspected by our local Hyundai dealership and awaiting warranty approval.
Engine, Mar 28, 2023
Losing half a quart of oil every 1000 miles, that would be about 3 quarts every 6000 miles This is not normal for a 2018 car with 65700 miles on it Car had an Oil Consumption Test by dealer No warning lights have come on
Engine, Nov 24, 2022
I bought my 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe 3.3L a year and a half ago with 58k miles from a dealer in Clarksville, MD. On October 18th 2022 with 70k miles my Hyundai Santa Fe starting making a loud noise in engine so I took it to a Hyundai dealer where I was told my engine would need to be replaced and was quoted 19.1k to replace it. I'm the second owner of the car so technically not under warranty. Hyundai is paying half of repair and rental extended warranty is paying the other half and a 10 day rental. Car has been there for a month parts still aren't there and was told it could take months to get my car back.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Oct 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Aug 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number 22v056000(SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced the failure. The VIN tool confirms parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Aug 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Aug 12, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received recall notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). However, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown dealer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect
Air bags, Aug 9, 2022, crash
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while his fiancee was driving at 45 mph, a deer impacted the driver's side of the vehicle. No air bags deployed. The contact stated the air bag warning light was illuminated after the impact. The contact stated no one was injured nor sought medication attention. No police report was filed. The driver continued driving to their residence. The contact took the vehicle to the repair facility, where it was being serviced at the moment. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Aug 4, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Engine, Jul 18, 2022
With no dashboard lights illuminated, the engine completely seized while driving 60 MPH on the highway. I was thankfully able to get it off to the side. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealership and is currently awaiting a warranty approval for a new engine.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer and James Wood Hyundai (2110 US-287, Decatur, TX 76234) were made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brake, Hydraulics) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was not made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. The contact has stated that the dealer completed the repair.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jun 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Service brakes, Jun 1, 2022
Hyundai initiated a recall campaign 218 on 02/02/2022 for: VEHICLES THAT ARE EQUIPPED WITH ANTI-LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM ("ABS") MODULES THAT COULD MALFUNCTION INTERNALLY AND CAUSE AN ELECTRICAL SHORT OVER TIME. URGENT: FIRE RISK WHEN PARKED The manufacturer has FAILED to remedy this safety recall for your vehicle in a timely manner. I am unable to park my vehicle in garage and have not heard any response when this will be remedied.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Apr 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that she received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V056000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. The VIN was not available.
Other or unspecified, Apr 5, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving approximately 10 MPH, the vehicle independently came to an abrupt stop. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The vehicle was diagnosed with alternator, battery, and starter failures. The vehicle was repaired three times. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
Engine, Feb 10, 2022
The contact’s daughter owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was unknown. The VIN was not available.*TP
Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Feb 3, 2022, crash
I was at the Tim Hortons drive-thru stopped behind a car in front of me the car in front of me started to go to the order window , as I let off the brake to start to go my suv took off full speed! I hit the brakes as hard as I could and the car kept moving forward like the throttle was stuck at full acceleration. I wasn't even hitting the gas pedal, after my vehicle struck the car and continued to smash into the car while I was holding a brake I put it in neutral and then the car finally came to a stop. I had 5 children in the car. And I am seeing this being an issue in alot of hyandai vehicles. And alot of complaint with this same issue. If this would have happened on the hiway it could have possibly killed or Injured someone. I am scared to death to drive the vehicle again.