2016 Hyundai Tucson
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 1,620 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the highest complaint count among 21 Tucson model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 14 involved a crash and 26 involved a fire. 7 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Service brakes, hydraulic, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, control unit/modulePark outsideSep 4, 2020
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) recalled certain 2019-2021 Tucson vehicles on September 4, 2020. On December 30, 2020, Hyundai expanded the recall population, and added certain 2016-2018 Tucson vehicles. The Anti-lock Brake Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU) could corrode internally and cause an electrical short, possibly resulting in an engine compartment fire.
An engine compartment fire can increase the risk of injury or crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the HECU fuse. For 2019-2021 model years, the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) software will also be updated. Recall repairs will be performed free of charge. Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures as a precaution until the recall repair is complete. The recall began November 2, 2020. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 195.
Campaign 20V543000 on NHTSA.gov
Electrical system, wiringNov 21, 2016
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Tucson vehicles manufactured May 19, 2015, to November 14, 2016, and 2017 Santa Fe vehicles manufactured November 28, 2015, to November 14, 2016. The affected vehicles may be equipped with an accessory trailer hitch wiring harness that, due to a malfunction of the tow hitch module, may result, in the trailer brake lights being constantly illuminated. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, " Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
If the trailer brake lights stay illuminated while being used, other drivers may be confused, increasing the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected accessory trailer hitch wiring harnesses, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 13, 2017. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's number for this recall is 153.
Campaign 16V842000 on NHTSA.gov
Power train, automatic transmission, control module (tcm/pcm/tecm)Aug 30, 2016
Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2016 Tucson vehicles manufactured May 20, 2015 through May 31, 2016 and equipped with a 7-speed EcoShift Dual Clutch Transmission. Certain driving conditions and high temperatures may cause the vehicle to not move if the accelerator pedal is pressed and released repeatedly.
Inability to move the vehicle while in traffic may increase the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will update the Transmission Control Module software, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on October 28, 2016. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-671-3059. Hyundai's number for this recall is 149.
Campaign 16V628000 on NHTSA.gov
Latches/locks/linkages, hood, latchMay 24, 2016
Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2016 Tucson vehicles manufactured May 19, 2015 to March 14, 2016. In the affected vehicles, if the primary hood latch has been released, and the vehicle is driven, the secondary hood latch may not hold adequately secure the hood to prevent it from opening while the vehicle is in motion.
If the primary hood latch is inadvertently released and the secondary latch cannot secure the hood, the hood may unexpectedly open while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the secondary hood latch, free of charge. The recall began on June 30, 2016. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 145.
Campaign 16V348000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lighting, tail lightsMar 10, 2016
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2016 Hyundai Tucson vehicles manufactured May 26, 2015 to January 15, 2016 and equipped with an accessory trailer hitch harness either included with the accessory trailer hitch or sold as a service part. In the affected vehicles, when the vehicle's engine is running and the brake lights are illuminated, if the turn signal is activated, the trailer turn signal lights will either turn off or remain continuously illuminated (not flash). As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard Number 108, " Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Failure to illuminate the trailer's turn signal lights would prevent the communication of the driver's intent, increasing the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will update the tow hitch harness, free of charge. The recall began on May 2, 2016. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9640. Hyundai's number for this recall is 142.
Campaign 16V147000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: latches/locks/linkages
157 reports, newest first. Show all
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that after locking the front passenger’s side door, the door was seized in the closed position and could not be opened when unlocked. The contact indicated that extreme force was needed to pull the door handle while attempting open the door. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 52,000.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 28, 2022
Both rear doors do not open from the outside or inside, no child lock engaged. Usually takes several tries locking/unlocking to get door open. In the event of a crash, passengers would not be able to exit the vehicle. Not inspected, and no warning lamps.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the driver's side rear door was unable to be opened from inside or outside the vehicle. The dealer was made aware of the failure and scheduled an upcoming appointment for a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not yet diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 23, 2022
Rear passenger door will not open from outside or inside after unlocking. Basically, the door stays locked. Only after repetitive banging on the door handle (outside) will it sometimes open (more often it just stay locked - it may be days and dozens of attempts before it haphazardly opens). Additionally, the front drivers side door does not open on the first pull from the outside (it requires at least 2 pulls - sometimes as many as 4 pulls to finally open). Finally, the front passenger door is experiencing similar problems where it may take a second pull to open the door (this door only recently started having this problem and it opens normally most of the time). It can't be a coincidence that 3 out of the 4 doors on this vehicle are having problems with the door locks. So far the front doors open fine from the inside but the rear drivers side door is a serious safety hazard as I have a 3 yr child that sits in the back seat regularly. A simple google search brings up dozens of links and articles where owners of the same model vehicle are complaining of the exact same problem. It's obvious that this is a common issue with this vehicle but so far no recall even acknowledgement by the manufacturer has been issued. This is a safety issue - PLEASE HELP
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 12, 2022
Locks and Latches have stopped working. My rear passenger and driver side latches do not open. It is a safety hazard for anyone riding in my vehicle.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 9, 2022
Passenger side front door lock intermittently does not unlock either by pressing door handle or remote control. Passenger can be trapped inside of vehicle in the event of an emergency egress being needed. Problem is intermittent for now, but growing in frequency!
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 8, 2022
The car doors don’t open even after unlocking. I can hear and see the door is u locked but the door doesn’t open from outside. Unable to open the door and get my kid out in case of emergency
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the rear driver’s side door latch would not unlock and could not be opened from inside or outside of the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 43,000.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jul 1, 2022
Driver side door doesn’t open after unlocking unless you yank on handle 10+ times, and now driver side window no longer goes up. Motor works for window to go down but not up, so it is now a safety concern! A quick Google search reveals countless 2016 Hyundai Tucson owners experiencing the exact same thing- and always with the driver door only.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 27, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that the rear passenger’s side door failed to open from inside or outside of the vehicle. The contact had spoken to the dealer and was informed that the vehicle was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 63,000. The VIN was not available.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 17, 2022
Rear door will not open from the inside or the outside
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 17, 2022
The driver's side front door and rear door lock actuators failed in both the doors and you are unable to open the doors from the exterior of the vehicle after the doors have been locked. The only way to open them is to go around and open them from the inside of the vehicle. This is a major safety concern due to not being able to quickly access the vehicle from the outside to get someone out of the car if it was to be involved in a wreck/on fire. As a first responder this is a situation that I have encounter in my work experience and could be the difference in someone living or dying in a collision. This issues is well documented online and with the dealership when I called to discuss it with them. This part does not have any warnings before it fails and one day it just stops working. Our vehicle is a 2016 and has around 50,000 miles so it is not old by any means. I have not had any of the parts examined by anyone such as the insurance company but I am a police officer that is trained in Advance Crash Investigation and Crash Reconstruction.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 15, 2022
Rear driver side door handle does not open, seems to be a safety issue with this car
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 13, 2022
BOTH REAR DOORS WILL NOT OPEN FROM OUTSIDE OR FROM INSIDE THE VEHICLE. CHILDREN PASSENGERS HAD TO CLIME TO FRONT TO EXIT CAR. EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 4, 2022
My 2016 Hyundai Tucson has repeatedly had a major safety issue when one of the doors will suddenly completely stop working. One day a door will work fine, and after no accidents, impact, or any other known factor, the door is completely unable to be opened. The handle operates as intended, but the door itself does open. In the 4 years I have owned my car, I have had to repair 6 instances of this problem (2 of the doors having this issue again after initial repair). This issue includes my driver side door, where I have had to crawl through the car to get out. Apparently this is a known issue impacting a large amount of Hyundai Tucsons. This is obviously a major safety issue. If these doors cease operation for seemingly no reason due to some poorly designed / manufactured component, I can’t imagine they could withstand any sort of vehicle collision / accident. I hesitate to imagine a situation where someone is in some sort of collision and need to escape a burning vehicle / pull a child out of a vehicle and their doors do not work.
Latches/locks/linkages, Jun 1, 2022
Driver Side door no longer opens from the outside after it has been locked. Rear Driver Side door no longer opens from the inside or outside handle. Seen numerous reports and accounts online report this same issue. I have a 6 month old child and cannot have the doors on my car not opening.
Latches/locks/linkages, May 30, 2022
Both back doors will not open from inside or outside. Very dangerous safety concern
Latches/locks/linkages, May 22, 2022
2016 Tucson rear doors wouldn’t open
Latches/locks/linkages, May 13, 2022
The front driver side door does not open when unlocked. It seems to me a known issue that the lock actuator tends to fail on these doors. This is a huge safety concern.
Latches/locks/linkages, May 5, 2022
My passenger door and back drivers side door won’t open when unlocked. You have to open the door from the inside
Latches/locks/linkages, May 5, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that both front and rear passenger’s side doors failed to open from inside or outside the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with an actuator failure. Neither the manufacturer nor the dealer had been notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.
Latches/locks/linkages, May 4, 2022
Door latch failure. The door latches do not work, and become un-openable. 11/2020 & 04/2022. Yes it is currently available for inspection with a non-operational door. Safety issue, cannot exit the car. Cannot get kids out of the car. I cannot get out of the car. No one can open the car door that is affected when unlocked from the inside or the outside of the car. Yes, there are articles, fixes and my personal mechanic and Hyundai mechanics have addressed the previous same issue in 11/2020. The car was inspected by a Hyundai dealer 10/2020 who gave me a quote to replace the door latches and locks. The car was inspected by my mechanic at a Chevrolet dealership as well, who installed part #Hyundai actuator motor Front door lock 81310D3010. The car has not been inspected by police or insurance. The car has had same failure in drivers door that was fixed by a different car manufacturer. The car currently has a different door latch failure. There are no warning lamp indicators. The door simply will not open at all when unlocked causing a problem for anyone to exit the vehicle in an emergency.
Latches/locks/linkages, May 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated the passenger’s side failed to open from the inside or the outside. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 69,995.
Latches/locks/linkages, May 2, 2022
There appears to be a dangerously common malfunction on my 2016 Hyundai Tucson. Without any warning or indication of failure I am unable to open either of my rear passenger doors. Neither from inside, nor outside. The door locks appear to lock and unlock, manually and/or electrically, but the none of the door handles work. First the rear right side, followed by the rear left side a day later. It would be impossible in an emergency for someone to exit or be removed from the vehicle. God forbid there was a fire, or child stuck in a car seat. Vehicle is available for inspection. Though have not been able to have a dealer inspect it yet...Hyundai is not returning my calls. How can this not be a recall yet!! Do innocent people have to die first? There's no reason to have "tombstone legislation". Be proactive.
Latches/locks/linkages, Apr 29, 2022
Passenger rear door will no longer open on first try after locking and unlocking vehicle