2018 Hyundai Tucson
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 396 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 3rd highest complaint count among 21 Tucson model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 13 involved a crash and 9 involved a fire. 10 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
Representative owner complaints
396 reports, newest first.
Power train, Electrical system, Vehicle speed control, Nov 2, 2022
While driving my car normally 9 dashboard lights came on suddenly including the check engine, ABS, brakes while at the same time the dials on the dashboard including the rpms, speedometer, oil temperature and more all stopped working. This happened suddenly while the car was in drive and also caused issues with the transmission as the car stopped shifting gears properly and was driving very rough. With this sudden onset of many different issues out of nowhere driving the vehicle was very dangerous when trying to get to a safe location. After parking this electrical issue would not allow me to take the car out of park or use a OBD reader do to the electrical issue. After researching this problem I found several reports online describing nearly identical symptoms all of the sudden resulting in the car being undrivable and in a dangerous state. These owners said they took the cars to the dealer who tried replacing several components without fixing the issue with hours of diagnosis charges. Eventually after having the vehicles for several days they replaced the reverse camera which it turns out was shorting a significant amount of other critical car electrical components. With no prior damage to the camera or these electrical components the abrupt and random onset of this issue pose a significant safety risk to Hyundai Tucson drivers (at least in 2016 -2018 models) . My experience with the Hyundai Dealership was very similar to them even after I had diagnosed the issue to the camera the dealer said they had contacted the manufacturing engineers who took several days to determine what was causing these electrical issues. This is not an isolated issue as multiple hyundai tucson owners have reported this to Hyundai and their dealerships yet they fail to recognize the risks associated with the faulty cameras they install in their factories. They need to recall their vehicles prone to having this issue. This has cost me $1000 to fix and put me at risk on the road
Service brakes, Oct 18, 2022
Good day, I hope your day is going well. I have a 2018 Hyundai Tucson and on several occasions when I have tried to stop rapidly my break seem to fail and the car slid further than expected. I noticed that there was an anti lock break hydronic recall on the 2018-2022 models but I never received a letter for my vehicle
Suspension, Oct 18, 2022
Hello, I hope your day is going well. Recently I’ve been having an issue with the car “jerking rapidly” when in traffic and rolling slowly and when climbing relatively small hills, it began about 3 months ago but have become progressively worse over the last month. I was told by someone with a similar vehicle that it is the “lower arm control.” The car is only 4 years old. I leased it and at the end of last year or the year before decided to buy it from the dealer. My plan was to have it for the next 5 years but this issue greatly concerns me. It seems to be a manufacturing issue. My car vin is [XXX] and I’d like to correct this issues ASAP. Thanks. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Vehicle speed control, Engine, Oct 8, 2022
Knock sensor recall was done in May 2022. Brought vehicle into service for Ac problem and oil change, which was completed. Was on highway going home 65 mph speed limit hit a hill, my engine light started flashing, my transmission downshifted and I lost all accelaration while on hill, speed wouldn’t go any higher then 50 at that point. Got to closest gas station and had car towed back to dealership, I just want to point out that the knock sensor is going to put people in danger in certain situations like myself, I am not to happy.
Engine, Oct 4, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving approximately 70 MPH, she started to hear a loud pinging noise coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that her daughter stated that the check engine warning light illuminated and she steered the vehicle to a highway off ramp as the vehicle began to lose motive power. The contact said her daughter saw that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle then stalled. The contact stated that her daughter called for a tow truck and had the vehicle taken to the dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and found metal shavings inside the oil pan and determined that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
Structure, Oct 3, 2022
Paint is peeling.
Engine, Sep 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving approximately 65 MPH, she heard a noise coming from the engine compartment. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for routine services and the mechanic was made aware of the failure. The contact stated that while the mechanic was test driving the vehicle at 40 MPH, the engine blew out. The vehicle was towed back to the facility. The contact was made aware of Service Campaign: 966 (Engine Monitoring Logic Update). The manufacturer was not made aware of failure. The approximate failure mileage was 46,000.
Engine, Sep 22, 2022, fire
The engine caught on fire, it was considered totaled loss. I settled with the insurance and not sure if the car is still available for inspection. My safety was put at risk because I was driving the car when it happened. I did not get injured because I was able to get out of the car. There was no recall from what I know. The car was inspected by GEICO which is why it was considered totaled loss. There was no warning before the fire. The car was in great condition.
Engine, Sep 8, 2022
ENGINE LIGHTS continues to turn on every other day or so I took my car to get its regular Oil change and expressed this to one of the service reps about this issue they told me They couldn’t do anything about it because once they turned on the vehicle the light came off. A few days ago my engine started Blinking and I started panicking since I was on a highway from a road trip my car started making this awful cackling noise and I had To call a tow to then get told That this can take WEEKS TO FIX and NO RENTALS CAN BE PROVIDED WHEN I AM CLEARLY IN A DIFFERENT STATE THEN WHERE I LIVE! Hyundai IS ONCE OF THE WORST AUTO I HAVE EVER DELT WITH! Absolutely not Help I was practically stranded on an issue that Had nothing to do with me! The engine light came Out of no where
Structure, Aug 31, 2022
The paint is chipping in large patches on various places throughout the body of the vehicle.
Steering, Aug 31, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that if the steering wheel was not exactly positioned at 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock, the vehicle would fail to start. The steering wheel would lock-up and the vehicle would lose power. The contact stated that when turning off the vehicle, the steering wheel had to be positioned at the 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock position or the vehicle would not start-up. The contact would tow the vehicle whenever the failure would occur. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to call the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 92,622.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Aug 27, 2022
check engine light comes on bout 25 times a week i plug my scanner into it and it reads knock sensor faulty I seen a RECALL for these cars why doesn't my car have a recall of this on going issue?
Engine, Aug 25, 2022
Aug 9, 2022 ~1pm. Driving ~60 mph south on highway 18, 30 miles north of Lusk, WY. Heard 30 seconds of slapping noise from engine, follow by oil pressure low light. Accelerator also ceased to function. Pulled to side of road and waited for tow. Towed to Ken Garff Hyundai in Cheyanne, WY. Inspected on Aug 25, 2022 by technician at Ken Garff two weeks after incident. Hyundai authorized engine replacement. Hyundai also stated twice that there was a recall on the car. No recall appears in the NHTSA database. Problem is very similar to Part 573 Safety Recall Report 21V-727, which includes the 2017 Hyundai Tucson.
Engine, Jul 7, 2022
The vehicle has 81,000 miles with regular oil changes. We purchased as a certified pre owned with 45,000 miles on the vehicle. The car had been running perfectly. Last weekend the car was making an awful noise. Today the mechanic tells us the lower unit is knocking and the motor will need replaced. There is no way this should be happening at this mileage especially since the car has been regularly serviced. Hyundai is not even interested in repairing the vehicle, went straight to trying to get me to trade it in. We could have been stranded or killed on the highway and with all of the other complaints about this motor, I can’t believe there hasn’t been a recall.
Engine, Jul 6, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and decelerated. Additionally, the vehicle was making a ticking sound which became a loud knocking sound. Additionally, the engine was revving however, the vehicle was decelerating. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled off the highway safely and then drove the vehicle to her residence. The contact's husband then drove the vehicle to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that water had entered the engine cylinders and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed by the independent mechanic that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V727000 (Engine). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Jul 1, 2022
I have a Hyundai 2018. I bought it in 2019 with about 64,000 miles on it. I keep up with all the maintenance on my SUV. I noticed once I moved from Illinois to Florida, after having the car for a year, it started consuming a lot of oil. I've never had an oil leak anywhere on the car. In November of 2020 I went to Take 5 to get my oil changed and the mechanic said make sure to check my oil often because my truck burns a lot of oil. I'm find myself putting oil in my truck once a week. Every 500 miles it needs oil. The crazy thing is, is that the oil light never once came on. The engine light will come on. I went to a recall appointment 2 weeks ago, which was the same day I got my oil changed June 11, 2022, and I told them about this issue and they did nothing. By June 23rd I needed more oil! I see California has a lawsuit about this issue. I want to trade in my truck because this is costing too much money feeding this truck gas and now oil!
Power train, Vehicle speed control, Jun 7, 2022
While driving the vehicle, while accelerating the vehicle would lose power or disengage from gas pedal at 17 mph and then again at 26 mph. After about 3 miles the check engine light came on and a TCM warning appeared on the radio screen. Immediately took the car to the dealership and was turned away since I didn’t have an appointment. On my way home from the dealership I made a stop at a store. I reversed out of the parking spot with no issues. When I put the vehicle in drive, it would not accelerate. I could drive in reverse but not forward. Vehicle was towed to the dealership. Diagnostics revealed it was a failed TCM. Further research revealed this same issue occurred in 2016 models. How was this not fixed or prevented in later models?
Engine, Jun 1, 2022
An oil change was done and part of the transmission pan overflowed and then engine failed.
Electrical system, May 13, 2022
Left turn signal sporadically works during a left turn. Can be safety issue when turn signal stops mid turn even the slightest turn it can stop working and then when finished turning it turns on again. Reported issue to dealership and is being replaced through extended warranty. Issue is a faulty Multi functional turn signal switch. Had been several month since issue started. I have video if the turn signal failing.
Engine, May 3, 2022
Powertrain issue. Multiple times the after stopping the engine revs for a few seconds and then the vehicle will lurch forward. It acts like the CVT transmission has a delayed response to the accelerator. The condition comes and goes and sometimes it happens multiple times in the same trip.
Power train, Apr 23, 2022
Powertrain issue. Multiple times the after stopping the engine revs for a few seconds and then the vehicle will lurch forward. It acts like the CVT transmission has a delayed response to the accelerator. The condition comes and goes and sometimes it happens multiple times in the same trip.
Vehicle speed control, Engine, Mar 30, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while driving up a hill, the vehicle lost motive power. While driving the vehicle at undisclosed speeds and turning, the vehicle hesitated and then accelerated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
Engine, Mar 22, 2022
Driving down the road, accelerated to speed limit, but the car slowed down and the RPM's stayed at 2000. The car just stopped running and I was able to pull over into the middle lane. Towed to dealership, 6 weeks min. to diagnose until we know what happened . DANGEROUS!!!
Power train, Mar 15, 2022
Car has no power when accelerating, when accelerating from a stop the car revs but does not move, then when it does move it takes off like a rocket, in slow moving traffic 5 mph, you accelerate and the car seems like it wants to stall, a lot of hesitation, In fast moving traffic, if you want to merge or pass another vehicle you must give yourself ample time and make sure it is clear to make your move, if you need to get out of the way really fast you cant, its very dangerous and Hyundai needs to move quick on this before something really bad happens to someone.
Power train, Engine, Mar 4, 2022
my 2018 Hyundai Tucson starting having lurching issues on when first started. i have to back into my driveway so i dont have to go in reverse then go forward. it jerks back and forth so hard. It finally took its toll on the transfer case and it exploded internally. the Dealership said they had never seen this before. i was hoping that was the cause of the issue but it wasnt. Still doing it and am afraid it will do it again. i was under warranty when it happened, so teh $2000 replair was covered. i'm concerned it will happen again. teh problem goes away after it's been completely warmed up. but like many others, its a scary issue when first started. it also will also shift hard when it firsts get's going (after the initial hard lurching back and forth). i dont know what to do. Love the car otherwise, but concerned with ever buying a Hyundai again.