2021 Hyundai Palisade: windshield wiper failure

Filed May 8, 2025 · Electrical, Visibility · MD

In January 2025, during snowy weather, the windshield wipers on my 2021 Hyundai Palisade failed mid-operation and began making a buzzing noise. After 3–4 uses, they locked up and stopped functioning, causing a serious visibility issue. This occurred while driving, putting my safety at risk. This symptom directly matches the federal safety agency Recall 23V‑180 / Hyundai Campaign 243, which I was told had already been addressed by the dealership I purchased from (Fitzgerald Hyundai in Gaithersburg, MD). I bought the vehicle used in April 2023, around the time this recall was active. I brought the vehicle back to that dealership in May 2025. They confirmed the wiper motors appeared to be binding and recommended replacement. However, they claimed the issue was not related to the recall and charged me a diagnostic fee of $209. Their service summary matches the defect described in the recall. I believe the recall fix was either never performed properly or did not actually resolve the underlying issue. This appears to be a recurring safety defect that puts drivers at continued risk.

Filed Aug 12, 2024 · Seat belts, Visibility · IN

Front passenger and both captain chairs seatbelts will unlatch on their own. Windshield wipers when on automatic setting will turn on with no precipitation on windshield. Generally when the steering is turned slightly left. Both issues have happened multiple times over the past 4 years of ownership.

Filed Apr 12, 2023 · Visibility · AZ

The contact owns 2021 Hyundai Palisade. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V180000 (Visibility, Wiper) and 22V633000 (Trailer Hitches). The contact stated that the fuse was removed from the tow hitch, rendering the tow hitch inoperable. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but declined to provide assistance. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Nov 24, 2022 · Electrical, Visibility · MD

The is no incident yet I am writing to file a complaint as to the extend time that we owners of said vehicle got recall notices and follow up notices, but yet no fix appears to be had in the immediate future. So I have to remove and replace a trailer harness fuse everytime I need to use my hitch to avoid a fire and potentially losing my house since my garage is attached. When paying $50K on a car you should not have to part outside away from you house for this long extended period because the manufacturer can't figure out what the fix is. Also the wiper motor recall-would think this would be an easier fix-yet nothing resolved on that either after several months of notices and waiting. Someone needs to press Hyundai to get on it!!!!!

Filed Feb 8, 2022 · Visibility · ME

The car cannot be driven in the snow. The windshield wipers are "recessed" below the hood. While driving in snow when snow gets pushed down the wipers sense the snow and shutdown/lockout. The driver (my spouse) spent 20 minutes trying to remove all snow and was forced to driver without wind shield wipers in a snow storm. It has happened both times the car was driven in the snow.

Filed Feb 7, 2022 · Visibility · MA

When there is snow or ice build up under the front wipers that prevents them from going to thier “starting position or offer any resistance the wipers will no longer continue to function. So during snow storms when this occurs the wipers do not work requiring the driver or other occupants to get out sometime even opening the hood due to the large wiper well on the car to clean all residual snow or ice including that under the hinge. This can be extremely dangerous if you need to do this on the side of a road or highway in poor weather like blizzard or heavy snow fall. Please note the wipers still have full and proper range to go up and may have just have gone up. But once they can’t go down they shut down operations I think in order to prevent motor damage of the wiper regardless of the settings on the wiper controls. Hyundai needs to program the i cars to continue to allow wiper operations or trying regardless of the tension and if they can no longer do down stop and wipe up from that point. Lastly if the wipers are shutting down on the instrument control panel the driver should be notified of the wipers discontinuing of operations for thier awareness and not have to guess as to the issue. In all of my years owning and driving vehicles I’ve never experienced this with ford, Chevy, dodge, gmc, etc…. This seems to be an issue and there is a large forums of users complaining of this issue here https://palisadeforums.org/threads/wipers-stopped-working-snow-build-up.444/

Filed Feb 2, 2022 · Visibility · MI

The windshield wipers stop/lock with even a small amount of snow on the windshield anywhere in the wiper well (at the bottom, near the hood). Even if it's cleared out very well to start, snow pushed down there by the wipers causes the wipers to stop working entirely, while driving. This is unlike any vehicle I've ever driven in my life; it's incredibly annoying and unsafe.

Filed Jan 30, 2022 · Visibility · VA

SERIOUS safety problem with a VERY important VERY needed system called the WINDSHIELD WIPERS!!! THEY ABSOLUTELY SUCK!!!! I driving down the interstate and got stuck under snow, and all of a sudden my wipers just QUIT WORKING!!! I almost hit the cars in front of me!! I coiner see anything. I was later told the reason by a dealer employee… Because as the wipers are traveling in the down stroke, they quite naturally push snow down into the well in which the wipers sit when they are not in use, down where the wiper arms connect to the vehicle, and it doesn't take long to fill that area and pack it with hard wet snow, when this happens, evidently the system senses that there is an obstacle blocking the wiper arms motion, and shuts the system down, apparently so that nothing breaks! So now then I was forced to pull off onto the shoulder of the interstate in the middle of this snowstorm to try to clear the snow from the wiper well! This is a dangerous interstate and was almost hit by passing trucks!! While clearing the well I found here is another problem that comes into play.... the wipers are now stuck partially up, but not enough so that you can fold the arms up to be able to get a scraper or your hand to the area where the snow is now packed into ICE, which is kinda a deep pocket! Now I have learned from UNWANTED experience that you can manually pull the wiper arms up a few inches, which aids in letting you get your fingers in there to try to clear the snow jam, but you have to move quick, because the system is constantly trying to "RESET" itself and comes slamming back down on your fingers about every 30 seconds!!!! It literally took me 20 minutes while dodging semi trucks on i95 to get them working again! Now I'm 5'5" short which does not help at all especially for the passenger side wiper where the snow jam is in the exact middle of the vehicle!!! I felt I was going to be killed that day. This is an absolutely REDICULOUS and DANGEROUS situation to be put in, and H

Filed Dec 10, 2021 · Visibility · SD

Every time that it has snowed this winter the wipers have stopped working. This has happened while stopped and while driving. If there is any amount of snow/ice/build up on the lower windshield, in the 'well' under the wiper blades and the hood of the car, the wipers will stop working. Not only is the frustrating but more importantly is a MASSIVE safety hazard the needs to be addressed ASAP. This happened this morning taking my kids to school, and there was very minimal snow below the wiper blades. Definitely not enough to cause harm to the wipers/motor during their use as the total amount was not even an 1/8". The time before that I was driving at normal speeds and had a truck pass me. During the trucks passing large amounts of slush/water were flung up onto the windshield and windshield well, stopping the wipers directly in their path. Being there was a vehicle in front of me, that I could A.) no longer see and B.) had no working wipers anymore, I made the decision to safely ditch the vehicle. I then had to get out, clear the slush from the well, at which point the wipers began to work again although there was nothing left to clear as all the slush/water had already ran off the windshield. This design flaw is putting lives at risk. Had I not been familiar with my area, the road I was on, and it was safe to defensively move over into the shoulder/ditch a MAJOR accident could have been caused. I can appreciate the intent, but this needs to be recalled immediately before a major accident is caused and people are hurt or worse.

Filed Feb 23, 2021 · Visibility · 2,400 miles · IL

While driving down the highway, light snow can disable the windshield wipers. The wipers will not start working again until you pull over, lift the hood to clear out the wiper well. The wipers are not frozen to the windshield. They can be manually moved back and forth. This is a very dangerous defect. Below is a link to a forum describing the defect. Https://palisadeforums.org/threads/wipers-stopped-working-snow-build-up.444/page-2

Filed Feb 18, 2021 · Visibility · 2,000 miles · WV

Twice this has happened. My windshield wipers lock up and will not clear the window. It seems like there may be snow or ice below them where they tuck in when this happens, which is hard to clear out anyway. While I am driving, if any snow or ice comes down from the roof, they will lock up as well, and this has left me absolutely not able to see the road. It is a major major hazard. Luckily I have been able to pull off the road both times to clear the window manually

Filed Feb 18, 2021 · Visibility · NY

Wipers stop working while driving. I had cleared and use the defrost but the snow still accumulated while driving and caused the wipers to stop. I had to find a shoulder on a busy highway to clear so the wipers would start working again. Very dangerous