"The 8-speed Dual Clutch Transmission and engine (Cylinder 4) failed on my 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz SEL Premium AWD with 37,780 miles. Both components are available for inspection upon request. While merging onto the highway in Sport Mode, the vehicle experienced violent shuddering and noise so severe I believed I had multiple flat tires simultaneously — specifically both front and rear passenger side tires. I immediately activated hazard lights and exited the highway. I was unable to safely operate the vehicle. Other drivers on the highway were also put at risk by my sudden need to exit. The dealer has NOT been able to reproduce or confirm the transmission issue despite multiple documented visits over the past year. However, AutoZone confirmed diagnostic code P0304 Cylinder 4 Misfire Detected on March 19, 2026 via OBD-II scan. The vehicle has been inspected multiple times by the Hyundai dealership over the past year. Hyundai Motor America has an open case on this vehicle and has escalated it to their buyback department. The Check Engine Light illuminated during the highway incident then self-cleared. Transmission slipping, shuddering at low speeds, high RPMs at low vehicle speeds, and failure to shift properly have been reported to the dealer for over one year. This vehicle contains the identical DCT transmission covered under Hyundai Recall 236 but my VIN was excluded despite identical symptoms. Backup camera has also failed twice — a federally mandated safety device."
2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: misfire or rough idle
6 of the 187 complaints about the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz describe misfire or rough idle.
- owner complaints
- 6
- of this car's complaints
- 3%
- recalls
- 1
Misfire or rough idle by model year
- 20233
- 20226
What owners say
Vehicle began running roughly. CEL came on. Began to misfire. Limped it off the FWY under limited power. Had vehicle towed to dealership. Was diagnosed as having bad fuel injectors. Was told by service writer that Hyundai Santa Cruz trucks have been experiencing a lot of injector failures. Looking at the various Hyundai Santa Cruz forums, it appears that this has been a very common issue and has occurred in 2022 through 2025 model year vehicles
2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited 29K miles bought in March at CarMax. I had 6/8 fuel injectors replaced under warranty but it took MONTHS and 5 trips to the dealer. I first had an issue with cold starting the engine and I got a cylinder 3 misfire code, and the first time I dropped it off in April they said they could not repro and sent me home...and then the story got worse.... May 10, 2024 I dropped off the vehicle for a second time due to an intermittent issue with rough cold starts and check engine light. May 24, 2024 All 4 of the high pressure fuel injectors were replaced and I was able to take home the vehicle after two weeks. May 25, 2024 one day later, after the repairs were made, another check engine light DTC P23F5F0 came on while driving the vehicle. May 29, 2024 I dropped off the vehicle due to DTC P23F5F0 as reported by Bluelink . May 31, 2024 The DTC was cleared from the system after a brief diagnosis and I was sent home with the vehicle with no repairs being done. June 1, 2024 One day after I picked it up, DTC P23F5F0 showed up again for me on the Santa Cruz. June 2nd, 2024 I dropped it off for this DTC for the second time. They drove it 250 miles and could not get the light to come back on. July 12, 2024 They released the vehicle over one month later, doing nothing but clearing the light, citing that they needed to replicate the issue for Hyundai corporate to pay for a repair. July 13th 2024, the day after I picked it up for this DTC the second time, the same malfunction indicator DTC 23F5F0 light came back on for me. I finally got the vehicle back in August after they replaced 2 of the low pressure fuel injectors. I've heard from others that failing fuel injectors can cause catastrophic failures on the highway.
2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz began shaking on the interstate and showing a check engine light on the dash. After pulling off the road to a nearby auto parts store, the ODB reader showed a DTC of P0301, which is a misfiring cylinder. A independent mechanic across the street from the auto parts store diagnosed the issue as a leaking fuel injector, but in order to get the repair cost covered, the vehicle had to be towed to a Hyundai dealership. The dealership did not have any loaner vehicles to offer and estimated 1-2 weeks to even officially diagnose the vehicle themselves. 2 weeks later, the dealership is estimating another 2-3 weeks or more, and Hyundai corporate will not approve any reimbursement for the out-of-pocket costs of hotel, towing, Uber, and rental until diagnosis AND repair is complete, which could be an unknown period of time.
On three separate occasions the engine developed a misfire after driving approximately 90 miles in inclement weather. During this time period the transmission began to make hard upshiftswhile accelerating and when down shifting the transmission felt as though it would lurch or surge between gear selection. Use of paddle shifter to manually select gears would result in limited acceleration after the transmission returned to the drive mode. The transmission would not downshift on its own after the paddle shifters were used unless the floor shift select was manually placed in neutral. Then normal operation would resume.The vehicle was returned to the dealership and had the transmission software update performed. This did not resolve issues. These incidents began in October of 2022 and the vehicle was was put in for service the second week of November. It remains in their possession as of 01/06/2023.
2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited, 2.5T with 8-speed DCT, with 11,765 miles. This has happened 3 times in a 3 day period. Upon accelerating from a stop, there was a complete loss of power. I applied more pressure to the accelerator and still no power. It seemed like the vehicle was out-of-gear or had an engine misfire. After about 10 seconds, a puff of thick, dark smoke came out from the tailpipe and acceleration resumed as if nothing happened. Upon coming to a stop and exiting the vehicle, there was a smell of burnt rubber coming from under the hood, but I could not locate the source. There have been at least 3 other instances in the last week where there was some hesitation when accelerating from a stop (again, it felt like it was in the wrong gear or there was a misfire) but not a complete loss of power and dark smoke like in the other instances. After each of the above instances, I attached an OBDII tool to look for error codes but there were none.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Higher-than-expected engine oil consumption
- Warning lamp illumination for a diagnostic trouble code P2181 that is related to the Integrated Thermal...
- This bulletin provides important checkpoint guidelines when performing engine oil and filter change services.
- This bulletin provides the diagnostic procedure for the GDI injector(s) in certain 21-23MY Sonata, 21-22MY...
- If you are servicing an 8-speed vehicle with a “Check Engine” light on and one or more of the DTC listed,...
- This bulletin provides the diagnostic procedure for the GDI injector(s) in certain 21-23MY Sonata, 21-22MY...
- This bulletin provides the diagnostic procedure for the GDI injector(s) in certain 21-22MY Sonata, Santa...
- This bulletin provides the procedure to update ECU and TCU of a vehicle experiencing any of the following...
Related recalls
Engine and engine cooling: engine: oil/lubrication: pipes, hoses, and fittings
- What is wrong
- Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Santa Fe and Santa Cruz vehicles. The oil supply pipe to the turbocharger may crack, which could result in an oil leak in the engine compartment.
- Risk
- An oil leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components, can increase the risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the turbocharger oil supply pipe, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1‑855‑371‑9460. Hyundai's number for this recall 222.
Recall number 22V197000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz misfire
Is misfire or rough idle a common problem on the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz?
6 of 187 owner complaints about the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz (3%) mention misfire or rough idle. The model year with the most reports is 2022.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz?
There is 1 recall and 10 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz
Loss of power 39Check engine light 31Transmission failure 15Stalling 13Won't shift 11Headlights 8Jerking 7Fire or smoke 5Hesitation 5
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history