2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport: jerking or lurching

Filed Oct 15, 2026 · Engine · IN

Started car to reverse out of parking space and it started jerking as I accelerated. Drove jerkily the few blocks I had to go to make it home. Did not drive again but upon starting it the check engine light came on. Contacted Hyundai customer care who told me my car was covered under two extended warranties for a well documented engine failure on this exact vehicle - Hyundai Santa Fe Sport 2017. I’ve been researching and Hyundai knows about this problem and it had been through the courts after group legal action was taken. Hyundai refuses to pay for the car they know is a failure to be diagnosed. I cannot afford to have the car diagnosed especially not for a problem that Hyundai and half the world know (and have documented) is Hyundai’s fault. Vehicle can not be driven.

Filed Oct 12, 2026 · Electrical, Engine · FL

I was driving my car and it showed no signs of any issue but the engine light came on and started blinking so I pulled over and got it towed to a mechanic. He told me that I would need a new engine that would cost me $8000. I looked into it and found that there was a defect with my vehicles engine and that if I took it to a dealership, I could possibly get it covered 100% so I did that and then they covered it and when I got the vehicle back, it had an issue every time I drove it where it was kind of speeding up and jerking when I drove it, I took it back after I told them what happened and then they told me that my catalytic converter was bad and needed to be replaced. I ended up paying $1500 to get that replaced and when I got the car back again it’s still jerking and doing the same exact thing even worse. I contacted them. They told me to bring it back which I did and they told me that it needed a software update that was not available so that I would just have to be patient. They told me that anytime I wanted to drive it I had to let it warm up for 5 to 10 minutes and that it wouldn’t do that. I’ve had my vehicle back for over two weeks and it doesn’t matter if I warm it up or not it’s still doing the same thing. I do not feel safe driving this vehicle and I have not been giving any resolution by either the dealership or by the consumer affairs case manager that I have been working with on this. This has been an ongoing issue for three months now. It’s costed me hundreds of dollars in Ubers because I don’t feel it’s safe to drive.

Filed Sep 29, 2026 · Engine · IA

Service Campaigh 9C2 Following completion of Service Campaign 9C2 (Theta II Emissions Improvement), certain vehicles may exhibit a brief hesitation or rough shifting condition during cold start operation. My 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe sport has severe loss of power and rough jerky transmission after the update. This condition will definately cause unsafe driving and vehicle engine and transmission damage. Hyundai corporate and local dealerships indicate no remedy for this situation. Dealer also indicated that Hyundai corporate may not release a new software update to fix the issue. This is unacceptable.

Filed Sep 17, 2026 · Engine · FL

My 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe was brought to a local Hyundai dealership for routine maintenance on July 1, 2026. The 9C2 software update was installed, without my knowledge or consent, during this service. Immediately after getting my car back, I noticed a problem starting the car (though no warning lights or alerts populated). The car seems to stall and then jerk during the first few minutes of driving, particularly after a cold start (car has been sitting for a few hours before starting). This has been a KNOWN issue by Hyundai for several months, yet this update continues to be installed. There is currently no fix, and Hyundai simply suggests letting the car "warm up" for 3-5 minutes before ever driving it. I have reported this to Hyundai corporate and have no other resolutions or timeline on a fix. Many other individuals are affected. This is particularly dangerous due to drivers not always having the ability to wait 3-5 minutes to let their car warm up, and the car is quite difficult to control with all the initial jerking and stalling. I live in a residential neighborhood and continue to be nervous about lack of control over the car when leaving my home. I firmly believe Hyundai should be held responsible for fixing this issue urgently.

Filed Sep 1, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · MA

Brought my 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport into the dealer on July 25, 2026 for the ECU and Theta II software update (Hyundai Service Campaign 9C2). Before the recall service my car drove perfectly with no issues. After the recall service my car is extremely jerky when shifting at low speeds and has long delays when trying to accelerate. This problem is particularly apparent on cold start, and less so once the vehicle has been driving. The issue is not as noticeable if the vehicle has been driven, is turned off, and then turned on again before fully cooled down. The jerky shifting has been getting worse over the past month. Vehicle was taken back to the dealer that conducted the software update on August 26, 2026 and they charged me for throttle body cleaning and EFI service which they performed for carbon build up as they cited this as the cause for the issues. The issue was not resolved from this service despite the dealers claims and the vehicle still has the same jerky shifting and delayed acceleration on cold start. There are no warning messages. Issue is becoming more widely documented among users after this particular service campaign so it is not an individual isolated problem.

Filed Jun 25, 2026 · Engine, Transmission · NC

Campaign 9C2 was installed on this vehicle and the now the vehicle is a danger to drive. My wife refuses to drive it as it bucks and jerks as well as the gas mileage has decreased from 35 highway to 28 highway. The fuel trims are way off on cold starts and the transmission now searches for the correct gear. Shifting back and forth. Just a slight touch of the accelerator and the car seems to jump forward which makes stop and go driving almost impossible.

Filed Jun 18, 2026 · Engine · NC

My 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe sport has never had any issues until last Friday when I took my car to the dealership for regular maintenance (oil change, tire rotation) as I always do. They also performed a software update for recall campaign 9C2. Every day since, when first starting the car after it’s been resting for a while, I’ve experienced a jerky transmission and rough shifting for a first couple minutes of driving. Hyundai has acknowledged they are aware of this issue related to the campaign and the dealership said they’ve had many customers complaining of the same problem following the recall update. However, Hyundai has offered no resolution, other than recommending the car warm up for 13 minutes after starting. Hyundai needs to correct the issue they caused, as my car was perfectly fine before it was serviced and now it’s not performing properly.

Filed Jun 11, 2026 · Engine, Transmission · FL

Following the completion of an official emissions recall software upgrade at Fitzgerald Auto Mall Countryside, Clearwater Florida, my 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (52,000 miles) now suffers from a severe loss of motive power and erratic transmission shifting/jerking during cold starts throughout day. The vehicle continues to hesitate during cold starts, making it impossible to safely accelerate from a stop into incoming traffic. I returned to dealership on 5/29/26 to address continued driving issues. The servicing dealership states they don't have a software fix and offer no mechanical fix. The dealership states they received an internal memo from Hyundai Corporate which instructed the dealership to tell affected owners to idle the vehicle for 1-3 minutes before driving to allow system adjustments. Forcing a consumer to wait out a dangerous powertrain defect in a running vehicle to avoid a roadway acceleration/loss accident is an unacceptable safety hazard. The manufacturers recall update has actively compromised the safe operation and motive control of this vehicle.

Filed May 29, 2026 · Engine, Fuel system · SC

After the ECM recall for a software update the car would not run correctly. It jerks and and runs rough. It almost stalls when you put your foot on the gas. I took it back to the dealer and they can not get the problem to duplicate. Noone else has looked at the problem. There were never any problems with the care until the recall. The problem occurred the day I brought the car home from the ECM update.

Filed May 22, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · LA

NO power till car warms up for 5 minutes. It will be jerky on highway. The gas mileage is going down drastically, I was doing 32 miles to gallon and now it's 22mpg. All this is after the recall we just had performed. I have no power trying to avoid accidents, taking off from stopping. Car smells weird now.

Filed Jul 30, 2025 · Engine · MD

I am unsure what component of the engine caused the issue. There was chance of engine failure while driving. While idle the engine was stuttering and the RPN dial was fluctuating. Engine persisted to stutter and jerk at random intervals when accelerating. The engine light came on flashing ~1 hour after the first sign of the issue. Immediately after the engine light came on the vehicle was moved off of the road and a tow truck was contacted to transport the vehicle to a Hyundai dealership. The vehicle was inspected at a manufacturer's dealership and the problem was resolved with a technician stating that the vehicle needed a "system update". There is also an ongoing issue with the vehicle excessively consuming oil.

Filed Aug 21, 2023 · Engine · 96,000 miles · OR

The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle stalled and jerked. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000. The VIN was unavailable.