Hyundai Santa Fe Sport shudder problems

Filed May 20, 2026 · Engine · 147,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that occasionally, while driving at various speeds, an abnormal knocking sound was heard coming from under the hood while the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the steering wheel would shudder. The Check engine oil warning light illuminated. Upon further investigation, the contact related the failure to NHSTA Campaign: 17V226000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it remains for further investigation; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to a lack of maintenance records, and the recall repairs were rejected. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and determined that the recall repairs were performed under previous ownership; however, the recall repairs were not completed. The failure mileage was approximately 147,000.

Filed Nov 4, 2025 · Engine · KY

I purchased this vehicle in November 2022. Hyundai and all affiliates were well aware of the engine recall. I was NEVER informed of the recall, if I was, logically I never would have purchased it. This is fraud by Toyota South in Richmond Kentucky. 6 months or so after purchasing, I began noticing the oil loss, without any oil on the ground where I park the vehicle. I researched and found the recall. I fought with the dealership and Hyundai corporate for 4 months before they said they would replace the engine with a new engine, I was told this early November 2023. I received my car back on 11/24/23. I was told the new engine came with a 12,000(?) mile warranty. I am still looking for this paperwork and will have it available soon. Fast forward to September 2025, as I am driving on I75N to Lexington from Berea, my car shudders and a smoke cloud larger than my vehicle appears behind my car. I check my oil and I am down 2 quarts, which I thought was odd considering I had checked it 2-3 weeks prior to this. I checked it in another week, and it is down 2 quarts again!! There is still no leakage, no oil on the ground, immediately I knew it was another recalled engine. Which is beyond comprehension, why would Hyundai replace a recalled engine, with a recalled engine?? So I go to the dealership and am told I have to do the 3 stage consumption test, drive 1000 miles or be down 1.5 quarts and come back. I was back within 2 days, I drove 150(?) miles and was down 1.5 quarts. The dealership and Hyundai determined the oil consumption issue is present, meaning its a recalled engine. Through phone calls with Hyundai I was told it is also remanufactured, but if you recall, I was told it was a NEW engine. Fraud #2. They refuse to fix it. This is the only vehicle in my household, and my means for income. Hyundai is costing me the right to live, the right to work. They are despicable, awful people to work with. The constant threat of fire is very stressful!!

Filed Nov 14, 2024 · Engine · CO

I am reporting a Theta engine problem. This is a well documented problem across the nation. My car started knocking and losing oil after I bought it. At one point, I had to tow it to the dealership because the check engine light was flashing and the car was knocking and shuddering so bad, they told me not to drive the car any further. I have had the car back in the dealership several more times since then. The car currently has 110,000 miles on it, but the problems started before 100,000. I have contacted Hyundai, and they have told me that they won't do anything. They told me that I have a Theta engine and I have to go through the lawsuit. When I contacted the lawsuit, my car wasn't on the list of cars in the law suit even though Hyundai says that my car is one that could have the Theta engine. I had to continue to drive the vehicle and it is a safety issue at this point. The dealership said I had to drive it until the engine completely failed. That is a huge problem with safety. If my engine fails as I'm going up and down the mountains, it could cause me to be in an accident and it could cause me to hurt others. According to the articles that I have read, an engine failure can cause the rod to go through the engine and cause a fire! I know that cars can fail at any time....but when you know that your engine could fail at any time because of a manufacturer defect, that is a safety issue! I have done regular oil changes and done all the maintenance on this vehicle. My mom has let me borrow her car so that I don't have to drive an unsafe vehicle. I don't think that I should be financially responsible to replace this engine. Please let me know if you have any questions. The car is available for inspection.

Filed Jun 26, 2024 · Engine · 120,000 miles · GA

The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive oil consumption. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle shuddered and stalled. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

Filed Jun 6, 2024 · Visibility · 70,000 miles · VA

The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the sunroof exploded while the shade guard was opened, causing shattered glass to fall inside the vehicle. The contact had not sustained any injuries. The contact pulled into the nearest tire shop and paid a fee for the shattered glass to be removed from the sunroof. The contact continued driving; however, she drove under hazardous conditions with the remaining part of the sunroof shuddering while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the sunroof needed to be replaced, and a fee was charged for the repair. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

Filed Jan 25, 2023 · Engine · 166,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving 9 MPH, the vehicle started shuddering, made an abnormally loud sound, and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to push the vehicle to the side of the road with the assistance of bystanders. The contact then noticed that a significant amount of engine oil had leaked onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist as she and failed to complete the repair under Hyundai Campaign Number: 953 on the vehicle; however, the contact had not received a notification. The failure mileage was approximately 166,000.

Filed Sep 26, 2022 · Engine · 78,000 miles · VA

The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle hesitated and started shuddering significantly. Additionally, the engine was skipping. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure subsided while driving for an extended period of time. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who inspected the vehicle and informed the contact that there was no oil leak. The vehicle was then taken to a second dealer, CMA's Colonial Hyundai (2200 Walthall Center Dr, South Chesterfield, VA 23834) where an oil consumption test was performed. The dealer advised the contact to bring the vehicle in every 1,000 miles in order to measure and record the oil consumption. The contact stated that the engine oil low was a 1 quart low per week after the last oil change. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.

Filed Apr 30, 2020 · Engine · 37,000 miles · SC · 1 injury

Tl* the contact owns a 2017 hyundai santa fe sport. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle shuddered and decelerated independently. Additionally, the vehicle failed to accelerate with the accelerator pedal depressed. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to fort mill hyundai (805 gold hill rd, fort mill, sc 29708 (855) 548-9524) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that an unknown software update needed to be performed. The software was updated however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 37,000. The VIN was invalid. *dt

Filed Mar 6, 2019 · Engine, Fuel system · 7,600 miles · FL

My car is 6months old with 7600 miles on it. I stopped at a red light. My car began to shake/shudder and then shut off. I had to try and restart it 4 times before it successfully restarted. This happened on a city street, thankfully right before getting on the highway.

Filed Jul 17, 2017 · Steering · 11,000 miles · MA

We bought our 2017 hyundai santa fe sport used; it had only 11,000 miles on it. Driving home from the dealership, I noticed the steering wheel would shudder violently when I turned the steering wheel, and as the steering wheel returned to center after a turn. This makes it close to impossible to control the steering wheel, and nearly got me into a few accidents since I was unable to control the steering wheel. This suggests there is an issue with the steering column or worse; the steering rack. If there is slipping going on in the steering column or rack, it could be dangerous, as the vehicle could have difficulty steering, or lose the ability to steer completely when in drive. I have never experienced such an issue while driving any other vehicle.