2004 Hyundai Santa Fe: tire blowout or tread separation

Filed May 31, 2011 · Suspension · 91,315 miles · KY

While driving on a straight, smooth section of interstate highway my wife and I heard a very loud boom, as if we had hit a large rock or something. There was no vibration that an impact would have caused. We didn't know what had caused the noise. 2004 hyundai, santa fe drove fine. Two days later, when making a low speed right turn, the right front tire blew out. When the tire was removed it was discovered that the coil spring had broken, made contact with the tire and ripped it about three quarters around completely through. After researching the topic I was appalled at how many complaints there were about broken springs on 2004 santa fes. It seems to be a recurrent problem with this vehicle and should be recalled. If the spring had ruptured the tire when it apparently broke, on the highway I hesitate to think what would have happened, or how many lives would be at risk. I believe it is time hyundai stepped-up and recall the springs.

Filed Feb 24, 2011 · Suspension · 91,000 miles · IL

Was just pulling the car down the drive way and the front passenger side tire blew out. I stopped the car and a friend was going to change the tire. He noticed the spring had broken loose and punctured the tire. The car had been sitting in the drive way for 12 to 15 hours before we went to drive it. We had not even made it on the road and was only going a couple miles per hour and about 15 to 20 feet. We were on our way, going out of town and were thankful that we did not have this happen going 65 MPH on the highway were we could have been hurt or hurt some one else. Several times a week we have a new born and a two year old in this vehicle. Thankfully they were not with us. This front end suspension problem needs to be looked at, somebody is not going to be as lucky as we were. For us it was the drive way and not driving on the high way at a high speeds with our family.

Filed Feb 22, 2011 · Suspension · 17,552 miles · MA

Drivers side coil spring broken. Strut mount also needed to be replaced. I bought this car new in 2004. As the mileage will tell you, I don't drive it much. My car had been sitting in the driveway for a couple of days when I went to go to work. As I started backing out of the driveway I heard a very loud noise when I turned the wheel. I decided not to try driving it. My husband took it to the dealer and they found the spring broken. They said I was no longer under warranty. Fortunately, I was not driving it at the time as it could have punctured the tire and caused a blowout. Since this incident, it has happened again, on the passenger side. This time it had been sitting for about 4 days in the driveway and when I went to back out, I heard it. We immediately took it to a nearby garage and found the spring had broken and was rubbing on the tire. This time the mileage was about 25,000 miles. Hyundai does not seem to think there is a problem with these springs. I think it needs to be looked into before someone gets killed. I don't know if it is pertaining to this complaint, but I do want to mention that at 27,000 miles I also had to replace both rear control arms. There seems to be a real problem with the suspension system on the vehicle. Please look into it.

Filed Jan 12, 2011 · Suspension · 73,000 miles · IL

I drive a used, 2004 hyundai santa fe gls. Very recently, I was just leaving work when a seemingly very ordinary thing happened to my car. I was stopped at a stop sign, waiting to take a left turn. As soon as I accelerated and began to turn, my vehicle suffered a blown-out front-passenger side tire. As the tire blew out, I heard a loud "clunk"and then a "pop". Surprised, I pulled the car over as soon as I could, off of the main road. I had roadside assistance come out to change the tire, because I found that I did not have the tools required in my car to change a tire. After the tow truck driver put on the spare, I paid him for his services and went to leave. As I turned the wheel to leave, my vehicle suffered another blow-out, same side. My car then had to be towed to the nearest shop to be looked at. Turns out, my front-right coil spring snapped and pierced my tire(s). I currently have 73,000 miles on my car, which is a good amount, but at the same time, coil springs do not just snap from normal wear and tear. The vehicle is 7 years old, not twenty. How could this happen? I found out that when the coil spring snapped, it also snapped the struts and the strut mount, on top of my two tires. The total amount for the damage was about $1200.00, as both sides needed new parts to ensure the best handling of the car. All I can think about is, what if I was on the expressway doing 65? It's a scary thought to know that I may not have come out of this alive. I am very lucky it happened at such a low speed, with hardly any cars around, or else I would not have lived to tell the tale. I have noticed that several other santa fe owners have had the same problem. And god forbid, maybe even more that have not lived to tell. This is a dangerous defect, and it needs to be looked at.

Filed Jun 20, 2006 · Tires · 27,500 miles · FL

Catastrophic tire failure tire that failed was a bridgestone dueller p225/70 r16 that was an original equipment spare on a 2004 hyundai santa fe. The SUV was purchased new in march 2005, it has approximately 25,000 miles on the odometer. The spare was placed on the car on the passenger side rear in dec. 2005 and has approx. 5000 miles on it. The failure occurred on I-95 in south carolina. It was daytime and visibility was excellent. No road hazards were observed at any time. The car had recently been serviced and all tires were fully inflated. The car showed no signs of poor or erratic handling prior to the incident. There was a loud sound with an immediate complete failure of the tire. The car was brought under control with some difficulty. This incident occurred at a speed of 70 MPH. The tire was examined by garage personnel in sc and in tallahassee, fl. In both cases, no sign of road hazard damage could be found. Further, there was general agreement that the tire had apparently failed due to a sidewall flaw where it met the tread. I have retained the damaged tire for your examination. You should note that in 2004, bridgestone recalled a different size of this tire that was being used as a spare for a similar problem. I suspect that there is a larger problem that bridgestone is covering up due to firestone's well documented problems.

Filed Jul 27, 2005 · Tires · 14,695 miles · TX · 1 injury

Tire failure could have caused a severe accident part replaced