When trying to start the truck using the remote starter the area where the turning switch is stared to smoke and the smell of burning wire was smelt and the sound like my hazard light was heard I turned the truck off then turn it back on the noise was gone. The truck was stationary( park) and the turning switch was not being used, and the headlight was off . I was trying to warm the truck up.
2011 Hyundai Santa Fe: headlights failing or too dim
5 of the 181 complaints about the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe describe headlights failing or too dim.
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 3%
- typical mileage
- 80,000
- recalls
- 1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 2 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Headlights failing or too dim by model year
What owners say
Water in side front head light and inside rear tail light.. Clear coat coming off
Car was driven about 10 miles and then parked inside an attached garage. No issues were present during the drive. The ignition was turned off and key removed from vehicle. After approximately 1 hour had passed the car started on fire. Flames were visible behind the front right headlight and front right wheel. Luckily no one was harmed. The fire caused significant damage to the garage and home. Fire department investigation concluded that the cause of the fire was not external to the vehicle.
The low beam head lights have a very short range. There is a definite horizontal cut off just a few feet off the ground. Any thing above the cut-off line is not illuminated at all, night visibility is far too short just a few feet before the car. Difficult to see people crossing the road at night or any objects, creating a very unsafe situation. Exam of the head lamp assembly reveals a definite cut-off of the upper part of the reflector cone, reducing the available light. The high beam cone is round, having no such cut-off. Dealer could not correct because it is a design flaw.
This is not about an incident. The car has very week head lights, I use my high beam at all time. Never got any signal from on coming car that my high beam are on, and it's been going on for over 2 years. I changes the bulbs and no change. I went to 2 dealerships, one in de and one in md , and the answer I got was that all hyundai has problem with weak lights. I contacted hyundai and got a stupid answer "the dealer knows everything, we don't have any information to give you" (my case # was 7661319). I can't see when I drive, the headlights are 55w and the dealer told me that if I'll use stronger watt it may melt the wires and will cost me a of money to fix. I wonder if I am the only driver who has this problem and if there anything I can do to fix it. Thanks for your time.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
Exterior lighting: brake lights: switch
- What is wrong
- Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
- Risk
- Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1‑800‑633‑5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.
Recall number 13V113000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe headlights
Is headlights failing or too dim a common problem on the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe?
5 of 181 owner complaints about the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe (3%) mention headlights failing or too dim. The model year with the most reports is 2007.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe?
There is 1 recall and 2 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe
Stalling 28Check engine light 15Engine failure 13Fire or smoke 11Loss of power 10Hesitation 9Power steering loss 8Coil spring 7Knocking 5Sudden acceleration 5
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history