What 1,536 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell

On [XXX], I purchased a 2016 Hyundai Tucson Sport, at the Landover-Jaguar South Hills dealer in Canonsburg, PA. On [XXX] the “check engine” light came on. Since I was 2 hours from home, I purchased a code reader to assess the issue. It read “A P0420 code”. I researched potential reasons for this code but returned the car to the dealer who performed additional checks and gave the car a “clean bill of health”. On [XXX], I was driving home from about 16 miles away and lost power. A slew of dash lights came on, and I was forced to pull over. I smelled something burning. As I stopped, the smoke from the engine became apparent. The car right behind me pulled up and asked if I knew my car was on fire. Another bystander pulled over and extinguished the fire in my engine. This happened on one of the busier roads in the area and if the vehicle exploded it could have been much worse for all of us. This vehicle is currently sitting at Bowser Hyundai in Pittsburgh and is available for inspection. This engine fire and fail is not a maintenance issue but is clearly a result of a manufacture issue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11629617

A/C failure & Heat Failure which resulted in an accident. Was not the thermostat. ACCEDENT was unable to defrost/defog windows, causing the driver to crash

NHTSA ODI 11564862

While driving on an interstate the engine lost power and I pulled over to the shoulder. Popped the hood and the engine cover was blown back and the engine was on fire! Had 3 passengers, dog, and luggage in the car. Was able to get most out before the fire spread. Left family stranded hours from home on side of interstate. Unsure of exact cause of the engine fire. Fire spread to entire car before fire department came to put it out.

NHTSA ODI 11501143

I was driving my vehicle on Highway 45 North in Spring Tx and my engine caught on fire while driving, my Tucson was on fire and started smoking i had to pull over and getvhelpp

NHTSA ODI 11499720

The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated while driving at 30 MPH, the vehicle began to stall and he saw smoke coming out from underneath the hood of the vehicle. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and quickly exited the vehicle. The contact waited several minutes. The contact stated that upon opening the hood of the vehicle, he saw flames. The contact was able to extinguish the fire by shutting the hood closed. The contact stated that in the process of exiting the vehicle, he bumped his knee and twisted his ankle and received care from his caregiver. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The engine was replaced under an unknown recall. However, the contact stated that after the repair, the vehicle was experiencing rough starts and the engine was misfiring while driving. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Ron Tonkin Hyundai (675 NE Burnside Rd, Gresham, OR 97030), where it was diagnosed that the cylinder was misfiring. The dealer replaced the fuel injector, the spark plugs, and the cylinder head, and completed an oil change. However, the engine was knocking upon starting the vehicle. The dealer informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact that he would need to pay an Engine Control Unit (ECU) repair fee. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

NHTSA ODI 11490880

I was on my way to work as normal. There were no warning lamps or other notifications/signs of a problem when all of a sudden, my vehicle started decelerating. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw smoke. I immediately pulled over and the smoke increased. Within a matter or seconds flames started to shoot out from under the hood. I don't know if the fire started from something electrical or engine-related but it spread fast! Before the police and fire truck arrived at the scene, my car was engulfed in flames! This was a terrifying and horrific experience! Prior to this, I had to replace all of the motors on the windows and noticed the jerky movements when driving in Turbo mode that I was told was normal. I didn't even have the car for 2 years! When I contacted Hyundai about the windows, they did nothing and the Rep referred me to get rid of it! I should have listened.

NHTSA ODI 11470071

The engine caught fire while driving. The entire vehicle was engulfed in flames as a result. Total loss of vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11462222

While climbing the hill on Highway 5 south, the engine RPM dropped so I was moving the car to the shoulder, and while moving, black smoke came out of the engine hood and stopped the car on the shoulder, and then, the fire began to rise under the engine hood. An insurance company investigation determined all losses. Geico Claim #0547433700101042

NHTSA ODI 11461565

On Friday, September 11, 2022, I had just returned from running errands. I parked the car, which had no warning lights on whatsoever, and exited the vehicle. A few seconds later, smoke started streaming out from under the hood. I popped the hood but did not open it, and started toward the house to get some water, thinking that something was overheated. Before I had taken ten steps, flames were shooting out from the hood. I called 911, but before the fire department arrived, part of my house also caught fire. It has been inspected by the fire marshal and my insurance company.

NHTSA ODI 11452621

Car started eating oil after 110K miles. Seems as if 2 quarts low in 3,000 miles between oil changes. Started carrying extra oil and checking level during and after long trips. at 140,000 miles the turbo charger failed and engine failed in the middle of pulling out of a parking lot. No lights on instrument panel ever lit up until 40 miles before the engine failed. Oil light never came on as engine oil was burned up in the turbo. Car is now dead and needs a new engine. Internet posts show numerous Hyundai owners with the 1.9 liter turbo engine experiencing the same problem.

NHTSA ODI 11451895

The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while driving at 65 - 70 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and there was smoke coming from the bottom of the vehicle. Additionally, the vehicle made abnormal sounds. Upon the vehicle being placed onto the tow truck, there was oil leaking from underneath the vehicle onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed with rod bearing failure in the lower part of the engine, which caused a hole in the engine block. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.

NHTSA ODI 11446511

The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that a week after purchasing the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The mechanic informed the contact that the warning light would be reset. While performing a final test drive, the mechanic became aware of smoke coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The mechanic pulled over and attempted to open the hood but was unable to do so. The mechanic then noticed fire coming from underneath the vehicle. The fire department arrived and extinguished the fire. No one was injured. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard by the police. The contact was made aware that the vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 20V543000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) which was the cause of the fire. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

NHTSA ODI 11420157

ESTAVA COM MINHA FAMILIA A CAMINHO DA FISIOTERAPIA QUANDO COMECOU A PEGAR FOGO NO CARRO NA PARTE DA FRENTE! A SORTE FOI QUE UMA OFICINA QUE ESTAVA PERTO ME MIM TINHA EXTINTOR E ME AJUDOU A APAGAR O FOGO!

NHTSA ODI 11386194

WHILE DRIVING IN MOTION ON CITY STREET, WEST BOUND ,PEOPLE WERE YELLING AT ME... WASN'T SURE WHAT WAS GOING ON...I ROLL DOWN MY WINDOW TO HEAR THEM YELLING " YOUR CAR IS ON FIRE" SO I PULL OFF ROAD IN TO A PARKING LOT...STOP AND OPEN DOOR AS FIRE RUSHING IN AS I'M "LITERALLY" HAVING TO JUMP OUT ! TRYING TO PUT FIRE OUT WITH FIRE EXTINGUISHER ,BUT DID NOT WORK...MAYBE 10 MINS LATER ,FIRE DEPARTMENT ARRIVES AND PUTS IT OUT

NHTSA ODI 11331610

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 HYUNDAI TUSCON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY STALLED AND SMOKE WAS PRESENT COMING FROM UNDER THE HOOD. AFTER OPENING THE HOOD FLAMES WERE DISCOVERED COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED TO THE SCENE AND EXTINGUISHED THE FLAMES. A FIRE REPORT WAS TAKEN AT THE SCENE AND THE VEHICLE TOWED TO THE HOME. THE CAUSE OF THE FIRE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER AND LOCAL DEALER WERE NOT NOTIFIED. IN ADDITION, THE REAR DRIVER SIDE DOOR LATCH WAS INOPERABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 95,000.

NHTSA ODI 11327051

MY CAR WAS MAKING A LOW, RUMBLING NOISE WHEN I ACCELERATED. IT STARTED GETTING LOUDER AND AS I PULLED OFF THE HIGHWAY, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, MY VEHICLE LOST POWER AND SMOKE STARTED COMING FROM THE HOOD OF MY CAR. WHEN I GOT OUT OF MY CAR AND WALKED AWAY FROM IT, I COULD SEE A FIRE HAD STARTED UNDER THE CAR AROUND THE ENGINE. MY CAR WAS QUICKLY ENGULFED IN FLAMES AS I WAITED FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES TO RESPOND. AS A RESULT, MY VEHICLE WAS TOTALED AND I LOST ALL OF MY PERSONAL BELONGINGS IN MY CAR

NHTSA ODI 11289539

VEHICLE WAS IN DEALERSHIP FOR TRANSMISSION MULTIPLE TIMES THEN LAST WEEK A FUEL PUMP NOW AT THE DEALERSHIP DUE TO THE FACT VEHICLE CAUGHT FIRE AS I WAS DRIVING IT AND PULLING UP T =O MY HOME

NHTSA ODI 11171030