What 1,611 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Hyundai Tucson Plug-in Hybrid

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

I have a 2016 Hyundai Tuscon Limited Turbo which I bought USED in August of 2018. The same week I left the lot I returned multiple times complaining that the car was hesitating and seemed like the transmission was having problems. The car would hesitate to go from a stop, several times leaving me and my infant (at the time) in the middle of intersections crossing traffic and unable to move. It almost got us SLAMMED multiple times. I explained this to them and they just kept telling me it was because of the turbo. I said NO ONE in their right mind would manufacture a car that goes fast at the cost of safety. That was insane to me but they kept sending me home. I returned over and over and over again for the entire 1st year I had the car with no resolution. Eventually, I also discovered issues if I had to brake hard, several times almost running into the back of people and on 08/08/2020 I actually DID slam into the back of someone. I got to eat the cost of the insurance claim - only later to find out that there was a recall on the ABS system which I believe caused the accident. In 2020 when the transmission died, they replaced it under warranty. It took 49 days to replace, meanwhile I have an infant and riding a bus and riding my bike everywhere because the dealer did not help me with a rental or loaner. Then a year later in the middle of 2021 the engine died which they replaced under warranty, this time providing me with a rental for only a short time of the month long situation. Also racked up tow and tow storage bills exceeding $500 because it broke down on a major road in the middle of the night. Now, on 03/11/2023 I heard a sound coming from the engine which sounded like a cat screaming, coupled with severe hesitation when trying to accelerate. Took it to the dealer and they refuse to fix it, said the warranty company declined it. Called Hyundai Corporate and they said the same thing. Called warranty company and they said NO ONE EVER SUBMITTED A CLAIM!!!!!

NHTSA ODI 11515354

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

I WAS AN OWNER OF A 2016 HYUNDAI TUCSON WITH TURBO. UNTIL JANUARY 23, 2018. I OWNED THIS VEHICLE FOR MORE THAN A YEAR AND ALTHOUGH THIS WAS A GREAT VEHICLE WE HAD AN ISSUE WITH THE TRANSMISSION SINCE A WEEK AFTER OUR PURCHASE DATE.WE HAVE HAD IT BACK TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT WRIGHT WAY HYUNDAI IN STAUNTON, VA NUMEROUS TIMES OVER THE SAME ISSUE. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD ALLOW THE MOTOR TO SEND THE RPMS TO EXCEED A HIGH LEVEL BEFORE ENGAGING. SO BAD AT TIME THAT IT WOULD PULL YOU TO ONE SIDE OF THE ROAD OR THE OTHER, ALSO FROM A STOP IT WOULD REV UP SO BAD THAT IT WOULD TAKE OFF SPINNING. I HAVE CONTACTED HYUNDAI OVER THIS MATTER INCLUDING OTHER DEALERSHIPS. I HAVE BEEN TOLD EVERYTHING FROM 'THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS DESIGNED' TO 'YOU HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO DRIVE IT'. IT ALWAYS WOULD COME DOWN TO THAT IT WAS THE WAY WE WERE DRIVING IT. I'M SORRY BUT A TRANSMISSION SHOULD NOT RESPOND IN THAT MATTER. I ALSO WAS TOLD BY A HYUNDAI REP. THAT THEY HAVE HAD MANY COMPLAINTS OVER THE SAME ISSUE.I WAS TRAVELING DOWN THE ROAD AND WAS APPROACHING A CURVE WHEN I LIFTED MY FOOT OFF THE ACCELERATOR AND WHEN I WENT BACK TO THE ACCELERATOR THE RPMS SHOT UP. IT WOULDN'T GO. I PUSHED AGAIN, AND THE RPMS SHOT UP AND THEN SUDDENLY IT ENGAGED AND WHEN IT DID I WAS PULLED LEFT ACROSS THE ONCOMING LANE AND OVER A STEEP 30-FOOT EMBANKMENT INTO ABOUT 5 FEET OF VERY COLD WATER. I WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL IN AN AMBULANCE AND I WAS CHECKED OUT WITH MINOR INJURIES. AND NO I WASN'T SPEEDING.

NHTSA ODI 11079183

I WAS STOPPED AT A STOPLIGHT, BUT WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN THE CAR WOULDN'T GO FORWARD. INSTEAD THE ENGINE JUST REVVED AND RPMS WENT UP, BUT NO MOVEMENT FORWARD AND NO WARNING LIGHTS OR SOUNDS CAME ON. I IMMEDIATELY FLIPPED ON MY EMERGENCY FLASHERS AND TRIED SEVERAL TIMES TO RESTART AND GO AGAIN, BUT TWO CARS CRASHED INTO EACH OTHER NEXT TO ME AS THEY TRIED TO GO AROUND ME. I SAT IN A PANIC IN TRAFFIC WITH PEOPLE HONKING AT ME AND FLIPPING ME OFF. THE CAR WOULDN'T DRIVE FORWARD, BUT IT WOULD GO IN REVERSE SO AS THE CARS CRASHED INTO EACH OTHER AND WERE COMING TOWARDS ME I DODGED GETTING HIT BY A FEW INCHES AND DROVE SLOWLY DOWN THE STREET IN REVERSE AND INTO A NEARBY PARKING LOT IN REVERSE. THEN I PARKED AND HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A DEALER. IN THE PARKING LOT I TOOK VIDEO EVIDENCE OF THE CAR NOT DRIVING FORWARD, BUT ABLE TO DRIVE IN REVERSE SO I DO HAVE VIDEO PROOF. THE CAR HAS ABOUT 5,500 MILES ON IT AND ALREADY HAD AN ECM RESET / ACTIVE TRANSMISSION RELEARN DONE AT ABOUT 1,000 MILES BACK IN JANUARY WHEN THE CAR WAS LAGGING THE FIRST MONTH I OWNED IT. MY CAR IS STILL AT THE DEALERSHIP AND FOR A CORRECTION THEY DID ANOTHER ACTIVE TRANSMISSION RELEARN/PROGRAMMING RESET AND SAY THE CAR WORKS AND IS FINE NOW AND READY TO PICK UP. I'M NOT COMFORTABLE DRIVING A CAR THAT'S BEEN IN TWICE FOR TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS AND HAD THE SAME CORRECTION DONE. I DON'T FEEL CONFIDENT THIS WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN AND MOST ONLINE REPORTS I READ WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AND CORRECTION SAY IT HAPPENS OVER AND OVER AGAIN. I FILED A COMPLAINT WITH HYUNDAI CUSTOMER CARE. I'VE ALSO READ THERE IS A PART THAT MAY BE REPLACED AS A FIX (FP NUMBER 41470-2D011 ACTUATOR ASSY-CLU) AND POSSIBLY A RECALL COMING UP, BUT THE DEALER SAID I NEED TO WAIT FOR THE RECALL. IT WOULD BE GOOD TO EXPEDITE ANY FIX AND REPAIRS BEFORE MORE ACCIDENTS HAPPEN, DRIVING THIS CAR IS NOT SAFE FOR ME OR OTHER CARS AROUND ME.

NHTSA ODI 10892643

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 HYUNDAI TUCSON. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE VEHICLE DECELERATED AND THE TRANSMISSION OVERHEAT WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE THROUGH THE REARVIEW MIRROR. THE CONTACT COASTED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD, RESTARTED THE VEHICLE, AND WAS ABLE TO RESUME DRIVING. THE FAILURE RECURRED THREE TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED, BUT THE TECHNICIAN COULD NOT FIND A FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,000.

NHTSA ODI 10884924

PURCHASED JANUARY 2016 - LIMITED AWD WITH FACTORY INSTALLED TOW HITCH. IMMEDIATELY NOTICED FLICKERING INTERIOR LIGHTS AND BOTH HEAD LIGHTS LEAKED, ONE SIDE HAS BEEN REPLACED. LATER ON DEVELOPED HARD START UPS, SHIFTING AND ACCELERATION ISSUES. ALONG WITH INTERMITTING FRONT SAFETY SENSORS AND A GLITCHING CENTER CONSOLE/BACK UP CAMERA. 7,500 MILES IN THE AC STOPPED WORKING FROM FREEZING OVER. TOOK TO DEALER WHILE ON VACATION AND DISCOVERED A MELTED FUSE BOX COVER AND BURNT TOW HITCH/ECU WIRES WITH AN ABUNDANCE OF CORROSION. DEALERS COULD NO CONFIRM RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TOW HITCH HARNESS, CLAIMED IT WAS NOT FACTORY INSTALLED WHEN IT WAS FACTORY INSTALLED AND EVEN ON THE ORIGINAL WINDOW STICKER. WE CALLED HYUNDAI CORPORATE EVERYDAY FOR OVER A WEEK BEGGING FOR HELP WITH NO CALL BACKS. ROADSIDE WOULD NOT COVER A TOW TO THE SELLING DEALER. ENDED UP DRIVING OURSELVES AN HOUR SOUTH TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAITS FOR A HYUNDAI ENGINEER TO FLY IN AND LOOK AT IT. THERE ARE RECALLS FOR THIS WIRING HARNESS IN OTHER MODELS, THE DEALER WASN'T EVEN ABLE TO ORDER A REPLACEMENT PART BECAUSE IT WAS DISCONTINUED. WE WERE NEVER NOTIFIED OF THIS AND THERE ARE NO RECALLS CURRENTLY OUT FOR OUR CAR. WE CONSIDER THIS A LIFE THREATENING ISSUE AS THE MELTING WIRES ARE A SERIOUS FIRE HAZARD ALONG WITH THE UNRELIABLE TRANSMISSION AND SAFETY SENSORS.

NHTSA ODI 10873526