Hyundai Sonata

Hyundai Sonata representative vehicle image
Representative editorial illustration of the Hyundai Sonata.

Hyundai Sedan 1995–2026

Verify with official recall databases, service records, a mechanic inspection, and local market data before relying on this summary.

At a glance

Vehicle coverage snapshot

This snapshot uses the current page hierarchy, year-range meta, and vehicle taxonomy only.

Page roleModel Hub
Make
Hyundai
Model
Hyundai Sonata
Year range
1995–2026
Generation
1995–1998 · 3rd Generation; 1999–2005 · 4th Generation; 2006–2010 · 5th Generation; 2011–2014 · 6th Generation; 2015–2019 · 7th Generation; 2020–2026 · 8th Generation
Vehicle taxonomy
Sonata

Model-year and generation details come from structured catalogue data; confirm the exact vehicle from its VIN.

Vehicle coverage

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Coverage path

Choose a make, model, and supported year from the structured US/Canada vehicle database.

Model coverage

Coverage dashboard

Coverage at a glance

Model-year coverage for this vehicle is confirmed from the structured US and Canada dataset. Vehicle-specific problem evidence has not been published for it yet.

Known checks by year range

Published problem clusters for Hyundai Sonata are still being built. In the meantime you can look up a fault code directly, or describe the symptom and work through it step by step.

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Buyer path

  1. Start with the model hub
  2. Use OBD and symptom pages for current issues
  3. Verify recalls by VIN and inspect service records.

Coverage status

This page carries confirmed model-year and powertrain coverage. Recall, complaint and fault evidence for this model is still being expanded, and this page updates as that evidence is published.

What is on the record for the Hyundai Sonata

Owner complaints for this model most often concern:

  • Engine10,060 (22.8%)Official recall records for this system: 28, covering model years 1999–2019.
  • Steering4,736 (10.7%)Official recall records for this system: 6, covering model years 2011–2015.
  • Air bags (restraint system)4,130 (9.3%)Official recall records for this system: 14, covering model years 1999–2017.

Where a mileage was given (19,990 reports), it averaged 75,310 miles.

These are counts of records held, not a failure rate: no vehicles-in-service figure exists in this data, so no reliability score can be derived from it.

Explore Hyundai Sonata problems by model year

Short answer

If you are checking a used Hyundai Sonata, start here. This hub collects midsize sedan buyer checks, future common-problem pages, OBD clues, and year-window risk notes as they are reviewed.

Key takeaways

  • This Hyundai Sonata page is a vehicle hub, not a final reliability verdict. Verify open recalls by VIN, scan for stored codes before buying, and use sourced fault/year pages when they are available.

CarFaultIQ holds structured coverage for the Hyundai Sonata spanning 6 generations from 1995 through 2026, built on engines from 1.6 to 3.3-litre, 4 and 6-cylinder configurations on regular gasoline, with hybrid and fully electric variants. CarFaultIQ's records do not yet include a Fault, an official recall, or a complaint aggregate for the Sonata, and none of its generations has its own coverage page.

If you are checking a used Hyundai Sonata, this hub is the starting point. It is built to gather the practical questions a buyer or owner actually has: what usually goes wrong, which year windows deserve caution, what warning signs matter, and what to check before money changes hands.

The Hyundai Sonata is tracked here as a midsize sedan coverage hub. This page is a researched coverage page, not a final reliability verdict. Specific defect claims should come from sourced child pages, not guesswork.

Before buying or ignoring symptoms, verify open recalls by VIN, scan for stored OBD codes, check service history, and use any linked CarFaultIQ fault or symptom pages to decide the next practical step.

Evidence-backed model intelligence

Hyundai Sonata diagnostic overview

Structured coverage spans 1995-2026. Use the exact model year and symptoms when narrowing a fault.

Vehicle coverage

  • Powertrain evidence: Electricity and Regular Gasoline
  • Electrification: Electric, Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid
  • Drivetrain coverage: AWD and FWD

Start with the evidence you have

A symptom and an OBD code are separate evidence channels. Use either one; do not assume a stored code proves a particular repair.

Official evidence for this model

Coverage below spans the explicitly mapped model years. Records do not apply to every model year or configuration.

US safety recalls

65 distinct official identifiers · US

Campaigns matched to recorded model years. Only an official VIN check can confirm whether an individual vehicle is affected.

  • 26V047000 — model years 2026

    Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Tucson Hybrid, Tucson Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV), 2026 IONIQ 5, Santa Cruz, Kona, Palisade, Palisade Hybrid, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, Sonata, Sonata Hybrid, and Tucson vehicles. Due to a software error, the instrument panel display may…

  • 25V796000 — model years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

    Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Sonata vehicles. A damaged check valve can allow air to enter the fuel tank, causing it to expand and contact hot exhaust components, melting the tank.

  • 24V583000 — model years 2024

    Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2024 Hyundai Sonata vehicles. The software for the brake lights may cause the brake lights to flash and not illuminate properly. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)…

Official NHTSA source

Manufacturer communications / TSBs

880 distinct official identifiers · US

Manufacturer service communications are not safety recalls and do not prove that every vehicle has the described condition.

  • 11036095 — model years 2025, 2026

    Certain Sonata (DN8) vehicles may exhibit a transmission oil leak at the bottom of the valve body cover due to a loose oil level plug that could potentially lead to a total failure of the automatic transmission. This bulletin provides instructions to inspect the oil…

  • 11036093 — model years 2025, 2026

    Certain Sonata (DN8) vehicles may exhibit a transmission oil leak at the bottom of the valve body cover due to a loose oil level plug that could potentially lead to a total failure of the automatic transmission. Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) 26-01-060H instructions to inspect…

  • 11035241 — model years 2026

    Certain 2026MY Sonata (DN8) and 2026MY Sonata Hybrid (DN8 HEV) vehicles may exhibit a fuel filler door that is difficult to open due to the push-type opener mechanism. Technical Bulletin (TSB) 26-01-057H provides instructions to inspect the fuel filler door push opener and, if necessary,…

Official NHTSA source

US defect investigations

20 distinct official identifiers · US

An investigation records a regulator review of a suspected defect. It is not automatically a finding or a recall.

  • EA25005 — model years 2017

    The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has become aware of eight vehicle crashes in which a rupture of a Jilin Province Detiannuo Automobile Safety System Co., Ltd. (DTN) air bag inflator occurred during the deployment of the driver side air bag. All eight drivers in…

  • DP22003 — model years 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a letter dated July 13, 2022, petitioning the Agency to initiate a safety defect investigation into loss of motive power allegations attributed to oil drain pan assembly failures on certain Hyundai Motor America, Inc. and Kia America,…

  • EA21003 — model years 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016

    On March 29, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened two Preliminary Evaluations (PE19-003 on Hyundai and PE19-004 on Kia) to broadly investigate incidents of non-crash fires (regardless of origin or operational status of the vehicle) on various model year Hyundai and Kia vehicles. …

Official NHTSA source

Canadian recalls

63 distinct official identifiers · CA

Canadian-market records remain separate from US campaigns. Confirm applicability with Transport Canada and the manufacturer.

  • 2026033 — model years 2026

    Multiple source assertions are retained for this identifier. Consult the official record for configuration-specific details.

  • 2025637 — model years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

    Issue: On certain vehicles, the check valve for the purge control system could wear and cause the fuel tank to expand. As a result, the fuel tank could contact hot components and fuel could leak. Note: This recall only affects certain vehicles equipped with a…

  • 2024080 — model years 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

    Multiple source assertions are retained for this identifier. Consult the official record for configuration-specific details.

Official Transport Canada source

US owner complaint reports

15,928 distinct reports · US

Distinct ODI complaint identifiers, deduplicated across component and product rows. Reports are allegations, not confirmed defects, failure rates or reliability scores.

  • ENGINE: 4,669 reports
  • STEERING: 2,326 reports
  • ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 1,814 reports

A report can name several components. Do not add component totals together.

Official NHTSA source

Evidence is served from a locally stored official-source snapshot. No external API is called to render this page. These records do not replace inspection or diagnosis. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.

Used-car checks

No structured used-car checks are verified on this model hub yet.

Recall/safety notes

No hand-written safety notes have been added to this hub. Official recall, bulletin and investigation records held for this vehicle are listed under documented evidence on this page — the absence of a note here does not mean no records exist. Always confirm by VIN.

Nothing here should be read as a finding about the Sonata — it describes what has been documented in CarFaultIQ so far for this model, with more added over time. For diagnosing a current problem on a Sonata, the OBD code and symptom archives on this site are not model-specific and remain useful here; a VIN check is the practical step before buying used.

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