2022 Hyundai Santa fe
The Verdict
The 2022 Hyundai Santa fe has 197 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. The most reported issues are engine (71 complaints) and body (57 complaints). With a Klunk Score of 55/100, it earns a "Proceed with Caution" rating. If you're shopping for a Hyundai Santa fe, consider the 2006 model year which has 46% fewer complaints.
Safe Bet
The 2006 has 46% fewer complaints
View the 2006 Hyundai Santa fe dashboard →
Klunk Score: Proceed with Caution
About average for complaint volume. Research the specific issues before buying.
How is this calculated?
The Klunk Score ranks this vehicle year against all others in our database based on total owner complaints filed with NHTSA. 100 = fewest complaints (top tier), 0 = most complained-about. Scores above 60 are better than average; below 40 means more problems than most.
Recalls 1
Active safety recalls from NHTSA for this vehicle year.
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Santa Fe and Santa Cruz vehicles. The oil supply pipe to the turbocharger may crack, which could result in an oil leak in the engine compa...
Risk
An oil leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components, can increase the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the turbocharger oil supply pipe, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai...
Reported Apr 10, 2026
Get notified if a recall hits this car.
We email you when NHTSA issues a new recall on the 2022 Hyundai Santa fe. No spam, no marketing.
Under the Hood
Each number is a complaint. Darker = bigger problem.
| Year | Body | Brakes | Electrical | Engine | Transmission |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 104 | 7 | 27 | 50 | 22 |
| 2002 | 94 | 17 | 16 | 31 | 13 |
| 2003 | 134 | 41 | 55 | 44 | 34 |
| 2004 | 122 | 39 | 48 | 76 | 18 |
| 2005 | 70 | 29 | 75 | 36 | 6 |
| 2006 | 28 | 17 | 39 | 17 | 5 |
| 2007 | 211 | 75 | 154 | 218 | 21 |
| 2008 | 88 | 21 | 93 | 323 | 14 |
| 2009 | 71 | 40 | 54 | 177 | 16 |
| 2010 | 59 | 7 | 28 | 60 | 104 |
| 2011 | 50 | 17 | 29 | 77 | 8 |
| 2012 | 53 | 16 | 37 | 236 | 10 |
| 2013 | 191 | 49 | 36 | 299 | 27 |
| 2014 | 101 | 48 | 39 | 294 | 9 |
| 2015 | 39 | 21 | 25 | 163 | 6 |
| 2016 | 38 | 14 | 15 | 158 | 10 |
| 2017 | 110 | 47 | 41 | 680 | 80 |
| 2018 | 20 | 16 | 11 | 56 | 4 |
| 2019 | 78 | 9 | 19 | 74 | 15 |
| 2020 | 78 | 4 | 27 | 88 | 9 |
| 2021 | 60 | 5 | 23 | 40 | 37 |
| 2022 | 57 | 4 | 20 | 71 | 45 |
| 2023 | 83 | 21 | 26 | 45 | 31 |
| 2024 | 61 | 10 | 21 | 16 | 34 |
| 2025 | 82 | 2 | 19 | 17 | 10 |
By Category
By Severity
Worst Problems
Complaints
On June 20 2026 at 2:07pm Central Time there was a check engine light displayed on the dash of my vehicle 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Calligraphy, while it was parked in the garage of my home and was just powered up. I had then performed the vehicle diagnostics test (pictures attached) that showed that there was an issue with the 'Transmission Control System' with detail that a full system check is recommended and to schedule an appointment with a dealer. I had later proceeded to contact local dealer 'Huffines Hyundai McKinney' for service as I was due for an oil change anyway. As I was driving the vehicle from my home which was about 13 miles away from the dealership, I noticed that the vehicle had great trouble shifting from 1st gear to higher gears, that the speed would be 20mph or lower no matter how much the accelerator was pushed and I had to drive very carefully in traffic due to the low speeds. I was told at the dealership by 3pm that day that there were no active recalls on my vehicle, that the transmission related recall that was showing up on google search for that DCT code wasn't specific enough to my vehicle and to book an appointment for vehicle diagnostics and transmission repair/replacement at full cost to myself. The multi-point inspection report after oil change showed nothing about the check engine light issue or that the issue was even diagnosed by the dealership. From that day until today Aug 29 2026, I've noticed that the vehicle still has trouble shifting from the 1st gear, that the vehicle drives normally when increased time is allowed between power up and start of drive (~2min of engine running idle) and that the check engine light reappears after a trip of quick power up and drive. There was atleast one instance where I had to pullover onto the shoulder to avoid high speed traffic while driving in the right lane.
At approximately 67,000 miles, the vehicle experienced a sudden vibration when accelerate and decelerate. Engine light was on and vehicle had a hard time to maintain speed above 40mph. Cars were honking behind us due to the lack of speed on road. It happen all of a sudden and cause me and my wife panic at first. The car was took to the closest dealer ([XXX] Hyundai [XXX]) and they found the problem was due to an internally leaking fuel injector, requiring a complete out-of-pocket replacement. This is a known, widespread manufacturing defect directly addressed by Hyundai Technical Service Bulletin TSB #25-FL-001H (which supersedes 23-FL-002H-1). The bulletin explicitly states that 2021–2022 Hyundai Santa Fe 2.5L GDI engines suffer from premature internal fuel injector failure caused by internal filter breakage, forcing owners to pay out of pocket for a design flaw acknowledged internally by the manufacturer. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Symptoms are those described in Hyundai recall 236 (delayed shifting,hesitation, stalling). Vehicle has had multiple TSP services at Hyundai but symptoms persist intermittently. Software updates do not fix issue. Hyundai dealer has no other remedies.
The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle jerked or hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that after two separate warranty repairs of the fuel injector, the failure persisted. In addition, the contact stated that the rear-view camera intermittently displayed a distorted or blank image while the vehicle was in reverse(R). The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V879000 (Back Over Prevention); and was informed by the dealer that the vehicle was not covered under the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and the contact was issued a case number. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.
While accelerating, the 8-speed transmission sporadically hangs in 1st gear and will not change to 2nd. The motor revs to about 4000 rpm and will only travel at about 15 mph. This causes a safety hazard when attempting to enter fast moving traffic. After several attempts, the Dealer has said that they cannot duplicate this issue in their shop and has not made necessary warranty repairs to fix this vehicle. Hyundai assigned a case manager who says that since the diagnostic did not pull any codes and they could not replicate the problem, they would not make any repairs. There is about 5000 miles left on the factory warranty.
The horn has now stopped working in my vehicle twice. It was replaced 01/27/2023, and is now non-functional again. I believe this to be a safety issue as I have no way to warn other drivers or pedestrians of my presence, if necessary. One example of this, was that a vehicle was proceeding into my lane on the interstate yesterday afternoon and I had to avoid them hitting my vehicle by driving onto the shoulder of the road, as I could not use my horn to let them know they were coming into my lane while I was on the side of them.
2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Plug-in Hybrid, confirming the exact symptom “the gasoline engine continues running after the vehicle is switched off.” the vehicle is on and your burn fuel and if the fuel tank is full then some major issue may occur.
The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while pulling out of the driveway and approaching a stop sign, the message "Check Transmission Oil Immediately" was momentarily displayed. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be diagnosed unless the message was displayed. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving approximately 35 MPH the following day, and the engine power was reduced. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The driver contacted Bluelink and was advised to pull over safely. Bluelink and the dealer advised the driver to tow the vehicle to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V746000 (POWER TRAIN); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered to cover half the cost of the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 74,900.
This email serves as a formal dispute of the warranty denial issued by [Lester Glenn Hyundai Toms River NJ] regarding the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) passenger airbag sensor in my 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe.The dealership has refused coverage, attributing the failure to "water damage." I strongly dispute this finding and am formally requesting a Corporate Goodwill Repair Exception or a tier-two engineering review of my vehicle due to the safety-critical nature of this component.
I did a navigation update as requested by the infotainment system on the Hyundai. After the update, the air conditioner would not turn on when the ac button was depressed . I took the vehicle to my local Hyundai dealer and they found the ac blower and ac button working intermittently. After further inspection, the mechanic found the multi fuses that sit on the PCB bloc had one burnt fuse that did not blow and was still hot and the PCB block had melted around where the fuse connected to it. ( Hyundai stated that they required the damaged PCB fuse, the PCB block and the harness). I'm concerned that the electrical short discovered by the Hyundai mechanic could have progress and burnt my car or my house since I keep my car in the garage. The Mechanic working for the Hyundai dealer found the burnt fuses and PCB block and kept them after replacing them with new parts. The ac was working fine until I did the navigation update and there were no warnings whatsoever.
The airbag sensor is on in the car. When I told the dealership they stated that the sensor is not covered under the warranty even though it was over by a fe hundred miles. None of the airbags will deploy if there is an accident. I don't see why a safety issue is not covered by the warranty. For the dealership to fix it, it is going to be over $800.
While driving, my vehicle displayed “Shifter System Malfunction! Service Immediately.” Immediately after, I was unable to shift the vehicle from Drive into Park, Reverse, or Neutral. The only way to park the vehicle was to turn the engine off while it was still in Drive, restart it, and then shift into Park. This is an extreme safety hazard. A driver who cannot change gears can lose control of the situation during an emergency, be unable to safely park, reverse, or place the vehicle in neutral if needed. Having to shut the engine off while the transmission is still in Drive is unsafe and not how the vehicle is intended to operate. This issue first occurred around 45,000 miles while the vehicle was under warranty, but it temporarily resolved on its own. It has now returned in June 2026 at approximately 65,500 miles, after the warranty expired, and is happening repeatedly. After researching online, I found many Hyundai owners reporting the same “Shifter System Malfunction” with identical symptoms, indicating this may be a widespread defect. I request that NHTSA investigate this issue, as it poses a serious risk to driver and public safety.
Latch system for fuel tank door failure.
The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the automatic emergency braking system engaged while there were no objects or vehicles near the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the pre-collision message was displayed while the vehicle was parked or was idling. The vehicle was taken to dealer on several occasions; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed that the dealer assessment was most important. The failure mileage was unknown.
Child opened the back hatch (as instructed). The child then pressed the button to close the back hatch. Fingers were trapped at the bottom of the hatch, and the hatch “clamped” into position. The interior hatch release was not sufficiently intuitive for the chiller to remove the trim and slide the tab, resulting in the child being trapped for 10-15 minutes before help arrived.
I have videos of these two incidents and others that I could not upload. While driving on the PA Turnpike at 4:25PM on 5/22/26 75 mph my accelerator pedal stopped responding, my front collision warning light, engine, EPB, and numerous other lights came on across my dashboard despite there being no contact with any object and my speed rapidly dropped. The front camera came on as if there was an object too close. I was in the middle lane. While I was trying to move to the shoulder there were tractor trailers behind me and to my right that began flashing their lights because my speed drastically dropped and was unable to safely stay with the flow of traffic in the heavy rain. While still in Drive car started changing through notices on my digital screen "Check Blind-Spot Safety system" "Check Forward Safety system" with the car crash icon, and "Check Driver Attention Warning (DAW) system." Then I began trying to press the accelerator pedal again and the car would not move at all but the tachometer was going to 2x1000rpm. When I turned the car off and turned it back on again the engine light was still on, but the accelerator pedal was responsive. About an hour later when the tow truck driver from AAA attempted to drive the car on to the flat bed the accelerator pedal was unresponsive again. This was at least the fifth time my vehicle had lost propulsion without warning. Every prior time Bowser Hyundai had different reasons for the failure, made a repair, and said it was safe to drive. Another incident occurred 4/7/2026 using cruise control at 84 mph when the car unexpectedly lost propulsion. The accelerator was again unresponsive, I was on the turnpike with two children in the vehicle. I steered towards the shoulder and the car slowed to a stop. After that incident, Bowser Hyundai replaced the transmission on the car. They notified me on June 18 that they believe they fixed the problem again but I don't feel the vehicle is safe for my family and worry it will be deadly
Vehicle: 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe | Current Mileage: 140,000 Description of Safety Defect: While operating a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe at speed, the vehicle suffered a sudden, complete, and catastrophic loss of motive power in the middle of a live, active roadway without any prior warning or dashboard indicator lights. The transmission abruptly dropped out of gear and the engine shut down entirely, trapping the driver and three young children in active traffic and creating an immediate, life-threatening highway safety hazard. The vehicle was towed to Sport Durst Hyundai in Durham, NC, where technicians confirmed a total internal transmission failure where the gears fail to engage. This exact mechanical failure mechanism directly mirrors the severe engineering defect detailed in NHTSA Campaign Number 22V746000 (Hyundai Safety Recall 236) for electric oil pump failures causing a sudden loss of drive power. Hyundai Motor America Corporate Case Management has issued a flat denial of all safety and goodwill repair coverage based strictly on the vehicle's 140,000 miles, claiming that mileage absolves them of product liability for a catastrophic drivetrain safety defect that endangered three young children. Furthermore, the franchise dealership is actively withholding the GDS diagnostic failure scan codes from the consumer, calling them "internal documents" to actively suppress federal evidence of this safety failure. Further, the authorized Hyundai dealership engaged in deceptive practices by refusing to put anything in writing, and refusing my request for any diagnostic information, including any report indicating diagnostic error codes, technician summary, etc.
The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while in reverse (R) on several occasions the rearview camera went completely white and the camera did not come on at all. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 92,500.
Beginning on 04/17/2026, my vehicle began displaying multiple safety-related dashboard warnings simultaneously, accompanied by audible alerts. The warnings included the Forward Collision Safety System, Blind-Spot Monitoring, Electronic Parking Brake (EPB), Stability and Traction Control, Lane Keep Assist, and AUTO HOLD — all activating at the same time. These warnings reappeared on several occasions and were photographed with date and location data embedded in each image. My vehicle was brought to Burlington Hyundai dealership, where a repair order was opened and a loaner was provided. The car was returned without the issue being fixed. Within days, the same warnings reappeared and the situation worsened. On multiple occasions, the engine shut off completely and the transmission shifted into neutral on its own while my vehicle was being driven at approximately 20 to 40 mph. On at least one occasion, the parking brake engaged automatically without any input from the driver. A dashboard photo clearly documents the message "Engine Off! Shift to N, then start engine." These failures are a serious danger to everyone on the road. When the engine shuts off while driving, normal steering and braking ability is lost. When the parking brake engaged on its own, the car stopped abruptly with no warning. Any one of these incidents could have caused a serious accident or injury. My vehicle was returned to the dealership for a second repair visit and a second loaner was provided. The dealership confirmed via text that the car was still in the shop but never followed up with a diagnosis or timeline. When the dealership was called directly, no update was provided. As of 06/04/2026, my vehicle has been at the dealership for at least 30 days across two visits — 11 days for the first and at least 19 days for the second — with no confirmed root cause, no completed repair, and no clear communication.
Engine light for car read codes PO 304 303 420 prior to sale of car per code read out taken when engine light went off shortly after my purchase. Not addressed prior to sale. Codes read and called to dealership. Car taken for service. Reported fuel smell, exceleration issues, short stallings. Same codes. Stated car was " fine." Drivable. Asked for brakes/ rotors to be checked. No documented brake service given. Stated they were "fine." Taken to local brake place next day that confirmed brake rotors needed repair. Car returned after began sputtering. Reported as fuel injector failure. A known issue with this makr and model that shown codes point to that were given to, and read at service center by mechanic at dealership twice. They did not mention replacing catalytic converter, that is damaged from injectors and an emissions issue at time of call regarding repair report. No brake report or inspection requested multiple times to be checked. Did not follow correct protocol to ensure engine was clear of fuel sprayed by injectors into pistons, intake valves, ect. They placed my self at risk for engine fire, sudden car failure. Consistently mislead and failed to do proper reseach and care regarding car issues and hazards it presented. Being a known issue with this make and model it was a failure to inspect for issue. An emissions failure and violation to allow a damaged catalytic converter to be on road. This issue with the car is in class actionable suit. It is not on the recall list. As it damages the whole car systemi including emissions, it should be forced to be on the recall list so dealerships cannot allow potential harm to their customers as well as violating emission laws.
197 total