What breaks most · 2001 to 2019 model years
Hyundai Santa Fe problems by year
Owners have filed 3,792 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Hyundai Santa Fe across model years 2001 to 2019. Three years stand out: 2007 for fuel system complaints, 2008 for fuel system complaints and 2003 for suspension complaints. The quietest years are 2016, 2015 and 2006.
- Years to check closely: 2007, 2008, 2003
- Fewest complaints: 2016, 2015, 2006
- Complaints on file
- 37922001 to 2019, all trims
- Worst year
- 2007619 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 22269 fires · 191 injuries · 6 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 64kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 65Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 196 | 3 | 4 | Suspension (67) | |
| 156 | 8 | 4 | Suspension (52) | |
| 296 | 25 | 4 | Suspension (52) | |
| 289 | 30 | 3 | Suspension (67) | |
| 199 | 17 | 3 | Air bags (65) | |
| 94 | 10 | 1 | Air bags (23) | |
| 619 | 28 | 9 | Fuel system (114) | |
| 466 | 12 | 6 | Fuel system (196) | |
| 281 | 21 | 3 | Fuel system (91) | |
| 195 | 7 | 3 | Powertrain and transmission (86) | |
| 133 | 8 | 3 | Engine (47) | |
| 203 | 22 | 1 | Engine (115) | |
| 256 | 11 | 3 | Engine (83) | |
| 136 | 8 | 3 | Engine (49) | |
| 47 | 5 | 2 | Engine (15) | |
| 32 | 1 | 3 | Unknown or other (8) | |
| 164 | 5 | 6 | Powertrain and transmission (70) | |
| 19 | 0 | 2 | Engine (10) | |
| 11 | 1 | 2 | Unknown or other (4) |
What fails on the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 18% |
114 | 2 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| Air bags | 15% |
95 | 9 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 13% |
80 | 1 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| Stability controlABS and wheel speed sensors | 11% |
65 | 0 | Shop stability control parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 9% |
54 | 8 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 7% |
44 | 0 | Shop visibility parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 6% |
40 | 2 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 6% |
38 | 3 | Shop brakes parts for the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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The fuel level sensor has gone bad. From my research, this is a known problem with the 2007 santa fe. It has become necessary to use my trip meter to gauge how much fuel i have.
-
Fuel sending sensor is erratic causing chk engine code p0464. Unsafe driving condition and should be recalled to be fix.
-
Left front trailer arm came off while driving, tire came off vehicle. Sub frame rusted through. Car used to be kept in one of the salt belt states. No recall to this part according to hyundai, only recall for coil spring and rear trailer arm.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Hyundai Santa Fe years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2007, 2008, 2003 carry the most filings on the Hyundai Santa Fe. The 2007 alone has 619 complaints, led by fuel system.
What is the most common Hyundai Santa Fe problem?
On the 2007 model year, the most-reported component is fuel system with 114 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Hyundai Santa Fe problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Hyundai Santa Fe complaints that include mileage is about 64,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.