2021 HYUNDAI ELANTRA HYBRID Recalls, Complaints & Safety

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH during ice and snow, the engine revved, and there was an abnormal sound coming from the Hybrid battery. While turning, the contact stated that the vehicle had unintendedly accelerated. Additionally, the tire pressure warning light was illuminated. The contact believed that the failure was related to the Hybrid battery. The vehicle was driven to the residence, where it remained parked and was not driven since. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 44,900.

The headlights and back lights turn off at random times when the headlights are on the automatic setting. This problem happens very frequently at night, putting my family at risk when the lights go off and cannot see what is ahead of us. In addition to a cop pulling me over for not having my lights on and he asked me if I was playing with the lights since they were going on and off and luckily the cop did not give me a ticket when I explained and he saw the problem (he advised me to get on this website and to make a report). I have reported this problem to the Hyundai dealership for the past 3 years and I don’t even think they take the time to investigate. The dealership just keeps telling me that with another update in the software is going to get fixed. But that is not the case. This is a very dangerous problem that is going to get someone killed. Need to be fixed

Check Hybrid System alarmed in heavy traffic and derated my car and put me in a very dangerous situation.

I am writing to report a serious and ongoing safety issue with my 2021 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid that remains unresolved despite multiple visits to Hyundai service centers and independent repair shops. I’ve also found numerous consumer discussions online describing nearly identical issues with the same model and newer Elantra Hybrid models, suggesting this may be part of a wider systemic defect. The core issue lies within the vehicle’s hybrid system. Shortly after a recent system/software update performed at a Hyundai dealership, a warning message began appearing at random intervals stating: “Check Hybrid System.” This typically first appears after extended driving — often around 3 hours — but once it occurs, the issue worsens if I continue to drive. Each time the warning appears, the vehicle suddenly and drastically decelerates without driver input, becoming dangerously slow and unresponsive, even while traveling at highway speeds. This creates an urgent safety risk, as I have had to maneuver off the road quickly to avoid collisions. After the initial warning, if I attempt to drive the vehicle again without sufficient downtime, the warning reappears much more frequently — sometimes within minutes. The only temporary relief is to stop using the vehicle and allow it to rest for at least six hours, after which the issue may temporarily subside. In every case, I must use the 12V battery reset button to restart the car, which I suspect may be clearing diagnostic codes before they can be properly recorded. Notably, the check engine light disappears after this reset, even if it was previously displayed. Given that the hybrid battery is located beneath the rear passenger seat, I am deeply concerned that if there is an underlying thermal or electrical issue, it could pose a serious or life-threatening risk to passengers. To date, no dealership or technician has been able to duplicate or permanently resolve the problem.

I have a safety recall is with a Rear view camera that hasn’t had a solution.

The Hybrid charging system fails once the vehicle is above 75 mph. After about an hour or two, the vehicle will die on the highway. This is a reoccurring issue putting our safety at risk. The dealership cannot find what the problem is. Online forums show similar issues with dealerships unable to solve the problem.

At around 93k miles my HECU unit apparently malfunctioned at the same time as the left front tire speed indicator. All of my safety features ABS, adaptive cruise control, lane departure, lane keeping etc do not work because of this.

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra HEV. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle started to lose motive power with a battery warning light illuminated. The contact stated that on several occasions, the vehicle had to be turned off and restarted for the vehicle to recharge and restart. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact informed the dealer that the failure was intermittent and within an hour the dealer stated had replicated the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 52,000.

When gas is pressed (even to floor) in drive, vehicle stalls, does not accelerate. Then vehicle jerks into propulsion after revving. Other instances, at deceleration the car will jerk and shake to a stop. I have mentioned the problem at every scheduled maintenance

I was driving on the Highway at the posted speed limit when the warning "Check Forward Safety System" came up and remained on my dashboard. The cruise control stopped working also. The light remained on even after stopping and starting the car and has remained on ever since. I have never been in an accident nor has my computer system reported any collision. My Hyundai Blue Link app gives me the following DTC: C162078. It started on [XXX]. My collision detection system does not appear to be working at all and my cruise control no longer works. I'm very concerned about it malfunctioning based on other entries on the nhtsa.gov website. I took the car to Hyundai Service Center and they are trying to convince me this is due to a collision and warranty will not be covering it. They tried to charge me for diagnostic even though I already had the error code on the Hyundai BlueLink App. They confirmed that my computer has zero reports of any collisions. The service tech said, and I'm quoting, "The system is very sensitive and a swift kick could cause it to malfunction." That sounds like a manufacturing defect to me. I have never been in an accident with this car, there is zero visible damage to the front bumper, and my computer has no report of an accident. The dealership urged me to contact insurance. My Major Insurance Company told me this was absurd, would never be approved, and is clearly mechanical. They also mentioned anecdotally that this problem has been coming up a lot for them with modern Hyundai models. Then I called Hyundai Corporate and they have escalated the issue, agree it sounds mechanical, and will be contacting me in 3-5 business days. They apologized profusely so I am still holding out hope for warranty coverage. I believe the dealership is trying to blame me for this mechanical failure to avoid expense on their end. I have had many software-related issues with this car. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I keep getting intermittent HEV warnings and 12-volt light. The engine then shuts down and I have no power. This has occurred several times while on the highway and this creates a safety hazard. I have been fortunate enough that this happened while I was close to the shoulder, otherwise, it could have been critical. - The failed component(s) are the 12 volt battery and engine shutdown - With the vehicle being without power while on the highway puts other drivers and myself at risk of an accident - I have taken the vehicle to two different Hyundai dealers and they have not resolved the problem - The issue was escalated to the manufacturer Hyundai Motors and they have not resolved this issue. - The 12v battery light and an HEV warning light comes on and then the engine shuts off - This issue has been happening intermittently for the past year and I first notice it on October of 2022

This is my second time contact and reporting this issue about the vehicle surging unexpectedly and you cannot get it to slow down except by keeping your foot on the brake and pulling off the road. This has happened multiple times since I have had this vehicle. Recently, I had the car in for service and they said they did a recall for the software to stop this condition from happening again. However, 1 month later, it happened and this time it was the worst I have ever experienced as I kept my foot off the accelerator - it surged over 15mph from the speed I was originally at with me doing nothing and it was still gaining. My car was trying to accelerate with my foot on the brake and I had to cross lanes of traffic to get to the side of the road to restart the vehicle. The reason that it was the worst, is that I literally could not begin to control this vehicle. Other times it has happened and I could at least go for a little bit as long as I kept my distance from other cars but this acceleration was beyond out of control. I could have caused an accident or hit somebody. No warnings appeared, no messages or lights.

My 2021 Hyunadai Elantra HEV Blue 12v battery light comes on and I lose power to the engine and all internal electrical components. It has happened while driving on the highway and it is a safety concern. I have addressed it with the dealership and they stated there were no codes and they canot replicate.

the h e v warning light comes on when driving. the hybrid battery disconnects from the engine and the car is undriveable. have to pull over, stop the car, turn off the car and then reset the hybrid battery. this has happened twice in last week. thank fully i was able to pull over safely, but this a dangerous situation for me and other cars around me. the car had been taken to the dealership just two weeks ago and they were unable to diagnose the issue

I was driving on a 40mph speed road at 45 mph and the car stopped accelerating abruptly and remained stuck at 20 mph even thou my foot was on the gas pedal. I had to put the caution lights on and get to the side of the road. I had every car behind me honk and yell when passing by. This could have been a big crash. I have the video of this when I was driving. This happened various times, in December, Feb and last week.

So the car will come to a dead stop. Then when I give gas, it will not go for 1-2 sec, then all of a sudden it go at high speed by itself. Even when I brake, it will feel like as if I have stepped onto gas. Very dangerous

On a few occasions (3?) the cars’ automatic emergency braking feature activated while driving at both highway and normal speeds. On none of the occasions was there inclement weather or a “slick” condition on the road. The feature would activate, give a visual and audible warning, and then de-activate within a few seconds. When the feature activated, I felt the car jerk a bit to slow down, and sort of swerve in one direction before righting itself. There is a possibility that the feature activated because I had manually enabled the Auto Hold feature as well which I usually do.

Car will accelerate when pressing on brakes. Once car is able to turn off, the problem does not repeat. This has occurred at least 3 times with the same car and random times while on the road. Dealership is unable to replicate the brake issue every time the car is brought in.

Sometimes upon depressing the accelerator the engine does not respond. The car does not move in a traffic situation. Putting the car in park, shutting it down and restarting makes it go away for a while. Getting on and off the highway is especially dangerous. This has happened intermittently for the past 1-1/2 years. The dealer says that they cannot reproduce the problem. So, they cannot repair it.

While driving in stop and go traffic this morning (02/06/2023), at approximately 8:45 am, my Hyundai Elantra began accelerating on it's own. I applied the brakes and the car behaved as though I slammed on the brakes. The acceleration and braking issues happened multiple times during this drive. After the first incident, I shifted the car into neutral, (when it happened subsequently) until it quit accelerating, which was a couple of seconds. I have scheduled service at the Hyundai dealer for tomorrow morning (02/27/2023)

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid. The contact stated that on multiple occasions while the vehicle was idling, right before releasing the brake pedal, the vehicle did not immediately accelerate forward while depressing the accelerator pedal. Additionally, while driving at various speeds, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration. After stopping and turning off and restarting the vehicle the failure was self-corrected. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure or detect the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 2,000.

Our problem started a few months ago. At first, we thought it was just a fluke, but this issue has happened too many times to be so. The issues are, the car does not accelerate when we depress the accelerator, we see the tachometer move, but the engine is not actually accelerating. Then at times it will accelerate on it's own, while sitting at a red light, the car tries to move forward despite having our foot on the brake, it acts like we are trying to push the accelerator and the brake at the same time. Even worse, while driving, the car will go into accident-avoidance mode, even though there is nothing in front of us. There are no errors or codes populating on the dash.

I had reported that the horn wouldn't work..especially in cold weather last winter. The horn would work by the time I arrived at dealer. Told nothing they could do as it was working. It has happened 3 times in the last 2 months, finally totally nonfunctional the past 3 days. I called, stopped at dealer to have it checked. The car was returned to me with service person telling me that the horns diaphragm is stuck. When asked if working , he said for "right now." He told me a new horn(s) were ordered. I asked him what he did: he replied, I hit the horn with a rubber hammer until it worked! Well, one mile or so down the road, it didn't work. I checked the internet and there are MULTIPLE instances listed of ongoing issues with the horns on Hyundai vehicles. In the end, I am driving with some hesitance as the horn isn't working. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE IN A CAR 1.5 years in my opinion. Again, after checking on the NHSSA website, NO RECALLS or MENTION of this safety issue! Please escalate this to TOP PRIORITY! If not, anyone's injury or death is worth the wait!

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while slowing down and making a left or right turn, the vehicle independently accelerated. The contact also stated that while at a stop, he depressed the accelerator pedal and the vehicle accelerated at an abnormal speed. The contact stated that he applied extra pressure to the brake pedal to stop the vehicle. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but the contact had not yet received a response. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that on several occasions while decelerating, the vehicle would lunge forward and the engine would rev. The contact stated that the vehicle would shut off while stopped. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure was not determined. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer three times where the failure was not determined. The failure recurred for the fourth time. The contact was awaiting a tow to the dealer Fitzgerald Countryside Hyundai. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 19,651.

Sometimes, for no reason my car will not accelerate (no amount of pedal to the metal will help) and then when it does accelerate, it surges forward at random points and tries to overpower the brakes. This has happened multiple times and the dealer claims they have never heard of this happening. It could cause a serious accident when it happens. I have to find a place to pull off and shut down the car and restart it. This started happening around the 5k mile marker...and now I am almost at 12k.

On multiple drives the car has "lurched" or accelerated when foot was NOT on the accelerator pedal. These were minor issues, but unnerving when pulling up to park near a structure. Today 3-23-22 I was driving and after about 1 hour of normal operation the car began to accelerate while pressing the brake, and decelerate while pushing the gas. The engine was revving and then slowing down opposite of what would be expected. This is a hybrid vehicle - it felt as if the gas engine was supposed to be spooling up to charge the battery but instead was feeding power to the wheels. there was no engine light illumination from this. I restarted the car and it seemed ok. Honestly, this was scary - trying to move from one lane to the next to an exit to safely exit the morning rush hour freeway. I had to keep my foot HEAVY on the break to make it slow / stop. On two other previous drives the vehicle "lurched" / the car "bucked" once or twice and then the gas engine would not re-engage. the MIL came on, and the car drove on battery power only. I drove off the road, restarted, and the vehicle worked fine. By the time i got the car to the dealer the MIL had cleared and they were unable to pull any codes and deemed the car safe / found no issues.

According to the dealership where I bought this car, the ignition coil failed. This has happened two times so far, resulting in two separate trips to the dealership to diagnosis and repair the issue. They were able to reproduce and confirm the problem; however, what caused the coil to go out is unknown. The component has not been inspected by any other sources outside of the Hyundai certified mechanics at the dealership. No warning lights or messages appeared at time of occurrence; however the engine would rev up when switching between hybrid and gas modes causing the car to lunge forward. The car also would lose power and not accelerate placing me in extremely unsafe conditions as this has occurred on the highway both times. The car is currently at the dealership getting another ignition coil installed. The second time these symptoms appeared caused me to lose power while turning into a gas station from the highway almost resulting into a t-bone crash with a semi-truck. I purchased this car end of February 2021.

The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while pulling into the driveway, while slowing down, the vehicle inadvertently lunged forward. The vehicle seemed as though it was attempting to accelerate forward. The contact had to depress the brake pedal with excessive force to keep the vehicle from moving forward. The failure was independently remedied, and the vehicle started to perform as designed. The contact stated that failure occurred on three different occasions. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer however, the mechanic was unable to find a cause for the failure. The dealer informed the contact that they were aware of other vehicle owners experiencing the same failure with similar vehicles. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 3,300.