Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | ||||||
| EA08016 | HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY | 08/21/2008 | 04/20/2009 | FRONT SUB-FRAME CORROSION | 09V124000 | |
| In a letter dated april 14, 2009, hyundai-kia america technical center, inc (hyundai) notified nhtsa that hyundaiis conducting a safety recall of model year (my) 1999 through 2004 hyundai sonata vehicles manufactured prior to november 20, 2003 that are registered and operated in the following salt belt states and the district of columbia: connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin.hyundai is recalling the vehicles to remedy a condition where internal corrosion of the front subframe may lead to separation of the lower control arm at the forward mounting point and/or separation of the axle from the transaxle.this could result in a loss of vehicle control and/or vehicle disablement. the subframes will be inspected in the recalled vehicles using a procedure developed by hyundai to measure metal thickness.parts with perforations from corrosion or with metal below the specified thickness will be replaced with redesigned subframes.if the minimum metal thickness is met, drainage holes and rust proofing material will be added to the existing subframe. odi's analysis of complaint data revealed that 98% of the consumer complaints were from vehicles either originally sold or operated in saltbelt states. similarly 99.7% of the warranty claims were from vehicles originally sold or operated in saltbelt states.odi identified 105 reports of lower control arm detachment and/or axle separation from the transaxle through analysis of warranty and complaint information and consumer interviews.one hundred three (103) of the 105 incidents involved vehicles in states covered by the recall.in addition to the subject vehicles, hyundai also noted in the april 14, 2009 letter that my 2001 through 2004 xg300 and xg350 were also being recalled as they were manufactured with subframes similar in design the subject vehicles.based on hyundai's decision to conduct a safety recall this engineering analysis is closed. | ||||||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | ||||||
| EA08016 | HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY | 08/21/2008 | 04/20/2009 | FRONT SUB-FRAME CORROSION | 09V124000 | |
| In a letter dated april 14, 2009, hyundai-kia america technical center, inc (hyundai) notified nhtsa that hyundaiis conducting a safety recall of model year (my) 1999 through 2004 hyundai sonata vehicles manufactured prior to november 20, 2003 that are registered and operated in the following salt belt states and the district of columbia: connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin.hyundai is recalling the vehicles to remedy a condition where internal corrosion of the front subframe may lead to separation of the lower control arm at the forward mounting point and/or separation of the axle from the transaxle.this could result in a loss of vehicle control and/or vehicle disablement. the subframes will be inspected in the recalled vehicles using a procedure developed by hyundai to measure metal thickness.parts with perforations from corrosion or with metal below the specified thickness will be replaced with redesigned subframes.if the minimum metal thickness is met, drainage holes and rust proofing material will be added to the existing subframe. odi's analysis of complaint data revealed that 98% of the consumer complaints were from vehicles either originally sold or operated in saltbelt states. similarly 99.7% of the warranty claims were from vehicles originally sold or operated in saltbelt states.odi identified 105 reports of lower control arm detachment and/or axle separation from the transaxle through analysis of warranty and complaint information and consumer interviews.one hundred three (103) of the 105 incidents involved vehicles in states covered by the recall.in addition to the subject vehicles, hyundai also noted in the april 14, 2009 letter that my 2001 through 2004 xg300 and xg350 were also being recalled as they were manufactured with subframes similar in design the subject vehicles.based on hyundai's decision to conduct a safety recall this engineering analysis is closed. | ||||||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM | ||||||
| EA08016 | HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY | 08/21/2008 | 04/20/2009 | FRONT SUB-FRAME CORROSION | 09V124000 | |
| In a letter dated april 14, 2009, hyundai-kia america technical center, inc (hyundai) notified nhtsa that hyundaiis conducting a safety recall of model year (my) 1999 through 2004 hyundai sonata vehicles manufactured prior to november 20, 2003 that are registered and operated in the following salt belt states and the district of columbia: connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin.hyundai is recalling the vehicles to remedy a condition where internal corrosion of the front subframe may lead to separation of the lower control arm at the forward mounting point and/or separation of the axle from the transaxle.this could result in a loss of vehicle control and/or vehicle disablement. the subframes will be inspected in the recalled vehicles using a procedure developed by hyundai to measure metal thickness.parts with perforations from corrosion or with metal below the specified thickness will be replaced with redesigned subframes.if the minimum metal thickness is met, drainage holes and rust proofing material will be added to the existing subframe. odi's analysis of complaint data revealed that 98% of the consumer complaints were from vehicles either originally sold or operated in saltbelt states. similarly 99.7% of the warranty claims were from vehicles originally sold or operated in saltbelt states.odi identified 105 reports of lower control arm detachment and/or axle separation from the transaxle through analysis of warranty and complaint information and consumer interviews.one hundred three (103) of the 105 incidents involved vehicles in states covered by the recall.in addition to the subject vehicles, hyundai also noted in the april 14, 2009 letter that my 2001 through 2004 xg300 and xg350 were also being recalled as they were manufactured with subframes similar in design the subject vehicles.based on hyundai's decision to conduct a safety recall this engineering analysis is closed. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 120000 | 1 | |
| On 1 oct 2009 my son was driving his 1999 hyundai sonata gls from his high school to pick up his sister at the daycare just down the road. upon pulling into the daycare parking lot he heard a loud sound and the front passenger side of the vehicle dropped significantly. he immediately stopped the vehicle and got out to see if he had hit something or to see exactly what had happened. upon inspection the front passenger side a-frame had completely rusted out of the sub frame of the vehicle causing it to break completely off. thankfully he was traveling at a low rate of speed or it could have caused a major accident or even further damage to the vehicle. upon research it was discovered that there is a nhtsa campaign id number: 09v124000 that addresses this same issue, however it looks like it doesn't cover a recall of the 1999 model and when i contacted the dealership they stated there was no recall for this vehicle. you can contact me at thomas.keyser@jcse.mil or at 813-451-6532. i?m highly concerned for the safety for anyone that drives this vehicle and i feel that since this seems to be a systemic issue that it should be covered under the factory recall campaign as this vehicle was originally titled in missouri. *tr | |||
| 06/18/2008 | 96000 | 1 | |
| 1999 hyundai sonata front right wheel was severed from frame while my daughter, who is a new diver, was driving, frame was badly rusted. car was in for service 6 months ago to have front struts replaced and dealer did not indicate that there was a problem or that they have been seeing this in other similar cars. after researching this i can see that these cars have a problem and need to be pulled from the road before serious harm comes from this issue. hyundai should take responsibility for this serious problem. the car has 96,000 miles and hyundai is replacing the sub frame under warranty, but my concern is that they are not telling anyone prior to failure and someone is going to get seriously hurt or killed. *tr | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | |||
| 10/04/2010 | 135150 | ||
| Vehicle had developed a front end alignment problem, and i scheduled an alignment. the morning before the scheduled alignment, i was pulling out of my driveway to go to work when the right inner cv joint disintegrated. investigation revealed severe subframe corrosion resulting in the control arm mount separating from the subframe, causing the cv joint to fail and the vehicle to become inoperable. nshta and hyundai issued a recall in 2009, campaign id number: 09v124000. however, the state i reside in (nebraska) is not listed as a salt belt state and is not covered by the recall. nebraska does indeed use salt on the roads, and the description of the fault and potential results matches exactly with the rust and corrosion on my vehicle's subframe and the results. i believe it likely that there are other motorists in the state of nebraska who are driving these vehicles with this hidden and potentially very dangerous fault. the hyndai dealer has been unable to help me so far with a fault resolution per the recall. | |||
| 02/06/2009 | 72000 | 1 | |
| I noticed my left front suspension on my 1999 hyundai sonata gls squeaking loudly while driving city speeds. my mechanic noticed rusty area around suspension control arm, etc. labeled it as a priority repair for safety reasons. i previously had the complete rear wheel hub replaced because of corrosion a few years ago, too. i have not gone to a hyundai dealer yet so i'm not sure how to proceed from here. *tr | |||
| 11/13/2008 | 1 | ||
| Noticed that the tires were getting misaligned and the car keeps pulling to the right. finally took the tire off and noticed that the passenger side sub-frame is rusted all the way through where all the suspension attachments are barely holding in its place. nothing has been done to fix the issue at this moment due to its repair cost vs what the vehicle is worth. *tr | |||
| 09/22/2008 | 110000 | 1 | |
| Just everyday driving to and from work, the usual speed bumps ( taken at normal speeds for said speed bumps) the steering pulls to the right, significantly, and the front right tire is at an angle instead of perpendicular to the road. the k-frame has rotted out and caused the front left spindle to bend, making the vehicle undrivable. *tr | |||
| 04/05/2008 | 129542 | 1 | |
| Driving at a low speed the passenger side front wheel suspension broke leaving wheel hanging and inoperable. could not move car out of traffic lane. upon inspection by the repair facility it was determined that rust to the sub frame and related bolts caused the failure. i was lucky that i was not driving faster. *tr | |||
| 12/18/2007 | 73800 | 1 | 01/25/2000 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 1999 hyundai sonata gls. while driving between 5-10 mph, the contact heard a clunking noise and the vehicle suddenly stopped. she could not remember if she was accelerating or braking at the time. the engine was still running. prior to the failure, the vehicle was pulling to the right as if an alignment was needed. the vehicle was towed. the repair shop stated that the frame under the vehicle rotted and caused the axle to slip. the shop repaired the passenger side front frame rail, reassembled the suspension, and reinstalled the axle. the failure mileage was 73,800 and current mileage was 73,900. updated 01/29/08 updated 01/29/08 *tr | |||