32 of the
469 complaints filed about the Hyundai Santa Cruz
are about the fuel system —
7% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2022.
October 2025 while driving the vehicle at highway speeds, vehicle started bucking, losing power and then stalled. The check engine light did not come on. I was able to get off the side of the road and had it towed to the dealer. Dealer found injectors to be leaking and replaced all 4 GDI fuel injectors-mileage was 29,598. On July 1, 2026, again the same issue while driving the vehicle at highway speeds, it started bucking, losing power and stalling when slowed. This time the check engine light came on. Again, it was undrivable and had to be towed to the dealer. Dealer found after 15,000 miles, some of the new injectors failed and were leaking and all 4 GDI injectors were replaced again-mileage 44,492. Both times there was no warning signs that the fuel injectors were about to fail. No other tests were performed on the engine to find out why the fuel injectors are repeatedly failing. I have filed a report with Hyundai National Consumer Affairs because the vehicle will be out of warranty by the end of 2026, and the underlying issue has not been investigated nor resolved. I am concerned that once vehicle is out of warranty, a major issue with the engine will be found that caused repeated failure of the fuel injectors. I did request an extension of the warranty, but was told that normally doesn't happen.
NHTSA complaint #11749598 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Loss of power from the engine while accelerating from a stop in heavy traffic. Car began shaking and sputtering with intermittent spurts of power, unable to exceed 10 mph on narrow bridge. Pulled over and the vehicle smelled heavily of gasoline near the engine. This issue is the Third instance of my engine sputtering and losing power. The first instance, injectors 2 & 4 were replaced. The second instance Injector 3 was replaced. I followed dealer recommendations and only used top tier gas from busy stations, and manufacturer technician recommended techron additive every 1000 miles. There have been two additional instances where the engine sputtered but regained power, with the dealer unable to replicate the issue.
NHTSA complaint #11742267 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Sudden Unintended Acceleration: Coming to a stop in a driveway and planning to put vehicle in to reverse, the Santa Cruz suddenly accelerated and kept accelerating ... it would not stop moving, brakes were applied continuously and forcefully, but with no effect. Vehicle crashed through shrubbery and small trees into neighbor's yard, over a retaining wall and finally crashing into neighbors parked classic car, only stopping after it nose-dived downward. We live in Rapid City, this event happened at our daughter's residence in Black Hawk, South Dakota.
NHTSA complaint #11733854 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
WHILE DRIVING ON I-81 UP A STEEP GRADE, TRUCK SUFFERED A SUDDEN POWER LOSS, WITH SPEED DROPPING TO 35 MPH FROM 65 MPH. ATTEMPTS TO REGAIN SPEED FAILED AND IT FELT LIKE TRUCK DOWNSHIFTED TO A LOWER GEAR. 35 MPH CONTINUED UNTIL I DECIDED TO USE TRUCK CRUISE CONTROL TO ATTEMPT TO GAIN SPEED. I WAS WORRIED ABOUT TRACTOR TRAILERS HITTING ME DUE TO LOW SPEED. FINALLY GOT VEHICLE TO 65 MPH BUT WOULD NOT GO ABOVE 65 MPH. RODE THAT WAY FOR 100 MILES ( TRIP HOME WAS ~ 200 MILES) FINALLY IN LIGHTER TRAFFIC WHEN I HAD TO BRAKE, I TRIED TO USE GAS PEDAL TO MAINTAIN SPEED.AND IT WORKED. RODE THE LAST 100 MILES NORMALLY. I WAS AT GREAT RISK WHEN TRUCK WENT FROM 65 MPH TO 35 MPH. THIS IS THE SECOND INCIDENT VEHICLE SUFFERED IN THE LAST 2 MONTHS.. DEALER WAS NOT ABLE TO DIAGNOISE PROBLEM. VEHICLE HAD NO WARNING LAMPS TO WARN ME IN BOTH INSTANCES.
NHTSA complaint #11733735 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Very strong fuel smell coming from parked vehicle after filling the Gas Tank. After driving 40 miles to remove approximately 1/4 of a the Tank, fumes are gone. 1/06/2026: Took Truck to closest Dealership. Burlington Hyundai Nj and they had it for 3 days. (The Tank was not Full) and they didn't find anything wrong. They still have not given me any documents on what the checked. They said I would get it by E-Mail. I purchased the vehicle from Hyundai of Trenton Nj and they are not getting back to me on when I can bring it in. I can not park in or even near my garage.
NHTSA complaint #11712036 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Vehicle began running roughly. CEL came on. Began to misfire. Limped it off the FWY under limited power. Had vehicle towed to dealership. Was diagnosed as having bad fuel injectors. Was told by service writer that Hyundai Santa Cruz trucks have been experiencing a lot of injector failures. Looking at the various Hyundai Santa Cruz forums, it appears that this has been a very common issue and has occurred in 2022 through 2025 model year vehicles
NHTSA complaint #11679960 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 60 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed to pass another vehicle however, the vehicle started to lose motive power. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stopped the vehicle but did not turn off the vehicle. The contact stated that after shifting to drive(D) the vehicle failed to accelerate above 15 MPH. The contact stopped the vehicle and had the vehicle towed to the local dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that a fuel injector had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.
NHTSA complaint #11671897 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I purchased my 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz new from Hallmark Hyundai in Tennessee. Ever since the purchase of my Hyundai Santa Cruz I have had issues with fuel injectors. I have had two fuel injector failures that had to be covered under warranty, the last fuel injector that failed under warranty was on cylinder 3 and was replaced a year ago at Coastal Hyundai in Melbourne, Florida. Three weeks ago, the fuel injector failed again on cylinder 3 and isn’t covered under warranty. This makes the third fuel injector (two on the same cylinder) to have failed in the three years of owning my vehicle. With less than 80,000 miles on it. Hyundai knows it’s a problem as they recently changed their service bulletin mandating all four fuel injectors to be replaced with an upgraded part. However they won’t cover the charges and I’m on the hook for the bill. Also, the new upgrade kit is on back order. I’ve been given three dates know for when it was supposed to be in stock, but they moved the date out again to May 25 and they’re not confident that it will be here then. There needs to be a recall ordered for the fuel injector replacement as Hyundai knows it’s a problem. There are over 3,000 customers waiting across the country for this new upgraded part.
NHTSA complaint #11661401 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving on the freeway at 65mph and experienced a sudden loss of power. I depressed the gas pedal but the car would not accelerate past 45 mph. I had to drive all the way home with my hazard lights on. There were no lights on the dashboard to signify a problem. This happened several times. I took it into the Hyundai Service center and they could not replicate the problem. It happened again. and again. and again. finally got an error "possible condition with your engine control module". Took it into the dealer and after they drove it around for hundreds of miles they said they were able to recreate the problem, pulls some codes and relaced the fuel injection pump. It happened again. and again. and again. I took it back to the Hyundai Service center. They could not re-create the issue. They told me to use Chevron gas only and added an additive to the car. It worked for a while. Then it happened again. And again. I took it to a different Hyundai Service Center. They were not able to re-create the problem. Apparently, every time I drive the car, after 5-10 minutes on the street roads, the car fails to accelerate and I have to pull over, stop the car, and then re-start it. Re-starting it seems to clear the issue. I am driving in SMART mode and my car is at 39000 miles. Every time I take it to the service center, they can not re-create the issue. This is outrageous. Do I need to get into a car accident in order to bring legal action to Hyundai for not fixing this loss of power/failure to accelerate issue? Worst part is, the first Hyundai service center went out of business and I can not get any of the maintenance records for the fuel pump replacement.
NHTSA complaint #11660778 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On multiple occasions the car had trouble starting and while on the road it would idle like it was struggling. My concern was the car dying on me while on the road and causing an accident for myself and the other drivers or pedestrians. The manufacturer hasn't inspected it nor has it been confirmed by the dealer. I haven't had any warning and they first started to appear in the beginning of 2024. I just recently read the fuel injectors are the cause of this and so far there has not been any recall by the manufacturer
NHTSA complaint #11655517 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On [XXX] my car would not run with a half a tank of gas and 776 miles ,I allied Hyundai towing and had it towed to the nearest dealer in Springfield pa and it sat down a week or more before they looked at it ,after that they finally called and stated there was sugar in my tank ,I explained that was impossible because I have a 175 foot private drive and a dog that barks at anything I explained the gehivle has a anti theft gas cap and if the vehicle is unlocked I get texted to remind me it’s unlocked ,they told me the fuel system had to be replaced from the filter to the injectors ,that vehicle has a safe guard in the fuel tank to clog up when contaminated, I had to wait six weeks for me car and had to use my auto insurance to pay for it with 450.00 coming out of my pocket ,then again after another 800 miles it started again and this time I took it to another dealer who stated there was sugar fuel pump was bad again and that it would cost me another 1500 dollars ,I fought with them and told them about my previous problems and he repair it under warranty INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11648667 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On the interstate mid-route, the engine light went on and the car started acting sluggish and slightly shaking on the interstate and would not respond to pressing the gas to accelerate and started to slow down. When I pulled over to the berm it was vibrating as if it was going to stall out. I turned the car off and returned to the interstate with no issues for the rest of my ride (the engine light remained on). On the next trip to the dealership for an appointment to have it checked, I was merging onto the interstate, and again, the car was not responding to me putting on the gas and would not accelerate. Could not push the car over 35MPG, and had to ride to the dealership with the car varying in speed anywhere from almost a complete stop to 30MPH on the berm where I could with flashers, often it felt as if it would stall out. It was a very dangerous & unsafe ride. FYI - The dealership replaced all 4 fuel injectors to fix
NHTSA complaint #11645560 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
My 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz, which I bought new, has gone into limp mode twice in 8 months, losing power while I was driving and letting me go no faster than 25 MPH. The first time, in April 2024, I was on [XXX] in Hartford CT. I called 911 because I was certain I would be hit by a car. There was no warning lights to indicate a problem. I was able to get off the highway and had it towed to Meriden Hyundai in Meriden CT. They said they could find nothing wrong. On [XXX], my vehicle went into limp mode again. I was able to drive it to the same dealer since I work nearby. Again, they say they can't find the cause. I have been without a vehicle since then. The car is a danger to drive, and Hyundai has not resolved the matter, though I've been in contact with corporate representatives. Limp mode has caused many crashed across the country. It is designed to protect a car from a mechanical problem - but the system itself puts drivers at great risk. My hope is the NTSB will investigate my case and this national problem before more people are injured or killed. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11635156 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
This is my 2nd complaint re: the same issue. Loss of power during driving. Unable to accelerate. I need to pull over shut off the engine and turn it back on.
NHTSA complaint #11633032 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Lack of power upon accelerating. I could slowly get car up to 40 MPH however when trying to accelerate it would lose power. I had to pull over for faster traffic to pass.
NHTSA complaint #11620509 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH with the cruise control engaged, the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle slowed to approximately 15 MPH while depressing the accelerator pedal and failed to respond as needed. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the residence. The contact turned off the vehicle and attempted to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to restart. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that a fuel injector had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 13,803.
NHTSA complaint #11616602 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
- What component or system failed or malfunctioned: Code P019185 main fuel rail pressure regulator sensor. -Is it available for inspection upon request? Yes -How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? At highway speeds, sudden lose of power and speed. Unable to accelerate. -Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? No, happens randomly, vehicle has to be shut down and restarted to resolve problem. -Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No -Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No warning, shortly after purchase and several time after purchase to date.
NHTSA complaint #11614738 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
My truck lost power climbing a pass. My speed dropped from 60 mph to 20 mph while on a state highway outside Yellowstone NP where traffic can be heavy. My error codes have indicated that it is a problem in the fuel injection system. I have had electrical harness on that system replaced 4 times in 6 weeks, 2 of the times took place at the dealership during repair. My truck is still not operable.
NHTSA complaint #11613896 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.