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2019 Hyundai Kona

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Kona years

Owner complaints for the 2019 Hyundai Kona are substantially higher than the model-year median of 74.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

58 reports with mileage · 132 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 131 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

11 crash reports4 fire reports4 injury reports

What owners actually said

190 reports
58,200 miles · Aug 31, 2021
Engine And Engine Cooling

The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated she was informed at the service inspection that her vehicle was low on engine oil however, the oil had recently been refilled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the oil plug was loose. The dealer refilled the e…

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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated she was informed at the service inspection that her vehicle was low on engine oil however, the oil had recently been refilled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the oil plug was loose. The dealer refilled the engine oil. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring and the vehicle was using a third of the engine oil every 1,000 miles. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer (Texoma Hyundai 2500 Texoma Pkwy, Sherman, TX 75090) who test drove the vehicle and diagnosed that no issues were found. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 58,200.

NHTSA ODI #11431200

20,000 miles · Aug 20, 2021
Engine

The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with a misfire. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to another local dealer Safford Hyundai of Springfield (7615 Loisdale Rd A, Springfield, VA…

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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with a misfire. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to another local dealer Safford Hyundai of Springfield (7615 Loisdale Rd A, Springfield, VA 22150, (703)776-9040) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the service light needed to be reset. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine) after the failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. The failure mileage was 20,000.

NHTSA ODI #11429881

Mileage unknown · Aug 20, 2021
Unknown Or Other

This vehicle has stalled five (5) times while driving, twice at highway speeds and three times at neighborhood speeds. The warning light comes on, the car stalls but then will restart normally. Have been lucky in that there have been no accidents. The dealer had the car for a week and can diagnose no problem or replicate …

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This vehicle has stalled five (5) times while driving, twice at highway speeds and three times at neighborhood speeds. The warning light comes on, the car stalls but then will restart normally. Have been lucky in that there have been no accidents. The dealer had the car for a week and can diagnose no problem or replicate the stall event. We have opened a case with Hyundai as well.

NHTSA ODI #11429839

Mileage unknown · Aug 19, 2021
Engine

The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amoun…

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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI #11429706

37,874 miles · Aug 16, 2021
Engine

The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving approximately 35-40 MPH, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and a loud sound was heard before the vehi…

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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving approximately 35-40 MPH, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and a loud sound was heard before the vehicle stalled. The contact shifted the vehicle into neutral and was able restart the vehicle and drive to her residence. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 37,874. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI #11429322

Mileage unknown · Aug 9, 2021
Engine

The contact's son leases a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated upon receiving a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (ENGINE). the vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact's son that the parts for the recall repair were not yet available. However, the dealer advised they would be refilling…

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The contact's son leases a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated upon receiving a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (ENGINE). the vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact's son that the parts for the recall repair were not yet available. However, the dealer advised they would be refilling the engine oil every 500 miles. The contact stated his son had been taking the vehicle to the dealer to get the engine oil refilled, however the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated the engine had been making ticking abnormal sounds while driving. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact's son that they could only refill the engine oil as the remedy for the recall repair was not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the remedy was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 38,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI #11428362

Mileage unknown · Aug 9, 2021
EngineFuel/propulsion System

Yesterday my car, Hyundai Kona 2019, stalled out for no reason while the vehicle was in motion. There were no warning signs on the panel. I change the oil regularly, but the car keeps burning oil very quickly before the next planned oil change, however, I never have any warning signs that my oil level is low. I could have gotten…

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Yesterday my car, Hyundai Kona 2019, stalled out for no reason while the vehicle was in motion. There were no warning signs on the panel. I change the oil regularly, but the car keeps burning oil very quickly before the next planned oil change, however, I never have any warning signs that my oil level is low. I could have gotten into an accident, and now I am afraid of driving because the car can stall at any moment, and cause an accident. The manufacturing company doesn't s solve this problem in a timely manner!

NHTSA ODI #11428287

Mileage unknown · Aug 4, 2021
Engine

I brought my car to the Pride Hyundai dealership in Lynn, MA on Friday, 7/30. They confirmed that I need a new engine and still have my car and Hyundai corporate has not gotten back to them. I am elderly and a one car family and I have no car. I also do not want to drive the car until it is fixed.

NHTSA ODI #11427737

9,600 miles · Aug 4, 2021
Engine

The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving approximately …

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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V301000 (Engine) however, the part to do the recall repair was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 mph, the oil level warning light illuminated. The vehicle started to jerk, and the contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 9,600. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI #11427706

Mileage unknown · Aug 4, 2021
EngineVehicle Speed Control

CAR LOST SPEED ON GOING UPHILL. TOOK CAR TO DEALER AND THEY FOUND NOTHING RELATED. I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THIS RECALL. THE LENGTH OF TIME IT HAS TAKEN TO REPAIR AND THE FACT THAT THEY DO NOT KNOW HOW TO REPAIR THESE PISTON RINGS.

NHTSA ODI #11427700

Official recalls

1

21V301000 · Engine

Apr 28, 2021

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Elantra, 2019-2021 Kona and Veloster vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines. The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which could result in engine damage.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A damaged engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash. In addition, oil may leak onto hot exhaust components, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine, free of charge. In addition, Hyundai will deploy Piston Ring Noise Sensing System (PNSS) software. Owner notification letters were mailed August 24, 2021. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

2

DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.

DP22003 · Loss Of Motive Power

Opened Sep 12, 2022 · Closed Dec 12, 2023

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a letter dated July 13, 2022, petitioning the Agency to initiate a safety defect investigation into loss of motive power allegations attributed to oil drain pan assembly failures on certain Hyundai Motor America, Inc. and Kia America, Inc. vehicles spanning Model Years (MY) 2005-2021. The Petitioners cited examples of complaints indicating that the subject vehicles were experiencing rapid loss of engine oil due to oil drain plug back outs, resulting in loss of motive power and/or catastrophic engine damage. Additional complaints were provided which alleged that the oil drain pans lack sufficient structural integrity and are susceptible to cracking. The petition itself can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI number 11481745. On September 12, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Defect Petition (DP22-003) to evaluate the Petitioners’ request. The Petitioners have provided additional complaints within four supplemental letters dated January 31, 2023, March 21, 2023, May 23, 2023, and August 4, 2023. ODI’s evaluation included the review and analysis of the complaints and supporting information submitted by the Petitioners, as well as additional complaints submitted directly to NHTSA which referenced either the oil drain plug or a crack in the oil pan. After reviewing the available data, ODI has not identified evidence that would support opening a defect investigation into the oil drain pan assemblies of the subject vehicles. Based on a review of the available information, a loss of motive power resulting from an oil drain plug back out has not occurred between the initial sale of a vehicle and the completion of its first oil change. If during an oil change service, a technician fails to remove the existing drain plug gasket before installing a new gasket, it is likely that a proper seal between the drain plug and the oil pan will not be made. An improper seal between the drain plug and oil pan could lead to the backing out on the drain plug, resulting in the sudden loss of oil while driving. Additionally, the provided examples of oil pan cracks were localized to the immediate vicinity of the oil drain plug and/or appeared to be the result of direct-contact with a tool during servicing.  There is no information to support that a vehicle-based defect exists relating to the oil pan assembly, and instead the documented incidents are related to the failure to follow the proper maintenance procedures during oil change service. In October 2023, Hyundai published a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) that provided detailed instructions for oil change service on its gasoline powered vehicles, specifically highlighting the need to remove and replace the existing drain plug gasket prior to reinstalling the drain plug. After a thorough review of the material submitted by the petitioner, the information already in NHTSA's possession, and the potential risks to motor vehicle safety implicated by the petitioners' allegations, NHTSA does not believe that a formal investigation is warranted. Therefore, the petition is denied. A Federal Register Notice (FRN) further detailing NHTSA’s reasons for denial of the petition will be published. The reference numbers for the complaints to NHTSA cited by the petitioner can be found in the petition submission documents in the public file for DP22-003. To review those complaints and the additional complaints ODI added to its evaluation which are cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.