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2025 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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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

Limited mileage data: 6 of 88 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

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 29 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

4 crash reports0 fire reports3 injury reports

What owners actually said

88 reports
Mileage unknown · Jul 19, 2025
Electrical SystemEngineUnknown Or Other

Stopped for gas, vehicle started but would not go into gear, engine lights indicated 'Check hybrid system', warning lights shown. 1/2 hr on the phone with dealership to assist. No problem detected when returning to home dealer. Second episode occurred, vehicle at dealer for the past 4 weeks. Episode repeated at dealership yet "n…

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Stopped for gas, vehicle started but would not go into gear, engine lights indicated 'Check hybrid system', warning lights shown. 1/2 hr on the phone with dealership to assist. No problem detected when returning to home dealer. Second episode occurred, vehicle at dealer for the past 4 weeks. Episode repeated at dealership yet "no abnormalities are detected with diagnostics ".

NHTSA ODI #11674691

Mileage unknown · Jul 10, 2025
Electrical System

I've been having a few issues with my 2025 Calligraphy Hybrid I bought in November related to the main screen, sometimes when I start the vehicle it doesn't properly initialize and it will show me some of the icons and nothing else. No HUD, no speedometer, no remaining fuel, no hybrid information. It's a huge safety issue, it se…

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I've been having a few issues with my 2025 Calligraphy Hybrid I bought in November related to the main screen, sometimes when I start the vehicle it doesn't properly initialize and it will show me some of the icons and nothing else. No HUD, no speedometer, no remaining fuel, no hybrid information. It's a huge safety issue, it seems to happen every couple of weeks. I thought it was the digital key not working properly so I disabled that but still having issues. I have to let the car sit for a few hours or overnight and then when i turn it on then it's back to normal. I realized that when the main screen is off, it doesn't capture the mileage so the mileage is off by close to 300 miles right now. Huge issue, I've had it happen on my way home from work (25 miles) at least 4 times, and once on a road trip (150 miles). Also when this happens because I can't see the speedometer, I have to use Waze on the infotainment screen (which works without issue) to see my actual speed because the built-in navigation only shows me increments of 10 mph on the screen (this is just stupid).

NHTSA ODI #11672592

Mileage unknown · Jun 23, 2025
Forward Collision AvoidanceVehicle Speed Control

The cruise control system cuts of with message on screen stating that , system camera can’t see my face and the system de-activates. This is especially dangerous at highway speeds. The vehicle behind me doesn’t see a brake light as my vehicle suddenly looses speed. This is from Hyundais Driver Attention Warning (DAW) function. …

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The cruise control system cuts of with message on screen stating that , system camera can’t see my face and the system de-activates. This is especially dangerous at highway speeds. The vehicle behind me doesn’t see a brake light as my vehicle suddenly looses speed. This is from Hyundais Driver Attention Warning (DAW) function. This function cannot be de-activated by myself or my dealership which is Webb Hyundai of Merrillville Indiana.

NHTSA ODI #11668783

Mileage unknown · Jun 5, 2025
Electrical System

Car was unused for less than a week and upon going to use it the vehicle was dead. Jumped vehicle and next day was dead again. In researching the problem, many other Santa Fe Hybrid owners have run into this same issue. Dealership admitted many hybrids from Hyundai face this issue and recommended installing a trickle charger for…

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Car was unused for less than a week and upon going to use it the vehicle was dead. Jumped vehicle and next day was dead again. In researching the problem, many other Santa Fe Hybrid owners have run into this same issue. Dealership admitted many hybrids from Hyundai face this issue and recommended installing a trickle charger for when not using the vehicle for a couple days which seems ridiculous for a brand new vehicle. Likely something draining battery slowly in car

NHTSA ODI #11665210

Mileage unknown · Jun 3, 2025
Electrical SystemEngineVehicle Speed Control

I was on a semi residential-commercial street that turns on to a freeway entrance. I was turning right and unavoidably entered the freeway when the sudden loss of power occurred. The car slowed down to about 20 mph and pressing on the gas medal didn't yield any more power. I immediately pulled over to the emergency lane upon ent…

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I was on a semi residential-commercial street that turns on to a freeway entrance. I was turning right and unavoidably entered the freeway when the sudden loss of power occurred. The car slowed down to about 20 mph and pressing on the gas medal didn't yield any more power. I immediately pulled over to the emergency lane upon entering freeway to let fast moving vehicles pass me on the left side. I turned off the vehicle and turned it back on. It seemed to turn on as normal so I proceeded to drive home slowly, staying on the slow right lane of the freeway driving under the speed limit until I took my exit to get to my home. All seemed ok until I turned onto residential street near my home. Again the car slowed down suddenly to 20mph and giving it more gas did not make a difference. The time difference between the first and second (recorded) incident was 25 minutes apart, having driven the vehicle only 140 total miles. The dashboard flashed a 20mph speed limit even though I never set those parameters, didn't set cruise control, and I didn't have auto stop or hold buttons engaged. The car simply slowed down to a 20mph speed limit without my input to the vehicle settings.

NHTSA ODI #11664480

Mileage unknown · Apr 14, 2025
Electrical System

Car did dashboard update on 4/10/25. Had less than 4300 miles. Unable to unlock car due to dead battery. Car unlock service opened door for tow company to jump battery and advise that the new 2025 Santa Fe Hybrid battery needs to be replaced. May need other service (alternator or Hybrid battery too) but the 12v battery had been …

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Car did dashboard update on 4/10/25. Had less than 4300 miles. Unable to unlock car due to dead battery. Car unlock service opened door for tow company to jump battery and advise that the new 2025 Santa Fe Hybrid battery needs to be replaced. May need other service (alternator or Hybrid battery too) but the 12v battery had been drained. Interior lights would not turn on prior to this happening.

NHTSA ODI #11654636

Mileage unknown · Mar 23, 2025
Forward Collision AvoidanceVehicle Speed Control

The driver assist program will not work if the driver is wearing sunglasses. If you are using driver assist, which includes cruise control, and are wearing sunglasses, the vehicle gives a driver attention warning. The vehicle will them cut off the cruise control causing the vehicle to rapidly drop its speed. This is incredibly d…

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The driver assist program will not work if the driver is wearing sunglasses. If you are using driver assist, which includes cruise control, and are wearing sunglasses, the vehicle gives a driver attention warning. The vehicle will them cut off the cruise control causing the vehicle to rapidly drop its speed. This is incredibly dangerous at highway speeds way speeds. Hyundai and its dealerships are aware of this issue but have not offered a solution. Also you cannot disable the driver camera that cause the driver attention warning. We have also had this occur while driving at night without sunglasses. My understanding is that this issue is across all model lines.

NHTSA ODI #11649989

Mileage unknown · Mar 14, 2025
Unknown Or Other

Forward attention warning system sounds when driver is facing forward, eyes open, hands not blocking camera. Very distracting for driver and can lead to car decelerating itself.

NHTSA ODI #11648346

Mileage unknown · Mar 6, 2025
Visibility/wiper

Washer nozzles are non adjustable, and spray too low on windshield to effectively clean glass, especially at highway speeds. Severe visibility issue. I have reported the problem to Hyundai corporate customer service, who are escalating the issue to upper management. I have also brought the vehicle to my local dealer where it wa…

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Washer nozzles are non adjustable, and spray too low on windshield to effectively clean glass, especially at highway speeds. Severe visibility issue. I have reported the problem to Hyundai corporate customer service, who are escalating the issue to upper management. I have also brought the vehicle to my local dealer where it was purchased and made them aware of the issue. Dealer agreed with me, and has heard same complaint from many other owners of this model. This should be a simple fix by swapping in an adjustable nozzle.

NHTSA ODI #11646694

Mileage unknown · Feb 27, 2025
Forward Collision Avoidance

This is a concern about the Driver Assistance Warning Consider Taking a Break 5 bell warning system. While we understand and appreciate the many safety features on new cars, we feel this feature is a safety distraction and hazard. We have turned this feature off in the Driver Assistance Warning section and we have turned off th…

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This is a concern about the Driver Assistance Warning Consider Taking a Break 5 bell warning system. While we understand and appreciate the many safety features on new cars, we feel this feature is a safety distraction and hazard. We have turned this feature off in the Driver Assistance Warning section and we have turned off the bell. Despite this, this warning with its 5 loud distinct bells sounds very frequently and often automatically disengages our cruise control while we are driving on the highway. In a recent vacation road trip of over 3,000 miles, the enjoyment of our trip and our new car was greatly compromised. During that time we tried to discern what actions we were doing to cause it to go off. It would go off when looking at the gauges so we would try to look quick and then eyes back on the road. We tried driving without sunglasses (which is a hazard itself), making sure our hands were at the 11 and 2 position, looking straight ahead. Nothing seemed to make a difference, it would go off randomly and often. Careful and safe driving requires a driver to scan the rear view and side mirrors, the gauges, be aware of other drivers proximity to your vehicle and avoid staring only straight ahead. I am aware that there may be consideration of a mandate for all cars with this feature in the future, however, as of the time of purchase of this vehicle, this law did not exist and as such, we should have the right to choose to use this feature or not. We have contacted Hyundai Corporate and visited 3 dealers, none of whom would or could help except to tell us many others have voiced the same complaint. In our opinion this system as it currently operates is more of a hazard than a safety feature. We are seeking a software update or whatever means necessary to turn this feature off completely even when using cruise control.

NHTSA ODI #11645240

Official recalls

3

26V218000 · Seat Belts:front:anchorage

Apr 6, 2026

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Hyundai Ioniq 6, 2023-2026 Genesis G90, 2024-2026 Hyundai Santa Fe, and Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid vehicles. The driver and passenger seat belt anchors may detach.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A detached seat belt anchor will not adequately restrain the seat occupant, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and reinforce or replace the seat belt anchors, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning May 29, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460 and Genesis customer service at 844-340-9741. Hyundai's numbers for this recall are 298 and 032G. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov April 8, 2026.

25V808000 · Back Over Prevention:display Function

Nov 20, 2025

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Santa Fe and Santa Fe Hybrid vehicles. The rearview camera may not have been installed properly, which can damage the wiring harness and cause the rearview camera image not to display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A rearview image that does not display reduces the driver's view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the camera wiring harness, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning January 15, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 288. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on November 22, 2025.

25V809000 · Air Bags:side/window:curtain

Nov 20, 2025

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson, 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, and 2026 Genesis GV70 vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not have been installed properly, which can cause the air bags not to deploy as intended.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Side curtain air bags that do not deploy as intended increase the risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will reinstall the side curtain air bags, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning December 29, 2025. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's numbers for this recall are 289 and 029G. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on November 22, 2025.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.