2013 Hyundai Veloster

THE TRUNK LATCH HAD BEEN FAILING INTERMITTENTLY. I STOPPED AT A DEALERSHIP WHO OPENED THE DRIVER'S DOOR, AND BEGAN LOCKING AND UNLOCKING THE ELECTRIC DOOR LOCKS. THIS SOLVED THE PROBLEM AT THE TIME. I ASKED HOW PLAYING WITH THE LOCKS WOULD FIX THE TRUNK ISSUE. THE QUESTION WAS NOT ANSWERED. THIS SOLVED THE PROBLEM FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS. HOWEVER, THE TRUNK LATCH FINALLY FAILED PERMANENTLY. I COULD NOT OPEN THE TRUNK VIA THE EMERGENCY LATCH FROM THE IN SIDE. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALERSHIP THAT THE ISSUE WAS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE. HENCE, THE DOOR LOCK REMIDEY. MULTIPLE VELOSTER OWNERS HAVE REPORTED THE SAME WITH SOME YEARS BEING RECALLED. THE 2013 HAS NOT BEEN RECALLED AND THE DEALERSHIP QUOTED 400.00 TO REPAIR THIS DEFECT. I BOUGHT THE CAR NEW AND IT NOW HAS 50,000 MILES. I HAVE HAD MULTIPLE SAFETY ISSUES WITH THIS VEHICLE THAT HAVE BEEN RESOLVED BUT FYI-ISSUE WITH ABS KICKING IN DURING EVERY SINGLE BRAKE, EVEN IF AT A RED LIGHT. I BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP MULTIPLE TIMES FOR THIS ISSUE AND WAS TOLD IT WAS NORMAL. I WENT TO ANOTHER DEALERSHIP AND TEST-DROVE ANOTHER 2013 HYUNDAI VELOSTER. THE ABS ONLY KICKED IN WHEN APPROPRIATE NOT WITH EVERY SINGLE BREAK. WHILE PURCHASING TIRES AFTER A 3RD BLOWOUT ( 30, 000 MILES) THE TIRE COMPANY NOTICED SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE SENSORS TO THE ABS. THIS WAS RESOLVED BY THE TIRE COMPANY. IT'S CONCERNING THAT HUYNDAI WOULD NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THE ABS ISSUE. IN FACT, THEY DON'T ACKNOWLEDGE ANYTHING-- MY GPS NEVER WORKED CORRECTLY WHICH WAS REPORTED TO HYUNDAI AT LEAST 10 TIMES OVER A THREE-YEAR PERIOD. I FINALLY MADE A VIDEO OF THE MALFUNCTION- AS SOON AS I SUBMITTED THE VIDEO THE GPS WAS REPLACED IMMEDIATELY. PROBLEM BEING THE NEW GPS WAS THE SAME MODEL AS THE FIRST AND DOES NOT WORK EITHER. I NOW HAVE A VEHICLE WITHOUT A GPS AND WITHOUT A TRUNK THAT OPENS.

WITH NO WARNING, AT LOW SPEED, HAVING TRAVELLED ONLY A QUARTER OF A MILE FROMTHE PREVIOUS LOCATION WHERE IT HAD BEEN PARKED FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS, THE ENGINE LOCKED UP IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY HIGHWAY, THROWING A ROD AND MULTIPLE CHUNKS OF METAL, AND POURING OIL ONTO THE HIGHWAY. THIS VEHICLE HAD BEEN WELL-MAINTAINED, AND HAD LOW MILEAGE FOR ITS AGE. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED AFTER THE MOTOR REALLY HAD A CHANCE TO HEAT UP, THERE COULD HAVE ALSO BEEN A FIRE. DEBRIS FROM ALL OF THE PARTS FLYING OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THE CAR COULD HAVE ALSO CAUSED INJURY.

MY WIFE HAS A 2013 HYUNDAI VELOSTER TURBO AND THE HVAC SYSTEM HAS STOPPED FUNCTIONING. AFTER INVESTIGATING THE MATTER I DISCOVERED A MANUFACTURER DEFECT WITH THE VEHICLE. THE POWER WIRE LEADING TO THE CLIMATE CONTROL MODULE OVERHEATED AND MELTED THE PLASTIC CONNECTOR AND DESTROYED THE CLIMATE CONTROL MODULE. THIS COULD HAVE STARTED A FIRE. I CONTACTED HYUNDAI CONSUMER AFFAIRS AND HYUNDAI CUSTOMER CARE IMMEDIATELY TO NOTIFY THEM OF THE ISSUE AND SO THAT THEY WOULD COVER THE REPAIR COSTS FULLY. I ALSO INFORMED THEM OF TWO OTHER ISSUES, ONE, THE STEERING WHEEL CONTROLS ARE MALFUNCTIONING AND TWO, ONE OF THE LED LIGHTS IN THE PASSENGER TAIL LIGHT IS OUT. I RECEIVED A CASE NUMBER FROM THEM, #15272744. I MADE AN APPOINTMENT AT LANCASTER HYUNDAI LOCATED ON MAIN STREET IN EAST PETERSBURG PA AND DROPPED THE CAR OFF. I ALSO INFORMED THEM OF ALL THE ISSUES AND MY FINDINGS (THIS WAS YESTERDAY 1/18/19). THIS MORNING (1/19/19) I RECEIVED A CALL BACK FROM SERVICE ADVISOR DAVID COREY WHO LEFT ME A VOICEMAIL STATING THAT HYUNDAI HAS DECLINED TO COVER THE REPAIRS AND TELLING ME TO COME PICK UP THE CAR. SINCE THEN I HAVE CONTACTED HYUNDAI CONSUMER AFFAIRS AND HYUNDAI CUSTOMER CARE TO NO AVAIL. THIS ISSUE WITH THE CLIMATE CONTROL MODULE IS WELL DOCUMENTED ONLINE AND THERE HAS EVEN BEEN A RECALL FOR IT ISSUED BY HYUNDAI BUT FOR SOME REASON MY WIFE'S VEHICLE IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. I HAVE UPLOADED PHOTOS OF THE DAMAGED CONNECTOR AND WIRING HARNESS AS WELL AS A PHOTO FROM ANOTHER HYUNDAI VELOSTER OWNER WHICH SHOWS THE RECALL FOR THE CLIMATE CONTROL MODULE. I AM THANKFUL TO GOD THAT THE VEHICLE DID NOT CATCH FIRE SINCE MY WIFE AND TWO YEAR OLD SON TRAVEL IN IT EVERY DAY. I JUST WANT HYUNDAI TO DO THE RIGHT THING AND COVER THE COSTS TO REPAIR THIS FACTORY DEFECT.

AS I WAS DRIVING MY 2013 HYUNDAI VELOSTER TURBO HOME FROM WORK ON 10/16/18, I PULLED ONTO THE FREEWAY ON RAMP AND BEGAN ACCELERATING. I FELT A LARGE SHUDDER/VIBRATION, HEARD A LOUD METALLIC BANG, AND SAW SMOKE BEGIN POURING OUT FROM UNDER THE HOOD AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OVER, SHUT THE ENGINE OFF, GOT OUT OF THE VEHICLE, AND POPPED THE HOOD. SMOKE BEGAN POURING OUT FROM THE ENGINE BAY. I OBSERVED THAT A MIXTURE OF OIL AND ANTIFREEZE HAD SPRAYED ON MANY OF THE ENGINE COMPONENTS AND WAS STREAMING OFF THE ENGINE ONTO THE PAVEMENT. I LOOKED UNDER AND BEHIND THE CAR AND FOUND INTERNAL ENGINE COMPONENTS SUCH AS PIECES OF THE ENGINE BLOCK, PISTON, WRIST PIN, ETC. I ALSO WAS ABLE TO LOOK UNDER THE CAR AND NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A LARGE HOLE IN THE ENGINE BLOCK WHERE AN INTERNAL COMPONENTS HAD SHOT OUT OF THE ENGINE AND THE OIL FILTER HOUSING WAS SNAPPED OFF OF THE ENGINE BLOCK AND DANGLING BY THE OIL LINE. AFTER RESEARCHING THE ISSUE ON THE INTERNET FORUMS, I FOUND THAT CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE WAS VERY COMMON FOR 2013 HYUNDAI VELOSTER TURBO CARS. THE FAILURES OFTEN INVOLVED INTERNAL ENGINE PIECES BLOWING OUT OF THE ENGINE, DESTROYING THE ENGINE, AND SPRAYING THE ENGINE AND GROUND DOWN WITH OIL AND ANTIFREEZE. I FOUND REPORTS OF APPROXIMATELY 20+ OF THESE ENGINE FAILURES ON THIS PARTICULAR FORUM (VELOSTERTURBO.ORG), BUT TO MY KNOWLEDGE THERE HAS NOT BEEN A RECALL BY HYUNDAI FOR THIS ISSUE. I RECOMMEND THAT THE NHTSA OPEN UP AN INVESTIGATION INTO THIS ISSUE AS THIS COMMON CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE CAN HAVE SEVERE SAFETY CONSEQUENCES DUE TO INTERNAL ENGINE COMPONENTS BEING EJECTED FROM THE ENGINE AT HIGH SPEED, ENGINES CATASTROPHICALLY FAILING AND CAUSING THE ENGINE TO LOSE POWER IMMEDIATELY WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN, AND THE RISK OF FIRE DUE TO HOT COMPONENTS BEING DOUSED IN OIL.