Front Suspension Control Arm problems of the 2001 Hyundai Elantra - part 2

On 2 different occasions there has been catastrophic failure of front suspension (lower control arm) for my 2001 Hyundai Elantra, and loss of control of vehicle. One incident in which the drivers side control arm had rusted from the inside out causing it to snap, happening about 7 months prior to this incident happening last night. The car then spun in the road causing endangering to traffic and a near head on accident. This new incident, (same problem) the control arm snapped on the passenger side of the vehicle causing the vehicle to spin out of the road. While operating the vehicle, I experienced sudden loss of control of vehicle without warning and nearly experienced a roll over while driving. From research, I have found there are numerous people with the same problem with Hyundai and this seems to be a defect. I also noticed that the NHTSA has an ongoing investigation on the Hyundai sonata for the same exact problem, lower control arm suspension failure with rust corrosion. I am afraid this is an ongoing problem with Hyundai and is going to cause someone to get severely injured or killed. As far as I'm concerned this is a design flaw and should be corrected with a recall of both lower control arms.

While pulling away from a stop light, the car lost steering control and went into on coming traffic. I was able to get the car off of the road and luckily avoided a head on collision. I had the car looked at by a mechanic, and he said the passenger side lower control arm had rusted away. He said he had never seen anything like it. This is a very dangerous part to have a failure on, you lose complete control of the car.

During routine oil change my mechanic noticed that the driver side lower control arm is rusted so severely that failure is immanent. I brought the vehicle to my dealership and was told this is normal for a 7 year old car with 66k miles on it and they would repair at the normal charge. From my research this is a severe safety issue that should be handled by the dealership at no cost and is not "normal". Luckily it was caught before the part failed on my commute down interstate 495 twice a day. I will be following up with Hyundai corporate to get this issue fixed - they should stand behind their product.

Left front, lower control arm failure, while operating vehicle at less than five miles an hour, while making left turn across roadway, to enter driveway. At edge of roadway, just before reaching driveway, experience fall of front portion of vehicle to road and loss of control. Inspection reveals left lower control arm separated into two pieces. One piece remains attached to ball joint, one piece remains attached to car. Further inspection reveals lower control arm rusted through, from inside out. Only a minute before, vehicle was operated on limited access highway, at highway speed. Note: vehicle garaged, within attached garage, with concrete floor. Vehicle serviced regularly.

2001 Hyundai Elantra, 72k miles, driver's side control arm fractured while going 5 mph. It had rusted paper thin and gave no warning. Axle, fender and front bumper are destroyed too. Loren Hyundai of glenview, IL acted stupid about it, like they had no idea what I was talking about and no concept of the potential liability involved in such a manufacturing defect. I will talk to corporate on Monday. I am reporting this incident out of concern for public safety. This must be addressed by a recall, in my opinion.

Traveling less than 25 mph I applied brakes to avoid a pedestrian running across traffic. After stopping vehicle was difficult to steer and made loud grinding noise. I was able to get out of the traffic flow. Vehicle was towed to service station. Repair was made to the left front control arm that rusted through and snapped . Service mechanic stated that it was fortunate that the failure had happened a slower speed and that a failure at highway speeds would have possibly resulted in loss of control of the vehicle and possible injuries. The part was returned to me.

The contact owns a 2001 Hyundai Elantra. While driving approximately 15 mph on normal road conditions, the contact heard a noise coming from the front end of the vehicle. Suddenly, there was a loss of steering control and extreme difficulty in operating the vehicle. The driver pulled over and called roadside assistance. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic for inspection and the technician stated that the failure was related to the driver's side lower control arm. The vehicle was repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 60,000 and current mileage was 83,000.

The contact owns a 2001 Hyundai Elantra. While driving approximately 15 mph on normal road conditions, the contact heard a loud noise coming from the front end of the vehicle when a turn was made. The steering wheel became difficult to turn and then completely failed. The driver safely pulled over to the side of the road and the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The technician stated that the failure was related to the driver's side lower control arm. The vehicle was repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 60,000 and current mileage was 83,000.

The contact owns a 2001 Hyundai Elantra. While driving approximately 10 mph and proceeding to stop sign, the front left control arm broke. On a separate occasion, the right front control arm broke as well. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the failure was caused by rust. The vehicle was repaired by an authorized dealer. The current mileage was approximately 75,000. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. Updated 06/29/10 the consumer stated after the second control arm failed, the mechanic informed her a recall had been issued for the very same problem. The consumer stated she as never notified of a recall. It wasn't until March 2010, that the consumer received a recall. Updated 07/01/10.

2001 Hyundai Elantra. Consumer states problem with suspension: front control arm the consumer stated she was unable to drive the vehicle up the street. The consumer had to call a tow truck. The tow driver informed the consumer the front control arm had failed. He also told the consumer a recall had been issued, however the consumer stated he never received a recall notice. The consumer stated after the vehicle was repaired, the recall notice arrived in the mail two weeks later.