Frame And Members problems of the 2003 Hyundai Elantra

As I was driving my 2003 Hyundai Elantra out of work, the structural metal component that connects to the front, passenger side tire (or referred to as lower arm or a-frame) snapped and the vehicle lost control and stopped moving immediately. The tire was essentially detached from the vehicle and damage to the passenger side door, front bumper and wheel cover. Thank goodness I was not on a main road yet in rush hour traffic driving 40-50 mph or I am certain there would have been an accident when I would have lost control of the vehicle due to this latent structural defect. I had the truck towed to the nearest Hyundai dealer to be examined and took photos of the condition of the rusted metal control arm that had snapped. I did some research on recalls with this vehicle and there was a 4/2009 recall in certain states with heavy winters and use of salt to clear roads, etc. My state (nebraska) was not listed as an affected stated but all of the surrounding states (I. E. Iowa, minnesota, missouri, illinois, indiana, colorado, wisconsin) were. Nebraska has just as much snow or more snow than iowa in my opinion. The vehicle was originally purchased in omaha, ne which is right on the border of iowa. I believe this will also be a problem in nebraska and surrounding states possibly. If this control arm snaps while someone is driving on the interstate or other roads at higher speeds, someone will be seriously injured. I am even more upset by the fact that my one year old son very well could have been in the vehicle with me when this happened. Not good. Thankfully, no one was injured and the only damage was to the vehicle itself. The dealer called today and they explained we are not a part of the recall but the evidence is pretty obvious that this is the same identical problem and they are trying to use arbitrary state boundaries to get out of their responsibility. We also carry a full warranty until 2013 on the vehicle so we will see what happens.

The contact owns a 2003 Hyundai Elantra. When attempting to stop for a stop light the axle, control arm, and ball joint fractured and the tire separated. The vehicle was towed to a local repair facility and the vehicle was repaired. The mechanic stated that sub-frame corrosion caused the failure. The dealer was contacted and they asked for all invoices of the repair. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. The technician confirmed that the sub-frame had corroded. He was advised that the vehicle was safe to drive. The parts were ordered for the repair. The failure and current mileages were 81000.

2003 Hyundai Elantra. Brought in to tire dealer to have snow tires removed, was shown that both front control arms and front frame were dangerously rotted. Took vehicle to Hyundai. They say it is partially covered under warranty. Will incur $250 out of pocket costs. Car has 65,000 miles on it.

Front passenger side control arm rusted through on 3-18-09. No warning. Going 30 mph in very light traffic. Felt like we fell into a big pothole and car would not move. Happened very close to police station so they helped but no report made. Was late so car towed to house then to dealership in morning. No injuries (2 adults and 2 small children in vehicle). Other damage- front axle broke, damage to wheel well, front bumper, wiper fluid reservoir and other incidental parts. All fixed by Hyundai including body damage and paint under extended warranty. Dealership claims to have examined drivers side arm and stated it was "fine". We do not trust this and are having it looked at by another mechanic.

I own a 2003 Hyundai Elantra gt that currently has about 58000 miles on it. While driving home, when I was approx 2 miles away I noticed that the car started to pull to one side a bit. Thinking it was a flat, I drove slow for the remaining mile or so and when I was about 200 yards from my destination, the front end dropped and the car stopped. Upon visual inspection, it looks like the frame where the passenger front tire meets the steering rod completely rotted through and broke. After looking on the web, it seems very similar to investigation pe09011.