67 problems related to engine and engine cooling have been reported for the 2021 Hyundai Kona. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2021 Hyundai Kona based on all problems reported for the 2021 Kona.
The vehicle has 82. 000 miles on it, and the engine started to rattle as I entered the street to my house, and the motor quit running. I had the vehicle hauled to a repair garage for analysis, and they said the piston rings failed. The vehicle is in perfect shape except for the broken engine.
Was driving when the car seemed to lose power and would not accelerate and started shaking. Check engine light came on and got it read, the code indicated a misfire and other errors. There was no one local to fix it as we were out of town. So we replaced the plugs that were indicated and noticed how badly damaged they were. Vehicle started to drive better before stalling out again and replacing the rest of the plugs. Was able to get it home and seemed to be driving normally but then we noticed it has an oil leak now. We have to keep a religious check on the oil because of the amount leaking and the fact the car isn't giving us a low oil warning. We took it to the dealership and they said we needed a new engine and it was just outside the power train warranty. All of this occurred our 78,000-80,000 mile mark. The dealer would not even change the oil before of how bad the leak was. This car was for our teenage daughter and its not safe for anyone to drive. I believe the dealership knew this car had issues, we bought it pre-owned and have only had it 6 months.
The cars engine vibrates when accelerating and hesitates. It is always dangerous to stall after hitting the gas. This issue causes many near accidents. It began to vibrate at less than 70k. It has 90k now. These engines have had issues and mine is no exception. They should recall this engine as it's dangerous. Top of the line and poop.
Known problem of oil consumption . 1 week used 3 quarts . Wife driving down road oil light. Engine light seconds later engine seized at 55mph. Lucky to drift off road.
-the engine and related crankshaft components failed. The vehicle experienced complete engine shutdown while driving and later multiple no-start conditions. The vehicle has been inspected and repaired multiple times by an authorized Hyundai dealership and remains available for inspection upon request. -the engine shut down unexpectedly while driving at highway speed, resulting in loss of power and the need to coast and pull over. This created a risk of rear-end collision and loss of control in traffic. Subsequent failures left the vehicle unable to start, creating risk of stranding in unsafe locations. -yes. The authorized Hyundai dealership confirmed engine-related and crankshaft-related issues and performed repairs on multiple occasions. Despite these repairs, the problem has recurred. -the vehicle has been inspected and repaired multiple times by an authorized Hyundai dealership. -yes. The check engine light illuminated prior to multiple failures. In at least one instance, the dealership stated the light was a history code and no active issue was found. Within days, the vehicle experienced another complete failure and became inoperable.
Over the last 2 1/2 months the car has shut off approximately 5 times while driving, without warning. Most instances have been while pulling into a parking lot, but one time (so far) it shut off while trying to back into my driveway. I'm fearful it will happen while on the freeway. I took it to the dealer, but there wasn't a fault code so they refused to look at it unless I left the car with them to drive, and wanted to charge me $45/day for a rental so I could get back & forth to work until it happened again while they were driving it.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate from a stop and while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled unexpectedly. The vehicle was coasted to the side of the road, and the vehicle was turned off and restarted, and continued driving. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to auto zone, where it was determined that the spark plugs had failed and needed to be replaced. The spark plugs were replaced; however, the check engine warning light remained illuminated, and the vehicle stalled. The failure had occurred three times; however, the last time, the vehicle failed to restart, and there was smoke coming from underneath the hood. The vehicle was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the turbocharger and the piston rings had failed, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was towed back to the residence. The contact became aware of NHTSA campaign number: 21v301000 (engine); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 121,334.
The piston went through the top of my engine with my entire family in the car. We managed to get to a mechanic. And bring it to the dealership. We are very lucky to be alive.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while coming to a stop, the vehicle stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000. The VIN was not available.
About a month after purchasing my car it shut down on the highway while driving. It completely lost power so I could not accelerate or even press the brake. Only the emergency brake stopped me from going into other cars. I started the car up again and then it worked fine until about another month later it happened again. I was on an exit ramp on the highway and it lost power. Cars had to quickly go around me as I had no control of my vehicle. Neither brakes or gas pedal worked at the time and my check engine light stayed on. I then took my car to Hyundai service where they told me my car went through 2 quarts of oil in one month. They want me to drive this car another 1,000 miles knowing it’s dangerous, unsafe, a risk to me and other drivers and a fire hazard to have an engine consuming this much oil. I fear to drive this unpredictable car any more. The manager of Hyundai knows it’s unfair but must follow protocol. I just don’t understand how they can tell someone to drive a stalling car waiting for an accident to happen.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds in stop-and-go traffic, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to restart the vehicle but almost immediately lost motive power. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the piston oil rings, resulting in damage to the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 21v301000 (engine); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 96,000.
The piston oil ring recall. I have had a mechanic determine I am having the exact same problem as the recalls but my VIN is not covered. Please update the recall so my repairs can be covered.
I have experienced the same issues with a known recall for my year, make and model. I am not sure why my VIN is not showing. Have records from a mechanic that there was a fire hazard. I have experienced stalling on several occasions. Could I have help getting my VIN recognized so Hyundai will help me?.
Excessive oil consumption, over 3 quarts in just 4 months, caused the engine's timing chain to fail due to low oil levels, ultimately leading to a rod punching through the engine. There is a recall for this vehicle but not mine.
Car engine is loosing/burning oil at a high rate. This could be best described as an oil ring problem that is included in other Kona models but not my specific VIN series.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while driving at a slow speed or making a turn, the vehicle stalled. In addition, there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the engine. There was an unknown code displayed on the instrument panel. Most recently, the engine started consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact was adding oil every other week to the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, no cause for the failure was found. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while the accelerator was depressed, the engine made a rough revving sound. The contact stated that at the beginning, the vehicle stalled after the contact drove over a speed bump or drove around a roundabout. The contact moved the gear shift lever to neutral(n) and restarted the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not inspected or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
Fill coolant warning came on, we checked the coolant and the coolant level was good. I spoke to a Hyundai service center and the rep said that sometimes this happens with Hyundais and it may go off. Indeed it did but then fill coolant warning came back and the coolant level was still good. After several weeks of the fill coolant warning being on more often than not, the car started one morning but couldn’t be driven as the handbrake was stuck on, the fill coolant warning was on and the tire pressure warning was on, (even though the tire pressure on all tires was ok) I guess this was the evs way of saying “do not drive me”. We got the car to the dealership, they performed a scan and found no codes. They preformed a total coolant flush as per service campaign t9e. This service was performed on 21 April, 2025 and thus far the fill coolant light has stated off. We bought this car used just 2 months prior and found through previous maintenance history that this ev had this service campaign t9e done in January 2024. Our concern with this issue is two fold, 1) my wife could have been anywhere when the car went into: don’t drive me mode. 2) is this going to be an annual event, which will cost several hundred dollars to address each time when this may no longer be covered by warranty.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated while driving 70 mph, the vehicle started shaking abnormally and failed to idle properly. The vehicle lost power with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was then steered to the side of the road where the vehicle then stalled. The vehicle was restarted after several attempts, and the oil warning light illuminated. The vehicle then stalled again. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that there was no oil in the engine. The contact stated that an oil change was performed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 87,845.
The engine has been a problem since I got the car. It used to just stop in the middle of traffic and just not drive I would have to completely turn the car off and back on in the middle of the highway. I went to Hyundai in texas to get it fixed and they said they did so I drove it to where I live now in north carolina it broke down again the shaft gear was broken I had to drive it back to texas for them to fix it the whole way there I was unable to turn the car off while getting gas with the chance of it not turing back on. Got it to texas and to the dealer they said it was their problem they would fix I got the car back and seemingly thought everything was ok. This past week I was driving to work and all of the sudden on the middle of the right lane of the highway my car just started to slow down and shake a little I had gotten it to the side to pull over and I thought if I turned it off it would turn back on. It turns on but does not drive. I am a [xxx] living [xxx] in north carolina with a car that has so many problems for it being a 2021 car. With no recall in sight I have seen this specific car on the side of the road more times than I have seen any other car. If someone does not see this as a problem and thinks it shouldn't be recalled you are the issue I need a working car to get to work so I can pay my bills without a car I have no way to make my money this car has been a problem since the get go. Im not asking for a new car I'm asking for this one to be fixed and stay fixed for it to have so many issues is insane and just not safe with the world we live in if my car doesn't start for some reason at any point and something is going wrong its dangerous. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate from a stop, the vehicle lost automotive. The contact restarted the vehicle immediately and was able to continue driving. The contact also became aware that the oil level was extremely low. The contact stated that after adding oil, 24 hours later the engine started making a knocking sound, and the oil level was low again. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of oil. The independent mechanic suggested that the vehicle be taken a Hyundai dealer for further diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign number: 21v301000 (engine); as a possible cause for the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,000.
2021 Hyundai Kona check engine light came on while driving, within 10 minutes oil light and battery light came on and at the same time these lights came on the car stopped working. The engine stalled, leaving the car stuck in the middle of the road. The car turned off, and would not turn back on properly. The car had to be towed to a mechanic where it was discovered that the engine had no oil in it and no longer starts or runs. The car was not yet due for an oil change, there were no oil leaks found, and it seems like the engine burned the oil faster than it should have. The car was functioning properly up until the day of the event, with no issues or warning signs present. There is a recall associated with this model and year relating to engine damage, with the campaign number 21v301000, but there is no recall for this car's VIN. The car stopped driving in the middle of the road which could have easily caused a crash and now the engine needs to be completely replaced.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that upon taking the vehicle in for service she was made aware that the engine's oil was abnormally low though the oil had recently been changed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 21v301000 (engine), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 94,000.
I am reporting a persistent and unresolved excessive oil consumption issue that I began to notice at approximately 61,000 miles. I follow all routine maintenance and oil change schedules, but my car has returned to the dealership I purchased from (only owner), three times for this specific problem. - first visit (64,074 miles): I shared my observations of excessive oil consumption to the dealership, they stated there was an oil leak at the timing cover and oil pan. They repaired the leaks, however this did not resolve the consumption issue. - second visit (65,273 miles) - the oil change done by mobil at 75,238 miles, before I brought my car in for the third time to Hyundai for the consumption issue, documented that my oil level was at the 'low'(l) level, this is the case each time I get an oil change around 3,000 miles - the third time bringing my car to Hyundai my mileage was at 78,913, less than 3,000 miles since my last oil change. Before making the appointment my cars engine sounded like it was running rough so we took a look at the oil level, which was at l - the first two times I did the 1000 mile oil test, Hyundai reported that my oil level remained above full when I returned for a check, shortly after, within an additional 2000 miles, my dipstick would show l. The third reading is tbd.
My car consumes a lot of oil. This is a very similar problem as the wrong tempered piston rings. All this car has used is 5w 20 full synthetic oil. , which gets changed every 5000 miles. I would burn around 1 quart every 1000 miles. Dealer solution is to put in 5w 30 full synthetic oil. Got a little better but within a few months, back to burning1 quart every 1000 miles. Dealer is now saying Hyundai won’t fix the issue because car now has 116000 miles on it. This has been a problem for a while.
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle started accelerating slowly. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. There was an abnormal dinging sound coming from the vehicle. There was no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the battery needed to be replaced, and the vehicle was experiencing excessive oil consumption. The mechanic recommended additional testing. The contact declined the additional diagnostic test. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.
Stalled out.
While driving on the interstate highway the engine stopped. The circumstances surrounding the failure matched those for Kona vins that were recalled.
I had a 2021 Hyundai Kona limited. On Friday 09/13/2024 my engine caught fire and my car was a total loss. Minutes before the fire I noticed some smoke, all of my dash lights came on and the car shut down. Seconds after stopping the vehicle and getting out the whole engine went up in flames. There are recalls active for my make model and year, nothing for my specific VIN number but will be reaching out to Hyundai corporate to see if they want to come look at the car, in case it needs to be added to the recall list.
Unknown the vehicle stopped running and won’t start back up.
Told previous recall on engine was not needed on this vehicle while vehicle has same stalling issue that caused previous recall on engine. On July 5 2024 engine locked up nearly creating a wreck. Previous recall clearly is wider spread than Hyundai is admitting. Now my car that is 8000 miles out of warranty needs an engine they claimed was not affected by previous recall but has same issue and originally fell under previous recall.
My 2021 Hyundai Kona awd will not operate. It only has 18,000 miles on it and I bought it new. I had the oil changed at 7,000 miles. The dealership made me wait a month to take a look at it, and I believe that they know there is an issue with this model so they are trying to stall. I plan to request a buyback. The last time I tried to drive it, it died every time the car came to a brake. I had to sit with my emergency lights flashing for a few minutes to get it to start again, only to have it die at the next light. This is very dangerous.
My vehicle loses power while driving.
The contact stated that she was an insurance company claim adjuster who was calling on behalf of an insured consumer, who owned a 2021 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and unoccupied, the vehicle caught on fire. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated prior to the incident. The fire department extinguished the fire and filed a report. The contact stated that the insurance company sent an inspector, who determined that the fire originated in the engine compartment. The contact stated that the entire vehicle burned and only the frame remained. There was no injury sustained. There was no police report filed. The vehicle was towed to a salvage yard, where it was totaled. The contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 21v301000 (engine); however, the VIN was not included. The contact did not know whether the dealer and the manufacturer were contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 23,000.
My vehicle was purchased in late June 2023 with remainder of Hyundai factory warranty promised. A few months ago I started hearing a ticking noise from the motor and on 3 different occasions almost stalled while stopped at a traffic light. I took it to cma's Hyundai of lynchburg and upon inspection was told I need a new motor due to finding possible aluminum on the piston head of cylinder 4. There was a previous recall on 2021 Hyundai Kona motors due to faulty piston rings. I am wondering if the defect in my motor may be related. I was told I could not leave/drive my vehicle for my own safety. So my vehicle has been at the dealership since mid-December, 2023. They state the warranty is void.
I bought this car for my daughter we bought used low miles in may 2023. She got her first oil change in August 2023, in November on her way back to college her car seized up and stop working on the highway. Dealership said missing oil plug. Had to replace with new engine. Insurance company drops us, and new insurance is double. Second oil change July 2024. I noticed oil spots on my new driveway, she takes to dealer, again oil plug gone and hole in oil pan. This is crazy!! if I wouldn't have seen the oil spots on driveway she would have blown up anothe engine. She parks on gravel lot, can't see oil drips. Internet full of these stories. I can't afford this car. Thousands of dollars in increased insurance, driveway repair, car repair, not to mentoin the anxiety. This car has doubled insurance rates, ruined two paver driveways, and over $1000 each time in repairs. This needs to be fixed. This is dangerous. I spoke to dealership and there only advice was to bring to dealership for oil changes. This company needs to recall this defect with the oil plug/pan.
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