Front Air Bag Sensor Control Problems of Hyundai Santa Fe - part 1

Passenger occupant detection system in 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe is malfunctioning/ broken. Only way to replace is by purchasing an entirely new seat, $4000, in order for the air bags to work properly. Vehicle has less than 50,000 miles on it. When I contacted Hyundai about the issue they were unhelpful and told me I should have purchased an extended warranty. Don't feel I should ever have to pay out of pocket for a faulty airbag sensor even if it is out of warranty. Not only that, but the fact that the entire seat has to be replaced because they don't sell the sensor any other way is robbery. Airbags should never have to be maintained or fixed on a vehicle when there is no fault by the owner. Especially only after 8 years and less than 50,000 miles.

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Please note that my air bag sensor light for the passenger front seat is on and I have had the light reset more than several times. When driving the light will go on again and again. I have the dealer look at this problem twice and they have reset the light and that did not work. On 4. 26. 2016 the dealer took the seat out and cleaned all of the connections and sealed with connecter sealant. The dealer stated on the bill that if the light comes on again then they will have to order a front seat assembly. The light came back on 4. 26. 2016 three hours later. I drove to work 4. 27. 2016 and the light remained on. My concern is why the consumer has to bear the cost of this safety issue and that my family is in danger because of the safety issue in regards to the air bag issue I am having. I do not think it is fair to the consumer that they have to pay out of pocket to fix something that cannot be fixed and there is not any sort of solution to fix this issue the first time when I tried to get it fixed. The dealer told me that the sensor works fine and they seemed to be confused on how to address this issue the first or second time. There are a lot of forums out on the website like edmunds. Com with Hyundai having the air bag sensor issue. Is this a ploy for Hyundai to force you to buy a new car that is 8 years old and only having 85,080 miles on the car. I am very concerned for the safety of my family and the time and money that I have put in to trying to make my 2007 Santa Fe safe. I hope that the government steps in to help product the consumers before passengers get severely injured or killed because of this safety issue. It appears that this issue from brand new cars and used cars.

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Tl- the contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact was included in NHTSA campaign id number: 11v472000 (air bags), received the recall repair and the failure recurred with the sensor illuminating for the air bag sensor. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who diagnosed that the clock spring assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 113,000. Dyd.

Recently I got b1513 code with my 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe. I found that many Santa Fe owners's have been suffering from exact same problem, bad seat belt buckle sensor(s) which seem causing air bag malfuction. It is highly likely that this is caused by Hyundai used a bad buckle system and should be recalled. I recently learned that NHTSA is investigating very similar problems (seat belt buckle) in 394000 sonata models.

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The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the occupant restraint system failed. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was told that the sensor of the seat belt that connected to the air bag had failed. The contact asked if the failure was the same as that listed in NHTSA campaign id number: 05v450000 (air bags). The contact was told that although the failures were the same, the vehicle was not included in the recall campaign. The failure mileage was unknown, but the current mileage was 95,000.

The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the air bag warning lamp illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the OCS sensor on the passenger's side was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 47,300 and the current mileage was 47,411.

2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. Consumer writes in regards of airbag recall. The consumer stated the air bag light illuminated. The dealer stated they rectified the recall issue, but they mentioned that although they reset the air bag light/sensor, the problem identified for the front sensor short, to the battery,was tracked to the under hood junction box, which was different than what the recall was for.

The contact owns a 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe. While driving approximately 35 mph, the contact fell asleep behind the wheel and crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. The contact sustained a neck injury that required medical attention. The vehicle was towed to a private mechanic where it was diagnosed that the air bag sensors needed to be connected. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

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There is a red light for the airbag. I called Hyundai dealer. They advised it is probably a sensor. I am concerned the airbag could deploy but they "do not think" that will happen. It may be expensive to fix depending if this is a sensor in the seat belt or steering wheel. They advised there is no current recall so I would have to pay for this to be fixed. I believe this is potentially dangerous. Other years of this model vehicle had same problem.

Work under the recall to repair faulty sensors that failed to detect small statured adults (95 lb wife). For failure to detect didn't resolve issue, and efforts to determine what the new trigger weight was got nowhere with either local or hq reps. So now driving a vehicle that mfr has acknowledged safety defects yet refuses to fix.

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2007 Hyundai Santa Fe air bag sensor light stays on all of the time.

The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the air bag light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that the air bag sensor box needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired when the complaint was filed. The contact called the manufacturer and was offered no assistance. The current mileage was 82,689. The failure mileage was approximately 82,670.

The contact owns a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated the passenger's side frontal air bag was not activated. The dealer advised the air bags were idle and would not activate without a passenger of at least 120 pounds occupying the seat. The manufacturer confirmed the dealer's statement and would not provide any further assistance. The failure and current mileages were 25,256.

I own a 2007 Santa Fe with 30,000 miles. When I am seated on the passenger side the air bag sensor will state that it is inoperative, not recognizing me as a passenger. I weigh 134 lbs which should be more than enough for the air bag sensor and I am really concerned since the front airbag will not work in the event of a crash. That could result in an injury to me or someone of similar size. I have talked with two dealerships about this issue. Both recognized the issue as a common problem. The first dealership told me that nothing could be done unless Hyundai issues a recall like they did for the sonatas (see campaign id 08v161000). The second dealer offered to replace the seat (which they did back in 2009), however that has did not solved the problem at all. Please consider researching this issue as Hyundai has recognized this problem with the sonatas already and it is the same issue in the Santa Fe models.

This problem is true of our 2007 and 2008 Santa Fe's and has existed since we purchased the cars. I have finally come to the conclusion that this is a safety issue for not only my wife but also many other people who are of slight build. It is a problem that is easily correctable by the manufacturer. I have created case#[xxx] with Hyundai America --they have responded that they will pass along the information to engineering --but they have noted that I will not be contacted by Hyundai regarding deposition of the issue. The problem -- my wife weighs about 95 lbs. She frequently does not activate the air bag system on the passenger side of the vehicle. She is essentially unprotected in case of an accident. She just doesn't weigh enough to reliably activate the air bag system. Hyundai spends quite a few pages in their manual to cover themselves legally. They comment that if all else fails just sit in the back seat. I would imagine few husbands and wives opt for this solution. Most consumers probably haven't read the manual, ignore the off sign or don't know what it means, or don't care and risk the safety of their passenger. This is a safety issue to the general public. The sensor in the passenger seat should activate the air bag system for say anyone over 66 lbs. I believe another manufacturer has recently done so. It is stupid that I have waited this long to complain -- but I kept thinking their would eventually be a recall and I normally just don't complain about things. Hyundai could make an alternate sensor available to those who needed it. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

My 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe seems to have a faulty passenger occupant sensor. My wife weighs about 105 lbs. And the sensor intermittently recognizes the passenger seat as being occupied. When I sit in the passenger seat the airbag sensor light will turn off. I weigh 198 lbs. My wife can usually position the seat to make the airbag sensor light turn off but then the sensor light will come back on again after approximately 30 seconds of driving. This is a safety hazard since the passenger seat occupancy sensor should register anything over 100 lbs. As an adult and therefore the sensor should remain off indicating that the air bag is activated. The Hyundai dealer checked out the sensor and stated that it was working normally.

The contact owns a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe. The air bag sensor does not detect an adult occupant in the front passenger seat. The vehicle was taken to the dealer multiple times, and a technician replaced and re-calibrated the seat module. None of the repairs have remedied the failure. The vehicle identification number was unavailable. The failure mileage was 100 and the current mileage was 9100. Updated 11/17/09 the consumer stated it would detect heavier adults. Updated 11/1/8/09.

My wife and I purchased a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe. The car is great running vehicle except for one safety problem: the front passenger airbag sensor does not detects my wife as an adult and toggles on and off at will. It is really frightening to be traveling down an highway or any road and realize that I have no airbag. My wife is 5' 3 " and weighs about 120 lbs and at times I needed to have her reposition seat to the total upright position to reset the airbag indication light. This does not give me a sense of security since I don't feel confident that it would deploy if needed . I called two Hyundai dealers and was advised that this a common problem and suggested for me to come in for a checkup. I at this time have not made an appointment with the dealer but will certainly make one ASAP.

2003 Hyundai Santa Fe with defective airbag control module. Consumer states that the mechanic hooked the vehicle up to the scanner that came across that problem. It will cost almost $400 dollars to have the airbag control module replaced. The dealer stated there was an internal fault code causing the air bag light to illuminate. The oil pan was leaking.

Failure of the front passenger's air bag to be activated. Hyundai 2008 Santa Fe with 150 miles I am a 145lb 5'8" male. 75% of the time when I am sitting in the front passenger's seat, the front airbag fails to "turn on". Even though I'm sitting upright with my feet placed on the ground, exactly as described in the owner's manual, the sensors located in the seat cushion fail to recognize me as an adult. I have visited the Hyundai dealer and their equipment says the sensors are working. I have numerous witnesses at the dealer who have observed the failure of the sensors to "turn on" the airbag when I'm sitting in the seat.

My 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe se seems to have a faulty passenger occupant sensor. I weigh about 130 lb. And it often does not recognize the passenger seat as being occupied when I sit in it and the passenger airbag will turn off. I can usually position the seat to make the airbag come back on but then the airbag will turn off again while driving (although it is not supposed to turn off and on after 30 seconds of driving). This is a hazard as the passenger seat occupancy sensor should register anything over 100 lb. As an adult.

The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. The air bag light was illuminated when the vehicle was purchased. The vehicle has been to the dealer four times for servicing, but they could not repair the failure. The current mileage was 6,169 and failure mileage was 15. Updated 4/11/08 updated 04/11/08.

I am a 120# 5'6" female 30 years old. When sitting in the passenger front seat of my Hyundai Santa Fe 2007 model, if I move to even shift weight right or left, the airbag light goes on and off. I do not move forward or back, my seat back is in the upright position. Hyundai says that this is due to federal guidelines and that there is nothing they can do. It is because I am between 110 and 120#. Is this true?.

Air bag light stays on. Scan it needs a new clockspring(air bag). Dealer won"t pay for it. 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe has 88,000km.

I bought a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe limited 3 weeks ago. We have noticed that repeatedly and unpredictably that the passenger side air bag sensor illuminates, indicating that the air bag has turned off, while my wife is riding in the front seat. She is average size for an adult female, and there is absolutely no reason that this should occur. I find this to be completely unacceptable and very, very dangerous. This vehicle needs to be recalled and this feature absolutely has to be corrected. 12,000 of the 2005 Santa Fe's were recalled and a class action suit was filed for an airbag sensor problem and the 2007 version of this vehicle should be recalled immediately. !! this is extremely dangerous!!! unnecessary death(s) are imminent if this is not corrected.

The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer because the air bag light was illuminated on the instrument panel. The dealer ordered a fuse box, but that did not correct the failure. They ordered the same part again, but the light remains illuminated. He filed a complaint with Hyundai consumer affairs. The air bag has not yet deployed unexpectedly. The powertrain was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 6,000. Updated 11/14/07.

Major safety issue. The passenger side air bag light comes on and goes off all while riding down the road with a passenger over 80 lbs riding in the seat. On an average trip of 30 mins the light will sometimes come on and stay on or will come and go indicating that the airbag will not deploy in the case of an accident. We also have a 2007 accent that is doing the same thing just not as often. The dealership has provided me with a loaner car for four weeks now because they have told me they don't know how to fix the problem. My loaner has the same problem as well. After researching the problem on the internet I have found that there are several cases of this happening out there and Hyundai doesn't seem to be fixing the problem. They told me that when that light is on that the air bag will not in fact deploy. This problem happens everytime we get in the car to go somewhere so there are too many failures to list. I feel it to be very unsafe to place anyone in the front seat due to the possibility of serious injuries or death in the case of an accident.

The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. He stated that the air bag warning indicator light illuminated three times. The dealer cleared the codes for the air bag and replaced the passenger side front seat twice. The air bag module was also replaced. The failure mileage was 6,000 and the current mileage was 7,750.

When I sit in the passenger seat, the airbag light indicates "off". I weigh 130 lbs and I have read the owners manual on this topic. It does not matter how I am positioned in the seat, this function does not work correctly. I have visited my service department and called Hyundai consumer affairs. They state that the unit is working as designed, but cannot describe how it is designed to work, ie, what weight limit sets the airbag to "on" position. As a normal sized adult, I feel that my airbag should be operational. I do not feel safe in this vehicle. Please advise hma to repair this problem.

Front passenger occupant classification sensor is not classifying my wife correctly and disabling the front passenger airbag when she sits in the seat. Contacted my local Hyundai dealer and they said this is the way it works and there is nothing they can do. (they did contact someone at Hyundai who told them this).

I own a 2007 Hyundai sonata. The problem is the passenger air bag does not always enable when my usual 115 pound passenger sits on the passenger seat. There is no problem when a heavier person sits on the seat, but when my usual passenger (who is my 75 year old wife) sits on the seat the air bag seat sensors do not always activate. The service department at a Hyundai dealership referred me to the manual which describes the proper seating position. When my passenger sits in exactly in that manner, about 60% of the time the seat sensor activates the passenger air bag. Apparently the sensors are set to trigger at or near 115 pounds. And what clothing she wears determines if she is protected by the air bag or not. I also own a 2005 Hyundai tucson, a compact SUV. There is absolutely no problem activating the passenger air bag when my passenger sits on that seat. I believe there is a safety problem because a mature adult does not activate a passenger air bag. I am sure others have the same problem. Hyundai should provide a method for changing the trigger weight of their sensors.

When my wife sits in the passenger seat of our 2007 Hyundai sonata, sometimes the light on the dash is lit, indicating the car does not sense a passenger is sitting there. In the event of a crash, the airbag would not deploy. The dealer replaced the jell pack under the seat but the problem is continuing. My wife is 5"7" and weighs 126 lbs. The dealer said to be careful about posture. We drove the car to pennsylvania and back without a problem.

Passenger airbag system doesn't always work as per dash light, dealer can' t find anything wrong with system suggest turning off engine and restarting to reset computer. I tried this while driving in highway traffic and lost power to my brakes and steering , my wife weighs 135 pounds this should work the sensors.

Passenger air bag system doesn't work as per dash light. Dealer states the sensor indicates the system is working properly.

My 2002 v6 4wheel dr Hyundai Santa Fe while driving on the freeway at 65- 70 mph dropped a drive line, igniting flames to the rear of the car. Lithia of fresno claims it was due to low fluids in the transfer case, thus it overheated and the line snapped off. I had the vehicle serviced 2 weeks prior, the fluids were fine, the transfer case was okay. There was a vague hum in the drive of the car after returning from the mountains the week prior to the incident. Other 2nd opinions believe the auto switch in the Smart system failed and left it stuck in 4wheel dr hence overheating the transfer case. It should be covered under waranty for repairs (120,000 on power train/engine) they denied the waranty coverage, so it's not repaired. Estimate is over $6,000. 00. There should be an indicator light in the car as to what drive it's in, and engineering manufacturer defect and hazzard. Investigate please.

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