Frame And Members problems of the 2000 Hyundai Sonata - part 1

2000 Hyundai Sonata, VIN: [xxx]mfg date: 06/18/1999 sub-frame failure. Condition found by tire retailer during installation and alignment. Lower control arm separated from sub-frame. Fortunately, condition found before catastrophic failure occurred while driving. Less than 1 week prior to discovery, experienced drive axle failure. Right drive axle replaced but technician failed to notice or make me aware for separation of sub-frame. This was the apparent cause of the drive axle failure. The sub-frame separation allowed the drive axle to shift and slip from transmission case. Lower connection for control arm separated from sub frame. The condition that occurred is identical to recall on 2001-2004 Hyundai Sonata models and the recall issued for 1999 and 2000 models in the "salt belt" states. We have experienced heavy winter weather here in va over the past 10 years. Large amounts of salt have been used on our roads. The richmond area has exceeded salt use several times since I have owned this vehicle! but salt isn't a requirement for a condition such as this. The build up of water alone will create this condition! rust occurs any time that water with no drainage combines with steel/iron. My vehicle is currently in dealer service having the sub-frame replaced! had I been notified of this potential condition, I would have taken steps to resolve it before it threatened personal injury to me. I can only thank the staff at merchant's tire for finding it before it failed on the road! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving 5 mph and the front passenger side control arm broke off the sub frame due to corrosion on the sub frame, causing the vehicle to come to a complete stop. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer to have the sub frame repaired under the suspension recall (09v124000). Previously the contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic to have the sub frame inspected, at the time the mechanic did not find any rust or corrosion on the frame. The contact stated the manufacturer never informed her about the suspension recall. The failure mileage was 140,000.

I am writing in regard to my 2000 Hyundai Sonata and its sub frame corrosion and the frustration I am feeling from this situation. I was driving to work on Friday August 27th around 520 a. M. And had been on the I-10 freeway about 5 miles going around 65 miles an hour, the road soon has a speed limit of 75 mph its a 25 mile stretch of desert and very heavily traveled by 18 wheelers making the haul to California (los angeles). Anyway, I had just passed a semi and was about to pass another (with one behind me) when I felt something like metal on pavement and thought something was terribly wrong with my front right tire. . . I did all I could to get off the freeway (on the left hand side) the semi behind me almost rear ended me along with several other vehicles on their way to work all I heard was horns, tires squealing, and saw people flipping me off all while I was trying to get off the freeway. I was somehow able to get the car off the road (barely over the yellow line). I tried to look at the front right side but the car was so close to the freeway I would have gotten hit. I didn't know whether to stay in the car or stand outside (if the car would have been hit either way would have been deadly). A police man came by about 10 minutes later and asked if I was okay and had me try to start the car the car would not move as if the gears were gone he used his patrol car to move the car from the roadway and down into the desert median. It was at this point that we took a look and could see that the right front tire was facing out approximately 45 degrees with wheel housing and fender damage. I called a friend, and a tow truck and went to work. The car was taken to a mechanics house and I was told after his inspection that the lower control arm completely separated/detached from the sub frame, with chunks of the frame still attached to the control arm hardware (noticeable severe rust/corrosion) when the lower control arm detached from the sub frame.

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving at approximately 10 mph, he heard a loud thump. The vehicle began to independently decrease in speed before coming to a stop. The vehicle did not stall and the engine continued to run. The vehicle was towed to local repair facility where the contact was informed that the sub frame was corroded and had fractured from the vehicle. The vehicle was repaired at the contact's expense. The manufacturer was not contacted. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was approximately 159,150 and the current mileage was approximately 159,200.

2000 Hyundai Sonata- front subframe was recalled due to deterioration from ice and salt. I live in maine. My entire subframe, front and rear is completely rusted and deteriorated. Nothing has been done to fix it, but is very dangerous and I was told by the dealership this car is unsafe to drive and could cause an accident at any time.

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. Whenever the vehicle struck bumps in the roadway at speeds below 50 mph, he would hear an extremely loud noise outside of the vehicle. The driver inspected the vehicle and detected that the frame which connects the rear tires axle had severe corrosion. The authorized dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle has not been repaired at this time. The failure mileage was 172,000. The VIN was unavailable.

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the vehicle began pulling to the right while driving approximately 35 mph. She was only able to drive straight when she forced the steering wheel in that direction. She expected the failure to be related to the alignment; however, a local mechanic stated that the subframe was covered with rust, and completely broken in half on both the driver and passenger side. The passenger side control arms were also separated from the frame. She has been unable to notify the dealer and the manufacturer of the failure. Photos are available upon request. The current and failure mileages were approximately 130,000.

I own a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. While driving my car at about 20-30 mph my sub-frame collapsed which caused my front drivers side tire to come completely off. When the subframe collapsed it fell on my axle which damaged. While there was a recall on the subframe my axle was not covered even thought the subframe collapsing is a direct result of my tire and axle detaching from my car. After voicing my concern Hyundai stated to me that they do not cover subsequently damage and that was nothing else to be said or done. This to me is a bunch of crap! if the subframe was not defective I would of never endured these problems with my vehicle. I have not had any major problems with my car until now. I have contacted Hyundai's consumer relations and they have done nothing no one is taking responsibility. I will contact my attorney general about this. This is not fair! thank god I was not seriously hurt because I would have been on my own. As they said they do not cover subsequently damages.

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. While driving between 44-55 mph, the vehicle began pulling to the left without assistance. The contact experienced difficulty steering the vehicle and had to exert great effort to turn the steering wheel. The vehicle steered only in one direction without warning. The contact made several attempts to correct the steering before it resumed normal operation. In addition, the contact heard a metal noise outside of the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer and they stated that the front subframe detached from the body due to rust corrosion. Nhtsa campaign id number 09v124000 (suspension) was referenced. The vehicle is in the process of being repaired. The contact was displeased to know that a wheel alignment was required in conjunction to the recall repair. The authorized dealer would not assume financial responsibility for the wheel alignment. The failure mileage was 105,000 and the current mileage was unavailable. Updated 10/21/09. The consumer stated the remedy was not sufficient without a front wheel alignment. The consumer stated the vehicle was fine until the frame broke. The consumer paid for the alignment out of pocket. Updated 10/20/09.

When I brought car in for inspection, was told front sub-frame was rotted out. There is a six inch hole in it. The car has always been well maintained, it has low miles, and it should not have rotted out like it has already. If I had kept driving it the entire wheel could have fallen off, possibly hurting or killing me and my family. Have not corrected it, as it's at least a thousand dollar fix.

I recently bought a 2000 Hyundai Sonata and was told that there was an alignment problem. At first it wasn't too bad but I took it in to get the alignment fixed. The mechanic asked me to come look at the car. When I went under the vehicle the mechanic pointed out to me that there was a gaping hole in the sub frame of this vehicle. I was told that if hadn't come in when I did this problem could have killed me. Worst off is that this vehicle only has 68,000 miles on it. I don't know what I am going to do now that I have a vehicle that I can't use and not enough money to fix it.

While driving my 2000 Hyundai Sonata my left front wheel fell off. My father and the tow truck operator said the lower control arm had come off after looking further we noticed the sub frame had broken apart due to rot. This car was well cared for and im finding it hard to accept this as normal. After looking online I have seen this to be common on this model. My daughter and myself were exiting a highway and the car seemed to be pulling. When I got on a secondary road it got worse. Within a few miles the car just stopped. This happened Saturday and im calling Hyundai Monday. With luck they will deal with it.

We have a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. The steering went out of control and nearly threw my stepson (age 23) under a tractor trailer. Upon taking the vehicle to the shop to see what was wrong, the new tires were completely wore out with metal sticking out. It was discovered that the subframe of the Sonata was rusted completely in two. This is a devastating concern because this could have cost my child a life. The Sonata actually belonged to my sixteen year old daughter! after looking on the internet to see if there has been a problem, I find that there is and has been an ongoing problem in which no one has bothered to recall the vehicles and get them off he road! very concerning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! my daughter or stepson could have lost their life!!!!! nothing has been done to correct the problem and I have researched to find there is many accidents resulting from same problem!.

After taking my 2000 Sonata to town fair tires to replace a damaged tire I was told "you have a hole in your frame. . . You should get that looked at" . . . So the following Monday I took it in to my mechanic who told me that townfair tires never should have let me leave the lot. My a-frame had a 6" piece completely rotted and missing, near my front right tire. He said one good pothole and my wheel would have come off. I'm told it will cost $1,000 to fix. And if I decide to do this, I'm out of a car for a week!! and while I wait I'm still out of a car anyway! I'm hearing more and more stories of other Sonata owners having this very same problem. I'm lucky that I wasn't on the highway doing 60mph and had my wheel fall off.

Sub-frame corrosion resulted in a loss of control and vehicle disablement due to wheel collapse.

2000 Hyundai Sonata, subframe rotted out and lower control arm mounts broke off, it was discovered during a pre-alignment inspection after the car started pulling to the right.

My mechanic found a fist-sized hole in the subframe of my 2000 Hyundai Sonata v6. There are 125,000 miles on the car. My mechanic told me that this should not occur and it is very dangerous. At this point it has not been repaired, because it is very expensive and I can not be without my car for the time of the repair.

Front subframe corrosion.

After failing a new york state inspection, I was shocked to discover that my 2000 Hyundai Sonata GLS had a rusted engine cradle the size of a fist on the right hand side. No previous inspections had indicated that there was this impending hazard. Consequently, I can no longer drive my vehicle, and according to the mechanic, it was a mere matter of days or a simple rough road that would have caused my subframe to detach without any prior warning. I have contacted Hyundai and am awaiting a response and fully expect them to not only repair the engine cradle, but make owners aware that models manufactured between 1999 and 2002 face this hazard to themselves and others on the road due to their own manufacturing defects.

I have a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. When the car was first purchased in February of 2006 the car had transmission problems where the car would not accelerate past 25 mph. I had to have the transmission replaced. Then later in that year while driving on the highway at about 65 mph I noticed the car would sway dramatically when you turned the will right. Taking the car back to the dealer they claimed to be just that the car needed an aliment. Now in 2008 I have had to have the right axle of the car replaced because while pulling away from a stop light the right wheel fell from the car at a 45 degree angle. Taking it to a tire shop to have the car inspected they informed me that the whole front underside of the frame was drastically rusted and that driving the car in the state would lead to a wreck or worse. Now I am lost and don't know what to do I have done research on the problem and I have found over 20 reports of this car model having this problem and it is very upsetting that no recall has been placed on these death traps on wheels. Someone needs to take responsibility for this before some dies.

I was driving home getting ready to get on the interstate when my car made a loud noise, and it seemed the front end had dropped. Had car towed to dealership the next day. The service department advised me that the front drivers side axel had rusted out. I had purchased a service contract through original dealership. Service contract said that Hyundai was going to repair my damages free of charge; in other words, I did not have to go through my service contract to have repairs done and I did not have to pay the $50 deductible. However, upon returning to pick up my car I was informed by dealership that I did in fact have to pay the deductible. Dealership advised that Hyundai only paid for a portion of the problem. I have read some on- line complaints and have found that this is a very common and highly dangerous problem. Had I had made it to the interstate, I am sure myself and others would be injured and or dead! dealership 9 months prior had fixed a ball- joint etc. On this same side. Feel dealership is very negligent in this matter- should have seen this coming especially if it is common. I was not happy finding out that I had to pay deductible especially when I was told I didn't have to. They had me sign paperwork for the deductible, but I was told they wouldn't have to use it. . . . It was formalities "just in case". I feel like I should have been advised of the other charges that Hyundai supposedly said they wouldn't pay.

Ref: NHTSA number pe08029 I am the original owner of my 2000 Hyundai Sonata and have a rusted cross member have 140,000 miles.

Son was driving vehicle and another vehicle had suddenly stopped in front of him and he had to apply the brakes suddenly and turn his wheel. Right front lower control arm pulled completely out of the of the engine cradle causing damage to fender and suspension and drive train. Insurance company has totaled vehicle because of this. No correction has been done as of yet.

My son went over a speed bump and had his right front tire fold in at the top. It was found out by a repair shop that the right control arm had separated from the sub-frame which was very corroded. Two attempts at getting a used sub-frame at a salvage yard also revealed corroded sub-frames. The sub-frame had to be replace new. A power steering return line lying against the sub-frame was also corroded and leaking and had to be repaired. The old sub-frame is being held at the repair shop so that I can document the damage with photographs.

Subframe on the front chasis was severely rusted through, on the verge of losing the wheel. Discovered during a routine oil change. Mechanic advised driving the car due to the dangerous condition and imminent probability of losing the wheel.

Right front wheel became detached and car skidded to a halt on busy road. The same thing happened 8 weeks ago to the left front wheel. I have since seen on the internet that this is a known issue with this make/model of Hyundai.

I have a 2000 Sonata with 140,000. On a trip this past summer I noticed rust flakes in my parking space. Upon further inspection I found almost a softball sized hole in the frame on the passenger side. I took it to a Hyundai dealer, they told me the warranty had expired and there was nothing they could do. I took it to a local shop and had the hole cleaned out and a piece of metal welded in so I could feel some what safe getting home. Once home I called Hyundai America who said they have never heard of such a thing.

2000 Hyundai Sonata GLS v6 - subframe is cracked and rusted with large holes in it. No longer driving it due to safety concern. Read about NHTSA investigating this issue and possible recall. Found it when had oil changed - the mechanic was shocked and said not to drive it - too dangerous.

While my car was on lift for unrelated repair, mechanic spotted severe subframe rot/corrosion and advised me to monitor its advancement. The subframe is rotted through the metal in a size slightly larger than a golf ball at this time (approx. 4 sq. In) on the right front side of the vehicle.

2000 Hyundai Sonata GLS v6 rust and corrosion on subframe (about the size of a basketball) front suspension problems -we recently brought our car into a local strauss auto to have a basic check up before state inspection. They spotted the rust and warned it is very severe and needs to be taken care of ASAP! - they also stated the suspension problems are most likely occurring because of the subframe not supporting the car 100% -we feel this is truly a defect by Hyundai and should be taken care of by them!.

I own a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. I took it for an inspection on July 24th of 2008. It failed due to the front cross member being rusted out. The mechanic showed me the rust. It was a 'fist-sized' rust hole on the subframe. The car has 61,800 miles on it and I am the second owner. Both the first owner and I live in pennsylvania. I have been reading about this issue and some people have experienced terrible accidents. I believe there is an ongoing investigation to this problem. It is NHTSA action # pe08029. The Hyundai should take the action for this severe defect.

I currently own a year 2000 Hyundai Sonata v6 GLS. On the morning of July 17th, 2008 at approx. 3:45 am I was driving my vehicle on a newspaper route for a local distribution company. I was making a right hand turn off a main street onto a side street as I my steering wheel jearked to the right very quickly, and my car out of the blue went out of allignment, to a degree that it would appear that I must have crashed into something. But I did not. As time went on, my tires began shreading themselves onto the area surrounding the actual two front tires. When I went to a local firestone to get a allignment and two new front tires, they lifted it up and informed me that the problem was a part called the "subframe" and it was extremely rusted on the right hand side. After reading various reports on the internet, I decided to write a formal complaint on this vehicle. I have yet to contact Hyundai directly as it is the weekend, but my intent is to inform them on Monday morning. The approx. Mileage on this vehicle is 122,000 miles.

Two big problems, first the current the entire frame on the ride side has completely rusted out and the bottom fell out of the car - before this happened the car was pulling to the right the car was unable to be driven and a frame is hard to locate because I was told this is a common problem with these cars - a 2000 Hyundai shouldn't completely rust from the inside - there is no rust on the car and it was kept in a garage I am in communication with the company to see what will be done, judging from pas experiences - nothing second issue: we had many problems involving the electric system the car would go dead for no apparent reason the car alarm would get stuck and you couldn't get in the car or start it the dashboard lights go in and out (mostly out now).

I was driving my 2000 Hyundai Sonata at 15 miles/hr on good-condition road when I heard a cracking noise and felt the front right side sink to the ground. I discovered that the front right wheel was completely detached from the frame, and the front axle was displaced. There was serious corrosion on the right side of the frame where the point of breaking was. No one was hurt since the speed was slow. But it could be very serious if driving on the freeway. The frame / axle are original parts and have never been repaired previously. . Read more...

The contact owns a 2000 Hyundai Sonata. The contact took his vehicle to a local mechanic due to a noise caused by the wheel bearings. The mechanic informed him that the frame of the vehicle, which supported the engine, was rusting. The mechanic also noticed a hole in the right front side of the subframe behind the right front wheel. The failures are nearly identical to the ones noted in investigation number pe08029. The dealer has not been notified and the vehicle has not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 148,000. Updated 07/22/08 updated 07/21/08.