general problems of the 2011 Hyundai Sonata - part 1

I was gifted the car for graduation and immediately my brakes weren’t working right my interior electrical stopped working and my window switches stopped working as well as my lights for my car all went out including the brake lights changing the bulbs didn’t help and my check engine light stays on at all times.

To whom it may concern, subject: formal complaint – 2011 Hyundai Sonata GLS tail light meltdown / fire hazard date: August 3, 2025 I am writing to formally report a serious safety issue with my 2011 Hyundai Sonata GLS, specifically concerning the tail light assembly, which has melted and poses a potential fire hazard and traffic safety risk. Approximately a year and a half ago, I noticed melting in the tail light housing and took the vehicle to a Hyundai dealership to address the issue. At that time, the car had approximately 208,000 miles. Despite the obvious manufacturing defect and safety implications, the dealership refused to repair or inspect the issue without charging a $275 inspection fee, stating the vehicle was out of warranty. I believe this to be an unfair and irresponsible business practice. Tail light assemblies should not melt under normal use, and such a defect could lead electrical fires brake light failure (increasing the risk of rear-end collisions) potential traffic citations for inoperative brake lights damage to other vehicles or individuals I have already notified Hyundai motor corporation about this issue, placing them on notice that should any damages or incidents occur as a result of this defect, they may be held liable. This is not a minor cosmetic issue but a major safety defect, and I strongly urge the NHTSA to investigate whether this is an isolated issue or part of a wider trend affecting Hyundai and kia vehicles. If so, a safety recall may be warranted. I also intend to report this situation to the indiana attorney general's office as a matter of consumer protection and product safety. I have been backwards and forwards with the Hyundai corporation via and emails. . . . . . I look forward to a prompt response. Please!.

The brake lights stay on all the time, thus preventing vehicles behind mine from knowing if I'm actually stopping. Hence, they may stop without reason, and endanger drivers behind them. The manufacturer has likely known of this being an issue in Sonatas from, at least, 2007 through 2013 models. The manufacturer is putting the task of solving the problem (if that's even possible), upon a dealer. And, my trip to that (nearest) dealership (75 miles away) creates its own danger. The danger is added to by a pre-existing unsolved issue of the horn not functioning. As per the brake light issue, I've been to the dealership about it twice, and they weren't even aware that the brake light switch they think attaches to my car doesn't. So, I wonder if the manufacturer tried to address the issue in the middle of the 2011 model year, installed a different model switch and wiring on more newly built cars in that model year, and decided to ignore the owners of vehicles sold earlier in that model year. As for an additional related issue, unless I disconnect my battery when not in the car. The lights stay on and run down the battery. That can contribute to its own safety issue.

When I have my headlights turned on, and am driving my headlights flicker on and off. It mostly happens when I use the turn signal, but not always. Sometimes it happens when I hit bumps. The headlights and the dash lights all go out when this happens, it usually lasts from 1 to 20 seconds at a time. I have taken it to my local garage(straight and clear) and they tested all electrical components and replaced the alternator and I still have the issue. They looked it up and determined that this is a known issue with the Hyundai Sonata, and one of the modules needs replaced in the steering column. This is a major safety issue because my headlights go out when driving and could cause and accident, and depending on the exact issue of the module it could cause a fire. There are no warning lights, just the lights go on and off. I will be getting the car repaired around November 9th 2023, because I need my car to be safe, and can submit my invoice at that time if this becomes a recall.

My right brake light has melted my housing due to the bulb getting too hot and my cruise control suddenly stopped working one day the light comes on but when I go to hit the set button it doesn't set or activate.

My brake lights constantly go out new bulbs don't work either. . . It sems to be a malfunction in the wiring for the lights. The seatbelt on driver side will not latch no matter what. All electrical has issues, dash will go in and out as well as radio and heating/ac lights.

Brake light housing has melted and deformed so that the bulb is stuck in the tail light assembly and cannot be changed. Without working brake lights the car is unsafe to be driven on the road. I’m assuming there is an electrical problem that caused the lights to overheat and melt the housing. This is a common complaint with this make and model based on my research. The socket also does not lock into the assembly due to the deformed housing. My daughter is the owner of the vehicle and made me aware of the issue today.

I have had replaced my taillight bulbs 8 times in the last year. They keep blowing out and getting so hot they melt the taillight assembly. I replaced the whole assembly a couple months ago and it is already melted so bad the light bulb will not fit properly or stay in place. This is a fire hazard and also a safety hazard as my taillights quit working at anytime.

The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the headlights ceased to operate as designed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the headlight bulbs were replaced three times within a month; however, the failure persisted. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

The NHTSA has filed a consent order (rq17-004) for a engine replacement due to safety concerns while driving the vehicle on the road, vehicle may stall and cause / be involved in a accident. Please make this recall public so the affected vehicles can be properly repaired as the consent order states I have reviewed the consent order and I will not continue to drive this vehicle, I will not risk being involved in a accident the Hyundai dealership in alexandria virginia has refused to repair this recall under the consent order, my vehicle VIN# is 5npec4ac5bh199503 my vehicle has been at this dealership location for over 3 weeks and I was told that they were not going to perform this recall and I noted that if I pick up my vehicle and drive it away and the engine fails, stalls or stops in the middle of the highway and I survive I will have to file a lawsuit in this matter and the dealership still told me to pick up my vehicle.

I have had to replace my brake lights, sometimes, every few months. My third brake light only works intermittently. Recently, my brake lights and my door lights failed to shut off after I turned the engine off. Also, my abs light came on on the dash, but after turning the engine off and back on, that light went out. After re-starting my car and repeatedly, stepping on the brake, my lights finally shut off. I checked the internet for similar problems and found out that there had been a Hyundai recall for this issue. I phoned Hyundai customer support. They told me the recall had been repaired on my car by the dealer . Obviously, it had not. (the dealer also claimed to have corrected another recall regarding seat belts, but that too is a lie, since my seat belt dash light is on although I have never been involved in an accident) I believe that the dealer billed Hyundai, but failed to either deliberately or inadvertently failed to perform the recall work. The recall involved replacing the brake stopper pad which engages the brake light switch. Obviously, Hyundai considered this a safety issue since the brake lights are always on, so the driver behind my car never knows what I'm doing. This has also affected the interior overhead light which only intermittently goes off when I close the door, so I have to keep the light in the off position.

2020 wiring harness overheated and melted - replaced taillight 6 times in 1 year. Hyundai fixed. 2021 tailight out again - Hyundai stated the taillight assembly melted, needs to be replaced (403. 00) light bulb cannot be replaced (warped). Safety issue is what is causing things to heat up and melt. Many others reported same issue online - Hyundai is not taking ownership to fix whatever is causing this? no warning lamps.

The vehicle dash and center console lights flicker and/or dim between bright and dim lights while the headlights temporarily turn off at random intervals while driving. This random, but frequent occurrence happens often when applying the turn signal in either direction. The problem generally exist between 1 to 5 seconds, causing impaired driving during nighttime operation. The turn signal appears to work as expected during the electrical issue. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. This safety issue can impair nighttime driving visibility which can result in an accident, distracted driving to the primary vehicle driver and other motorists, and false driving signals to other drivers. This issue has been reproduced by an authorized Hyundai dealer and other drivers with similar Hyundai Sonata GLS model years. . Read more...

I can’t drive my car in the dark. This has been on going since I bought the car and has just gotten worse. Everytime I turn my lights on all of my rear lights stop working and if I’m driving and the back light stop working my gas peddle also will not let me accelerate until I let my foot off and go back on to it but at this point I have no tail lights or brake lights. . I’ve tried so many things to fix this but this is a serious issue I had another friend who bought the same car and sold it a week later because of the same issue. I also can open my trunk and wiggle the wires and it’s a whole light show back there.

The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that after turning off the vehicle, he and his wife exited the vehicle and both noticed that the brake lights had remained illuminated. The brake lights failed to turn off as designed. The dealer and the manufacturer were both contacted and stated that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 15v759000 (exterior lighting). No additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 120,000.

I have replaced my front driver door actuator, the back driver and front passenger side 3x and it’s still having issues. I replaced all fuses an wiring harness. Front headlights keep blowing out after about a week of putting in new ones.

When driving randomly the cars engine will rev really high while pressing the gas pedal but the car doesn't move. After a little while the car eventually makes a loud clunking noise which shakes the car and typically causes the tires to spin. It seems to happen when the car is trying to decide whether to switch the gas engine or back to ev mode. This has been happening for a long time an even after the engine was replace under the recall. This is a safety issue that causes major concerns for myself an passengers. Also it happen when turning onto highways or exits which at high speeds there is a high likelihood of causing an accident. I have reported this to Hyundai several times but they cannot figure out the cause but rather keep trying different things an charging me. The car also seems to burn oil fast which doesn't make any sense being that its a newly installed engine.

The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the dome light failed to deactivate and remained illuminated. The contact then stated that he had to manually deactivate to turn the light off. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 63,500.

All of the light wither short out or burn out all the time. I always have an out tail light . I’ve bought replacements at the dealer as well as auto zone. I have noticed many people also have this problem. We get tickets in California for this and half time I don’t even know it’s our because I just changed it 2 months ago. This is not normal and I have all of me receipts and could potentially get someone rear ended they short out it’s very strange !!!.

Well my break lights keep burning out the whole harness and light part were the bulbs go burns and melted the harness completely on both sides I have had to replace them twice for both break lights the satellite antenna on the roof of the car is completely out and doesn’t get a signal the key keeps getting stuck in the ignition where the battery had to be disconnected to remove it.

The taillight socket is melting disabling the effective use of the brake system to alert other drivers the vehicle is stopping. The light works but can not be reinserted into the given space because it has melted close on the tailight cause my entire tail light to have to be replaced. The light bulb then melted into the trunk space and could have caused a fire but luckily we smelled it and moved the placement. I have almost been rear ending multiple times cause long the oncoming driver to swerve off the road to avoid hitting me because they were not able to see I was stopped. I have been stopped by law enforcement and given a warning thankfully. I have sent a complaint to Hyundai and have seen multiple complaints and myself seen multiple Sonatas on the road with no tail light/brake light issues. My dealer wants to charge over $600-1000 to repair this imperative issue. There was no indication they were malfunctioning until they had melted into the socket. On both lights. I have read multiple complaints on this same issue. This is an important part of the car that needs to be fixed for driver safety.

My passenger headlight continuously goes out. I also have where my headlights completely go out as well as my interior lights. There is nothing out of the ordinary when it happens. Sometimes it will do it when I use a turn signal, other times just on it's own. I will have it happen very frequently and then not again for months. I also have the taillight burn out very often.

Several people we know have the same issue as we do. . . The brake light wiring harness shorts out and keeps the lights from working and you can smack the side of the fender and it will work for a little while and go back off. . . . My car was already inspected for this issue and it is an electrical issue. The headlights on our friends cars does it also.

Check engine lights comes on and oil light. So im prompted to get oil change. Mechanic says he reset some codes and the engine locked up. Mechanic took my running vehicle from the shop to check how it was driving and the car stalled in motion.

My engine failed while driving. . . . . I had it towed to Hyundai dealer because I was informef about vehicle recall. The dealership will not provide me with loaner car without full coverage insurance. I have been without my vehicle almost 30 days.

All the electrical on the drivers side conti ues to fail. The blinker on the driver side only works if the headlights are on and the brake/blinker lights constantly go out even though the bulbs are fine.

Lights occasionally shut off while driving. Happens on its own but happens more often when switching on high beams. All lights shut off inside and outside car. Has happened many times since owning the car.

First, my low beams quit working months ago. Bulbs are good. I even took it in to a shop to have it checked. They said they couldn't find anything and that it was an electrical issue. That makes sense since I just started having issues with the dome lights inside as well. Have to have the inside lights turned off or they will not go off. Most recently, on the highway on my way to work, my car lost power and the dash lit up with lights and I had to pull over. Started making a loud clanging noise as well. Took it to the shop again to get it looked at. They said my oil was almost gone. No oil on the dipstick. I just recently had the oil changed! should not be out of oil. They further noted that there were no signs of oil leakage anywhere. Suggested that the engine was faulty and was excessively burning oil. Not sure what I aza m supposed to do now. I have a issues with safety due to my lights not working, and a bigger issue with my engine not working properly. I need help!.

The brakes lights and head lights goes out alot. . Bulbs melting into socket and burning out frequently and having to replace the whole assembly. It's very hazard because it can catch fire. I was driving on highway doing rain and noticed my head light just went out and I pulled over to check and checked the back as well cause I smelled something burnt. The rear break light was burnt and melted into socket. I've replaced the back assembly aleast once to twice a year.

Everything worked good until I had to take my car to the dealer for knock sensor, air bag check, software update, and my engine was also part of the affected engine recall. . . Well ever since then I have had to replace my car battery a few times and now I just invested in a battery charger because now my cars battery gets drained whether or not I use it? I asked the dealer on a couple of occasions to check out why my dash and lights flicker and shut off and come back on seconds later when I turn my lights on at night? also told the service writer that I noticed this happening when I used my turn signal, because I could notice the dash lights and head beams behave erratic and most dangerously? I know I was told more than once that they could not find nothing wrong and there were no codes either? I have to disconnect my battery now because of this dangerous issue and just gets very frustrating that now I have a car that sits there in my car port more than its driven nowadays but because car prices are high I really need my car repaired so that it could work safely like it used to before. I'm afraid that my car will catch on fire because of this and just wished that Hyundai motor corporation would look into this matter more seriously and more importantly find a solution for this big safety mater. I just finally got tired of all this that I have to go through and still probably wont ever hear of a safety recall for this big problem. . .

Break lights burn out in less than 3 months after replacing the light bulb.

My passenger rear brake light will not come on after car has been in repair shop 11 times to correct issue. They have replaced the bulb, socket, light wiring harness, fuse etc. The brake light will work for a very short time after repair shop, but then go out again.

At 1st my car my consuming a lot of oil. I was going to get top off at my oil place every week. I tried to take it to my nearby Hyundai, they told me they wanted $350 to do a test. Then my car was not gasing the way it usually did. It was stalling, I had a burning smell coming from my engine. I took it to my mechanic and he replaced the O2 sensor, heating sensor, pcv valve, he did a transmission flush. It started to work ok, and I was driving with my disabled husband and our 4 year old daughter when the car engine went out on us on the highway. We got the car tow to our mechanic and its more problems then solutions . Its now the Cadillac converter, this car is extremely dangerous to drive. I have receipts of the repairs, towing and daily oil inputs.

The rear brake lamps and rear lamps repeatedly burns out within two weeks of replacing them. The signals lamps burn out in less than one year.

My front, back, break lights are constantly out. I'm replacing them several times a month. I've taken it back to the dealer where they've changed the housing. Problem still continues. This is very unsafe because there is an over heating issue with this vehicle.