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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2010 Hyundai Sonata — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 345 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

345
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
19
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
3
Involved Fire
owner-reported
19 / 2
Injuries / Deaths
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Hyundai Sonata — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

345 complaints

3,378 complaints

1,558 complaints

1,915 complaints

751 complaints

1,153 complaints

725 complaints

765 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Structure 164 reports
Unknown Or Other 36 reports
Service Brakes 30 reports
Engine 29 reports
Power Train 21 reports
Air Bags 20 reports
Electrical System 16 reports
Steering 15 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Structure ODI 10938929 12/31/2016

TODAY THE THIRD DOOR HANDLE HAS BROKEN ON MY HYUNDAI SONATA IN SIX YEAR. THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM. STAY AWAY FROM THIS MAKE AND MODEL.

Service Brakes ODI 10817223 12/31/2015

BACK REAR BRAKES HAVE NEEDED CONSTANT REPLACING SINCE THE FIRST REPLACEMENT IN 2013 AT 41,658 MILES---REAR PADS AND ROTARS. EIGHT MOS. LATER AT 48,900, REPLACED THE REAR ROTARS AND PADS AGAIN. TWO WEEKS LATER AT 49,247, REPLACED REAR LEFT FLEX BRAKE HOSE AND CALIPER, AND DEGLAZED PADS AND ROTARS. SIX MONTHS LATER AT 56,199, THE RIGHT REAR BRAKE WAS METAL TO METAL AND BINDING-…

Service Brakes ODI 10557863 12/30/2013

THE REAR DRIVER SIDE BRAKE WAS MAKING A GRINDING NOISE. TOOK TO THE SHOP AND THEY SAY THE CALIPER IS WORKING UNEVEN AND CAUSING THE PAD TO BRAKE DOWN FASTER THAN NORMAL, IT WAS ON BARE MEDAL. COULD THIS BE THE CROSSBAR RECALL CAUSING THIS TO GET UNEVEN OR AN UNRELATED ITEM? THE OTHER SIDE STILL HAD 40% PAD ON IT. THIS SEEMS LIKE A PROBLEM TO ME. *TR

Structure ODI 10557864 12/30/2013

REAR DRIVER DOOR HANDLE JUST FELL OFF THE CAR WHEN TRYING TO OPEN DOOR. HAD TO REPLACE ENTIRE HANDLE ASSEMBLY. NEVER HAD THIS EVER HAPPEN IN ANY CAR I HAVE EVER OWNED, AND I HAVE OWNED QUITE A FEW OLDER CARS. *TR

Structure ODI 10816858 12/29/2015

BOTH REAR DOOR HANDLES BROKE OFF. BOTH HANDLES BROKE IN THE SAME PLACE WEEKS APART FROM EACH OTHER. THE CAR WAS IN PARK. I WAS OPENING THE DOOR LIKE NORMAL WITH NO EXCESSIVE FORCE ON BOTH HANDLES. HOW CAN I GET MY CHILDREN OUT OF THE CAR IN AN EMERGENCY WHEN THE HANDLES BREAK OFF? ESPECIALLY WHEN THE CHILD LOCK IS ENGAGED. THE DOOR WON'T OPEN FROM THE INSIDE OR OUT. WILL HYUND…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2010 Hyundai Sonata, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2010 Hyundai Sonata reliable?
Owners have filed 345 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2010 Hyundai Sonata, most often about structure. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Hyundai Sonata years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.