Emergency braking and lane departure issues are the major causes of complaints received by the NHTSA from vehicle owners
The Hyundai Elantra is one of the automaker’s top selling vehicles. It topped 3-million sales in 2017 and increased this figure by more than another ¾ of a million by early 2023. Hyundai boasts that it offers a “significant value advantage” with a package that incorporates advanced safety technologies. This may be so, but owners whose Elantra’s headlights, and emergency braking and lane keeping assist systems malfunction aren’t convinced about the safety element.
Click on another model years to view more problems: 2019 2020 2021 2022
The most common problems owners of the 2023 Hyundai Elantra are complaining about relate to forward collision avoidance and the sedan’s emergency braking system. There are also complaints to the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) about lane keeping assist, headlight and door lock malfunctions, as well as sunroofs exploding and rodents eating windshield wiper hoses.
The wiper issue came to the attention of an owner in Florida who found that water wasn’t coming out of the windshield wiper hose. He tried to fill it with water, but it all dripped out. He took the sedan to a Hyundai dealer who said rodents had eaten the hose and charged him $252.43 to replace it.
“I read online (about) many claims against Hyundai for using soy-based products in the engine components that attract rodents. I learned that two of my friends who own Hyundais had similar problems with rodents eating wires and hoses. If it was at night when my windshield was compromised I could have had an accident. Hyundai has turned a defect into a moneymaker. Shame on them! Please help.”
There is also a serious recall that affects airbags in both the 2023 and 2022 models. NHTSA Campaign Number 22V632000 states that hundreds of Elantras have emblems on the driver’s front airbag that may not have been welded properly. The issue is that if these detach when the airbags deploy, there is a danger that they will strike someone in the car, increasing the risk of injury. If your Elantra is affected, a Hyundai dealer will replace the entire airbag free of charge.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Engine | |
| Power Train | |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Vehicle Speed Control | |
| Air Bags | |
| Steering |
Also reported as being forward collision avoidance issues, the Elantra’s emergency braking problem is nothing new. There are many complaints on forums and to the NHTSA about the same issue affecting 2021 and 2022 models.
In a complaint to the NHTSA, an owner from Arizona states he was “driving at about 40 mph on a city street with no cars in front” of the Elantra. The “car dash flashed red advising (that it was) engaging emergency braking,” which is applied for a couple of seconds. It “then stopped and (the) warning went away.
In another NHTSA complaint, the owner of a 2023 Elantra from California describes a “false emergency braking” incident that happened when a car from behind was passing. While driving in the left lane at about 43 mph, with no vehicles ahead, he saw a vehicle applying emergency brakes, and a message popped up. “At the same time there was a small truck passing me from behind in lane 2 at a higher speed than me. It looks like the system is falsely detecting there is a crash from (the) back and applying brakes.“
This owner posted the same complaint on Hyundai-Forums. Another member of the forum responded that “I had the exact same thing happen to me. Reported.” To which the owner from California replied saying that “Hyundai is not willing to take this up. I reported to (the) dealer and Hyundai Care, but no support.”
We've fixed thousands of lemon problems. Message or call 877-795-3666 today.
An owner from Texas states in an NHTSA complaint that on multiple occasions, on highways and urban roads, “the Lane Keeping Assist system has forced me out of my lane.” It is clearly a malfunction because it takes control of the car’s steering wheel “to move me out of the lane while also failing to trigger my Lane Departure Warning. One time, LKA jerked over into a lane of oncoming traffic. Another time it jerked me out of my lane into a near collision with a concrete lane barrier. And another time, the LKA jerked out of the lane almost into a curb.”
Two other malfunctions relate to an auto light feature that controls the headlights and doors that can’t be locked manually. In both cases, Hyundai claimed that the features were operating as designed and refused assistance.
A complaint by a Wisconsin owner states that the Elantra is equipped with an auto light feature that allows the headlights to turn on at night while the dash light becomes dim. But, the headlights were turning on during the day, impairing his vision of the road. Additionally, the instrument panel lights were becoming dim, stopping him from monitoring the instrument cluster. No warning lights were illuminated. He took the car to the dealer who sent the vehicle data and a report to the manufacturer. The manufacturer maintained that the vehicle, with only 500 miles, was operating as designed.
A Michigan owner with only about 45 miles discovered that the Elantra door could only be securely locked by using the key fob. He was unable to lock the door manually. His complaint was that the door was failing to lock as designed and there was no warning light to alert him. The dealership insisted it was operating as designed and neither they nor the manufacturer were prepared to offer assistance.
If you have recurring problems that make you think your 2023 Hyundai Elantra is a lemon, it’s a good idea to get a lemon lawyer to do an assessment. There’s nothing to stop you approaching Hyundai yourself, but most times you’ll have more success with a professional doing the negotiations for you. Every year manufacturers like Hyundai replace, buy back, or trade in vehicles to lemon owners. And the law makes Hyundai pay lemon law legal fees.
Lemberg Law is a lemon law firm that has helped many lemon car owners get compensation from automakers because their vehicles were indeed lemons. If you’d like us to assess your case free of charge, call our Helpline or fill out a contact form and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
See more posts from Brian Jones
2023 elantra sel convenience pkg with 20,600 miles transmission failed, waiting to hear from dealer, as this just happened today.
Purchased a 2023 Hyundai Elantra Sel with convenience pkg New from dealership, at 1023 miles Friday Aug 4 2023 transmission slipping, celebrating, not shifting gears. Huge error screen popped up. Got appt thru carlink for Monday Aug 7th. Was told car needs a new transmission at 1032 miles, as I had to drive it there. Car is less than 6 months old. I feel like I should get a new car, this car is tainted.
Car tire issues. At 600 miles the dealer replace front drivers side tire due to a huge tire bulge. Tonight on way home with zero pot holes sudden boom like a blow out but not flat, got home and bulge again on drivers side front tire as big as a golf ball! I need the car to go to work and although have tire warranty on car appointments at suresky in Goshen NY are a month out – I can’t afford to miss work so I’ll have to replace tire and pay out of pocket. I’ve been driving for 30 years and never ever had this happen with car tires!
Also the stay in lane system barely works. It’s always loosing the lanes. We have a ford escape 2022 and that had it and we never ever have issues. Car drives well but having tons of issues!
I purchased a new Hyundai Elantra in September 2022. At first I liked it but very quickly, my car was breaking by itself for no reason whatsoever. Today, I almost got into a bad accident on a highway. I was driving 60 miles per hour (limit was 65). I was on the left lane. This was a 2 lanes road. Cars were right behind me. A school bus made a right turn from the right lane and my car did break by itself. A pick up truck behind me almost went to the ditch trying to avoid me. I am driving 200 miles a day and this happens at least 3 times a day. Today was the scariest experience with emergency breaking.