2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
18 NHTSA owner complaints · 3 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Owner complaints: 18 filed with NHTSA
Complaints per year on the road: 18.0
What owners say
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
Loss of power while trying to accelerate. RPM's were going up, but the vehicle was very sluggish. Nearly got rear ended as I had turned right on a red from a stop to merge onto a 55mph road. I could not get up to speed and had to pull to the side of the road and engage my hazard lights. I turned the vehicle off and let it sit for a few minutes, then turned it back on and the issue went away. No lights/warnings or sou…
The contact owns a 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds at night on several occasions, the headlights were dim and created a shadow across the roadway. The vehicle was taken to a dealer on multiple occasions. The dealer was initially unable to duplicate the failure but later diagnosed that the driver-side headlight bulb needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but t…
I was driving on a highway at 55mph at night today 3/1/2026 and all of a sudden the headlights, instrumentation lights, and computer display went out, very scary, the all turned back on about 1.5 seconds later.
Recalls: 3 campaigns (2 severe)
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 26V316000 | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Tucson, Tucson Hybrid, and Tucson Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV) vehicles. Software in the front cameras may cause the forward collision avoidance system to activate prematurely and unexpectedly apply the brakes. |
| 24V877000 | Electrical System:Wiring | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson and Santa Cruz vehicles. The console extension wiring assembly may be routed improperly, allowing the transmission to be shifted out of Park without applying the brake pedal. |
| 25V809000 | Air Bags:Side/Window:Curtain | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson, 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, and 2026 Genesis GV70 vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not have been installed properly, which can cause the air bags not to deploy as intended. |
What it costs to buy — and what owning it really takes
Class-level estimates, priced as a pickup of its model year, re-priced to your country. Not a quote, not a valuation of one specific car — condition, mileage and options move it. How these are computed.
What it costs to run
EPA combined 22 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $2,800
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
What this car's problems cost to fix
Ranked by the components owners of this exact model year actually complain about. Each figure is flat-rate labour hours x the local shop rate plus a parts band — an estimate of what this kind of failure costs, not a quote, and not a prediction that this car will need it. Formula.
- Forward Collision Avoidance9 complaints · typical job: Radar or camera module replacement and calibration (3.0 h labour + parts)$780–$2,160
- Exterior Lighting3 complaints · typical job: Headlamp assembly or lighting-module replacement (1.5 h labour + parts)$360–$1,380
- Electrical System3 complaints · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement (3.0 h labour + parts)$540–$1,310
- Unknown Or Other2 complaints · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair (2.0 h labour + parts)$360–$940
- Service Brakes2 complaints · typical job: Pads, rotors and caliper service, both axles (3.0 h labour + parts)$580–$1,140
- Fuel/Propulsion System1 complaints · typical job: Fuel pump or injector replacement (3.5 h labour + parts)$680–$1,620
Other Hyundai Santa Cruz years
Hyundai Santa Cruz years to avoid, and the best years to buy →
FAQ
What is the most common problem with the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz?
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Forward Collision Avoidance (9 complaints in our indexed sample).
Is the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz a good used car to buy?
Our data verdict is BUY with a reliability score of 79/100, computed from 18 NHTSA complaints and 3 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
How much does it cost to fix the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz's most common problem?
9 of the NHTSA complaints filed against the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz sit in the Forward Collision Avoidance group — more than any other component on this model year. The representative job there is radar or camera module replacement and calibration: about 3.0 hours of labour plus parts, roughly $780–$2,160 at a US independent shop and re-priced to your country at the top of the page. It is an estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote for this car.
What does a 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz cost to run per year?
About $3,952 a year in fuel or energy plus the maintenance band — roughly $19,760 over five years, before purchase price, insurance and depreciation. Figures come from available EPA fuel-economy data and industry maintenance averages, and are re-priced to your country.
Does the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz have recalls?
Yes — NHTSA lists 3 recall campaign(s) for the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz, 2 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 19/05/2026. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Compare with
Other pickups of about the same age.
What will a 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz really cost YOU per year?
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorData sources
Complaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-10-04.
Thin evidence — 18 complaints, 3 recalls on record
- 18 NHTSA complaints on record (18.0/yr of exposure) — better than a typical year of this model (21.8/yr)
- 3 recall campaigns, 2 touching safety-critical systems
- Thin complaint record — this score is held close to the model's own average rather than read as evidence of quality