2011 Hyundai Sonata: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
3,373 NHTSA owner complaints · 12 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Reviewed by the MotorJury data desk · 2 sources · Last updated 2026-08-20
3,373 NHTSA owner complaints · 12 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Complaints per year on the road: 224.87
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
On the freeway at night when headlights and back lights quit working. Got off freeway and were able to temporarily fix it. A few months later while parked in driveway and not in use for a couple of days, lights came on without our knowledge and drained our battery. Neighbor alerted us to the situation.
Intermittent and sudden loss of power steering nearly caused an accident for both of sons when each one was driving on two separate occasions this past week. "EPS" and traction control warning lights both illuminate on the dash when steering goes out. Sometimes the codes will clear themselves out after restarting the vehicle, but not always. Had it inspected by an independent service center and they cleared out th…
I was heading to work when suddenly smoke started pouring from the air conditioning vents, and the ABS and traction control warning lights came on. I hit the brakes to pull over, only to realize I had lost braking power. I managed to steer to the side of the road as carefully as possible and bring the car to a stop—despite having no brakes and a fire burning under the hood. I tried downshifting to slow the vehicle, b…
What the community is saying right now.
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 13V113000 | Exterior Lighting:Brake Lights:Switch | Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 … |
| 10V457000 | Steering:Gear Box:Shaft Sector | HYUNDAI IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 SONATA VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM DECEMBER 11, 2009, THROUGH SEPTEMBER 10, 2010. ON SOME OF TH… |
| 17V617000 | Seat Belts:Pretensioner | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Sonata and 2011-2015 Sonata Hybrid vehicles previously repaired under recall … |
| 16V190000 | Steering:Electric Power Assist System | Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2011 Sonata vehicles manufactured December 11, 2009, to October 31, 2010. I… |
| 15V629000 | Suspension:Front:Springs:Coil Springs | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2011 Elantra vehicles manufactured November 12, 2010, to March 31, 2011, and… |
| 17V152000 | Seat Belts:Front:Anchorage | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Sonata and 2011-2015 Sonata Hybrid vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the s… |
| 15V568000 | Engine | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Sonata vehicles manufactured December 11, 2009, to April 12, 2012 … |
| 15V759000 | Exterior Lighting:Brake Lights:Switch | Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model 2011-2012 Sonata vehicles. The brake pedal stopper pad can deteriorate allowing … |
EPA combined 26 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $2,350
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Steering (1170 complaints in our indexed sample).
Our data verdict is AVOID with a reliability score of 5/100, computed from 3,373 NHTSA complaints and 12 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
Yes — NHTSA lists 12 recall campaign(s) for the 2011 Hyundai Sonata, 8 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 01/04/2013. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorComplaints & 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: 2026-08-20.