Illustration2003 HYUNDAI ACCENT, 85K MILES OIL PAN LEAKS, RUSTED THROUGH HOLE (DEALER CONFIRMED), LOST 3 QT OIL WITHIN 2500 MILES. PURCHASED NEW IN 2003. *TR
2003 Hyundai Accent
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2003 Hyundai Accent do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 64.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Accent years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
70–25K
625–50K
450–75K
375–100K
0100–150K
1150K+
21 reports with mileage · 16 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
12 crash reports1 fire reports8 injury reports
Engine And Engine Cooling complaints
3 reportsDT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH ON DRY ASPHALT ROADS, THE BRAKE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED CONSTANTLY, FOLLOWED CLOSELY BY TIGHTNESS IN THE STEERING. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THE ENGINE STALLED AND SHUT OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT SEEN BY A DEALER FOLLOWING THE INCIDENT.
MY 2003 HYUNDIA ACCENT ALREADY HAD TWO FAILURES OF THE EMIISION CONTROL SYSTEM. THE SECOND FAILURE ONLY SHOWED A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FOR A FEW SECONDS THEN SHOWED ALL SYSTEMS NORMAL AGIAN. EACH FAILURE WAS FOUND BY DIFFERENT DEALERSHIP BUT THE SAME PROBLEM. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED THE COMPUTER KEPT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT …
Read full complaint
MY 2003 HYUNDIA ACCENT ALREADY HAD TWO FAILURES OF THE EMIISION CONTROL SYSTEM. THE SECOND FAILURE ONLY SHOWED A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FOR A FEW SECONDS THEN SHOWED ALL SYSTEMS NORMAL AGIAN. EACH FAILURE WAS FOUND BY DIFFERENT DEALERSHIP BUT THE SAME PROBLEM. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED THE COMPUTER KEPT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON UNTIL THE DEALERSHIP REPAIRED IT BUT THE SECOND TIME THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ON ONLY FOR A FEW SECONDS, ALMOST LIKE THE CAR WAS PRGRAMMED TO IGNORE THE PROBLEM. *NM
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.