IllustrationI AM CONCERNED ABOUT WHY MY VIN WAS NOT PUT IN WITH THE RECENT RECALL OF THE ABS AND ESC AND HAS BEEN SHORTED OR DRAINED BATTERY AND MY VEHICLE HAS SHUT OFF AND THE ELECTRICAL HAS CAUSED PROBLEMS WITH MY BREAK LIGHTS AT ONE POINT. I HAVE REPLACED MY ABS SENSORY 2 TIMES ALREADY AND THE LIGHT STILL APEARS.
2009 Hyundai Elantra
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2009 Hyundai Elantra do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 182.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Elantra 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
230–25K
3125–50K
3550–75K
4675–100K
40100–150K
11150K+
186 reports with mileage · 66 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.
- Steering. Review the 132 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
28 crash reports11 fire reports20 injury reports
Electronic Stability Control (esc) complaints
10 reportsMY EPS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON ONE DAY AND IT HASN'T TURNED OFF EVER SINCE. SEVERAL TIMES WHILE DRIVING THE POWER STEERING HAS TURNED OFF AND I'VE HAD TO PULL OVER AND RESTART THE CAR TO FIX IT. THE STEERING WHEEL ALSO MAKES A CLUNKING SOUND WHEN I TURN IT LEFT AND RIGHT.
ENGINE START VIBRATING AT LOW SPEED
ESC SENSOR MALFUNCTION CAUSED ONE OR MORE BRAKES TO BE APPLIED AND THE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN IN HEAVY FREEWAY TRAFFIC. ESC LAMP REMAINED ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. I WAS REQUIRED TO PUT THE CAR IN NEUTRAL WITH A FOOT ON THE GAS TO KEEP THE CAR RUNNING. THIS PROBLEM IS THE SAME EXPLAINED IN A RECALL OF LATER MODELS, THE …
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ESC SENSOR MALFUNCTION CAUSED ONE OR MORE BRAKES TO BE APPLIED AND THE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN IN HEAVY FREEWAY TRAFFIC. ESC LAMP REMAINED ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. I WAS REQUIRED TO PUT THE CAR IN NEUTRAL WITH A FOOT ON THE GAS TO KEEP THE CAR RUNNING. THIS PROBLEM IS THE SAME EXPLAINED IN A RECALL OF LATER MODELS, THE 2011-2012 MODELS, RECALL #137. MY YEAR IS NOT COVERED UNDER THE RECALL BUT HAS THE SAME ISSUES.
DRIVING MY CAR ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN OUT OF NO WHERE MY EPS LIGHT CAME ON AND MY STEERING LOCKED UP. I CANNOT TURN THE WHEEL AND ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. AFTER PULLING OVER I TURNED CAR ON AND OFF BUT THE POWER STEERING WILL NOT RETURN. I SEE THAT HYUNDAI ALREADY ISSUED A RECALL FOR THIS FOR MY CAR YEAR, BUT MY VIN WASN'T INCLUD…
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DRIVING MY CAR ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN OUT OF NO WHERE MY EPS LIGHT CAME ON AND MY STEERING LOCKED UP. I CANNOT TURN THE WHEEL AND ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. AFTER PULLING OVER I TURNED CAR ON AND OFF BUT THE POWER STEERING WILL NOT RETURN. I SEE THAT HYUNDAI ALREADY ISSUED A RECALL FOR THIS FOR MY CAR YEAR, BUT MY VIN WASN'T INCLUDED. THE HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP WANTS TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE STEERING SHAFT AND COLUMN AND SAYS THAT IT DOESN'T APPLY TO THE RECALL.
TOOK CAR IN FOR SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN 127 ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING . TOOK OVER 1 MONTH TO GET CAR BACK. THE STEERING FELT LOOSE AND WORSE THAN BEFORE. WENT TO 2 DEALERS BOTH SAID STEERING IS LOOSE BUT SAFE. I DID NOT FEEL SAFE. THE REGIONAL MANAGER AT HYUNDAI SAID THERE IS NOTING THEY CAN DO ABOUT IT. UPDATED 10/9/15 *LN AN …
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TOOK CAR IN FOR SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN 127 ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING . TOOK OVER 1 MONTH TO GET CAR BACK. THE STEERING FELT LOOSE AND WORSE THAN BEFORE. WENT TO 2 DEALERS BOTH SAID STEERING IS LOOSE BUT SAFE. I DID NOT FEEL SAFE. THE REGIONAL MANAGER AT HYUNDAI SAID THERE IS NOTING THEY CAN DO ABOUT IT. UPDATED 10/9/15 *LN AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC STATED THE STEERING WAS SET TO RACE CAR WHEN THE ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING WAS CHANGE DUE TO A RECALL THAT WAS ISSUED. UPDATED 12/28/15.*JB
I WAS RETURNING HOME ONE EVENING HOME ABOUT A WEEK AGO, AND I WAS TRYING TO PARKING MY CAR IN PARKING LOT WHEN THE ESC LIGHT APPEARED ON DASH BOARD AND THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. I COULD NOT PARK THE CAR, SO I PUT IT IN PARK AND PULLED OUT THE CAR MANUAL, AFTER READING IT, I TURNED THE IGNITION OFF AND THEN TURN IT BACK ON. …
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I WAS RETURNING HOME ONE EVENING HOME ABOUT A WEEK AGO, AND I WAS TRYING TO PARKING MY CAR IN PARKING LOT WHEN THE ESC LIGHT APPEARED ON DASH BOARD AND THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. I COULD NOT PARK THE CAR, SO I PUT IT IN PARK AND PULLED OUT THE CAR MANUAL, AFTER READING IT, I TURNED THE IGNITION OFF AND THEN TURN IT BACK ON. THE ESC LIGHT WENT OUT AND THE STEERING WAS BACK AND I WAS THEN ABLE TO PARK THE CAR. THE NEXT DAY IT HAPPENED TWICE BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO GET ON THE HIGHWAY AND THE ONLY WAY I COULD CORRECT IT EACH TIME WAS TURNING OFF THE IGNITION. AT ONE POINT SOMEONE WAS COMING OUT OF A PARKING SPACE AND I HAD TO TRY AND MOVE OUT OF THE WAY WITH THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. I WAS SCARED AND PRAYING, THAT I GET HOME SAFELY. I TOOK THE CAR HOME AND HAVEN'T DRIVEN IT SINCE. TOWED CAR TO DEALER AND WAS TOLD IT NEEDED A NEW POWER STEERING COLUMN AND TOTAL COST WITH LABOR AND TAX WAS OVER $3,000.00 AND NOT COVERED IN THE POWER TRAIN WARRANTY. THE CAR IS BARELY USED HOW COULD THAT BE? THEY ARE DEALERS SELLING LEMONS AS NEW CARS. THIS CAR IS JUST OVER 5 YEARS OLD, NO ONE SHOULD HAVE TO PAY OUT THAT TYPE OF MONEY TO REPLACE PARTS SO EARLY IN THE LIFE OF THE CAR. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL THIS IS A DANGEROUS PROBLEM AND OTHERS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE WITH THIS MAKE AND MODEL. *TR
WHILE DRIVING ON A RURAL ROAD AT LOW SPEED, VEHICLE SHUT DOWN WITHOUT WARNING. ROLLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. RESTARTED VEHICLE BUT HAD NO POWER STEERING. BOTH ESC AND EPS LIGHTS WERE ON DASH DISPLAY. VEHICLE HAS REMAINED IN THIS CONDITION SINCE THEN. *TR
I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ON SUN NIGHT PRIOR TO MY ACCIDENT WENT AROUND A CURVE AND CAR STARTED LOOSING CONTROL WAS ABLE TO REGAIN CONTROL AND HEADED HOME. NEXT MORNING WAS DRIVING VEHICLE NOTICED ESC LIGHT WAS ON AND WOULD NOT RESET EVEN AFTER SHUTTING CAR OFF.DRIVING DOWN ANOTHER ROAD AT APPROX. 40-45 MPH WENT TO NEGOTIATE …
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I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ON SUN NIGHT PRIOR TO MY ACCIDENT WENT AROUND A CURVE AND CAR STARTED LOOSING CONTROL WAS ABLE TO REGAIN CONTROL AND HEADED HOME. NEXT MORNING WAS DRIVING VEHICLE NOTICED ESC LIGHT WAS ON AND WOULD NOT RESET EVEN AFTER SHUTTING CAR OFF.DRIVING DOWN ANOTHER ROAD AT APPROX. 40-45 MPH WENT TO NEGOTIATE A SLIGHT TURN TO THE LEFT WHEN CAR STARTED SLIDING OUT FROM UNDER ME TAPPED BRAKES TRYING TO GET THEM TO GRAD AND CAR UNDER CONTROL BUT HAD NO RESPONSE CAR DID A 180 AND SLAMMED IN A TELEPHONE POLE ON PASSENGER SIDE VEHICLE SEEMED TO HIT WITH MORE FORCE THAN 40 MILES AN HOUR. THANKFULLY I HAD NO PASSENGER BECAUSE THEY MAY NOT HAVE MADE IT. *TR
ESC SWITCH FAILURE CAUSING BRAKE LIGHTS TO GO OFF. *TR
Official recalls
420V061000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:antilock/traction Control/electronic Limited Slip:control Unit/module
Feb 4, 2020
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2007-2010 Elantra and 2009-2011 Elantra Touring vehicles. On February 21, 2020 Hyundai expanded the recall to include 46,425 model year 2007-2008 Entourage and 2007 Santa Fe vehicles. Moisture may enter the Anti-lock Brake (ABS) Module and result in an electrical short.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An electrical short within the ABS Module may cause an engine compartment fire, even when the car is turned off, increasing the risk of an injury.
Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will install a relay in the vehicle's main junction box to prevent the risk of an ABS short-circuit while the car is turned off, free of charge. The recall began April 2, 2020. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 188.
15V100000 · Steering:electric Power Assist System
Feb 23, 2015
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2008-2010 Elantra vehicles manufactured June 1, 2008, to April 30, 2010, and 2009-2010 Elantra Touring vehicles manufactured November 1, 2008, to April 30, 2010. The electronic power steering (EPS) electronic control unit (ECU) may sense a discrepancy in the steering input signals and, as a result, disable the steering power assist.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If power steering assist is lost, greater driver effort would be required to steer the vehicle at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Hyundai will verify the proper operation of the Electronic Power Steering (EPS) and update the EPS control unit, free of charge. The recall began April 14, 2015. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-671-3059. Hyundai's number for this recall is 127.
13V113000 · Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch
Apr 1, 2013
Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.
11V143000 · Air Bags:frontal:sensor/control MODULE-INACTIVE
Mar 15, 2011
HYUNDAI IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2007-2009 ELANTRA VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JULY 14, 2006, THROUGH NOVEMBER 1, 2008. THE FRONT PASSENGER SEATS IN THE VEHICLES CONTAIN A WEIGHT SENSOR DESIGNED TO DEACTIVATE THE RIGHT FRONTAL AIRBAG WHEN OCCUPANTS OF CERTAIN WEIGHTS OCCUPY THE SEAT. THE ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR FOR THE WEIGHT SENSOR IS LOCATED UNDER THE CENTER CONSOLE, BETWEEN THE FRONT SEATS. UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES THE CONNECTOR COULD BECOME CONTAMINATED AND MALFUNCTION SUCH THAT THE FRONT PASSENGER AIRBAG WILL DEPLOY REGARDLESS OF THE WEIGHT OF THE OCCUPANT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THE FRONT PASSENGER AIR BAG COULD DEPLOY IN CRASHES IN WHICH IT SHOULD NOT DEPLOY, INCREASING THE RISK OF INJURY TO THE SEAT OCCUPANT FROM THE DEPLOYED AIR BAG.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A PROTECTIVE COVER OVER THE WEIGHT CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM CONNECTOR TO PREVENT CONTAMINATION. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTING TO BEGIN DURING APRIL 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI'S CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-633-5151.
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
1DP21003 · Throttle Control System Vulnerabilities
Opened Nov 12, 2021 · Closed Jun 20, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Vehicle Speed Control:throttle
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a petition letter dated October 10, 2021, requesting an investigation of possible defects in the electronic throttle control (ETC) system on certain Kia vehicles resulting in the opening of DP21-003. Accordingly, Model Year (MY) 2005-2016 Kia Optima/K5, MY 2006-2015 Kia Sorento, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Elantra, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Santa Fe, MY 2006-2015 Hyundai Sonatas are all part of the subject population. The petition was originally filed as a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire that can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under reference (ODI) number 11439675.On November 12, 2021, ODI opened Defect Petition DP21-003 to evaluate the petitioner?s request. ODI performed trend analyses of the VOQs related to vehicle speed control issues for all the subject vehicles and found that none of the 52 Model/Model Year Hyundai/Kia vehicles demonstrated any actionable trend that warranted an investigation.Petitioners submitted 1119 VOQs and non-VOQ cases in which sudden uncommanded acceleration (SUA) or loss of motive power (LOMP) incidents were alleged.For the 1119 reports, 220 were incidents involving crashes, from which 69 subject Hyundai-Kia vehicles were inspected by Hyundai/Kia dealer technicians, Hyundai/Kia engineers, and/or third-party representatives.ODI found the inspections identified no vehicle defects related to the ETC system.Of the 220 crash-involved reports, 13 Event Data Recorder (EDR) records were downloaded successfully and 11 of those indicated driver error: (i.e.) pedal misapplication.A condition where the accelerator pedal is mistakenly applied instead of the brake pedal when the driver wants to stop the vehicle.In addition, ODI reviewed a scientific journal paper published in Forensic Science International in 2016 by Mr. Park et al ., as well as related test videos. ODI does not believe there is any evidence of uncontrollable SUA occurrences in any of the tests reviewed. NHTSA's Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance (OVSC) reviewed the allegations regarding the potential noncompliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 124.Based on the information provided, the Agency concludes there is insufficient information for us to determine if a possible non-compliance exists.Finally, both Hyundai and Kia informed ODI that all their vehicles manufactured after 2012 were equipped with an ETC management system, in which the engine speed will go to idle when the system sees signals from both the brake pedal and accelerator pedal at the same time; this is commonly known as the brake-throttle override system.After thoroughly assessing the material submitted by the petitioner, information already in NHTSA's possession, information submitted by Hyundai and Kia in response to an Information Request letter, and the potential risks to safety implicated by the petitioner's allegation, NHTSA does not believe that a formal investigation is warranted. After full consideration of appropriate factors, the petition is denied. A Federal Register Notice (FRN) further detailing NHTSA?s reasons for denial of the petition will be published.