On Dec 25, 2025 my 2019 Kona' s engine started to knock and lose power, no lights on the display- no warning- the mechanics said it is a rod in eating failure, the Hyundai Corp refused to pay for a new engine - I was out of warranty for a high mileage - 122K.
2019 Hyundai Kona
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Kona years
Owner complaints for the 2019 Hyundai Kona are substantially higher than the model-year median of 74.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Kona 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
58 reports with mileage · 132 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.
- Engine. Review the 131 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Engine complaints
131 reportsThe contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle lost motive power. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated there were abnormal sounds coming from the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact's daughter w…
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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle lost motive power. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated there were abnormal sounds coming from the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact's daughter was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the crankshaft had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the crankshaft had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that the vehicle had failed to start after several attempts. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the mechanic informed the contact that the engine oil was 4 quarts low;…
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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that the vehicle had failed to start after several attempts. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the mechanic informed the contact that the engine oil was 4 quarts low; however, the contact stated that an oil change had recently been performed on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine). The dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the recall, and the vehicle was not covered under an extended warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 137,578.
On Christmas, Wednesday 25, 2024, my husband and son were in the car with the husband's driving and they heard a knocking sound as if going from the engine, and the car was losing power; there was no the "check engine sign" but it was remembered that few days before that there was the oil lamp sign lighting up for seconds and t…
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On Christmas, Wednesday 25, 2024, my husband and son were in the car with the husband's driving and they heard a knocking sound as if going from the engine, and the car was losing power; there was no the "check engine sign" but it was remembered that few days before that there was the oil lamp sign lighting up for seconds and then disappearing, and also, the blind spot signal not working. So, we brought the car to our local mechanic, and he inspected the engine and said that the left back cylinder is broken. I called the Hyundai corporation and they advised to bring the car to the Hyundai repair shop- the car was then inspected in the shop - found some " lower rod bearing failure" but the Hyundai denied a Goodwill claim because of some maintenance neglect which has not been true - they had all our oil change receipts - I am the original owner - bought the car in finance and overall paid it off in 5 years - the car cost me 30K brand new- we were changing oil as soon as the message for the need to change oil would come up - every 5 - 5.5 K miles, all the records have been sent to the corporation, they have just said " neglect" out of the blue...They have denied the Goodwill engine replacement based on that falsely stated "neglect." I see there have been recalls for the oil ring piston issues in Konas including 2019 - for the engines 2.0L Nu MPI- the cylinders would start knocking from some overheat of the ring. Our engine is 1.6 GTI - but the engines are related, and our problem seems to be the same as in that 2.0L Nu MPI engine. Please, look for the similar cases for those Kona GTI Turbo engines for 2019- the one we have, seems that our Kona is fitting into the profile of those defected engines and the recalls like the one under the number 21V 301 203. Please, help!
My 2019 Kona seems to have the same o-rings that are in the hybrid model. It keeps stalling and losing oil consistently. This engine is no good and needs to be replaced!
It seems to be an issue with the camshaft and/or timing. It has a permanent diagnostic trouble code for p0017 and p0014 (two issues that they have claimed to have fixed twice now by replacing my engine). Due to this issue, I was stranded on the side of a busy road for multiple hours at night way back in March. This issue has bee…
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It seems to be an issue with the camshaft and/or timing. It has a permanent diagnostic trouble code for p0017 and p0014 (two issues that they have claimed to have fixed twice now by replacing my engine). Due to this issue, I was stranded on the side of a busy road for multiple hours at night way back in March. This issue has been repeatedly “fixed” but the code readers keep showing it and the check engine light has never turned off. Hyundai of Danbury has looked at it multiple times and has replaced the engine twice in an attempt to fix it. However, both times I got engines with the same issue. Both times I brought it to a Hyundai Dealership to be fixed. There was no warning when my car broke down the first time. It just stopped in the middle of a busy road. No noise or smell or smoke. Once I got it towed to Danbury Hyundai, they replaced the engine (March 3 - April 24) and it started up again but the check engine light was on. It has been replaced twice and both times the light was on. It was replaced a second time between July 3rd and October 20th. I only have one car and needed friends and family to bring me to and from work (1 hour away) every day while the dealership worked on my car. A camshaft or timing issue should not take 5 months to fix.
The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle made an abnormal knocking and clicking sound. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced engine hesitation intermittently, …
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The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle made an abnormal knocking and clicking sound. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced engine hesitation intermittently, and the failure became permanent. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive oil consumption. The contact had noticed that the oil level was significantly low, and the oil was significantly black at 500 miles after an oil change. The contact stated that on other occasions, the oil was significantly black while at the normal full. The contact stated that while his wife was driving 20 MPH uphill, the vehicle stalled and started rolling backwards. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle lost power steering and braking functionality, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The vehicle then slowly rolled back off the road and struck a small tree. The contact did not sustain any injuries. The vehicle was restarted after an hour and half. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled while driving 10 MPH on another occasion and was able to restart after 15 minutes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the fault codes were cleared; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where DTC: P0301 was retrieved. The dealer diagnosed that cylinder #1 had a misfire due to the valve cover gasket leaking oil into cylinder #1. The dealer determined that the valve cover gasket, the spark plugs, and the oil filter needed to be replaced. Additionally, the dealer recommended an engine restoration and fuel induction service. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V301000 (Engine); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
In line with NHTSA recall notice 21V301000, affecting 2019 Hyundai Kona's for piston oil ring defects, I believe the Date of Manufacture (DoM) range should be extended. Currently, the recall notice indicates vehicles manufactured between 11/2/2018 and 9/1/2020 are impacted, however my vehicle, with the indicated VIN, was manufa…
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In line with NHTSA recall notice 21V301000, affecting 2019 Hyundai Kona's for piston oil ring defects, I believe the Date of Manufacture (DoM) range should be extended. Currently, the recall notice indicates vehicles manufactured between 11/2/2018 and 9/1/2020 are impacted, however my vehicle, with the indicated VIN, was manufactured 10/31/2018, two days before the indicated start date on this recall notice. My vehicle has been experiencing many of the same indicated symptoms of the faulty piston oil ring, such as abnormal knocking/rattling from the engine during acceleration, hesitation and engine dying randomly (while in motion), and significant oil consumption (half of the engine's capacity in just 2-3K miles. Given the symptom matches and the fact that my vehicle's DoM is within 2 days of the indicated recall start point, I believe it should be included in the above mentioned recall notice.
My engine seems to have failed due to bad oil piston rings and Hyundai/ the dealership refused to look at it for that and denied my claim. Almost 3 weeks ago, my check engine light came on after (solid) after getting gas. It was running fine and I had an oil change appointment that Saturday so it should be good (I had a coupon …
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My engine seems to have failed due to bad oil piston rings and Hyundai/ the dealership refused to look at it for that and denied my claim. Almost 3 weeks ago, my check engine light came on after (solid) after getting gas. It was running fine and I had an oil change appointment that Saturday so it should be good (I had a coupon expiring, so I was taking it in like 400 miles early for it's oil change). The car started losing a little bit power throughout the week- it didn't have the get up and go it usually does. On Saturday, first thing in the morning, on my way to my 8 am oil change, my car started a little rough (it had never done that before). I drive like 5 miles, then all of a sudden my car stutters, 2 blocks later dies, it restarted fine, but made a horrible noise. I drove it the block to the oil change place and my car was completely out of oil. No oil light ever came on and I have never been less than a quart (more than acceptable) at an oil change. There was no visible oil leak in my parking spot. It was towed to the dealership and the engine is blown. There has never been any visible oil leak and I have all records on carfax imputed by the mechanics.
My vehicle starting stalling when driving at low speeds. It goes completely idle, I have to put it in park and restart the car. This happens when I am turning, have to slow down for traffic, etc. No engine light came on when this first started happening a few months ago, but now an engine light has popped on. It is available for…
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My vehicle starting stalling when driving at low speeds. It goes completely idle, I have to put it in park and restart the car. This happens when I am turning, have to slow down for traffic, etc. No engine light came on when this first started happening a few months ago, but now an engine light has popped on. It is available for inspection.
Official recalls
121V301000 · Engine
Apr 28, 2021
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Elantra, 2019-2021 Kona and Veloster vehicles equipped with 2.0L Nu MPI engines. The piston oil rings may not have been properly heat-treated, which could result in engine damage.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: A damaged engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash. In addition, oil may leak onto hot exhaust components, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine, free of charge. In addition, Hyundai will deploy Piston Ring Noise Sensing System (PNSS) software. Owner notification letters were mailed August 24, 2021. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460.
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
2DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
DP22003 · Loss Of Motive Power
Opened Sep 12, 2022 · Closed Dec 12, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a letter dated July 13, 2022, petitioning the Agency to initiate a safety defect investigation into loss of motive power allegations attributed to oil drain pan assembly failures on certain Hyundai Motor America, Inc. and Kia America, Inc. vehicles spanning Model Years (MY) 2005-2021. The Petitioners cited examples of complaints indicating that the subject vehicles were experiencing rapid loss of engine oil due to oil drain plug back outs, resulting in loss of motive power and/or catastrophic engine damage. Additional complaints were provided which alleged that the oil drain pans lack sufficient structural integrity and are susceptible to cracking. The petition itself can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI number 11481745. On September 12, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Defect Petition (DP22-003) to evaluate the Petitioners’ request. The Petitioners have provided additional complaints within four supplemental letters dated January 31, 2023, March 21, 2023, May 23, 2023, and August 4, 2023. ODI’s evaluation included the review and analysis of the complaints and supporting information submitted by the Petitioners, as well as additional complaints submitted directly to NHTSA which referenced either the oil drain plug or a crack in the oil pan. After reviewing the available data, ODI has not identified evidence that would support opening a defect investigation into the oil drain pan assemblies of the subject vehicles. Based on a review of the available information, a loss of motive power resulting from an oil drain plug back out has not occurred between the initial sale of a vehicle and the completion of its first oil change. If during an oil change service, a technician fails to remove the existing drain plug gasket before installing a new gasket, it is likely that a proper seal between the drain plug and the oil pan will not be made. An improper seal between the drain plug and oil pan could lead to the backing out on the drain plug, resulting in the sudden loss of oil while driving. Additionally, the provided examples of oil pan cracks were localized to the immediate vicinity of the oil drain plug and/or appeared to be the result of direct-contact with a tool during servicing. There is no information to support that a vehicle-based defect exists relating to the oil pan assembly, and instead the documented incidents are related to the failure to follow the proper maintenance procedures during oil change service. In October 2023, Hyundai published a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) that provided detailed instructions for oil change service on its gasoline powered vehicles, specifically highlighting the need to remove and replace the existing drain plug gasket prior to reinstalling the drain plug. After a thorough review of the material submitted by the petitioner, the information already in NHTSA's possession, and the potential risks to motor vehicle safety implicated by the petitioners' allegations, NHTSA does not believe that a formal investigation is warranted. Therefore, the petition is denied. A Federal Register Notice (FRN) further detailing NHTSA’s reasons for denial of the petition will be published. The reference numbers for the complaints to NHTSA cited by the petitioner can be found in the petition submission documents in the public file for DP22-003. To review those complaints and the additional complaints ODI added to its evaluation which are cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.
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