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2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Santa Cruz years

Owner complaints for the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz are substantially higher than the model-year median of 35.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 21 of 183 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

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.

  • Power Train. Review the 90 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 50 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 21 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

5 crash reports1 fire reports4 injury reports

Power Train complaints

90 reports
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Mileage unknown · Jun 9, 2022
Power Train

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited, 2.5T with 8-speed DCT, with 11,765 miles. This has happened 3 times in a 3 day period. Upon accelerating from a stop, there was a complete loss of power. I applied more pressure to the accelerator and still no power. It seemed like the vehicle was out-of-gear or had an engine misfire. Afte…

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2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited, 2.5T with 8-speed DCT, with 11,765 miles. This has happened 3 times in a 3 day period. Upon accelerating from a stop, there was a complete loss of power. I applied more pressure to the accelerator and still no power. It seemed like the vehicle was out-of-gear or had an engine misfire. After about 10 seconds, a puff of thick, dark smoke came out from the tailpipe and acceleration resumed as if nothing happened. Upon coming to a stop and exiting the vehicle, there was a smell of burnt rubber coming from under the hood, but I could not locate the source. There have been at least 3 other instances in the last week where there was some hesitation when accelerating from a stop (again, it felt like it was in the wrong gear or there was a misfire) but not a complete loss of power and dark smoke like in the other instances. After each of the above instances, I attached an OBDII tool to look for error codes but there were none.

NHTSA ODI #11468474

Mileage unknown · Jun 2, 2022
Power Train

Vehicle took longer to start after pressing start button. Upon leaving my driveway, vehicle struggled to accelerate, taking nearly 60 seconds to reach 55 MPH. No warning lights indicated on dash. I manually changed gears with paddle shift, which did nothing. Also changed driving mode from "smart" to "normal" to "sport" which di…

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Vehicle took longer to start after pressing start button. Upon leaving my driveway, vehicle struggled to accelerate, taking nearly 60 seconds to reach 55 MPH. No warning lights indicated on dash. I manually changed gears with paddle shift, which did nothing. Also changed driving mode from "smart" to "normal" to "sport" which did nothing. Both from exiting my driveway, and later attempting to get up to speed on the highway after a stoplight a crash could have happened as the vehicle struggled to make it into the proper lanes in time. Vehicle is only 2 weeks old, 670 miles. Vehicle was not making any unusual noises. In summary, vehicle was barely accelerating despite peddle being all the way pressed.

NHTSA ODI #11467083

Mileage unknown · May 28, 2022
EnginePower Train

The main concern is loss of power. Have non-turbo version and have no idea what is a cause of the problem. Probably is computer. Had this issue once or twice. Switched to Normal mode from Smart.

NHTSA ODI #11466555

Mileage unknown · May 6, 2022
Power Train

On March 31, 2022 my Hyundai Santa Cruz SEL Premium flashed a warning to pull over immediately. The engine lost power. I had the gas pedal floored but it wouldn't move. I stopped in the middle of the road, shut the car off and turned it on again 3 times before getting the car to drive. The car sent an email saying it was a tran…

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On March 31, 2022 my Hyundai Santa Cruz SEL Premium flashed a warning to pull over immediately. The engine lost power. I had the gas pedal floored but it wouldn't move. I stopped in the middle of the road, shut the car off and turned it on again 3 times before getting the car to drive. The car sent an email saying it was a transmission problem. I called the dealership and had it picked up. They determined it was a bad chip on a pump for the transmission. Three weeks later, after numerous attempts to get an update, the dealership told me the Hyundai Corporation wouldn't allow the pump to be replaced. The dealership has to replace the entire transmission. The estimated date of arrival to California is June 16th! Then it will have to be shipped to Hawaii. This is infuriating. I leased the car 10/16/21 and it only has 2799 miles on it.

NHTSA ODI #11463574

Mileage unknown · Apr 24, 2022
Electrical SystemPower Train

I purchased a 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz, Limited edition. The vehicle went into neutral while driving on a busy highway. There was no forward or reverse gear operation. I had to call the local police to block off the lane till a tow truck arrived. After 60 days the dealer finally located the problem. A ground wire to the transmis…

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I purchased a 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz, Limited edition. The vehicle went into neutral while driving on a busy highway. There was no forward or reverse gear operation. I had to call the local police to block off the lane till a tow truck arrived. After 60 days the dealer finally located the problem. A ground wire to the transmission control module came loose and caused the vehicle transmission to fail. The ground ID Number was GE204 and is located inside the left front fender. This problem took 2800 miles to occur. I feel one ground connection should not cause this type of safety issue.

NHTSA ODI #11461935

Mileage unknown · Apr 19, 2022
Power Train

I was driving in a residential area, and my vehicle indicated that I should pull over immediately. During that time, the shifting was hindered and top speed was limited (below posted speeds). When I stopped, my vehicle would not move forward or backward again. This is the second time that this vehicle has had an issue where i…

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I was driving in a residential area, and my vehicle indicated that I should pull over immediately. During that time, the shifting was hindered and top speed was limited (below posted speeds). When I stopped, my vehicle would not move forward or backward again. This is the second time that this vehicle has had an issue where it would not shift or be able to achieve posted speed (the first time happened on an interstate highway and the top speed was about 40 miles per hour). This failure in being able to maintain appropriate speed and also not moving forward again after stopping is very concerning when in traffic. My vehicle was inspected, the high pressure pump was indicated to be at fault, and the transmission (housing the pump) was replaced.

NHTSA ODI #11461372

Mileage unknown · Mar 31, 2022
Power Train

This car only has 150 miles on it. At 50 miles an hour the transmission refused to shift & the car RPMs surged with a loss of power. It remained at 5000 rpms with my fott OFF the accelerator. I then needed to manually shift out of automatic it to get it to drop the RPMS start driving again. It was dangerous & another person migh…

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This car only has 150 miles on it. At 50 miles an hour the transmission refused to shift & the car RPMs surged with a loss of power. It remained at 5000 rpms with my fott OFF the accelerator. I then needed to manually shift out of automatic it to get it to drop the RPMS start driving again. It was dangerous & another person might not have known how to get going again & caused a chain reaction accident at highway speeds.

NHTSA ODI #11459153

1,200 miles · Feb 17, 2022
Power Train

The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz. The contact stated that while accelerating from a complete stop, the RPM revved up; however, the vehicle would not exceed 25 MPH. The contact exited the highway and veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that as he turned off and restarted the vehicle, he was able to drive …

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The contact owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz. The contact stated that while accelerating from a complete stop, the RPM revved up; however, the vehicle would not exceed 25 MPH. The contact exited the highway and veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that as he turned off and restarted the vehicle, he was able to drive the vehicle with no further issues. The dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 1,200.

NHTSA ODI #11452576

Mileage unknown · Feb 17, 2022
Power TrainUnknown Or OtherVehicle Speed Control

As other owners have reported, there is an issue that happens, seemingly at random, when accelerating from a stop. The vehicle feels as if it’s stuck in too high of a gear and accelerates very slowly despite high RPMs. The maximum speed I could achieve was 16 MPH after keeping the gas pedal nearly floored for 3-5 seconds, which …

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As other owners have reported, there is an issue that happens, seemingly at random, when accelerating from a stop. The vehicle feels as if it’s stuck in too high of a gear and accelerates very slowly despite high RPMs. The maximum speed I could achieve was 16 MPH after keeping the gas pedal nearly floored for 3-5 seconds, which normally would have had me to nearly 60 MPH. This happened to me in rush hour city traffic on a busy street with no shoulder. The only apparent solution is to shut off the vehicle and restart it, at which time the problem resolves itself and normal operation is resumed. In my case this caused a brief traffic backup that extended through the intersection of two major arterial streets and lots of upset drivers behind me. This has only happened once (occurred on 2/10/22) since purchasing the vehicle new on 12/28/21 and having driven it approximately 1,100 miles.

NHTSA ODI #11452489

Mileage unknown · Feb 17, 2022
Power Train

When taking off from a stand still the Santa Cruz will hesitate.. Not all the time but it's usually when you need to get into traffic... It will lose power and finally take off...

NHTSA ODI #11452475

Official recalls

4

23V181000 · Trailer Hitches

Mar 17, 2023

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2019-2023 Santa Fe, 2021-2023 Santa Fe HEV, 2022-2023 Santa Fe Plug-in HEV and Santa Cruz vehicles potentially equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Hyundai dealership. Water accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, which can result in a fire.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the remedy is completed. Dealers will install a new fuse and wire extension kit as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed starting May 16, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 244. This recall is an expansion of previous recall number 22V-633.

23V038000 · Structure:body:roof And Pillars; Structure:critical Fasteners

Jan 31, 2023

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Tucson and 2022-2023 Santa Cruz vehicles. The roof moldings may detach.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A detached roof molding could become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace, or secure the roof moldings, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 30, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 241.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Structure:critical Fasteners

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Tucson and 2022-2023 Santa Cruz vehicles. The roof moldings may detach.

Consequence: A detached roof molding could become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace, or secure the roof moldings, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 30, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 241.

Structure:body:roof And Pillars

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Tucson and 2022-2023 Santa Cruz vehicles. The roof moldings may detach.

Consequence: A detached roof molding could become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace, or secure the roof moldings, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 30, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 241.

22V746000 · Power Train:automatic Transmission

Oct 6, 2022

Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Santa Fe, Sonata, Veloster N, 2022 Santa Cruz, Elantra N, and Kona N vehicles. The vehicle's "fail-safe" limited-mobility drive mode may be impaired, when prompted by a transmission oil pump malfunction, which can result in a complete loss of drive power.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Loss of drive power increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the transmission, as necessary. Dealers will also update the transmission control unit software. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 10, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 236.

22V197000 · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline:turbo/supercharger; Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:oil/lubrication:pipes, Hoses, And Fittings

Mar 28, 2022

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Santa Fe and Santa Cruz vehicles. The oil supply pipe to the turbocharger may crack, which could result in an oil leak in the engine compartment.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An oil leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components, can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the turbocharger oil supply pipe, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall 222.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:oil/lubrication:pipes, Hoses, And Fittings

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Santa Fe and Santa Cruz vehicles. The oil supply pipe to the turbocharger may crack, which could result in an oil leak in the engine compartment.

Consequence: An oil leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components, can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the turbocharger oil supply pipe, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall 222.

Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline:turbo/supercharger

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Santa Fe and Santa Cruz vehicles. The oil supply pipe to the turbocharger may crack, which could result in an oil leak in the engine compartment.

Consequence: An oil leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components, can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the turbocharger oil supply pipe, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 26, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall 222.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.