2022 Hyundai Santa Fe

Vehicle experienced a spontaneous interior fire while parked and turned off. No collision, no injuries. Fire originated under the driver-side lower dash/kick panel near the fuse/BCM wiring, then spread into the driver door harness/trim. Exterior body and engine bay show no impact or external origin. Details: Heavy charring/melt concentrated at lower dash/junction area with upward/sideways spread along wiring paths; interior plastics, dash switches, and door wiring damaged. Vehicle was unoccupied. Aftermarket: No hardwired accessories in the origin zone. A dashcam was powered via center console USB/12V with a small battery pack (not connected to the under-dash fuse block). Status: Towed to [Dealer, City/State]; Hyundai Corporate Case #XXX opened. Insurance comprehensive fire claim opened; origin-and-cause inspection pending. Request: NHTSA investigation into potential electrical/wiring defect in driver lower dash/door-harness area on this model/year; safety risk of parked, unattended fires. Photos/videos available. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Bought Car in 2022 when COVID was still a problem. I had problems with the LED screen on the dash turning off. It did come back after about 10-15 minutes. I had to pull over to the side of the road in the meantime. I brought my car in and no problem was found. I was told that there was no way they could order a $6,000 part if they could not reproduce the problem. I still have had this problem periodically, but it does not last as long. This can be a safety risk when the screen goes out when driving. My check engine light has gone off many time in the 3 yrs and 7 months of me owning the vehicle. I am asked if the light is blinking when this occurs. If I said 'no', I was told 'then you don't have to worry'. I had my car in to evaluate the engine light on, and was told not to worry that no code showed up (I did not get a service record if they didn't find any thing, despite me asking). The very next day I was stranded on a busy Hwy. My car was towed to the shop. I barely got off the Hwy as one of my fuel injectors was bad. I was 45 min from my home and the check engine light went on. I started driving home and called the service dept. I was told that as long as the light was not blinking, it would be ok, and I tomorrow I should call for an appt if it is still on. My car started to act up when I was nearing my home, but it was drivable. The next morning the light was still on. I did not feel safe driving it around and felt it was another fuel injector. I was driving my car to the shop and the car was slowing down a little at a time. By the time I was about 1/2 mile from the shop, my car was only going 14 miles per hour. I was driving on the side of the hwy with my flashing lights on. Very unsafe. I know that I have a lemon for a car, but not taken seriously, that is a PROBLEM. I have had many more times that my engine light was on and would bring it in for an evaluation. Sometimes things were found, other times not. I am concerned about that lack of concern.

The horns stopped working, and this is a safety item since it’s the only way to notify another vehicle or pedestrian if they will be hit by my car. Another day, a car came out of the parking lot and almost hit my car. I was only able to avoid that accident because I reversed quickly. I took my car to the dealership, and it was confirmed that the horns are not working. To fix this issue, I need to replace them. But since my car is out of warranty, I will need to pay for this service. On 07/14/2025, I called Hyundai (Case number 4117-7538) to request the application of an extended warranty that they started to offer for the 2021-2025 model year Elantra (Z03). Since my car is the 2022 model year Santa Fe, they did not accept my request. I noticed that on several websites, Hyundai car owners are complaining about their car horns. Just the fact that Hyundai started to provide an extended warranty for a different model, but in the same year range as my car, confirms that they are having issues with this part. I just know about this extended warranty because I also have an 2024 elantra hybrid, that is covered by it (as you can see on the uploaded letter).

On [XXX] at [XXX], my [XXX] daughter was locked inside my 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe (VIN: [XXX] ) while holding the Smart Key fob in the back seat. She pressed the lock button, and the vehicle completely locked — with her and the key fob still inside. This violates the Smart Key safety feature described in Hyundai’s owner’s manual, which says the car should not lock if the key is inside. That system failed. There were no warning lights or alerts. I had no way to unlock the doors. I experienced a full panic attack. I feared my child could die from heat exposure. I was forced to break the rear window to rescue her. I was terrified the glass might injure her, but I had no choice. Since then, I have been emotionally traumatized and avoid driving out of fear it will happen again. To my knowledge, this has not yet been inspected by a dealer or Hyundai. I am reporting this because the Smart Key locking system failed in a dangerous way that put my child’s life at risk. This system should be investigated for defect. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The reverse camera system did not come on when reversing. It could lead to someone like a child getting hurt if they’re walking behind the vehicle. The problem was reproduced by the dealer and serviced for this issue. They confirmed it was the same problem as the recall. There is a recall for 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe’s that were manufactured in the Alabama plant. This is where my car was manufactured. For some reason, it was not included in the VINs that were recalled.

I have a 2022 santa fe xrt within the 1st yr of owing in 2022 the horn stopped working in the winter. Went to dealership told it was known issue they replaced it. A few months later into following year still winter went out again they fixed again stating my car has 2 horns and both failed. So far 2022 and 2023 2 times. Fast forward to earlier in 2024 beginning of year horn failed again took to dealer expressed my concern of this is a safety and inconvenience issue they apologized but no recall yet. Now it's almost 2025 and I will be taking my car back to the dealership this weekend for yet another time due to the horn not working at all. I've found out my horn has not worked due to driving and a vehicle almost colliding into my lane and went to honk horn and nothing. A separate time a person has cut out in front of me almost causing an accident and all I could do is to lock up my breaks and swerve hope they see me and don't get hit could not beep to warn them. I bought the car brand new in 2022 feb and I have had the horn replaced 4 to 5 times and they still are staying no recall this is ridiculous.