2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

I am submitting a second and more urgent safety complaint regarding the Driver Monitoring and Driver Assistance systems in my vehicle. I previously reported this same core defect: the system falsely fails to recognize my face, sounds repeated warnings, and disables driving assistance while the vehicle is moving. Despite that prior complaint, the defect remains, and the seriousness of the danger has clearly not been recognized or addressed. This defect has now placed my life in immediate danger. While I was driving, the system falsely determined that it could not properly see my face. It sounded repeated warnings and then abruptly disabled driving assistance. That sudden withdrawal of assistance created a near-crash situation. I was attentive and was not experiencing a medical emergency. The danger was created by the system’s false detection and defective response. A safety system should reduce danger. This system detected a supposed problem and made the situation more dangerous by removing the assistance that was helping keep the vehicle under control. Had this occurred beside a concrete barrier, near stopped traffic, in a construction zone, on a curve, or next to a large truck, the result could have been a fatal collision. I could have been killed because of this system defect. When a driver cannot be verified, the vehicle should maintain lane control, reduce speed, activate hazard warnings, and perform a controlled safe stop. It should never abruptly withdraw assistance and create a more dangerous condition. I request that NHTSA investigate why a previously reported life-threatening defect remains unresolved and require Hyundai to correct this system logic before someone is seriously injured or killed.

I own a 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe that was purchased on 08/15/2025. The first malfunction occurred on 08/25/2025, only days after purchase, and the vehicle has experienced repeated safety-related issues since then. The vehicle has repeatedly displayed false Forward Collision Warning alerts, Blind Spot Warning failures, Park/Neutral errors, and intermittent disabling of safety features. The most serious incident occurred when the vehicle unexpectedly entered “Limit 20 MPH” mode while I was pulling into active traffic with my toddler in the vehicle, limiting acceleration and creating a safety risk. I have also experienced false collision alerts while parked and after the vehicle was shut off. The vehicle has been taken to the dealership multiple times for diagnosis and repair attempts. Some issues were duplicated by dealership personnel, while other visits were documented as “could not duplicate.” A front ultrasonic sensor was replaced, but the vehicle continued experiencing safety-related concerns afterward. During the repair process, I was informed and observed that dealership personnel appeared limited in what repair actions could be taken after consulting Hyundai through their diagnostic system. I was also informed that Hyundai influenced what could be included on service reports and that dealership personnel were instructed to “print the book” rather than fully document observed concerns. I believe this may have affected repair efforts and documentation of ongoing issues. The vehicle has been out of service for extended periods and the issues continue despite repeated repair attempts. Due to the ongoing malfunctions and inconsistent operation of the safety systems, I no longer feel safe driving the vehicle because I am concerned it may not function properly during a real emergency situation. Attached are photos of various dashboard errors and warning messages that occurred during these incidents to document the alerts and malfunctions experienced.

Dear NHTSA Team, My car was in a minor accident Last. After that, the repair shop replaced my bumper and front camera. Don Franklin Somerset Hyundai performed a calibration on my new radar. They calibrated it six times, but there are still many issues with the HDA driving system. 1. False Dual-Side Warning When a vehicle is present only on the right side, the vehicle camera system incorrectly detects vehicles on both the left and right sides. In reality, there is no vehicle on the left side. In this scenario, both the radar warning and the camera detection are incorrect. 2. Wrong-Side Warning In some cases, when a vehicle approaches from the left rear, no warning is issued on the left side, while a warning is incorrectly displayed on the right side. In this scenario, both the radar warning and the camera detection are incorrect. 3. False Warning During Smart Driving While driving on the highway using the smart driving function, when the vehicle is required to turn left or right, the system may generate a false dual-side warning. As a result, the vehicle aborts the intended left or right turn and continues driving in the center of the lane. In this scenario, both the radar warning and the camera detection are incorrect. 4. while driving manually (without HDA engaged) or parking, the vehicle shows left-side or right-side collision warnings without clear cause. I reported these issues to Hyundai USA approximately three weeks ago. I was instructed to bring the vehicle to the dealership for inspection. However, during my recent visit, the dealership representative only reviewed the videos I provided and concluded that no issues were present, without conducting a physical inspection or test drive of the vehicle. Given the ongoing safety concerns and lack of proper diagnosis or resolution, I am submitting this complaint for your review and assistance. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Thanks, Best Regards, [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5

Consistently after 10-20 minutes of driving with steering assist or immediately upon driving on cold days (under 50F), the steering wheel generates loud squeaking noises with the steering wheel stiffening and becoming harder to turn, creating a potential safety issue. The change is gradual but required a full stop of the car, shutdown, and restart to remedy. This issue has persisted for months and other Hyundai owners have shared the issue on various forums with Hyundai’s solution to replace the full steering column in some instances. Many owners seem to not be able to get help as dealers are not able to easily replicate this issue without lengthy drives.