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2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 23.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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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

Limited mileage data: 2 of 53 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.

  • Electrical System. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 21 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

1 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports

Electrical System complaints

25 reports
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Mileage unknown · Apr 11, 2024
Electrical System

the car keeps randomly dying (not during driving "yet") it happens at least once or twice a week of where i go to ride my car and it is completely dead, i have to unlock the door using the key fob manually and push the "Reset 12v battery button" inside the car. i have tried to have Hyundai service repair the issue or at least …

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the car keeps randomly dying (not during driving "yet") it happens at least once or twice a week of where i go to ride my car and it is completely dead, i have to unlock the door using the key fob manually and push the "Reset 12v battery button" inside the car. i have tried to have Hyundai service repair the issue or at least tell me what's wrong but no hope as they can never replicate the problem. I am seeing alot of users posting online on numerous web forms (reddit,facebook..etc) that they are having the same exact issue as me for the same exact model of my car, With also no help from the dealer on the matter. This must be a defect at some point and would greatly appreciate if NHTSA can help push this issue to the dealer

NHTSA ODI #11582461

Mileage unknown · Mar 7, 2024
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other

The Battery dies randomly (like I have to open the car with they physical key to access the car dead) there isn't a pattern. I have taken it to the dealership and they can't diagnose it because they cant replicate the issue and say nothing is wrong. Sometimes the car dies while I'm INSIDE and just having lunch while the car is o…

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The Battery dies randomly (like I have to open the car with they physical key to access the car dead) there isn't a pattern. I have taken it to the dealership and they can't diagnose it because they cant replicate the issue and say nothing is wrong. Sometimes the car dies while I'm INSIDE and just having lunch while the car is off.

NHTSA ODI #11575925

Mileage unknown · Dec 19, 2023
Electrical SystemForward Collision Avoidance

The vehicle has been turning completely off after use for over a year now. At first it would happen every now and then at the beginning and all you'd have to do was restart the car manually. Now every time the car is turned off it needs to be restarted manually now. The car will also shut itself off while you are driving. It w…

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The vehicle has been turning completely off after use for over a year now. At first it would happen every now and then at the beginning and all you'd have to do was restart the car manually. Now every time the car is turned off it needs to be restarted manually now. The car will also shut itself off while you are driving. It will tell you something is wrong and then won't let you get over 15-20 MPH. If you are on a neighborhood, it's less dangerous for this to happen where you can pull over and turn off the car and restart it. But I have seen other post that they've started to malfunction on the freeway and highways before. My car is a 2021, but recently I've seen 2023 models are doing this as well. I know some people on the internet have gotten their car fixed by replacing a back logged battery. It took some people over a year to get it diagnosed correctly and 6 more months to get a new battery. I assume this is also what is wrong with my vehicle. It is in the shop right now, but we have not gotten an answer back even htough it's been there for 10 days. The car app has also indicated that the car has not been turned on since we left it there.

NHTSA ODI #11560873

Mileage unknown · Oct 14, 2023
Electrical SystemPower Train

My 2021 Sonata Hybrid Limited has been in the shop for over 3 months. At least 4 times while driving on city streets, I'd receive an error stating problem with hybrid system please turn off vehicle. Car would go into limp mode giving me just enough power to pull off to the side of the road (if possible), then completely shutdown…

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My 2021 Sonata Hybrid Limited has been in the shop for over 3 months. At least 4 times while driving on city streets, I'd receive an error stating problem with hybrid system please turn off vehicle. Car would go into limp mode giving me just enough power to pull off to the side of the road (if possible), then completely shutdown. Fix action is to hit jumpstart button to get the power back to the vehicle in order to power it on again. After those issues battery constantly died and I had to use the physical key to open the door and hit the jumpstart button to get power. Dealer (Hyundai Jim Click East, Tucson, AZ) couldn't find an issue initially stating they could not replicate what I was experiencing. But eventually my patience ran thin and they finally identified a voltage error while in the service department. The rep informed me that the issue lies with the 12v battery which is integrated into the hybrid battery (stupid design). Service tech had to order a 12v battery from Korea (after dismantling the hybrid battery and sending the pics to Hyundai for approval). This was [XXX]. Still waiting on the parts, no updates at this time. There was another sonata hybrid limited like mine also at the dealership for the same issue. This vehicle had been there since June. They were able to get a new battery for that vehicle, however after a week the same issues reoccurred. I've noticed on Reddit forums that many 2021-2022 sonata hybrid limited owners have been experiencing the same issue, with the same long wait times from Hyundai HQ regarding a solution. At this point I believe it'd be best to open an investigation as there it's been difficult for the dealership and the owners to get any answers from Hyundai regarding this issue. I'd also suggest a recall for this vehicle as it's clearly a widespread problem and hopefully that will give Hyundai the kick in the ass needed to actually take this seriously. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI #11549899

Mileage unknown · Oct 12, 2021
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other

On Wednesday, October 6th, I was driving full speed (65mph) on a major highway. Multiple lights on the dashboard came on. The LCD display screen for music, apps, etc. went black. More lights came on and others went off on the dash display. I let off the accelerator and steered the car. The fuel efficiency was wilding jumping bac…

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On Wednesday, October 6th, I was driving full speed (65mph) on a major highway. Multiple lights on the dashboard came on. The LCD display screen for music, apps, etc. went black. More lights came on and others went off on the dash display. I let off the accelerator and steered the car. The fuel efficiency was wilding jumping back and forth. Soon enough, all the lights went back off, but the mileage gauge (fuel efficiency) continued to jump wildly. The brakes seemed to respond differently- almost as if there was a delay between me pressing the brake and the brakes catching. When I needed to accelerate, the car seemed to be having trouble switching between the electric and gas motors. I was able to drive to a safe location and shut the car off. This was terrifying, as the car's computer system or electrical system clearly failed, even if temporarily. The car was taken to the dealership immediately. The car's mileage is under 4, 500 miles and was purchased in February 2021. There have been other small issues but never anything like this. The display screen has gone black before a few times, my cell phone won't connect (even manually and it's properly connected, working seamlessly other times). In those cases, I shut the care off and restarted it to fix the issue. However, this new incident is terrifying and unacceptable. Including photos taken that show impossible fuel efficiency as only evidence I could safely capture.

NHTSA ODI #11436473

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

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

1

DP22005 · 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.