2002 HYUNDAI ELANTRA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 334 complaints · 6 recalls
Most-reported system: SUSPENSION (81 complaints · 24.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 55
  • Fires 4
  • Injuries 37
  • Deaths 2
Compare with 2001 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution SUSPENSION appears in 81 of 334 owner complaints (24.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. SUSPENSION: 81 complaints, 24.3% of reports SUSPENSION 81 · 24.3% · 4 crash reports 1 fire reports AIR BAGS: 58 complaints, 17.4% of reports AIR BAGS 58 · 17.4% · 28 crash reports 1 fire reports FUEL SYSTEM: 27 complaints, 8.1% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 27 · 8.1% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 26 complaints, 7.8% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 26 · 7.8% · 7 crash reports STRUCTURE: 19 complaints, 5.7% of reports STRUCTURE 19 · 5.7% EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 18 complaints, 5.4% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 18 · 5.4% POWER TRAIN: 16 complaints, 4.8% of reports POWER TRAIN 16 · 4.8% · 2 crash reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 15 complaints, 4.5% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 15 · 4.5% · 4 crash reports SEAT BELTS: 12 complaints, 3.6% of reports SEAT BELTS 12 · 3.6% · 4 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 219 complaints, 65.6% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 219 · 65.6% · 38 crash reports 3 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
SUSPENSION 81 24.3% 4 crashes · 1 fires
AIR BAGS 58 17.4% 28 crashes · 1 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 27 8.1% 1 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 26 7.8% 7 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 19 5.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 18 5.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 16 4.8% 2 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 15 4.5% 4 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 12 3.6% 4 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 219 65.6% 38 crashes · 3 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2001; the first recall shown was reported in Jul 2003. 2001-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2002-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2002-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2003-Q2: 13 owner reports 13 2003-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2003-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2004-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2004-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2004-Q3: 11 owner reports 11 2004-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2005-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2005-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2006-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2006-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2006-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2007-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2008-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2008-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2008-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2009-Q1: 14 owner reports 14 2009-Q2: 14 owner reports 14 2009-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2009-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2010-Q1: 16 owner reports 16 2010-Q2: 21 owner reports 21 2010-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2010-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2011-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2011-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2012-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2012-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2013-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2013-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2013-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2014-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2014-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2015-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2015-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2016-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 2001 Apr 2020 Recall campaign 03V257000 ◆ Recall campaign 03V257000 Recall campaign 03V496000 ◆ Recall campaign 03V496000 Recall campaign 04V178000 ◆ Recall campaign 04V178000 Recall campaign 04V369000 ◆ Recall campaign 04V369000 Recall campaign 08V533000 ◆ Recall campaign 08V533000 Recall campaign 09V125000 ◆ Recall campaign 09V125000 Investigation PE08017 ● Investigation PE08017 Investigation EA08012 ● Investigation EA08012 Investigation PE09011 ● Investigation PE09011
  • Campaign 03V257000 was reported 609 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 03V496000 was reported 743 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 04V178000 was reported 486 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 04V369000 was reported 594 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 08V533000 was reported 2,520 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 09V125000 was reported 2,124 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2001-Q4 Owner reports 3
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 5
2002-Q3 Owner reports 5
2002-Q4 Owner reports 5
2003-Q1 Owner reports 8
2003-Q2 Owner reports 13
2003-Q3 Owner reports 8
2003-Q4 Owner reports 10
2004-Q1 Owner reports 13
2004-Q2 Owner reports 5
2004-Q3 Owner reports 11
2004-Q4 Owner reports 4
2005-Q1 Owner reports 4
2005-Q2 Owner reports 3
2005-Q3 Owner reports 7
2005-Q4 Owner reports 6
2006-Q1 Owner reports 6
2006-Q2 Owner reports 3
2006-Q3 Owner reports 6
2006-Q4 Owner reports 2
2007-Q1 Owner reports 5
2007-Q2 Owner reports 3
2007-Q3 Owner reports 1
2007-Q4 Owner reports 2
2008-Q1 Owner reports 7
2008-Q2 Owner reports 1
2008-Q3 Owner reports 10
2008-Q4 Owner reports 4
2009-Q1 Owner reports 14
2009-Q2 Owner reports 14
2009-Q3 Owner reports 7
2009-Q4 Owner reports 5
2010-Q1 Owner reports 16
2010-Q2 Owner reports 21
2010-Q3 Owner reports 8
2010-Q4 Owner reports 5
2011-Q1 Owner reports 5
2011-Q2 Owner reports 4
2011-Q3 Owner reports 4
2011-Q4 Owner reports 5
2012-Q1 Owner reports 6
2012-Q2 Owner reports 1
2012-Q3 Owner reports 2
2012-Q4 Owner reports 4
2013-Q1 Owner reports 3
2013-Q2 Owner reports 4
2013-Q3 Owner reports 2
2014-Q1 Owner reports 2
2014-Q2 Owner reports 5
2014-Q3 Owner reports 4
2014-Q4 Owner reports 4
2015-Q1 Owner reports 4
2015-Q2 Owner reports 1
2015-Q3 Owner reports 3
2015-Q4 Owner reports 6
2016-Q1 Owner reports 1
2016-Q2 Owner reports 3
2016-Q3 Owner reports 2
2016-Q4 Owner reports 1
2017-Q2 Owner reports 1
2017-Q3 Owner reports 1
2017-Q4 Owner reports 1
2018-Q4 Owner reports 1
2019-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 03V257000
Recall campaign 1 03V496000
Recall campaign 1 04V178000
Recall campaign 1 04V369000
Recall campaign 1 08V533000
Recall campaign 1 09V125000
Defect investigation 1 PE08017
Defect investigation 1 EA08012
Defect investigation 1 PE09011
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (6)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 03V257000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    FLUID LEAKAGE COULD RESULT IN REDUCED BRAKING CAPABILITY INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPOSITION THE REAR BRAKE TUBES SO THEY DO NOT CONTACT THE MOUNTING BRACKETS, INSTALL BRAKE TUBE CLIPS TO CONTROL THE LOCATION OF THE REAR BRAKE TUBES, AND APPLY ANTI-CORROSION MATERIAL TO THE TUBES IN THE AREAS WHERE CONTACT WITH THE MOUNTING BRACKETS MAY HAVE OCCURRED. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON OCTOBER 13, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 03V496000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    CONTACT BETWEEN THE REAR BRAKE TUBES AND THE STEERING GEARBOX MOUNTING BRACKETS MAY RESULT IN REAR BRAKE TUBE WEAR AND CORROSION, INCREASING THE RISK OF BRAKE FLUID LEAKAGE. BRAKE FLUID LEAKAGE COULD RESULT IN REDUCED BRAKING CAPABILITY, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPOSITION THE REAR BRAKE TUBES, INSTALL BRAKE TUBE CLIPS, AND APPLY ANTI-CORROSION MATERIAL TO THE REAR BRAKE TUBES. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN JANUARY 22, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 04V178000

    Report date
    Component:
    FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
    Consequence:
    FUEL SPILLAGE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE MAY RESULT IN A FIRE.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ADDITIONAL FUEL TANK ASSEMBLY VALVE. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON JUNE 30, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 04V369000

    Report date
    Component:
    FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
    Consequence:
    FUEL SPILLAGE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE MAY RESULT IN A FIRE.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ADDITIONAL FUEL TANK ASSEMBLY VALVE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 5, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI DE PUERTO RICO AT 1-800-981-0188.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 08V533000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    THIS CONDITION ONLY RELATES TO THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SEAT MOUNTED SIDE IMPACT AIR BAGS AND MAY PREVENT SEAT MOUNTED SIDE IMPACT AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT DURING A CRASH WHERE SUCH DEPLOYMENT SHOULD OCCUR. NON-DEPLOYMENT OF THE SRS AIR BAGS MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF INJURY TO THE DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER UNDER CERTAIN CRASH CONDITIONS.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSTALL NEW SIDE IMPACT AIR BAG WIRING HARNESS CONNECTOR CLIPS AND REVISED SIDE IMPACT AIR BAG WIRING HARNESS ATTACHMENTS UNDER THE DRIVER'S AND FRONT PASSENGER'S SEATS. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 2008, AND WILL BE SENT OUT IN SIX MAILINGS. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  6. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09V125000

    Report date
    Component:
    SUSPENSION
    Consequence:
    THE FRACTURING OF THE CONTROL ARM COULD AN OWNER'S CONTROL OVER THEIR VEHICLE THAT MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS FOR CORROSION DAMAGE. IF SPECIFIED LEVELS OF INTERNAL CORROSION DAMAGE ARE FOUND, THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS WILL BE REPLACED WITH NEW FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS INCORPORATING ADDITIONAL HOLES IN THE UPPER AND LOWER PANELS. IF THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS DO NOT REQUIRE REPLACEMENT, THE DEALER WILL ADD DRAINAGE HOLES TO THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS AND WILL TREAT THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS WITH RUST-PROOFING MATERIALS TO ARREST THE INTERNAL CORROSION PROCESS. THESE PROCEDURES WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 17, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE HYUNDAI CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 334 complaints · page 1 of 14

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources