2003 HYUNDAI SONATA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 196 complaints · 6 recalls
Most-reported system: AIR BAGS (38 complaints · 19.4%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 17
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 45
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2002 →
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 AIR BAGS appears in 38 of 196 owner complaints (19.4%) in this vehicle snapshot. AIR BAGS: 38 complaints, 19.4% of reports AIR BAGS 38 · 19.4% · 10 crash reports STRUCTURE: 33 complaints, 16.8% of reports STRUCTURE 33 · 16.8% · 2 crash reports ENGINE: 16 complaints, 8.2% of reports ENGINE 16 · 8.2% · 1 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 15 complaints, 7.7% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 · 7.7% FUEL SYSTEM: 15 complaints, 7.7% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 15 · 7.7% · 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 11 complaints, 5.6% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 11 · 5.6% · 1 crash reports SUSPENSION: 10 complaints, 5.1% of reports SUSPENSION 10 · 5.1% POWER TRAIN: 9 complaints, 4.6% of reports POWER TRAIN 9 · 4.6% STEERING: 7 complaints, 3.6% of reports STEERING 7 · 3.6% · 1 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 95 complaints, 48.5% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 95 · 48.5% · 8 crash reports 2 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)
AIR BAGS 38 19.4% 10 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 33 16.8% 2 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 16 8.2% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 7.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 15 7.7% 0 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 11 5.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 10 5.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 9 4.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 7 3.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 95 48.5% 8 crashes · 2 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 2002; the first recall shown was reported in Mar 2003. 2002-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2003-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2003-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2004-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2004-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2004-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2004-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2005-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2006-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2007-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2008-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2009-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2009-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2010-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2010-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2010-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2011-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2011-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2012-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2012-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2013-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2014-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2014-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2015-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2017-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2026-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 2002 Apr 2026 Recall campaign 03V097000 ◆ Recall campaign 03V097000 Recall campaign 04V178000 ◆ Recall campaign 04V178000 Recall campaign 04V369000 ◆ Recall campaign 04V369000 Recall campaign 09V124000 ◆ Recall campaign 09V124000 Recall campaign 09V171000 ◆ Recall campaign 09V171000 Recall campaign 09V317000 ◆ Recall campaign 09V317000 Investigation PE05059 ● Investigation PE05059 Investigation EA08016 ● Investigation EA08016 Investigation PE08071 ● Investigation PE08071
  • Campaign 04V369000 was reported 3 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 09V171000 was reported 2,194 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 09V317000 was reported 2,272 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2002-Q4 Owner reports 2
2003-Q2 Owner reports 3
2003-Q3 Owner reports 4
2003-Q4 Owner reports 7
2004-Q1 Owner reports 7
2004-Q2 Owner reports 4
2004-Q3 Owner reports 6
2004-Q4 Owner reports 4
2005-Q2 Owner reports 4
2005-Q3 Owner reports 5
2005-Q4 Owner reports 4
2006-Q1 Owner reports 4
2006-Q2 Owner reports 2
2006-Q3 Owner reports 3
2006-Q4 Owner reports 4
2007-Q1 Owner reports 2
2007-Q2 Owner reports 1
2007-Q3 Owner reports 8
2008-Q1 Owner reports 1
2008-Q3 Owner reports 6
2009-Q1 Owner reports 7
2009-Q2 Owner reports 2
2009-Q3 Owner reports 2
2009-Q4 Owner reports 8
2010-Q1 Owner reports 3
2010-Q2 Owner reports 4
2010-Q3 Owner reports 2
2010-Q4 Owner reports 3
2011-Q1 Owner reports 4
2011-Q2 Owner reports 5
2011-Q3 Owner reports 5
2011-Q4 Owner reports 4
2012-Q1 Owner reports 2
2012-Q2 Owner reports 3
2012-Q4 Owner reports 1
2013-Q1 Owner reports 2
2013-Q2 Owner reports 1
2013-Q3 Owner reports 1
2013-Q4 Owner reports 3
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q2 Owner reports 5
2014-Q3 Owner reports 5
2014-Q4 Owner reports 8
2015-Q1 Owner reports 3
2015-Q2 Owner reports 3
2015-Q3 Owner reports 1
2015-Q4 Owner reports 1
2016-Q1 Owner reports 2
2016-Q2 Owner reports 2
2016-Q3 Owner reports 1
2016-Q4 Owner reports 3
2017-Q1 Owner reports 1
2017-Q2 Owner reports 1
2017-Q4 Owner reports 2
2018-Q1 Owner reports 1
2018-Q2 Owner reports 1
2018-Q3 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 2
2020-Q2 Owner reports 1
2020-Q4 Owner reports 1
2021-Q1 Owner reports 1
2021-Q2 Owner reports 1
2023-Q3 Owner reports 1
2024-Q2 Owner reports 1
2025-Q3 Owner reports 2
2026-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 03V097000
Recall campaign 1 04V178000
Recall campaign 1 04V369000
Recall campaign 1 09V124000
Recall campaign 1 09V171000
Recall campaign 1 09V317000
Defect investigation 1 PE05059
Defect investigation 1 EA08016
Defect investigation 1 PE08071
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 03V097000

    Report date
    Component:
    TIRES
    Consequence:
    INADVERTENT ACTIVATION OF THE TCS WILL CAUSE AUTOMATIC APPLICATION OF THE BRAKE AT THE WHEEL WHERE THE COMPACT SPARE TIRE IS INSTALLED. INADVERTENT BRAKE APPLICATION COULD CAUSE OVERHEATING AND DAMAGE TO THE BRAKE, AND MAY PREVENT THE VEHICLE FROM BEING DRIVEN AT SPEEDS ABOVE 20 MPH, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE SPARE TIRE WITH A NEW LARGER DIAMETER T125/80R-15 COMPACT SPARE TIRE AND A NEW TIRE PRESSURE LABEL WILL BE INSTALLED ON THE DRIVER'S DOOR TO PROVIDE INFORMATION APPLICABLE TO THE T125/80R-15 COMPACT SPARE TIRE. VEHICLES PRODUCED FROM NOVEMBER 15, 2002 THROUGH DECEMBER 16 2002, ALREADY CONTAIN T125/80R-15 COMPACT SPARE TIRES, WILL ONLY REQUIRE NEW TIRE PRESSURE LABELS. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN JUNE 30, 2003. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. 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 →

  3. 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 →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09V124000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    IF THAT HAPPENS, THE VEHICLE MAY LOSE DRIVE POWER TO THE WHEELS, AND THE FRONT WHEEL MAY MAKE CONTACT WITH THE FENDER OR WHEEL WELL, THEREBY INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL MEASURE THE THICKNESS OF THE FRONT SUB-FRAME AND INSPECT THE FRONT SUB-FRAME FOR CORROSION DAMAGE AND, IF NECESSARY, THE FRONT SUB-FRAME WILL BE REPLACED WITH A NEW SUB-FRAME THAT INCORPORATES ADDITIONAL HOLES IN THE UPPER AND LOWER PANELS. IF THE FRONT SUB-FRAME DOES NOT REQUIRE REPLACEMENT, THE DEALER WILL ADD DRAINAGE HOLES TO THE SUB-FRAME AND WILL TREAT THE SUB-FRAME WITH RUST-PROOFING MATERIAL TO STOP THE CORROSION PROCESS. THIS PROCEDURE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING APRIL 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE HYUNDAI CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09V171000

    Report date
    Component:
    LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
    Consequence:
    THIS MAY INFLICT LACERATION INJURIES TO ANYONE USING THE DOOR HANDLE.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE CHROME PLATED INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING JUNE 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-633-5151.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  6. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09V317000

    Report date
    Component:
    LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
    Consequence:
    A SHARP EDGE COULD LACERATE OR OTHERWISE INJURE A VEHICLE OCCUPANT.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE CHROME PLATED INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 16, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO AT 1-787-999-3333.
    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 196 complaints · page 1 of 8

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