2005 Hyundai Tucson Problems and Recalls (180 Complaints)
The most-reported problem on the 2005 Hyundai Tucson is Engine (14% of 180 owner reports). There are 8 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Engine — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 180 complaints · 8 recalls
What problems show up on the 2005 Hyundai Tucson?
26 of 180 filings named Engine (14% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.
Second is Airbags (23 reports).
There are 8 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Airbags and Lights. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.
The previous year is not published here. Use the year list to jump around.
What owners reported
System named most often: Engine 26 complaints · 14.4% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
- Crashes 11
- Fires 3
- Injuries 16
- Deaths 0
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 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.
Which systems owners named
Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.
“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.
View component data as a table
| System / Component | Complaints | Share of Reports | Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine (ENGINE) | 26 | 14.4% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| Airbags (AIR BAGS) | 23 | 12.8% | 4 crashes · 0 fires |
| Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) | 19 | 10.6% | 0 crashes · 1 fires |
| Body / frame (STRUCTURE) | 15 | 8.3% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) | 13 | 7.2% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Suspension (SUSPENSION) | 12 | 6.7% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| Lights (EXTERIOR LIGHTING) | 11 | 6.1% | 0 crashes · 1 fires |
| Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) | 10 | 5.6% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM) | 7 | 3.9% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Unclassified NHTSA leftover | 72 | 40.0% | 3 crashes · 1 fires |
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
When reports and recalls showed up
When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.
- Campaign 05V119000 was reported 12 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 05V177000 was reported 45 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 06V445000 was reported 554 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 07V197000 was reported 721 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 09V122000 was reported 1,213 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2005-Q2 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2005-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2005-Q4 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2006-Q1 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2006-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2006-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2006-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2007-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2007-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2007-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2007-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2008-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2008-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2008-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2008-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2009-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2009-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2009-Q4 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2010-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2010-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2010-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2011-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2011-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2011-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2012-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2012-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2012-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2012-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2013-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2013-Q3 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2014-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2014-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2014-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2015-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2015-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2015-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2016-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2016-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2016-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2017-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2017-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2017-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2017-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2018-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2018-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2018-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2018-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2019-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2020-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2020-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2020-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2021-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2021-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2022-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2022-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2022-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2023-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2023-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2023-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 05V119000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 05V177000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 05V315000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 05V342000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 06V445000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 07V197000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 09V122000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 09V280000 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE09003 |
Safety Recalls (8)
Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.
In short, these campaigns were filed about Airbags and Lights.
-
Recall campaign 05V119000
Safety recall 05V119000
- Report date
- Component:
- Unclassified NHTSA leftover
- Consequence:
- BRAKE APPLICATION CAUSED BY INADVERTENT ESP ACTIVATION MAY RESULT IN LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPROGRAM THE ESP HYDRAULIC ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 13, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
-
Recall campaign 05V177000
Safety recall 05V177000
- Report date
- Component:
- Unclassified NHTSA leftover
- Consequence:
- BRAKE APPLICATION CAUSED BY INADVERTENT ESP ACTIVATION MAY RESULT IN LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPROGRAM THE ESP HYDRAULIC ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING MAY 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI DE PUERTO RICO AT 1-800-981-0188.
-
Recall campaign 05V315000
Safety recall 05V315000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- THE INABILITY TO ENGAGE, OR THE INADVERTENT RELEASE OF, THE PARKING BRAKE LEVER MAY ALLOW YOUR VEHICLE TO ROLL WHILE IT IS PARKED AND MAY RESULT IN A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE PARKING BRAKE LEVER ASSEMBLY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 29, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
-
Recall campaign 05V342000
Safety recall 05V342000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- THE INABILITY TO ENGAGE OR THE INADVERTENT RELEASE OF THE PARKING BRAKE LEVER, MAY ALLOW YOUR VEHICLE TO ROLL WHILE IT IS PARKED AND MAY RESULT IN A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE PARKING BRAKE LEVER ASSEMBLY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 12, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO AT 1-800-981-0188.
-
Recall campaign 06V445000
Airbags
- Report date
- Component:
- Airbags (AIR BAGS)
- Consequence:
- THIS CAN CAUSE INCREASED RISK OF INJURY TO THE DRIVER UNDER CERTAIN CRASH CONDITIONS.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVER AIR BAG MODULE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 29, 2007, AND WILL BE CONDUCTED THROUGH SIX MAILINGS. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI AT 1-800-633-5151.
-
Recall campaign 07V197000
Airbags
- Report date
- Component:
- Airbags (AIR BAGS)
- Consequence:
- THIS CAN CAUSE INCREASED RISK OF INJURY TO THE DRIVER UNDER CERTAIN CRASH CONDITIONS.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVER AIR BAG MODULE WITH ONE THAT IS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE AN INCREASED MARGIN OF COMPLIANCE FOR LOW RISK DEPLOYMENT FOR SMALL STATURE ADULTS WHO ARE NOT PROPERLY WEARING THE SEAT BELTS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 6, 2007, AND WILL BE PERFORMED IN TWO MAILINGS. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI DE PUERTO RICO AT 1-800-981-0188.
-
Recall campaign 09V122000
Lights
- Report date
- Component:
- Lights (EXTERIOR LIGHTING)
- Consequence:
- ANY OF THESE MALFUNCTIONS, ALONE OR IN COMBINATION, MAY LEAD TO A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STOP LAMP SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 29, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE HYUNDAI CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-633-5151.
-
Recall campaign 09V280000
Safety recall 09V280000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- ANY OF THESE MALFUNCTIONS COULD LEAD TO A CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STOP LAMP SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-787-999-4310.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
What owners actually wrote
Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Showing 10 of 180 complaints · page 1 of 8
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Caught on fire. Started under passager floor board. Burnt completely up
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I acquired my vehicle as a used car. Although, to my knowledge my vehicle air bags have not deployed, the air bag light is illuminated on my dash panel and this issue is preventing me from obtaining an updated vehicle registration in my state of residence (Delaware). Since the year make and model are listed under the "recall" section of the NHTSA website, specifically for an airbag issue, I am requesting information regarding what nest-steps I nay take to have this problem repaired by Hyundai without any cost to me.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the front passenger side air bag wiring harness; however, the part was discontinued. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 75,880.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
This car accelerates while unattended. Most likely due to an ECM malfunction and unable to properly respond/send signals to the motor. On 4 occasions, the car has accelerated, even if in park. It will go 25mph on its own and to stop I had to put it in neutral. I’ve seen that my car isn’t the only one experiencing this. Considering it’s an ECM issue there should be a recall because that is not a part you change during the life of a car.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
ESP off ligh comes on and off have to turn suv off to ture light off Had report it to nhtsa twice but no one replied 2/28/22 # 05V119000 2/14/22 #11454471
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving 65 MPH and attempting to accelerate, the RPM failed to raise, and the vehicle failed to respond. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Air bag light on dashboard Esp light comes on and off
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the Electronic Stability Program (ESP) warning light was illuminated. The contact parked on the side of the road and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated that after restarting the vehicle, the warning light disappeared. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Brake light no coming on when brake pedal is being push
CrashFireInjuryDeath
INITIAL ISSUES ON VEHICLE PRESENTED IN JANUARY 2021 WITH VARIOUS CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CODES INCLUDING P0133. ALTHOUGH VEHICLE PASSED EMISSIONS IN 2020, VARIOUS CHECK ENGINE CODES FOR MASS AIR FLOW SENSOR, OXYGEN SENSORS, MISFIRE FOR VARIOUS CYLINDERS. AFTER REPLACING INDICATED MASS AIR FLOW SENSOR, OXYGEN SENSORS INDICATED VIA OBD II TOOL, BATTERY, ALTERNATOR (MORE THAN ONCE), BOTH FRONT CV BOOTS, HEAD GASKET SEALS FOR BOTH CYLINDER BANKS, MORE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ISSUES APPEAR ACCORDING TO THE VEHICLE. CURRENTLY ANOTHER CYLINDER MISFIRE CHECK ENGINE CODE HAS APPEARED AFTER ALL SPARK PLUGS HAVE BEEN REPLACED WITH OEM RECOMMENDED BRAND REPLACEMENTS (NKG PRE-GAPPED SPARK PLUGS). THE MISFIRE CODE HAS CLEARED AT THIS TIME. THE CURRENT CHECK ENGINE CODE FROM THE OBD II TOOL IS ERROR CODE FOR DRIVE TRAIN DRIVEABILITY P0420 REGARDING CATALYST SYSTEM OPERATING BELOW THRESHOLD AT BANK 1. I HAVE UTILIZED LOCAL STORE CATALYTIC CLEANER LIQUIDS TO CLEAN THE SYSTEM, WHICH HAS NOT RESOLVED THIS ISSUE. ADDITIONALLY, BEGINNING IN JANUARY 2021, THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE CLOSEST LOCAL DEALSHIP FOR A LARGE MAJORITY OF THESE REPAIRS INCLUDING A $150 DEALERSHIP FEE JUST TO HAVE THESE CODES REVIEWED AND ADDITIONAL FEES FOR THE LABOR TO ADDRESS FOR EACH ISSUE FOR EACH REPAIR.
Hyundai Tucson Complaints and Recalls by Year
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems on the 2005 Hyundai Tucson?
Owners named Engine most often — 26 of 180 reports (14%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.
Are there recalls for the 2005 Hyundai Tucson?
NHTSA lists 8 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Airbags and Lights. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.
What should I inspect before buying a 2005 Hyundai Tucson?
Look up the VIN for open recalls. Have a shop check for oil consumption, coolant leaks, rough idle and unusual engine noise. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.
Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?
No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.
Estimated Ownership Cost
EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates
Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Adjacent Model Years
Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records
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
Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.