2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON

What owners reported to NHTSA, ranked by how often and how seriously.

This is complaint data, not a random sample.

It only includes owners who chose to file a federal complaint, so it over-represents dramatic and safety-related problems and under-represents minor issues an owner just had fixed without reporting. Read this as what NHTSA complainants report most, not as this vehicle's true failure rate. Full methodology.

Component ranking

  1. #1

    airbag system

    6 unsafe

    6
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=3)

    • "TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. WHILE DRIVING 41 MPH, ANOTHER VEHICLE TRAVELLING 52 MPH DROVE OVER THE CENTER LANE CRASHED HEAD-ON WITH THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE; HOWEVER, NONE OF THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. THE CONTACT WAS INJURED AND TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL.…"~4,000 mi, complaint #779858
    • "TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY, THE CLOCK SPRING ON THE AIR BAG FRACTURED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 31,000. "~31,000 mi, complaint #1342642
    • "AIR BAG LIGHT STAYS ON. HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP SAYS THAT THE LIGHT ON MEANS THE AIR BAGS ARE DISABLED AND THE AIR BAGS WOULD NOT DEPLOY IF THE LIGHT IS ON. THE DEALERSHIP SAYS I MUST HAVE THE DIAGNOSTIC TESTS DONE WHICH WILL COST ME ABOUT $125.00 IF THIS IS A PROB…"~85,000 mi, complaint #1617770
  2. #2

    corrosion and rust

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I had taken my car in to the dealership for oil change i was told by the mechanic not to drive my car unless it was absolulute necessary my whole undercarriage has rusted out i am unable to find out if there was ever a recall on this matter but dont under…"complaint #1860885
    • "Received 24T013 By email regarding car tires. And also a underbody body rust. From Thh8s agency. The car was brought into dealership. On Oct 2024 was told by a custom service rep that it was to bad off and a control arm was being order and in 3 days l would Re…"complaint #2041591
  3. #3

    unintended acceleration

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH. WHILE DEPRESSING THE BRAKE AN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. IMMEDIATELY, EXTREME BODILY FORCE WAS REQUIRED TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL UNTIL THE VEHICLE…"~1,199 mi, complaint #773116
    • "WHILE DRIVING IN MOTION OR IN IDLE, CAR ENGAGES IN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. THIS IS A DANGEROUS ISSUE BECAUSE THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE AWARE OF THE SUDDEN ACCELERATION AND MAY NOT BE ABLE TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE GOING FORWARD OR BACKWARD (DEPENDING ON THE POSITION…"~89,000 mi, complaint #1231967
  4. #4

    cruise control conventional

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CRUISE CONTROL MALFUNCTIONED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN DIAGNOSED THAT THE G4 SENSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REP…"~25,000 mi, complaint #1099934
  5. #5

    horn

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "I HAVE A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. THE HORN OPERATES MOST OF THE TIME, BUT NOT ALWAYS. IT MAY BE TEMPERATURE RELATED. I HAVE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALER FIVE TIMES, BUT THEY SAY THEY CAN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG. I THINK THIS IS DANGEROUS IF I NEED TO USE THE HORN. THE DEA…"~2,000 mi, complaint #819235
  6. #6

    instrument cluster

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "I WAS DRIVING AT NIGHT AND THE DASH BOARD LIGHTS FLASHED OFF AND ABOUT A MINUTE LATER THEY CAME BACK ON. I DON'T DRIVE AT NIGHT THAT MUCH. ABOUT 6 MONTHS LATER IT DID IT AGAIN. ABOUT 1 YEAR LATER IT DID IT AGAIN. IT IS AGGRAVATING WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING AND THE…"~1,000 mi, complaint #939071
  7. #7

    seatbelt and pretensioner

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 HYUNDAI TUSCAN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY FAILED AND INTERFERED WITH THE AIR BAGS. THE AIR BAG LIGHT REMAINED ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN DIA…"~70,000 mi, complaint #1108567
  8. #8

    timing belt or chain

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "CAR LOSING POWER WHEN WATER FROM RAIN SPLASHES UNDER AND HITS BELT. MECH. HAS CONFIRMED SPLASH SHIELD IS NOT BIG ENOUGH TO COVER BELTS. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AND CAUSING POWER STEERING AND ALL TO BE LOST. IT DOES COME BACK ON. BUT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIND A…"~106,000 mi, complaint #1578211
  9. #9

    wheel or rim

    1 broken

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE PARKED, HE NOTICED THAT THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE TIRE WAS FLAT. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE STEM VALVE ON ALL FOUR TIRES WAS CORROD…"~29,000 mi, complaint #981187
  10. #10

    wiper and washer

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "THERE IS A LEAK IN THE FILLER NECKS OF THE HYUNDAI TUCSON SE MODEL I JUST PURCHASED. THE DEALER SAID THIS WAS HOW THE WINDSHIELD WASHER PLASTIC CONTAINER WAS MADE. THE WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID LEAKS OUT ONTO THE GARAGE FLOOR WHEN FILLED TO THE TOP OF THE FILL…"~1,000 mi, complaint #716277

Search NHTSA's own recall and complaint database for HYUNDAI TUCSON directly.