2005 Hyundai Santa FE Air Bags Problems
Owners have filed 74 complaints with NHTSA about air bags problems on the 2005 Hyundai Santa FE, 34% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 93,500 miles. The words owners use most often: “air bag” (73% of reports).
- 74air bags complaints
- 93,500median miles at failure
- 7mention a crash
- 7mention an injury
- 2related recalls
- 31%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Air bag: mentioned in 54 of 74 complaints (73%)
- Seat belt: mentioned in 26 of 74 complaints (35%)
- Front passenger: mentioned in 9 of 74 complaints (12%)
At what mileage do air bags problems happen?
Based on 60 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 74 complaints, 7 mention a crash, 7 an injury.
Hyundai Santa FE air bags complaints by model year
| Model year | Air Bags complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Santa FE | 2 | 1% | 10,024 |
| 2024 Santa FE | 1 | 1% | — |
| 2023 Santa FE | 2 | 1% | — |
| 2022 Santa FE | 5 | 2% | — |
| 2021 Santa FE | 2 | 1% | 38,000 |
| 2020 Santa FE | 7 | 3% | — |
| 2019 Santa FE | 7 | 3% | 3,800 |
| 2018 Santa FE | 6 | 6% | 60,000 |
| 2017 Santa FE | 20 | 2% | 35,000 |
| 2016 Santa FE | 9 | 4% | 73,000 |
| 2015 Santa FE | 9 | 4% | 75,355 |
| 2014 Santa FE | 13 | 3% | 70,100 |
| 2013 Santa FE | 5 | 1% | 24,000 |
| 2012 Santa FE | 6 | 2% | 72,174 |
| 2011 Santa FE | 7 | 4% | 31,000 |
| 2010 Santa FE | 9 | 3% | 55,000 |
| 2009 Santa FE | 29 | 8% | 80,000 |
| 2008 Santa FE | 70 | 13% | 16,250 |
| 2007 Santa FE | 102 | 15% | 45,500 |
| 2006 Santa FE | 28 | 26% | 80,000 |
| 2005 Santa FE | 74 | 34% | 93,500 |
| 2004 Santa FE | 43 | 14% | 90,412 |
| 2003 Santa FE | 42 | 14% | 66,299 |
| 2002 Santa FE | 5 | 3% | 90,500 |
| 2001 Santa FE | 3 | 1% | 82,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (2)
Air bags:frontal
Problem: On certain sport utility vehicles equipped with an occupant classification system (ocs) the right front seat of the vehicle may misclassify certain small children seated on the front edge of the seat as an adult.
Risk: The possibility of misclassification of certain small children as an adult may allow the right front airbag to deploy in a frontal collision crash or the side impact airbag to deploy in a side collision crash; severe injury or death could occur.
Fix: Dealers will ensure that the vehicle's ocs will properly classify certain small children when seated on the front edge of the seat and will disable the right front airbags. Dealers will reprogram the vehicle's ocs electronic control unit to provide an increased margin for recognition of certain small children. The recall began on december 6, 2005. Owners may contact hyundai of puerto rico at 1-800-981-0188.
Air bags
Problem: On certain vehicles equipped with an occupant classification system (ocs) the right front seat of the vehicle may misclassify certain small children seated on the front edge of the seat as an adult.
Risk: The possibility of misclassification of certain small children as an adult may allow the right front airbag to deploy in a frontal collision crash or the side impact airbag to deploy in a side collision crash; severe injury or death could occur.
Fix: Dealers will ensure that the vehicle's ocs will properly classify certain small children when seated on the front edge of the seat and will disable the right front airbags. Dealers will reprogram the vehicle's ocs electronic control unit to provide an increased margin for recognition of certain small children. The recall began on december 21, 2005. Owners may contact hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The airbag light stays on constantly - mechanic says it's the switch in the passenger seat belt and they encounter this problem with this vehicle all the time. Prevents the airbag from deploying if not repaired.
The Air Bag light stays on and from my research the air bag will not work in an accident.
The contact owns a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 155,000.
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2005 Hyundai Santa FEs have air bags problems?
No. NHTSA has 74 owner complaints about air bags for the 2005 Hyundai Santa FE (34% of the 216 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2005 Hyundai Santa FE air bags?
Yes: 2 safety recalls list air bags. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
At what mileage do air bags problems start?
The median reported mileage is 93,500 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about air bags problems on the 2005 Hyundai Santa FE?
The most frequent phrase is “air bag”, in 54 of 74 complaints, followed by “seat belt” (26).
See all 2005 Hyundai Santa FE problems or air bags problems across all Santa FE years.