2009 Hyundai Santa FE Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Santa FE years
- More complaints than other years 6th of 26 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 2 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 358 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Hyundai Santa FE. That ranks 6th out of 26 Santa FE model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is fuel/propulsion system (109 complaints, 30%), typically at around 88,000 miles. Complaints mention 27 crashes, 5 fires, 26 injuries. There are 2 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
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- 358owner complaints
- 2safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 27complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2009 Hyundai Santa FE problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel/propulsion System problems | 109 | 30% | 88,000 | “fuel gauge” (43%) | $910 |
| Engine problems | 60 | 17% | 89,780 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control problems | 51 | 14% | 27,001 | “parking space” (12%) | — |
| Electrical System problems | 50 | 14% | 80,000 | “fuel gauge” (18%) | — |
| Service Brakes | 41 | 11% | 48,069 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 31 | 9% | 90,852 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 29 | 8% | 80,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 24 | 7% | 84,000 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 17 | 5% | 65,231 | — | — |
| Steering | 17 | 5% | 48,186 | — | — |
| Structure | 13 | 4% | 55,750 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 9 | 3% | 103,435 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 7 | 2% | 20,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 7 | 2% | 14,396 | — | — |
| Suspension | 7 | 2% | 88,703 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 7 | 2% | 96,000 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 6 | 2% | 81,250 | — | — |
| Equipment | 5 | 1% | 835 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 3 | 1% | 68,142 | — | — |
| Seats | 3 | 1% | 25 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Other | 2 | 1% | 49,297 | — | — |
| Tires | 2 | 1% | 14,650 | — | — |
| Visibility | 2 | 1% | 45,049 | — | — |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Parking Brake | 1 | 0% | 14,012 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Electric | 1 | 0% | 15,500 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2009 Hyundai Santa FE recalls (2)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Exterior lighting:brake lights:switch
Problem: Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.
Air bags:frontal:sensor/control module-inactive
Problem: Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2007 through 2009 Santa Fe vehicles manufactured from April 19, 2006, through July 7, 2008. The occupant classification system (OCS) may need recalibration to accurately detect small statured adults.
Risk: Improper classification or detection may cause the front passenger airbag not to deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger.
Fix: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will update the classification software free of charge. The safety recall began on September 7, 2012. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Throttle control system vulnerabilities (DP21003) — opened Nov 12, 2021, closed Jun 20, 2023.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
Brake Lights Stay, On ESC OFF Light Illuminated, Cruise Control Won't Engage, Unable to Shift Out of Park. Fuse had to be pulled because the battery was going dead due to lights not turning off. Its doing the same thing that is outlined in this recall (NHTSA Campaign ID: 13V113000)
2 unrepaired recalls. Frame rusted and unsafe to lift to repair the other recall which is an oil leak onto the alternator. Car won't run now. Corporate asked if I had a lawyer. They have declared my car not fixable or drivable. Neither corporate nor dealer will return my calls. No info from them at…
*The mechanic diagnosed internal engine failure (May 14, 2026). The vehicle is at the second mechanic's shop. *The car stalled twice. The first time, over 20 miles, the air conditioning stopped, followed by the radio, and then acceleration. I pulled over and the acceleration returned but only for a…
Vehicle will suddenly shutdown in the middle of the road. This could easily have caused a crash at any time. Several batteries have been replaced due to alternator not charging the battery. Then the battery has to be jumped for emergencies. I have taken the car in for repairs of the recall twice. I…
[XXX] We took out Stanta Fe to the Hyundia Dealership in Columbia, TN 38401. The installed a new rover cover gasket left and service kit. The purpose was to stop oil from leaking into the alternator. I would like to point out we did not see any visible signs of the gasket was leaking. We had our…
Other Hyundai Santa FE years
← 2008 Santa FE · 2010 Santa FE →
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Santa FE | 37 | 4 |
| 2025 Santa FE | 135 | 5 |
| 2024 Santa FE | 155 | 7 |
| 2023 Santa FE | 211 | 1 |
| 2022 Santa FE | 201 | 5 |
| 2021 Santa FE | 167 | 7 |
| 2020 Santa FE | 216 | 2 |
| 2019 Santa FE | 202 | 2 |
| 2018 Santa FE | 109 | 2 |
| 2017 Santa FE | 970 | 6 |
| 2016 Santa FE | 236 | 3 |
| 2015 Santa FE | 254 | 2 |
| 2014 Santa FE | 493 | 3 |
| 2013 Santa FE | 605 | 3 |
| 2012 Santa FE | 353 | 1 |
| 2011 Santa FE | 181 | 2 |
| 2010 Santa FE | 259 | 2 |
| 2009 | 358 | 2 |
| 2008 Santa FE | 541 | 4 |
| 2007 Santa FE | 684 | 7 |
| 2006 Santa FE | 106 | 1 |
| 2005 Santa FE | 216 | 3 |
| 2004 Santa FE | 303 | 3 |
| 2003 Santa FE | 308 | 4 |
| 2002 Santa FE | 165 | 4 |
| 2001 Santa FE | 209 | 4 |
See all Hyundai Santa FE problems by year, every Hyundai model, or the Hyundai VIN decoder.
Similar Hyundai models
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2009 Hyundai Santa FE?
Owners most often report fuel/propulsion system, engine, vehicle speed control problems. The top one, fuel/propulsion system, accounts for 109 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2009 Hyundai Santa FE?
Yes, 2 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2009 Hyundai Santa FE a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Santa FE model years, the 2009 has more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.