2016 Hyundai Elantra
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
Vehicles › Hyundai › Elantra › 2016
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
These records cover every 2016 Hyundai Elantra. To see whether one car still needs a recall repair, decode its VIN or check it with NHTSA.
2 recalls name the 2016 Hyundai Elantra. Newest first.
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Elantra and 2016 Elantra GT vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may rupture during deployment.
An air bag inflator that ruptures may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or passengers, increasing the risk of injury or death.
Dealers will inspect and replace the air bag inflator, as necessary, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed July 3, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available, anticipated August, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 300. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 16, 2026.
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Elantra vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 401, "Internal Trunk Release."
A person inside the trunk compartment may become trapped, increasing their risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the trunk latch base sub-assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 5, 2024. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 256.
I am reporting a recall remedy failure involving my 2016 Hyundai Elantra under Hyundai Recall 256 / NHTSA Recall 24V‑146 (trunk latch pawl defect). The McCarthy Olathe Hyundai dealership in Olathe, KS marked the recall as “completed,” but the trunk latch still does not open and the defect persists exactly as described in the recall notice. After the recall was marked complete, I returned to the dealership because the trunk still would not open. The dealership told me the issue was “trunk lid damage” from a prior accident and advised me to replace the trunk lid at my own expense. I paid for the trunk lid replacement, but the trunk still did not function. When I returned again, the dealership changed their explanation and said the problem was actually “rear frame damage,” and that they had been wrong to tell me to replace the trunk lid. Which I have audio recordings of but am unable to upload due to format restrictions. Despite these conflicting explanations, the recall defect remains unresolved, and I have been without trunk access for over a year. I contacted Hyundai Corporate (MyHyundai USA), but they responded that this was “not a part issue covered under warranty.” This appears to be a misunderstanding, because this is not a warranty claim — it is a recall remedy failure. The recall was marked complete even though the defect persists, and the dealership’s misdiagnosis led me to pay for repairs that did not address the recall defect. This situation has caused financial loss, safety concerns, and prolonged inability to access the trunk, spare tire, emergency equipment, and cargo space. I am requesting NHTSA to document this recall remedy failure and dealership misdiagnosis.
The motor started to make a ticking noise 5 months earlier. 5 months later at 180,000 miles a borascope finding, reveled all 4 cylinder walls were worn related to cylinder slap. Called Hyundai dealership and was told ithe car is too old and the milage too high for a warranty coverage.
Vehicle stalls while driving which is very dangerous. All dashboard lights go on prior to stalling. No engine light is on. Knocking sound coming from engine. Dealer states engine needs to be replaced. Car has been serviced regularly despite that Hyundai denies engine replacement. The knocking sound that engine does is common between this model and year but mysteriously there has not been engine recalls.
P0420 P0441 P0014 P1326 C1260 C1688 C2130 These are the codes that's affecting my car
Engine burned oil and had knocking sound, despite having regular oil changes. Stalked out while driving took to dealer initial said it was covered by the exerted coverage but ultimately denied. It had 111,000 miles on it. I believe this engine has the same issues as the others.
The oil light & check engine started flashing. Took it to the auto shop. The mechanic stated that the oil level is very low and the engine has a bad lower-end knock. Removed the oil filter and found metal debris in the oil. No oil leaks were found under the vehicle at all. Oil is being burned out through the exhaust. The vehicle needs an the ngine replacement.
Transmission P0731 code. Vehicle will not shift into 1st gear when idle but will stay in 3 or 4 gear. Speedometer would indicate high speed when pressing on accelerator. At traffic light when light turn green car rev but would not shift into gear. Has only 130K miles. Car was towed to dealer and required a new transmission.
2016 Hyundai Elantra (75k miles) experiences severe, un-commanded Loss of Propulsive Power and a Severe Drivetrain Instability Hazard. At steady highway speeds, the automatic transmission completely loses hydraulic pressure, slips out of gear, and unexpectedly drops into a temporary "neutral." The engine suddenly revs up to high RPM on its own while losing all forward acceleration. After coasting helplessly, it violently slams back into gear, causing the vehicle to lurch forward. This also happens from a complete stop.The vehicle's OBD-II system fails to illuminate the Check Engine Light or store fault codes during these flares, providing zero warning before a loss of propulsion.This dangerous transmission slipping has occurred intermittently for several years. I repeatedly took it to an authorized Hyundai dealership to address this crash hazard. Because there was no active Check Engine Light, the dealership dismissed my concerns, refused to document it, and sent me away without a diagnosis. Recently, the service department acted in bad faith by misrepresenting my warranty terms (falsely claiming it was only 7 years) and refusing a live-data diagnostic scan. The bad faith dealership was Murdock Hyundai of Murray in [XXX], specifically the service manager Tyler as well as Krateton. The car is a verified vehicle under the Hyundai Nu 1.8L Piston Slap Class Action Settlement (TXXK Campaign). An official safety escalation case is open with Hyundai Motor America under my corporate case number XXX. I request a federal safety investigation into premature transmission pressure failure in 2016 Elantras, as this vehicle is entirely unsafe to operate. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
My driver side window has not been working for almost 3 years now. I have taken it to 4 mechanics and they fix it but only last a couple days. They have all say they can’t really do anything about it since they need an original piece. My AC is another issue I have that I have tried fixing 3 times now. The same issue happens they fix it and it last about a week or so. The longest it has lasted was 2 weeks. The mechanics each say it needs a new compressor and I’ve bought 3 new compressor already. I’m not sure what to do anymore.
The car turns off while driving it without warning or anything. Place where I got it don’t want to fix it
The vehicle's security system malfunctioned immediately after service at Parks Hyundai of Gainesville on 05/27/26 for Recall 256 & Campaign P33. The alarm blares & emergency lights flash while I am driving on public roads. This defect first presented in the dealership parking lot upon pickup. This creates a severe safety risk: the high-decibel alarm is a major distraction, the flashing lights confuse other motorists, & the malfunction prevents me from using turn signals, violating safety protocols. I demonstrated this to the service manager on 06/10/26. While the technician acknowledged the defect during a road test & performed a 'cap reset' (documented on the repair order), this attempt failed to resolve the issue. Despite this, the service manager refuses to acknowledge the defect, claiming it is an 'intended feature' of a 2023 recall at a different facility (993). This contradicts the technician's findings & my years of incident-free driving until the work on 05/27/26. The dealership initially omitted my return visit from their records, only acknowledging it after I confronted them in writing. An independent shop confirmed this electrical failure likely stems from P33, but requires proprietary dealer tools to diagnose. Attached video proves the vehicle runs while the alarm blares, confirming no relation to old Campaign 993 logic. Attached Repair Order proves the technician acknowledged the defect & attempted a repair. Despite this, the service manager ignores the documentation, his own technician's findings, & my demonstrations, blaming my locking habits while refusing a deep diagnostic. After 16 days in their possession, neither the dealer nor manufacturer has provided a remedy. If this malfunction were an intended feature, it would be an ongoing hazard; it creates a distraction, causes a panic response, & prevents the adequate use of turn signals while in operation. The vehicle is unsafe, & the dealership & manufacturer have failed to provide a valid repair.
Car randomly will not start or will start but have no RPM's. Last year showed a crank shaft sensor code and had it replaced but car is doing it again.
Unknown
The back door on the driver's side does not latch properly. the door will try to close but you have to keep slamming the door until it will finally latch. I once drove a few feet and the door had to be held shut. It finally closed. The dealership was contacted last year (2025) once I read on reddit that a tsb/extended warranty was issued. but I was told that it didn't cover my vehicle and if I brought it in, a diagnostic fee and fee to fix it would be charged. so I do not open that door anymore, but that IS not safe. I''m afraid it will open at some point while I am driving.
Car just turns off randomly. This has happened at least 6 times within a month. Once on a highway. Last time it turned off a strange sound was coming out of the car also.
So I have a suspicion oh a connecting rod, might be a bearing but it’s making a tik tik noise, no other issue than that, no engine light no nothing, been doing it for a while but car still goes great
Issue: Hyundai recall denial for paint peeling defect My vehicle qualifies for the Hyundai paint-peeling recall, and the paint deterioration matches the defect described by Hyundai. Despite this, Hyundai has denied my recall repair twice. Approximately 2 1/2 years before the recall was issued, I applied a small touch-up to the affected area to slow the deterioration. This was done solely to protect the vehicle and occurred long before any recall existed. Hyundai is now using that minor touch-up as a reason to deny the recall repair, even though the underlying paint defect was already present. The paint continues to peel and worsen. Hyundai's refusal to honor the recall appears unreasonable and inconsistent with the purpose of a safety/defect recall, especially since the touch-up did not cause the defect and was done years before Hyundai acknowledged the issue. I am requesting that NHTSA review Hyundai's handling of this recall and their denial of legitimate claims.
My car turned off while it was in drive. The oil pressure light flashed on for a second then disappeared. The car did not have anything else seem like it is wrong. I was put in dangers way because it turned off right before I was about to turn onto a very busy street and if it had done that in the middle of the street I would have gotten into an accident.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the air bag warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic, who informed the contact of a Manufacturer's Extended Warranty Coverage for the failure and referred the contact to the local dealer for assistance. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered under the extended warranty. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 53,600.
No accident has occurred as of yet (for my case). Ongoing issues with Hyundai left brake bulb and center brake bulb burning out due to over-amperage. These two are on their own 10A circuit separate from the 5A circuit for the right brakelight bulb. It appears that these two bulbs are possibly receiving 15A and therefore burning out prematurely (3 months or less). I recently replaced these two bulbs at the same time, and now my battery is shorted. To keep my battery charged, I need to pull my 15A Brake Lamp fuse while the car is parked. This has now caused my ABS light to come on, as that system relies on the signal from the 15A brake lamp circuit. I suspect that some 15A components (10A+5A) received 20A (15A+5A) and welded shut. I am still looking for it to trace it down, resources are limited and I'm intent on just buying the $35 diagnostics book. Hyundai dealership did not inform me that this fuse was pulled while I drove home from the shop yesterday, creating an unsafe condition. They quoted me $500 to replace a brake lamp relay and the ABS (I'm assuming the whole ABS, but maybe just the control module), I declined. My plan for now, as this car isn't driven much, is to trace it down and find the shorted component. From my research, this is clearly affecting many years of Hyundais and Kias, not just my Elantra and not just my year. In fact, it's SO common that there are facebook groups (such as this one [XXX] ) dedicated to helping owners remedy this defect. I think a recall service, and a full investigation of what is electrically wrong with these cars, and what the actual remedy should be, is necessary based on the amount of cars that could be impacted. Hyundai & Kia technicians I am SURE are intimately knowledgeable about this issue by now and us owners are on the hook, having only 80,000 miles of warranty on anything purchased used. Please reach out with any add'l questions. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
I received confirmation from my local Hyundai dealership that my 2016 Hyundai Elantra GT is consuming over 1.8 quarts of oil every 1000 miles. The mileage is currently 70k miles. This is not the result of lack of maintenance or neglect but because of Hyundais engine design. I was told by the local dealership that I would need a total engine re build. This was the only option to fix the issue 100%. I was told that if the issue is not fixed it will result in engine failure. Hyundai is not recalling their engines or acknowledging the inherent danger this will cause. I am at my engines will if I cannot afford this repair because Hyundai won’t honor the Powertrain warranty.
While driving on the freeway at normal highway speed, the vehicle experienced a sudden and catastrophic engine failure. The engine immediately lost power, and the vehicle shut down within seconds. There was no prior warning or opportunity to take corrective action. The vehicle became completely disabled and could not be driven. This occurred late at night with limited traffic, and I was LUCKY to be near a freeway exit. I was able to coast toward the exit, but the engine seized fully, resulting in total loss of propulsion and blocking the freeway exit ramp. Law enforcement had to assist due to the disabled vehicle creating a traffic obstruction and safety hazard. A tow truck was required to remove the vehicle because it could not be restarted or moved. Under normal traffic conditions, this sudden loss of engine power at freeway speed could have resulted in a SERIOUS, potentially FATAL COLLISION. The outcome depended on luck, timing, and location rather than any safety system functioning as intended. The engine was later diagnosed by an authorized Hyundai dealership as seized due to internal failure. Hyundai denied warranty coverage because a software safety campaign had not been completed prior to the failure, even though the failure occurred suddenly and without warning, leaving no opportunity to complete the campaign. However, at the time of the failure, the NHTSA recall lookup tool showed ZERO unrepaired recalls associated with this vehicle’s VIN. The campaign referenced by Hyundai is intended only to detect certain engine conditions and does not repair engine defects. In this case, the engine failed before any detection or warning could occur. The vehicle had just been refueled and was equipped with four brand-new tires, confirming it was being operated normally. This incident involved an unexpected and complete loss of engine power at freeway speed due to an apparent engine defect, presenting a SERIOUS SAFETY RISK to the driver and other motorists.
Engine turns off unexpectedly when driving. all power steering and brakes stop working when engine itself off. entire engine, drive train, and vehicle shakes while driving. Transmission is a replacement as first one failed after 90 days of purchase. paid labor for replacement and waited over 6 weeks without a vehicle. Now replaced oem transmission slips out of gear. making vehicle difficult to drive as the transmission and engine sputter and make ride jerky. car has turned off on the freeway in traffic 3 times. almost causing an accident each time. car has been robbed at least 5 separate times. stealing items within the vehicle. car was locked and next day it is unlocked and my stuff all gone. i am scared to drive the vehicle. i believe it is a lemon.
On [XXX] I was struck by a OVI driver at 50mph the side airbags deployed however the front airbag never deployed. The vehicle was totaled out my insurance company. The vehicle had no record or open recalls for the airbag and had been given a multiple point inspection in November 2024 with no issues noted. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while her daughter attempted to adjust the front driver's side seat while the vehicle was turned off, the front Driver-side air bag had independently deployed. No warning light illuminated. In addition, the contact's daughter's left arm was injured on impact with the air bag. Medical attention was sought, and further medical diagnosis will be scheduled. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened these reviews into vehicles including this one.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a petition letter dated October 10, 2021, requesting an investigation of possible defects in the electronic throttle control (ETC) system on certain Kia vehicles resulting in the opening of DP21-003. Accordingly, Model Year (MY) 2005-2016 Kia Optima/K5, MY 2006-2015 Kia Sorento, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Elantra, MY 2007-2016 Hyundai Santa Fe, MY 2006-2015 Hyundai Sonatas are all part of the subject population. The petition was originally filed as a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire that can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under reference (ODI) number 11439675.On November 12, 2021, ODI opened Defect Petition DP21-003 to evaluate the petitioner?s request. ODI performed trend analyses of the VOQs related to vehicle speed control issues for all the subject vehicles and found that none of the 52 Model/Model Year Hyundai/Kia vehicles demonstrated any actionable trend that warranted an investigation.Petitioners submitted 1119 VOQs and non-VOQ cases in which sudden uncommanded acceleration (SUA) or loss of motive power (LOMP) incidents were alleged.For the 1119 reports, 220 were incidents involving crashes, from which 69 subject Hyundai-Kia vehicles were inspected by Hyundai/Kia dealer technicians, Hyundai/Kia engineers, and/or third-party representatives.ODI found the inspections identified no vehicle defects related to the ETC system.Of the 220 crash-involved reports, 13 Event Data Recorder (EDR) records were downloaded successfully and 11 of those indicated driver error: (i.e.) pedal misapplication.A condition where the accelerator pedal is mistakenly applied instead of the brake pedal when the driver wants to stop the vehicle.In addition, ODI reviewed a scientific journal paper published in Forensic Science International in 2016 by Mr. Park et al ., as well as related test videos. ODI does not believe there is any evidence of uncontrollable SUA occurrences in any of the tests reviewed. NHTSA's Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance (OVSC) reviewed the allegations regarding the potential noncompliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 124.Based on the information provided, the Agency concludes there is insufficient information for us to determine if a possible non-compliance exists.Finally, both Hyundai and Kia informed ODI that all their vehicles manufactured after 2012 were equipped with an ETC management system, in which the engine speed will go to idle when the system sees signals from both the brake pedal and accelerator pedal at the same time; this is commonly known as the brake-throttle override system.After thoroughly assessing the material submitted by the petitioner, information already in NHTSA's possession, information submitted by Hyundai and Kia in response to an Information Request letter, and the potential risks to safety implicated by the petitioner's allegation, NHTSA does not believe that a formal investigation is warranted. After full consideration of appropriate factors, the petition is denied. A Federal Register Notice (FRN) further detailing NHTSA?s reasons for denial of the petition will be published.
Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.
Bars are owner complaints, dots mark years with recalls. Select a year to open its report.