2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
Vehicles › Hyundai › Sonata Plug-In Hybrid › 2016
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
These records cover every 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid. To see whether one car still needs a recall repair, decode its VIN or check it with NHTSA.
2 recalls name the 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid. Newest first.
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Sonata, 2016-2017 Sonata Hybrid, and Sonata Plug-In Hybrid vehicles. The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.
A turn signal that activates in the opposite direction of what was intended by the driver increases the risk of a crash.
Dealers will update the SJB software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 19, 2021. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 210.
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with a Voltage Protection Device (VPD), designed to protect the high voltage battery module, that may activate inadvertently.
If the VPD activates while the vehicle is being operated in Electric Vehicle (EV) mode, there may be a loss of power, increasing the risk of a crash.
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will remove the VPD switch and install a new Battery Management System (BMS) that contains an Overvoltage Protection Device (OPD). The recall is expected to begin May 2018. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 175.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid. The contact stated that on three separate occasions while driving approximately 65 MPH, the “Check Hybrid System - Turn Off Engine” message was displayed. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact then stated that the vehicle decelerated and went into LIMP Mode. The vehicle was towed to the dealer however, the failure could not be duplicated. The contact stated that the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer but the failure could not be duplicated; however, the contact stated that he provided diagnostic test data to the technician that displayed error codes however, the failure could not duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was provided a case number. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.
While driving the car getting error message on dashboard "Check Hybrid System Turn Off Engine", The Gas engine turn off and switch to continue on electric till able to pull on the side of the road. Turn Off engine, wait a min. Start car again and working fine. This issue appears randomly many times in the last two years while driving. Car was at dealer shop multiple times with no repair, was told we don't see active error message or they can't re-create the error. however scan show P261F error. Open Ticket with Hyundai #21018148 while car at the dealers for weeks at the time. each time told check engine got back on but not the message they are looking for.
While driving the hybrid system warning light comes on and says to check hybrid system, vehicle goes into limp mode will not accelerate over 25 mph and codes need to be cleared before vehicle van be driven. This has caused me to almost have several accidents. The vehicle slows down and gives no warning prior to this occurring. It has started happening more frequently vehicle currently has 85k miles.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH or faster in Hybrid Mode, the vehicle stalled. The HEV error warning light was displayed on the instrument panel. The check engine warning light was also illuminated. The contact turned off the vehicle and disengaged the HEV Mode for the vehicle to restart and function as intended. The failure occurred three times. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer however, the mechanics were unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The approximate failure mileage was 66,000.
My 2016 plug in hybrid Sonata repeatedly inidcates that there is "high system temperature switching to hybrid mode." This first happened on my first long trip in the car in 10/21 and has happened repeatedly since. This happens at all temperatures, including moderate temperatures (mid 70s). It seems to happen randomly, such as when battery has several miles of charge left in it, when it is fully discharged, and repeatedly when the car is already running in hybrid mode, which a driver could interpret means that the engine is about to shut down, as I did on a long trip. I have taken it to two separate dealers, and the only thing they did was replace the fuel pump, which did not solve the problem. In addition, the battery life has reduced greatly, despite the fact that I always fully discharge and recharge the batter. As you can see from the attached Hyundai forum comments, this appears to be a prevalent problem for this make and model car and no relief from the manufacturer appears to be on the horizon.
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid. The contact stated while the vehicle was approaching a stop sign, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact stated he manually pushed the vehicle to the side of the roadway. The contact went back with his trailer and trailered the vehicle to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing the Hybrid control unit to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.
In January of 2022, my vehicle experienced a complete power loss while driving to work, leaving the car coasting down the road. A Check Hybrid System warning came up on the dashboard, along with several other warning lights, including Check Engine. Luckily, I was able to pull over without an accident occurring. Once stopped, the vehicle did restart and got me to and back from work. A diagnosis effort made at a local Hyundai dealership was unsuccessful as they could not replicate the problem and found no error codes in the auto's CPU system. I continued to drive the vehicle, hoping it was a one time deal, but since then, the identical situation has occurred three more times. I was extremely lucky that I had been in a position to safely pull off to the side of the road. The car has not been driven since March 19, 2022. After researching this scenario online, it appears to be the exact situation reflected in the Hyundai Recall campaign 175 from 2018, where the dealership remove the original VPD module and replace it with a Battery Management System (BMS) that contains an Overvoltage Protection Device (OPD). The recall is said to have been done on my vehicle, but the exact situation has reoccurred. Every time time the car lost power, it was preceded by a shuttering feel in the car, an alarm would go off and the propulsion system would just shut down and the Check Hybrid light would come on. Hyundai's only response has been to drive the car until it fails again (can you believe that?) and bring it in again for diagnosis. Even if that were to be done, the technicians and others on the road, would then be put at risk, as well, if they drove the vehicle in an attempt to get it to fail. I am the second owner of this car and the recall was supposedly done prior to my purchase. I now wonder if the dealer knew of the problem and that is why it was $2K below KBB. I cannot safely drive the car and can't sell it without loss once this safety issue is revealed. Thank you.
This is a plug-in hybrid. Charging light on the dash blinks red indicating there is an issue (per manual). Also blinks while driving. Should be green. Still charges. Taken to two Hyundai dealerships. Computer produces no codes. Dealership does not know how to proceed. Safety concern is it’s unknown if battery is dangerous to charge? Is it dangerous to drive? How does a car indicate a problem but then give no codes.
TL* the contact owns a 2016 hyundai sonata. The contact stated that while driving at high speeds, the vehicle loss motive power and stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was pushed off the roadway with assistance from a bystander. The vehicle was towed to tustin hyundai (16 auto center drive, tustin, ca 92782, (714) 647-2000) to be diagnosed. The technician determined that the communication wire between the battery and computer failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred 2 years later. The contact was informed that the computer to the engine needed to be rebooted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided the contact with a case number. The failure mileage was approximately 18,000.
Hev enginie erorr
The plug of the electrical charger for the battery of my plug -in car overheated and burned the surge protector that it was plugged into.
"Takata recall" august 25TH the car was driven into some high water and was parked by a gas station near green road and aldean westfield r. The car was underwater from the front end. I have taken the vehicle in for repair multiple times for repair. From warranty issues to flood repair, both can't give me a straight answer to what IS wrong with the car. The car stops and completely shuts off hybrid malfunction. we dont have any documents, the dealership has copys of all repars.
Hybrid system warning light came on several times. Now it IS not operable. car was checked by local hyundai dealer service 3 days ago. They did not have parts at the time of service, they did not perform the recall service. I was able to drive it back home safely, but when I tried to start the car again 3 days later in the evening, it gave warnings. Car IS not operable.
I was going about 70 mph in full electric mode and the car removed all power from my gas pedal, there was lots of dinging sounds and the dash said "check hybrid system, turn your car off". Luckily I was already to the far right so I could just pull tot he shoulder and stop the car, the breaks and steering were still working. Towed to the dealership, hoping the march 2018 recall IS the fix. I had to call aaa, all blue link capabilities stopped working as well. 2016 plugin with about 25,000 miles.
This IS 4TH time the "check hybrid system" light came on in last 7,000 miles of driving. Hyundai claimed to have fixed the problem three times so far but it keeps happening and since they are unable to repair it under warranty, they must buy the car back. One out of the four times, the car completely died on the road putting lives on the line. A complaint was filed earlier (ref: hyundai case #111109600, nhtsa complain #11080680) but no actions were taken by either hyundai or nahtsa. This car IS unsafe to be on the road and can not be fixed after three tries within a year.
Engine/electrical shut down occurred on interstate at high speed in traffic may 2017 narrowly missed being hit from behind. multiple issues with check engine light, relay was replaced. Worked for awhile. now (april 2018) back in shop for same problem - engine shut down and would not start had to have towed to hyundai dealer. checked recalls, found they know there IS a problem but no remedy for it. would appreciate a buy back please. can't sell it or trade it knowing it IS dangerous. Case #10258851
My car completely lost power while I was driving on the freeway. The dash read "hybrid system failure". it shut off while I was driving in the carpool lane. There was no warning, just shut right off. I was able to coast over to the shoulder to safety until aaa came to tow me away. The car would not start back up. It turned on but couldn't start the car.
Warning light saying "check hybrid system" comes on and the engine would not start if the car IS parked. While driving the car completely shuts off without the ability to pull over at a safe location. It happened to me three times so far, twice under 18,000 miles and once at 24,600 miles. The dealer IS not sure what IS causing it and gives it back to me after some tweaking to get rid of the warning light. I have filed a complain with hyundai (case # 11109600) regarding this. this car IS a death trap and I will not either drive or ride in this car ever. I will not be satisfied in anything less than a complete buy back. I am asking nhtsa to force a recall and have them fix the problem with confidence or do buy backs. It's a death trap and can not be allowed to exist on the road.
On 1/7/2018 we were driving our 2016 hyundai sonata hybrid with approximately 41,100 miles in it to los angeles, ca with my 82 year old father on oxygen from san jose which IS about 370 miles away on highway I5 with the speed limit of 70 mph. When we experienced engine problem. while exiting to our destination on highway 118 de soto exit, the engine had slowed down in the middle of the intersection and barely turned to the side of the road for safely .we were unable to start the car and dashboard had indicated to check hev . Several attempts were made to start the car, to no success. Lights will come on dashboard, still able to connect to bluelink to call for roadside assistance but there was a long wait before a customer service answered until the engine completely died and stalled. We were stranded with an 82 year old man who has respiratory illness and we have finally called an uber to his home before oxygen runs out. road assistance finally came after 2 hours of waiting and the car was finally towed to the nearest hyundai dealer in woodland hills 20539 ventura blvd woodland hills .the car IS being serviced and has no update yet. I called hyundai USA customer service at 1-855 671 3059 this am 1/8/2018 and claimed there has been no report of recall to this sort of problem and has therefore gave me a reference case #10911352 .
While driving the car at 68 mph in hov lane, hybrid system alert light up and the engine completely lost power and shut down. Very dangerous situation and lucky able to direct the car to right side and stop and wait for towing. This happen during traffic was slightly jam so able to drive to the right side when other cars are slowing down in regular lane. Cannot imagine if there IS no traffic jam, high potential to get into accident and life threatening situation. With the dealer for five days and they cannot pinpoint the exact problem and keep on saying IS slight problem. How can this be slight problem when the engine completely shut down?? Need to have major recall for public safety. There are similar problems from other owners that have discussion about this same issue on the internet. I hope this will be address and recall before someone get into major injury or lost of life.
Car in motion on highway in the mountains lost power and had to be towed to a dealer who indicated they had seen similar problems. engine repairs needed and will take at least 2 weeks when they identify problem. car has 11,700 miles on it. I was able to safely pull off road so no injuries or accident.
Vehicle was in motion when the phev warning illuminated and the gasoline engine shut off. The vehicle lost all propulsion. It refused to engage the gasoline or electric motor to move out of a dangerous situation. The vehicle was towed to the hyundai dealer where it was diagnosed as a failed hybrid battery.
Over the past two months, I have had the yellow engine light come on. even though there were no issues related to performance noted, I took vehicle to my garage to diagnose. the diagnosis did not find any issue, but mechanic proceeded to check the gas cover cap. lo and behold, both times, removing the cap and replacing seemed to correct the issue and the yellow engine light went off. quite annoying as don't want to have to keep checking if light comes on incorrectly and not address if there was indeed a problem to correct.
My sonata phev had hybrid system failed not once, but twice within a span of 1.5 months. It's been hardly 1.5 years since I had bought this car. In both cases the check hybrid system warning comes up and engine looses total power. The 1ST time it happened, it was in the middle of a busy 405 freeway and was left all of a sudden with no power on the engine. Extremely dangerous and life threatening problem to face with. With whatever power was left, was able to coast to the ramp on the right. Stopping anywhere in 405 freeway IS absolutely dangerous, even on the shoulder (many people including cops has been rear ended). The 2ND time it happened it was on a 3 lane local parkway still dangerous as I am left with no power to control the car. The car had to be towed to the dealership in both cases.the dealership took 1 month to fix the car the 1ST time. They ended up replacing the power relay assembly which had to be shipped from south korea. It ran for close to 1.5 months and again the same problem with the check hybrid system warning and it's back at the dealership. The dealership says that the power relay has gone again and hyundai now wants to see if replacing the hybrid battery will fix it. As of today after 18 days the car IS still in the service centre.
The vehicle will not charge the hybrid battery when properly plugged in, with either 110V or 220V plug. This happened previously and hyundai repaired it with a part costing around $2,000 they told me (it was under warranty and cost me nothing). Has been in the shop continually since july 7, 2017 (31 days!) this time. The vehicle was stationary, in my garage. This problem was noticed in the past (not charging overnight), but never stayed a problem--i was able to get it to charge usually the very next day. This current problem began around july 3, and I tried to get it to charge every day until I took it in for hyundai service.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened these reviews into vehicles including this one.
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a letter dated July 13, 2022, petitioning the Agency to initiate a safety defect investigation into loss of motive power allegations attributed to oil drain pan assembly failures on certain Hyundai Motor America, Inc. and Kia America, Inc. vehicles spanning Model Years (MY) 2005-2021. The Petitioners cited examples of complaints indicating that the subject vehicles were experiencing rapid loss of engine oil due to oil drain plug back outs, resulting in loss of motive power and/or catastrophic engine damage. Additional complaints were provided which alleged that the oil drain pans lack sufficient structural integrity and are susceptible to cracking. The petition itself can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI number 11481745. On September 12, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Defect Petition (DP22-003) to evaluate the Petitioners’ request. The Petitioners have provided additional complaints within four supplemental letters dated January 31, 2023, March 21, 2023, May 23, 2023, and August 4, 2023. ODI’s evaluation included the review and analysis of the complaints and supporting information submitted by the Petitioners, as well as additional complaints submitted directly to NHTSA which referenced either the oil drain plug or a crack in the oil pan. After reviewing the available data, ODI has not identified evidence that would support opening a defect investigation into the oil drain pan assemblies of the subject vehicles. Based on a review of the available information, a loss of motive power resulting from an oil drain plug back out has not occurred between the initial sale of a vehicle and the completion of its first oil change. If during an oil change service, a technician fails to remove the existing drain plug gasket before installing a new gasket, it is likely that a proper seal between the drain plug and the oil pan will not be made. An improper seal between the drain plug and oil pan could lead to the backing out on the drain plug, resulting in the sudden loss of oil while driving. Additionally, the provided examples of oil pan cracks were localized to the immediate vicinity of the oil drain plug and/or appeared to be the result of direct-contact with a tool during servicing. There is no information to support that a vehicle-based defect exists relating to the oil pan assembly, and instead the documented incidents are related to the failure to follow the proper maintenance procedures during oil change service. In October 2023, Hyundai published a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) that provided detailed instructions for oil change service on its gasoline powered vehicles, specifically highlighting the need to remove and replace the existing drain plug gasket prior to reinstalling the drain plug. After a thorough review of the material submitted by the petitioner, the information already in NHTSA's possession, and the potential risks to motor vehicle safety implicated by the petitioners' allegations, NHTSA does not believe that a formal investigation is warranted. Therefore, the petition is denied. A Federal Register Notice (FRN) further detailing NHTSA’s reasons for denial of the petition will be published. The reference numbers for the complaints to NHTSA cited by the petitioner can be found in the petition submission documents in the public file for DP22-003. To review those complaints and the additional complaints ODI added to its evaluation which are cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.
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.