Transmission issues! Possible lemon!
I purchased my 2023 Santa Fe XRT in November of 22. Test drove the vehicle and everything seemed great. On the drive home I switched drive modes from comfort to sport and vehicle jerked HARD. Not even 100 miles on the vehicle. My passenger and I were both a bit shook up. This is my first time ever purchasing a Hyundai, I am used to jeeps, but my sister and her husband have owned them for years, never had any issues, so I just assumed that perhaps it was me getting used to a new vehicle. WRONG. Ive been having issues consistently, every day for the last 7 months since purchase. There is next to no power when accelerating, it hesistates when you hit the gas and takes forever to get up to speed, dangerous if you are at a stop light and it turns green and vehicles are quickly approaching you from the rear. There is a constant lurching when holding steady speeds. First it started when the vehicle was on a slight incline going anywhere from 30 to 40mph. However now it happens every single time I drive the car, no matter where I'm. The vehicle shifts gears so HARD, it makes me think the transmission is going to just fall out of it. Often times when accelerating from a complete stop at light or stop sign, vehicle will not switch from 1st to 2nd gear, and when it finally does, the whole vehicle jerks forward. If the vehicle isnt lurching forward while driving, it feels like its sputtering, almost as though the engine isnt recieving enough fuel to keep the engine running. No dash lights and RPMs do not move when any of the lurching or sputtering happens. Ive had into 2 different Hyundai dealers. The first one said they "could not duplicate the issue" and said they did a transmission software update, but that did not fix the issue. Returned 2 weeks later for the same issue and took the vehicle on a test drive with my service advisor and of course again, could not duplicate the issue. I kept feeling as if I was crazy for describing issues that could not be duplicated. The wait time for the vehicle to even be diagnosed was 5 days minimum, and no loaner vehicle available. Its just me and I live 45 mins from the closest Hyundai dealership, and I can't not have a vehicle so I could not leave. I took it to another Hyundai dealer about an hour away from me and described all the issues I was having, and thankfully the service manager believed me. We both noted that some of the issues Im having are notable within hybrid vehicles, or vehicles with dual clutch transmission, which mine does NOT have. Service manager said that he has not heard of any other Santa Fes with similar issues, which is understandable considering it is still so new. Im currently on a waiting list for a loaner vehicle, but I am #10 in line. Issues are getting worse by the day. Had my brother in law take it for a spin but again could not replicate the issue. Drove my sister's hyundai as she said that she has similar experiences with the lag in acceleration and said "thats just how Hyundai transmissions are." This week the issues are getting so bad that every single passenger I've had with me in the car has asked what is going on. Thankfully the second dealership has been keeping me updated on getting me a loaner vehicle to be able to take mine it. If this is "how Hyundai transmissions are" then someone needs to get back to the drawing boards because it is a safety hazard. Not only dangerous for me, but others on the road. The vehicle is brand new, I should not be having these issues. If the dealership cannot identify the issue and repair, I'll be trading in for another Jeep. I heard only good things about Hyundais so I figured I'd give them a shot, but starting to regret that.
Verified Owner
