Used Hyundai Santa Fe: Inspection checklist

Pick the model year you are going to see. Each sheet lists the checks for the problems owners reported on that year, in the order you would do them at the car. Owners filed 1,710 complaints across these 9 years; the 2018 drew the most.

Choose a model year

Problems that follow the Santa Fe from year to year

Each of these is a top-three complaint area in at least two model years. Darker cells mean more complaints that year. Whatever year you are looking at, give these extra time.

Area	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	Total
Electrical	25	22	20	25	27	34	11	21	185
Engine	182	45	38	15	28	19	3		330
Transmission	22	24	18	52	63	50	28	12	269
Brakes	58	11	4	4	4	17	7		105

Santa Fe generations and updates

First years of a new generation and mid-cycle updates are marked. Each year links to its checklist.

Fourth generation
2019–2023
2021 update: New platform introduced; Updated design features; Enhanced safety technology
Third generation
2013–2018
- 2018
2017 update: Restyled headlights and tail lights; Updated interior features

Mileages where Santa Fe problems start

From owner reports for each model year, lowest mileage first. Compare these with the odometer of the car you are seeing.

Typical mileage	Problem	Year
400–12,000 miles	Hesitation pulling from stops	2018
900–4,300 miles	12-volt battery drains overnight	2025
1,000–2,000 miles	Unprompted automatic braking	2023
1,000–5,600 miles	Horn stops working	2020
1,000–5,014 miles	Stalling and no-restart at stops	2019
1,300–3,000 miles	Dashboard and screen blackouts	2024
1,500–8,000 miles	Factory tire sidewall bulges	2025
1,500–2,600 miles	Early transmission failure	2024
1,656–7,000 miles	Phantom automatic emergency braking	2019
2,000–20,000 miles	Transmission power loss	2022
2,650–3,150 miles	Engine shuts off at low speed	2025
6,000–12,506 miles	Sudden loss of acceleration	2023
6,506–15,000 miles	Sudden loss of drive power	2021
7,000–16,000 miles	Warped brake rotors, shaking	2022

Every Santa Fe recall to confirm

26 recalls cover the Santa Feyears on this site. Open a campaign number for NHTSA's full notice. 11 campaigns span more than one model year. 3 told owners not to drive or to park outside until repaired.