The Used Car Index

2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz problems

NHTSA lists 79 complaints for the 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz, 2 of them mention a crash and 3 mention a fire. 1 complaints mention an injury, with 1 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-09.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as HYUNDAI SANTA CRUZ.

At a glance

Complaints
79
With crash
2
With fire
3
With injury (complaints)
1
Injuries
1
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
1
Recall potential units (maximum)
584,784
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
49

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
POWER TRAIN2531.6%
ENGINE2025.3%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM1417.7%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER1012.7%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE67.6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM67.6%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL67.6%
SERVICE BRAKES56.3%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING45.1%
TRAILER HITCHES33.8%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEAUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING2
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEWARNINGS2
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL1
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINEFUEL INJECTION SYSTEM1
LANE DEPARTUREBLIND SPOT DETECTION1
LANE DEPARTUREWARNING1
STRUCTUREBODY1
SUSPENSIONREAR1
TIRESSIDEWALL1
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROLTHROTTLE1

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
electrical electronic1924.1%0.79
loss of control1924.1%0.71
mechanical failure1721.5%0.74
unclear56.3%0.93
visibility or lighting56.3%0.96
fire or overheating45.1%0.77
fluid or fuel leak45.1%0.98
noise or comfort22.5%0.71
restraint or airbag22.5%0.92
structural or corrosion22.5%0.79
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate5569.6%0.89
low1519.0%0.76
high78.9%0.76
critical11.3%0.99
none11.3%0.75

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 79 tagged complaints of 79 complaints (100.0%).

Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.

Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

2 recalls.

23V181000

Date: 2023-03-17. Systems: TRAILER HITCHES.

Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2019-2023 Santa Fe, 2021-2023 Santa Fe HEV, 2022-2023 Santa Fe Plug-in HEV and Santa Cruz vehicles potentially equipped with a tow hitch harness installed as original equipment, or purchased as an accessory through a Hyundai dealership. Water accumulation on the tow hitch harness module printed circuit board (PCB) may cause an electrical short, (excerpt)

Consequence: A fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury. (excerpt)

Remedy: Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the remedy is completed. Dealers will install a new fuse and wire extension kit as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed starting May 16, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 244. This recall is an expansion of previou (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: Yes.

23V038000

Date: 2023-01-31. Systems: STRUCTURE.

Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2022 Tucson and 2022-2023 Santa Cruz vehicles. The roof moldings may detach.

Consequence: A detached roof molding could become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace, or secure the roof moldings, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 30, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 241.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

0 investigations; 0 open.

Manufacturer communications

49 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM13
POWER TRAIN10
STRUCTURE6
VISIBILITY/WIPER5
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING4
VISIBILITY3
AIR BAGS2
EXTERIOR LIGHTING2

11036205

Date: 2026-08-04. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

Certain 2022 a 2025 model year Santa Cruz and 2022 a 2025 model year Tucson vehicles may have front wipers that do not return to the designated park position due to a loose wiper motor crank arm nut. At Hyundai, we are committed to providing vehicles of outstanding quality and value. In an effor

11035139

Date: 2026-07-07. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.

Some Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles may have a tonneau cover that does not latch or unlatch, does not retract properly, and/or has a v-gap that is present when closed. This may be due to a broken or missing clip on the underside of the tonneau cover. This bulletin provides instructions to inspect and, if

11035136

Date: 2026-07-06. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

Some Tucson (NX4A and NX4M) and Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles may have front wipers that do not return to the designated park position due to a loose wiper motor crank arm nut. Hyundai is extending the warranty coverage for the wiper motor crank arm nut under this condition to 10 years / 100,000 miles f

11035137

Date: 2026-07-06. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

Some Tucson (NX4A and NX4M) and Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles may have front wipers that do not return to the designated park position due to a loose wiper motor crank arm nut. Hyundai is extending the warranty coverage for the wiper motor crank arm nut under this condition to 10 years / 100,000 miles f

11035138

Date: 2026-07-06. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

Some Tucson (NX4A and NX4M) and Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles may have front wipers that do not return to the designated park position due to a loose wiper motor crank arm nut. Hyundai is extending the warranty coverage for the wiper motor crank arm nut under this condition to 10 years / 100,000 miles f

11033840

Date: 2026-06-05. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

This bulletin provides information related to a Transmission Control Unit (TCU) software update for some vehicles equipped with an 8-speed wet dual clutch transmission (8WDCT). The software update revises the touch point learning variation, improving drivability and judder symptoms. Some 8WDCTs (ind

11033710

Date: 2026-05-27. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

This bulletin provides information related to the navigation and head unit software changes introduced in the 2026 1st Navigation Map and Software Update. The changes may vary depending on vehicle type, model, and navigation system. Refer to the 2026 1st Navigation Map and Software Update Key Improv

11032522

Date: 2026-04-10. Type: Other. Systems: AIR BAGS.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued an urgent safety advisory regarding dangerous, counterfeit drivera side airbag inflators manufactured by Jilin Province Detiannuo Automobile Safety System Co., Ltd. (DTN), that have been identified in U.S. vehicles following prio

11032523

Date: 2026-04-10. Type: Other. Systems: AIR BAGS.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has identified the presence of substandard and dangerous drivera s-side airbag inflators manufactured by Jilin Province Detiannuo Automobile Safety System Co., Ltd. (DTN). These inflators were not supplied, approved, or authorized by the ve

11030324

Date: 2026-03-16. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

Certain Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles equipped with 8-speed dual clutch transmissions (8DCT) may set one of the high pressure electric oil pump (HP EOP) DTCs listed below. This bulletin provides the service procedure to update the Transmission Control Unit (TCU) with improved logic to address these DTCs

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
SANTA CRUZ79

Same model, other years

All model years | All Hyundai models

Other Hyundai models, 2023

Sources

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