The Used Car Index

2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz problems

NHTSA lists 19 complaints for the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz, 1 of them mention a crash and 1 mention a fire. 0 complaints mention an injury, with 0 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-09.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as HYUNDAI SANTA CRUZ.

At a glance

Complaints
19
With crash
1
With fire
1
With injury (complaints)
0
Injuries
0
Deaths
0
Recalls
3
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
423,062
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
33

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
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE1052.6%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM315.8%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING315.8%
SERVICE BRAKES210.5%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER210.5%
ENGINE15.3%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM15.3%
LANE DEPARTURE15.3%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEWARNINGS6
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL4
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEAUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING3
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMADAS1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMINSTRUMENT PANEL1
EXTERIOR LIGHTINGHEADLIGHTS1
LANE DEPARTUREASSIST1
LANE DEPARTUREWARNING1

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 electronic1473.7%0.79
visibility or lighting210.5%1.00
fire or overheating15.3%0.64
loss of control15.3%0.54
noise or comfort15.3%0.94
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate1368.4%0.89
low421.1%0.71
critical15.3%0.82
high15.3%0.99

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 19 tagged complaints of 19 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.

3 recalls.

26V316000

Date: 2026-05-18. Systems: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE.

Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Tucson, Tucson Hybrid, and Tucson Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV) vehicles. Software in the front cameras may cause the forward collision avoidance system to activate prematurely and unexpectedly apply the brakes.

Consequence: Unexpected braking increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will update the front camera software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed July 17, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 302. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 20, 2026.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

25V809000

Date: 2025-11-20. Systems: AIR BAGS.

Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson, 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, and 2026 Genesis GV70 vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not have been installed properly, which can cause the air bags not to deploy as intended.

Consequence: Side curtain air bags that do not deploy as intended increase the risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will reinstall the side curtain air bags, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning December 29, 2025. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's numbers for this recall are 289 and 029G. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on November 22, 2025.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

24V877000

Date: 2024-11-20. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson and Santa Cruz vehicles. The console extension wiring assembly may be routed improperly, allowing the transmission to be shifted out of Park without applying the brake pedal.

Consequence: A transmission that can shift out of Park without applying the brake pedal can result in a vehicle roll away, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Owners are advised to use the parking brake when parking the vehicle. Dealers will reroute the console extension wiring assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 17, 2024. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 273.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

0 investigations; 0 open.

Manufacturer communications

33 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM15
ENGINE4
POWER TRAIN4
VISIBILITY/WIPER4
AIR BAGS2
EXTERIOR LIGHTING2
STRUCTURE2
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE1

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

11032592

Date: 2026-05-08. Type: Warranty Program/Extension. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Certain Santa Cruz (NXT) vehicles may experience Over-the-Air (OTA) update failures due to outdated Central Communication Unit (CCU) software. This bulletin provides instructions to perform a software update for the CCU.

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

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 CRUZ19

Same model, other years

All model years | All Hyundai models

Other Hyundai models, 2025

Sources

Get this record as JSON

The free rate-limited demo needs no key.

curl "https://api.theusedcarindex.com/v1/demo/vehicle_risk?make=Hyundai&model=Santa+Cruz&year=2025"

Paid endpoint: https://api.theusedcarindex.com/v1/vehicle_risk. MCP endpoint: https://api.theusedcarindex.com/mcp.