AutoUtility currently tracks 956 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. Engine & Cooling issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 617 complaints (64.5% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 14 filings cite a crash, 23 cite a fire, 11 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • Total NHTSA Complaints: 956 reports
  • #1 Reported Problem Area: Engine & Cooling (617 reports • 64.5% of submitted complaints)
  • Secondary Problem Areas: Powertrain & Transmission (158), Brakes & Traction Control (69)
  • Crash-Citing Complaints: 14 filings
  • Fire-Citing Complaints: 23 filings
  • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 11 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
956
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
14
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
23
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
11
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 64.5% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

617 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 1 crash report 🔥 12 fire reports 🩹 2 injury report entries
#2 Problem Area 16.5% of complaints

Powertrain & Transmission

158 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
🔥 3 fire reports 🩹 1 injury report entry
#3 Problem Area 7.2% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

69 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

  • Campaign #22V056000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE
*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 4 crash reports 🔥 4 fire reports 🩹 5 injury report entries
#4 Problem Area 6.9% of complaints

Electrical System

66 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 2 crash reports 🔥 10 fire reports 🩹 4 injury report entries
#5 Problem Area 6.5% of complaints

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech

62 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ 4 crash reports 🔥 2 fire reports 🩹 3 injury report entries
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Powertrain & Transmission 7.8% of complaints

Loss of Motive Power While Driving

75 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Engine & Cooling 6.3% of complaints

Engine Coolant Intrusion / Oil Leak

60 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Engine & Cooling 2.2% of complaints

Engine Stalling / Sudden Shutdown

21 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Powertrain & Transmission NHTSA ODI ID: #11759120
Filed: 08/24/2026

"My 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe, purchased new from Lynnes Hyundai in February 2017, has approximately 93,000 miles. The vehicle previously developed a significant oil-consumption/engine problem that was diagnosed by Hyundai, and Hyundai replaced the engine with a remanufactured engine. Approximately two..."

Incident Date: 08/11/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11758839
Filed: 08/23/2026

"My 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe 3.3L V6 (148,000 miles) has documented oil consumption and a recurring DTC P0278 (Cylinder 6 Contribution/Balance). Hyundai's formal oil-consumption test confirmed oil consumption, but said it was below the threshold for combustion-chamber cleaning. The check-engine light..."

Incident Date: 04/24/2024 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11758520
Filed: 08/21/2026

"There is a class action lawsuit for the Theta Engine in some Kia and Hyundai vehicles and my type of vehicle falls into this lawsuit category. I drive a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport and what the lawsuit described what happened to my vehicle, it seized up and you’re supposed to have a lifetime..."

Incident Date: 08/11/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11758504
Filed: 08/21/2026

"After the update earlier this summer for an emissions issue, my car, a 2017 Hyundi Santa Fe Sport, has not run right. When it is cold, the first trip on the day, it hesitates and sputters to an extent that it is not safe on the nearest highway where the speed limit is 35. We have been compensating..."

Incident Date: 07/02/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Driver Assistance & Safety Tech NHTSA ODI ID: #11758484
Filed: 08/21/2026

"Directly after the dealer, Johnson Hyundai of Apex, completed Service Campaign 9C2 on 4/28/26, my vehicle began sticking, surging, and harshly changing gears. I have followed up with the dealer multiple times. They said they are not getting back any diagnostic error codes (outside mechanic shop..."

Incident Date: 04/28/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Hyundai Santa Fe

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Hyundai Santa Fe 254 9 2 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Hyundai Santa Fe 235 6 3 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Current Page 956 14 6 Current
2018 Hyundai Santa Fe 108 6 2 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Hyundai Santa Fe 193 16 2 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Hyundai Santa Fe 203 13 2 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Hyundai Santa Fe 184 4 8 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Hyundai Santa Fe 257 12 8 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Hyundai Santa Fe 281 13 2 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Hyundai Santa Fe 172 11 7 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Hyundai Santa Fe 206 9 5 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Hyundai Santa Fe 0 0 4 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 104 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 470 1 6 0 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 65 0 0 1 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 45 0 1 0 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 41 1 1 3 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 22 0 0 0 0
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 21 0 0 0 0
Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 20 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 20 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 19 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES 15 1 2 0 0
Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 14 2 0 2 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 0 2 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 13 0 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 11 3 0 6 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 10 2 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 7 0 1 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 7 0 0 0 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 6 0 0 1 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 6 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 5 0 1 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 5 0 1 2 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 5 0 0 0 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 5 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4 1 2 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 4 0 2 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 3 1 0 2 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 3 0 0 0 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 3 0 0 0 0
Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SEATS 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2 1 0 1 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES 1 1 0 0 0
Back Over Prevention / Camera NHTSA category: BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 0 0 0 0
CHEST CLIP, BUCKLE, HARNESS,INSERT, PADDING 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,LANE DEPARTURE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY 1 0 1 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEAT BELTS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,AIR BAGS,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 1 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,LANE DEPARTURE 1 0 1 0 0
Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
SEATS,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SEATS,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, AIR 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SEAT BELTS 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,WHEELS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,LANE DEPARTURE 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FIRERELATED 1 0 1 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
WHEELS,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (956). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (3)

1 OPEN 2 CLOSED

Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)

Official Federal Inquiries: NHTSA opens a defect investigation when safety screening or consumer defect trends indicate a potential unreasonable safety risk. An open investigation is a formal inquiry and does not by itself confirm a defect or result in a mandatory recall.
OPEN Audit Query (AQ) ODI Action #AQ23002
Opened: 2023-11-17 • Currently Active

Hyundai and Kia ABS Module Fires

Affected Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received eight Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) and eight Kia America, Inc. (Kia) Part 573 Recall Reports between 2016 and 2023. The combined 16 safety recalls all involve the antilock braking system (ABS) modules or Hydraulic Electronic Control Units (HECU) manufactured by the equipment supplier Mando. The Part 573 Recall Reports contain varying defect descriptions and differing remedy descriptions fo...

Active federal investigation. Official NHTSA File →
CLOSED Defect Petition (DP) ODI Action #DP24001
Opened: 2024-02-08 • Closed: 2024-05-16

3.3L Engine Loss of Motive Power (LOMP)

Affected Component: ENGINE

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a petition on February 2, 2024, requesting a defect investigation into an alleged defect of the "engine" on the following vehicle model: 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe vehicles equipped with the 3.3L V-Shaped GDI Lambda-II engines. The petition cites allegations of a loss of motive power, often resulting in an engine seizure. The stall is preceded by a knocking sound, decreased performance and no warning...

Closed without associated recall campaign. Official NHTSA File →
CLOSED Defect Petition (DP) ODI Action #DP22003
Opened: 2022-09-12 • Closed: 2023-12-12

Loss of Motive Power

Affected Component: ENGINE

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 experienc...

Closed without associated recall campaign. Official NHTSA File →
Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.