AutoUtility currently tracks 108 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. Engine & Cooling issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 51 complaints (47.2% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 6 filings cite a crash, 4 cite a fire, 5 report one or more injuries.
- • Total NHTSA Complaints: 108 reports
- • #1 Reported Problem Area: Engine & Cooling (51 reports • 47.2% of submitted complaints)
- • Secondary Problem Areas: Brakes & Traction Control (19), Powertrain & Transmission (10)
- • Crash-Citing Complaints: 6 filings
- • Fire-Citing Complaints: 4 filings
- • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 5 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Most Reported Problems for 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe
Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records
Engine & Cooling
Brakes & Traction Control
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
Powertrain & Transmission
Electrical System
Steering System
NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #18V118000 STEERING: STEERING WHEEL/HANDLE BAR
Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 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.
Loss of Motive Power While Driving
Engine Coolant Intrusion / Oil Leak
Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"See attached letter for complaint"
"On April 13, 2026, I arrived home and parked the vehicle, engaging the traditional shifter into the "Park" position and turning off the engine. After exiting and standing on the ground to retrieve a purse from the cabin, the vehicle spontaneously and rapidly began reversing. As the vehicle gained..."
"My wife was driving the vehicle by the left lane on route 9A northbound on elmsford at a speed around 35 mph. The vehicle suddenly came to stop completely while driving. My wife tried to start it but it didn't start. We called the police to come help us due to the ongoing traffic while the towing..."
"Catastrophic Engine Failure - Cam phasers blew apart and severely cracked the valve covers. This occurred with no prior warning lights. Minutes before failure, there was engine hesitation and noise and then severely reduced power, causing a safety issue while driving. Vehicle was towed to local..."
"Engine Issues: A week ago, on two separate occasions, my Santa Fe cutoff while driving suddenly. A day later, I noticed a rhythmic knocking upon starting my vehicle. The knocking would increase during acceleration and decrease when I let off. I am only at 83,000 miles on this 2018 vehicle. I took..."
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 | 956 | 14 | 6 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe Current Page | 108 | 6 | 2 | Current |
| 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 → |
Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 34 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 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING,AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,BACK OVER PREVENTION,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires NHTSA category: TIRES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (2)
Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)
Hyundai and Kia ABS Module Fires
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...
Loss of Motive Power
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...
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.