Model year record
2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid recalls & problems
The 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid has no safety recalls on file with NHTSA, and 55 owner complaints. The most-reported problem area is electrical system (26 complaints).
Safety recalls
No safety recalls have been filed for the 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid.
Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. A recall listed here may already have been fixed on a particular car: enter its 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see open recalls.
Crash test ratings
2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid 4 DR FWD
| Frontal crash | ★★★★★ |
|---|---|
| Side crash | ★★★★★ |
| Rollover | ★★★★★ |
| Rollover risk | 9.7% |
Forward collision warning: Standard · Lane departure warning: Standard
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (New Car Assessment Program). Ratings are comparable only between vehicles of similar size and weight, and ratings from 2011 on use tougher tests than earlier years. Photos: NHTSA.
Fuel economy
Sonata Hybrid Blue Hybrid
| City / highway | 50 / 54 mpg |
|---|---|
| Fuel | Regular Gasoline |
2 L · 4 cyl · Automatic (AM-S6) · Front-Wheel Drive · about $1,300/year to fuel
Sonata Hybrid Hybrid
| City / highway | 45 / 51 mpg |
|---|---|
| Fuel | Regular Gasoline |
2 L · 4 cyl · Automatic (AM-S6) · Front-Wheel Drive · about $1,450/year to fuel
EPA estimates from fueleconomy.gov for each engine and transmission sold. Annual cost is the EPA's estimate for 15,000 miles a year at its current fuel and electricity price assumptions. Your results will vary.
What owners report
| Problem area | Complaints | Typical mileage* |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical system12v/24v/48v battery | 26 | — |
| Engine | 21 | — |
| Unknown or other | 7 | — |
| Forward collision avoidanceAutomatic emergency braking; Warnings | 5 | — |
| Fuel/propulsion system | 5 | — |
| Power train | 4 | — |
| Engine and engine coolingEngine › Oil/lubrication › Sump/tank › Drain plug; Exhaust system › Emission control › Gas recirculation valve (egr valve) | 3 | — |
| Tires | 1 | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 1 | — |
| StructureBody | 1 | — |
*Median odometer reading when the problem happened, where owners gave one. One complaint can name several problem areas.
Recent owner complaints
- Fuel/propulsion system
The vehicle was brought to an authorized Hyundai dealer to have Service Campaign TBH and 94B completed. These campaigns were explicitly designed to prevent known mechanical defects (cracked EHRS assemblies and high-voltage battery errors). The software patches failed to protect the vehicle. The physical hardware has now catastrophically failed exactly as predicted by the campaign, resulting in extreme engine overheating and a physically swollen high-voltage battery pack. Hyundai is refusing to cover the cascading physical damage caused by their own failed campaign remedy, leaving me with an active safety and fire hazard. FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM" and explicitly state that the vehicle…
- Power train
âMy Lincoln Nautilus (~9,180 miles) logged 6 "Powertrain Malfunction / Reduced Power" alerts in the [XXX] telematics system between XXX (XXX at 7:59 PM and 8:16 PM; XXX at 1:07 PM and 1:39 PM; XXX at 11:16 PM; and XXX at 10:56 AM). Out of the 6 logged events, I experienced severe loss of motive power during two of them. On XXX, while driving 70 mph on I-95, the vehicle completely lost all propulsion. Coasting without power, I was unable to pull fully onto the shoulder, leaving the car partially stuck in active traffic and narrowly escaping a high-speed collision. Once stopped, the vehicle failed to recognize that it was in Park, causing the electronic parking brake to lock without…
- Electrical system
The vehicle experiences sudden, complete electrical power loss while driving at speed on highways and city streets or on the parking. All digital displays turn off, the engine shuts down, and power-assisted steering and braking are instantly lost without prior warning, presenting an extreme collision risk. The issue first occurred in August 2025 at approximately 48,000 miles and was taken to an authorized Hyundai dealer in Michigan for warranty repair. The dealer held the vehicle for over 30 days but failed to correct the defect. The identical power failure has continued and recently escalated to daily occurrences. A second Hyundai dealer (Pacifico Hyundai, Philadelphia, PA) diagnosed an…
- Electrical system
I purchased this vehicle pre-owned approximately two years ago and have since developed concerns about its reliability, particularly related to the electrical and hybrid systems. In hindsight, I suspect these issues may be part of the reason the original owner traded it in to a CarMax dealer. Shortly after purchasing the vehicle, I began experiencing recurring problems with the 12V battery, including frequent instances requiring battery resets. Interestingly, these issues were significantly less frequent during colder weather. More recently, as temperatures have increased, the problem has worsened considerably. For about the past month, the vehicle loses power and dies immediately after…
- Electrical system
The vehicleâs 12-volt electrical system repeatedly loses power within about 1 hour of sitting. The car becomes completely unresponsive (cannot unlock or start) and requires use of the built-in 12V battery reset button to restore power. This occurs frequently and makes the vehicle unreliable and potentially unsafe, as the car may become inoperable without warning. This appears to be an electrical system defect or parasitic power drain. The issue has been ongoing.
- Engine and engine cooling
See attached document for complaint.
- Electrical system
Owned car since 09/2024 with 64K miles. Battery system (12V/hybrid system) has shut down and died 47 times since 04/2025 - no shut downs before then. Car with ~69K miles at that time. Dealer had car six weeks (05/17 to 07/05/2025) and it died âa numberâ of times and report that Hyundai claims this is âwhat the car is supposed to do.â Since 07/05 it has died 12 times just sitting in my driveway or the lot at work. This is NOT normal. Internet blogs show DOZENS of other Hyundai hybrid owners reporting the exact same issue. Car now with 75K miles and under warranty. Dealer will not replace battery system.
- Electrical system
This is on my 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited - for the 7th time the vehicle has been completely dead and unresponsive. I have had to gain entry to the vehicle using the manual key and press the "jump" button to get the vehicle to start. The Hyundai dealership ran a bunch of battery updates to the 12 volt battery several weeks ago and said that should hopefully fix the issue. Several weeks later on 07/19/2025 the vehicle was dead again. I had to use the key to manually gain entry and jump the car again. The dealership said that the 12 volt battery may need to be replaced and said that it is fully integrated with the hybrid battery system which is covered for 10 years/100K miles whichever…
Owner complaints are submitted to NHTSA by the public and are not verified. Shown as filed (NHTSA removes personal details); long reports are shortened.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Pedestrian alert soundsClosedLed to recall 22V063000
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review…