2020 Hyundai Elantra POWER TRAIN,ENGINE
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
transmission failed while driving & now doesn’t drive.
THIS VEHICLE RECENTLY HAD A NEW ENGINE AND NEW TRANSMISSION INSTALLED INTO IT IN FEBRUARY OF THIS YEAR. LESS THAN 10K MILES ON IT. THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON ON 4/12/2024 AND I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER IMMEDIATELY. THEY CALLED ME ON 4/15/2024 STATING THAT THEIR ENGINEERS AND TECHS HAD HAD PROBLEMS ON THE TRANSMISSION RECENTLY INSTALLED ON IT DUE TO MANUFACTURING AND/OR FAULTY PARTS, AND TO REPLACE THAT TRANSMISSION WITH A NEW ONE. STILL WAITING TO GET THE VEHICLE BACK AT THIS POINT IN TIME.
TOOK OUR VEHICLE TO THE LOCAL HYUNDAI DEALER ON 1/30/2024 TO HAVE THEM LOOK AT THE ENGINE AS MY REGULAR MECHANIC STATED THE "ENGINE WAS KNOCKING" AT THE MOST RECENT OIL CHANGE, AND GET IT TO THE DEALER AS IT SHOULD BE UNDER WARRANTY. TURNS OUT IT DID NEED AN ENGINE WHICH THEY REPLACED YESTERDAY FINALLY, HOWEVER WHEN THEY TOOK IT FOR A TEST DRIVE THEY STILL HEARD NOISES. THEY EXAMINED IT FURTHER AND TODAY THEY NOTIFIED ME IT ALSO NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION. THIS VEHICLE WE HAVE HAD SINCE WE BOUGHT IT NEW IN JANUARY OF 2021, HAD LESS THAN 10K MILES ON IT WHEN WE TOOK IT INTO THE DEALER ON 1/30/2024. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE. THANK GOODNESS I HAD ALL MY RECEIPTS TO PROVE REGULAR PROOF OF MAINTENANCE ESP SINCE I HAVE A REGULAR GUY AND DID NOT HAVE IT DONE AT THE DEALERS.
I took the vehicle in for it's regular oil change on 1/19/2024. My regular mechanic stated to me that "the engine is knocking, you need to get it to the dealer so they can fix the issue as it should be under warranty." He finished the oil change and we came home and immediately made an appointment with our local Hyundai Dealer - that appointment is on 1/30/2024 at 9 am. This is an extremely concerning issue as it affects the whole vehicle and the ability of it to be driven and last a long time. No warning lamps, or messages occurred for this issue, only the statement by my regular mechanic. I want to make sure this is documented in case Hyundai tries to get out of fixing the issue. This could be a very expensive problem. The appointment was made for the 30,000 mile service, but I will make sure they are aware of the engine issue when I take it in as well.
When I start off I give my car gas but it does not want to speed up. The rpm drops to 2 and does not move as I push the gas to go to get out of the way of traffic behind me. It goes about 600 ft before it kicks in. Then it runs normal. It's still under manufacture warrenty (3 more years and 20000 more miles unde warrenty). I've taken it to the dealership and they didn't see anything. Said they would have to keep it a couple of days to check it out. It's my only means of transportation but the never have a loner car for me to use till I get mine back. I've seen others with same complaint so why is there no recall. Afraid I'm gonna get hit in the rear due to lack of power. Doesn't do it everyday but has happened twice in two weeks when I've pulled out onto a major highway with heavy traffic. I bought the car used in Jan.2023 with warrenty still on the car. Thought hey great deal! But now I think I bought a lemon.
The contact owns a 2020 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that he attempted to start the vehicle and felt the vehicle shaking. The contact then stated that he attempted to start the vehicle again when the engine revved and misfired. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that cylinder #2, engine, and powertrain control module (PCM) needed to be replaced. Additionally, the ECU and TCU needed to be updated. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the dealer was unable to repair the vehicle because the recalls were originated from Puerto Rico. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the recall could not be honored and provided a case number. The failure mileage was approximately 25,000.
2/20/2020 - I WAS DRIVING MY NEW 2020 ELANTRA (LESS THAN 5,000 MILES ON IT) AND I NOTICED THE CAR WAS NOT ACCELERATING SMOOTHLY. THE RPM NEEDLE WAS REVVING ABNORMALLY WHENEVER I TRIED TO ACCELERATE. WHEN I PRESSED THE GAS FROM A DEAD STOP THE CAR WOULD SHUTTER BEFORE ACCELERATING. ON MY WAY HOME FROM WORK THE SAME DAY I WAS HAVING THE SAME ISSUES BUT AS I MERGED (TURNING) ONTO A HIGHWAY THE CAR SUDDENLY STOPPED ACCELERATING ALL TOGETHER AND I WAS NOT ABLE TO GO MORE THAN 10-20 MPH. SINCE IT WAS AT A MERGE THERE WAS ALMOST A COLLISION, BUT I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER BEFORE ANYTHING HAPPENED. 2/21/2020- THE NEXT DAY WHILE I WAS AT WORK MY HUSBAND TRIED TO DRIVE MY CAR TO THE DEALER. HE EXPERIENCED THE SAME ISSUES AND WHEN HE GOT TO THE DEALERSHIP HE WAS UNABLE TO TURN THE CAR INTO THE SERVICE STATION BECAUSE THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. SERVICE WORKERS HAD TO PUSH THE CAR INTO THE BAY TO BE LOOKED AT. THE EMPLOYEE TOLD US THIS WAS ABOUT THE 15TH 2020 ELANTRA THEY HAVE SEEN WITH THE SAME TRANSMISSION ISSUE. NO EMERGENCY LIGHTS CAME ON IN THE CAR DURING EITHER INCIDENTS. SINCE NO LIGHTS CAME ON DURING THE INCIDENT, I WAS VERY HESITANT TO DRIVE THE CAR AGAIN.
WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH ON OHIO TURNPIKE THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPED OUT OF GEAR AND WOULD NOT ALLOW THE CAR TO SHIFT INTO ANY GEARS. AFTER PULLING OVER AND RESTARTING THE CAR THE FASTEST IT WOULD GO WAS 10 MPH .
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Quick Summary
The 2020 Hyundai Elantra has 8 POWER TRAIN,ENGINE complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.