2003 Hyundai Santa Fe Cruise Control Problems

WHILE DRIVING OR STOPPED THE VEHICLE WOULD ACCELERATE TO THE HIGHEST RATE OF SPEED, ON IT'S OWN, AND I HAD TO PUT IT IN NEUTRAL TO STOP AN ACCIDENT FROM HAPPENING. THIS HAPPENED MORE THAN ONCE, ALMOST FATALLY INJURING SEVERAL PEDESTRIANS. WE TOOK IT TO THE DEALER FOR REPAIR AND IT WAS SO UNSAFE DUE TO THE ACCELERATION PROBLEM THEY WOULDN'T EVEN DRIVE IT ! I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED BACK AND FORTH TO THE DEALER TWICE BEFORE THEY COULD EVEN FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS. NOW THEY ARE SAYING IT IS THE THROTTLE BODY ASSEMBLY. $1,753.11 FOR A VEHICLE THAT WAS GARAGED AND ONLY DRIVEN IN THE WINTER. 53,567 MILES ON IT. FOR A PART THAT REGULATES YOUR SPEED? THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THIS IS REPORTED - THERE WAS A CASE IN JAPAN WHERE PEOPLE ACTUALLY DIED - AFTER GOING TO COURT THEY SAID IT WAS DRIVER ERROR - STEPPING ON THE GAS INSTEAD OF THE BRAKE. I HIGHLY DOUBT IT NOW - THERE ARE MANY MORE CASES AND REPAIRS LIKE THIS ONE - SOMEONE NEEDS TO DO A LITTLE RESEARCH. I FOR ONE WOULD LIKE A LITTLE HELP - I'M 73 YEARS OLD AND BOUGHT THIS CAR NEW - IT'S ALWAYS BEEN TAKEN CARE OF - THE DEALER HAS THE RECORDS.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. WHILE AT A COMPLETED STOP, THE VEHICLE INDEPENDENTLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT HAD TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE OCCURRED ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING;, HOWEVER, THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 67,000.

RANDOM UNINTENDED GRADUAL ACELLERATION. HAPPENS AT ANY SPEED. FEELS LIKE WHEN YOU RESUME CRUISE CONTROL TO A HIGHER SPEED. EXCEPT IT DOESN"T STOP AND CONTINUES ACELLERATING. THOUGH IT MAY NOT BE RELATED TO THE CRUISE CONTROL AT ALL. PUMPING THE GAS PEDAL ONCE STOPS THE ACELLERATION. ALTHOUGH LAST TIME IT TOOK 2 TRIES. CAN LIVE WITH IT. SO FAR ANYWAY. BUT DON'T WANT TO SELL IT WITHOUT FIXING THE PROBLEM. THE HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP IS NO HELP. HAPPENS MAYBE 3 OR 4 TIMES A WEEK (100 MILES).

THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL POSITION SENSOR HAD JUST BEEN REPLACED. THREE BLOCKS FROM THE MECHANIC, WHILE STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT, THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY INCREASED ACCELERATION. THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS APPLIED TO NO AVAIL. THE E-BRAKE WAS APPLIED. VEHICLE KEPT LURCHING FORWARD AGAINST THE RESTRAINT, THEN DIED. TEN MINUTES LATER, VEHICLE STARTED AND WAS RETURNED TO MECHANIC TO AVOID ACCIDENT OR INJURY. NO CAUSE HAS YET BEEN FOUND. APPROXIMATE MILEAGE WAS 95,000. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE PARKING THE VEHICLE AND APPLYING THE BRAKES, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED AND CRASHED INTO A BUILDING. THE CONTACT WAS NOT INJURED HOWEVER, A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED OF THE INCIDENT. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INSPECTED FOR THE CAUSE OF THE ACCELERATION FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED INDEPENDENTLY. THE CONTACT THEN ENGAGED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO STALL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A STUCK THROTTLE. THE THROTTLE, BRAKES AND ROTORS WERE ALL REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 99,606.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY INCREASED ACCELERATION. THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS APPLIED REPEATEDLY; HOWEVER FAILED TO REDUCE SPEED AND CRASHED INTO THE PROCEEDING VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO PERSONAL INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED OF THE INCIDENT. THE VEHICLE SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE TO THE FRONT END BUMPER AND WAS NOT TOWED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 80,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A LOCAL MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE FAILURE WAS CAUSED BY A FRACTURED CRUISE CONTROL CABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 99,714.

MY VEHICLE EXPERIENCED UNINTENDED ACCELERATION WHILE TRAVELING DOWN A BUSY ROAD TRAVELING AT A SPEED OF 55 MPH. THE VEHICLE DID NOT SLOW DOWN WHILE APPLYING THE BRAKES AT FULL FORCE. THE VEHICLE DID EVENTUALLY SLOW DOWN TO A SPEED OF ABOUT 40-45 MPH AT WHICH POINT I WAS ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY MAKE A RIGHT HAND TURN AT THAT SPEED! ONCE OFF THE MAIN HIGHWAY, I WAS ABLE TO SHIFT THE CAR INTO NEUTRAL AND TURN IT OFF TO A COMPLETE STOP! THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE NEAREST HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP. A DIAGNOSIS WAS MADE THAT THE ACCELERATOR CABLE ASSEMBLY WAS DAMAGED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. AT THIS TIME, THE REPAIR HAS NOT BEEN COMPLETED AS THE DEALERSHIP CANNOT HAVE THE PART THERE UNTIL THURSDAY, WHICH IS 3 DAYS AFTER THE INCIDENT OCCURRED! I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH HOW DANGEROUS AND SCARY THIS SITUATION WAS! LUCKILY, THIS TIME, NO ONE WAS INJURED OR KILLED, BUT THE POTENTIAL FOR THAT OUTCOME WAS DEFINITELY THERE. I HAVE SEEN OTHER REPORTS OF THIS OCCURRING WITH THIS MODEL VEHICLE. I HOPE HYUNDAI TAKES RESPONSIBILITY TO PERMANENTLY CORRECT THIS POTENTIALLY LIVE THREATENING ISSUE! *TR

PLEASE REFERENCE THE ORIGINAL COMPLAINT THAT WAS FILED IN JUNE 2010. THE REF. NO. IS 10351059. THE ABOVE VEHICLE IS STILL EXHIBITING "UNINTENDED ACCELERATION" AND HYUNDAI REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THIS VEHICLE AND OTHER LIKE VEHICLES. SINCE THE ORIGINAL COMPLAINT THE VEHICLE HAS HAD "UNINTENDED ACCELERATION" ABOUT 10 TIMES. WHOEVER DRIVES THE VEHICLE ALWAYS KEEPS THEIR HAND ON THE SHIFT CONTROL AND SHIFTS INTO NEUTRAL WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT AN INTERSECTION. WE MAY BE CONTACTED BY PHONE FOR MORE INFORMATION CONCERNING THIS PROBLEM. *TR

I HAVE EXPERIENCED MY 4TH INCIDENT OF SUDDEN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION ON MY 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. I HAVE REPORTED THIS TO YOU THREE TIMES BEFORE. I AM CONCERNED THAT I MAY INJURE MYSELF OR ANOTHER PERSON WHEN THIS HAPPENS. I NOW DRIVE WITH MY HAND ON THE SHIFT LEVER AND PUT THE CAR INTO NEUTRAL WHEN NEARING ANY POSSIBLE SITUATION WHERE I COULD HIT ANOTHER CAR OR A PEDESTRIAN. I AM BECOMING SO ADEPT AT THIS MANEUVER THAT LAST TIME IT HAPPENED I PUT IT IN NEUTRAL AUTOMATICALLY. I WAS BADLY SHAKEN, BUT NOTHING SERIOUS HAPPENED. I HAVE REPORTED THIS TO HYUNDAI AMERICA AND THEY ARE NOT CONCERNED. THEY HAVE INSPECTED THE PROBLEM AND CLAIM THAT THE CAR IS SAFE TO DRIVE. THE CONSUMER STATED SHE HAD ALREADY BEEN DRIVING FOR A FEW HOURS, SO THE ENGINE WAS WARM. THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS ON AND SHE WAS HEADED UP A MOUNTAIN HIGHWAY, WHEN SUDDENLY THE VEHICLE LUNGED FORWARD, INCREASING IN SPEED AS SHE WAS CRESTING THE HILL. AS SHE HEADED DOWN, BRAKING, THE TACHOMETER CONTINUED TO WIDELY GO UP AND DOWN AND THE ENGINE WAS REVVING UP . ONCE SHE PULLED OVER, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER. THEY DOWNLOADED A COMPUTER UPGRADE AND OVER THE NEXT 4-5 WEEKS ON OCCASION, THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL AT LOW SPEEDS. ACCORDING TO THE INVOICE, THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR WAS REPLACED. UPDATED IVOQ 11/03/10 *TR

I'VE OWNED MY 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE SINCE JULY 2003 AND I HAVE BEEN MOSTLY PLEASED WITH THE VEHICLE. ON 4/30/10, I LEFT HOME FOR A TRIP TO ANOTHER TOWN APPROXIMATELY 100 MILES FROM HOME. THE TRIP WAS MOSTLY ON AN EXPRESSWAY TRAVELING AT SPEEDS OF 60 - 70 MILES PER HOUR. AS I NEARED MY DESTINATION, I GOT OFF THE EXPRESSWAY, ONTO A SURFACE ROAD. WITHIN 1 MILE OF BEING ON THE ROAD, I WAS CHANGING LANES AND SENSED MY CAR "PULLING" ME, WHILE I WAS LIGHTLY BREAKING. I LOOKED DOWN TO ENSURE THAT NEITHER MY FOOT, FLOORMAT OR ANYTHING ELSE WAS TOUCHING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. THERE WAS NO EXPLAINABLE REASON FOR THE ACCELERATION. HOWEVER, BY KEEPING MORE FOOT ON THE BRAKE, I WAS ABLE TO CONTROL THE CAR ENOUGH TO PULL INTO A PARKING LOT. I STOPPED THE CAR, AND PUT IN PARK. THE ENGINE WHINED LOUDLY. BUT I WAS ABLE TO TURN IT OFF. OVER THE NEXT 30 MINUTES I TRIED SEVERAL TIMES TO START THE CAR AND SEE OF THE THROTTLE WOULD SOMEHOW RESET ITSELF. BUT EACH TIME, THE ENGINE RACED LOUDLY. I CHOSE TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED TO THE NEAREST HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP. THEY DETERMINED THAT A THROTTLE SENSOR HAD SHORTED OUT. THE PART WAS REPLACED AND I WAS GIVEN BACK THE VEHICLE ON 5/8/10. THE VEHICLE HA SEEMED TO OPERATE NORMALLY SINCE THEN. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO JERK. SUDDENLY, THE ENGINE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING AND THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESTART. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE WAS CALLED TO THE SCENE AND THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MECHANIC STATED THAT THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR FAILED, WHICH WAS REPLACED AT THAT TIME. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER ON A SEPARATE OCCASION FOR THE SAME FAILURE. THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR WAS REPLACED AGAIN; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE STILL PERSISTS. THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY AT THE DEALER. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 22,112 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 41,496. UPDATED 08/27/09 *BF UPDATED 08/31/09.*JB

CRUISE CONTROL DOES NOT ALWAYS RESPOND WHEN ACCELERATING. AT TIMES THE CAR SLOWS DOWN TO POINT THAT IT IS A HAZARD FOR US AND ANY CAR NEAR TO US. THERE HAS BEEN THREE OCCASIONS THAT ACCIDENTS ALMOST HAPPENED. IN ORDER TO GET IT UNDER CONTROL, THE CAR HAS TO COAST TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY AND SET FOR A SHORT PERIOD BEFORE I CAN CONTINUE. I HAVE TALKED TO THE DEALER ON TWO OCCASIONS. THE FIRST TIME THEY TOLD ME THAT THEY HAD NEVER HEAR OF SUCH A THING AND THEY WOULD CALL THE FACTORY. WHEN I HADN'T HEARD FROM THEM FOR QUITE A LONG TIME I RETURNED TO THE SAME PLACE. THIS TIME THEY DIDN'T ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAD EVER BEEN IN WITH A COMPLAINT. *NM

VERY SIMILAR TO COMPLAINT 10128836. (RECENTLY PURCHASED 2003 2.7L V-6) (1) VEHICLE BUCKED VIOLENTLY BETWEEN 70 - 75 MPH TWICE IN THE LAST 2 DAYS. NO BUCKING AT LOWER SPEEDS (SUV IS SELDOM DRIVEN ON THE FREEWAY, SO THIS MAY BE LIMITED TO A HIGHER SPEED PROBLEM) (2) STALLED WHILE WAITING (FOR ABOUT 2 MINUTES AT A STOP LIGHT THE SAME DAY ONE OF THE BUCKING INCIDENTS OCCURRED. AMBIENT TEMP WAS 96 DEG AND AC WAS WORKING HARD. (3) 1 INCIDENT OF VEHICLE SURGING FORWARD WITH FOOT LIGHTLY ON THE BRAKE. (4) LCD CLOCK WORKS ONLY ON OCCASION DEALER HAS NOT BEEN CONTACTED YET - I DON'T KNOW IF HE CAN DUPLICATE. *JB

ON VARIOUS OCCASSIONS THE SPEDOMETER WILL CEASE WORKING WHILE DRIVING AFFECTING THE CRUISE CONTROL. ALSO, CAR SOMETIMES FEELS LIKE IT'S SLIPPING OUT OF GEAR WHILE DRIVING. OCCASSIONALLY, WHILE CAR IS IDLING, CAR WILL SHUT DOWN WITH NO WARNING.

WE PURCHASED OUR 2003 HYUNDAI SANTE FE NOVEMBER OF 2003. IT IS A 2003 MODEL WITH A 3.5 LITER ENGINE. AFTER HAVING THE CAR A COUPLE OF MONTHS, WE STARTED HAVING A LURCHING PROBLEM WHEN SITTING AT STOP LIGHT. IT WOULD FEEL AS IF SOMEONE BUMPED INTO YOU FROM THE REAR. WE BROUGHT THE CAR IN AND WERE TOLD THAT THIS WAS DUE TO AN ABS PROBLEM. THEY SERVICED THE CAR FOR THE RECALLS THAT WERE CURRENT, AND EXPLAINED TO US THAT THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM, BUT IT SHOULD BE OK NOW WITH THE RECALL SERVICING THEY HAD DONE. THE CAR CONTINUED TO HAVE THE PROBLEM, DOING IT SEVERAL TIMES A DAY. JUST RECENTLY I WAS PARKED IN A PARKING LOT. I STARTED THE CAR, APPLIED MY FOOT TO THE BRAKE AND SHIFTED THE CAR INTO REVERSE. THE CAR ENGINE SUDDENLY REVVED VERY LOUDLY, AND THE CAR LURCHED BACKWARDS ABOUT 6 FEET, ALMOST HITTING SOME PEOPLE WHO WERE PARKED BEHIND ME IN THE OPPOSITE SPACES, PUTTING GROCERIES IN THEIR CAR. I HAD TO PLACE A LOT OF PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE TO AVOID THE CAR GOING FURTHER THAN THE SIX FEET BEFORE THE ENGINE STOPPED REVVING. THE CAR IS NOW AT THE DEALER, WHOM I HOPE WILL BE ABLE TO HELP WITH THE ISSUE.*AK

WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP VEHICLE STALLED. CONSUMER MANAGED TO PULL OVER AND RESTARTED THE VEHICLE WITH NO PROBLEM. DEALERSHIP HAD BEEN NOTIFIED, BUT DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. *AK

ON 3 SEPARATE OCCASIONS VEHICLE REVVED AND ACCELERATED WHILE AT A COMPLETE STOP BUT IDLING. CONSUMER'S FOOT WAS DEPRESSED ON THE BRAKE PEDAL AT THE TIME OF THESE INCIDENTS. ON THE THIRD OCCASION IT RESULTED IN A REAR END COLLISION. *AK

VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING IT SUDDENLY JUMPED OUT OF GEAR AND ACCELERATED TO 55 MPH. AS A RESULT THE CONSUMER'S VEHICLE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. *AK

WHILE ACCELERATING AFTER A COMPLETE STOP, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESPOND. DEALER COULD NOT DUPLICATE OR CORRECT THE PROBLEM. *AK THE VEHICLE DID NOT RESPOND AND THE CONSUMER HAD TO PUSH ON THE PEDAL TO MAKE IT GO, ESPECIALLY AT A SPOTLIGHT FOLLOWING OTHER VEHICLES. THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN TO THE DEALER ON THREE OCCASIONS. THE CRANK SENSOR WAS INSTALLED WHICH DID NOT SOLVE THE PROBLEM. ANOTHER MECHANIC SOLVED THE PROBLEM IN A FEW MINUTES STATING THAT IT WAS A MINOR MECHANICAL PROBLEM. *SCC *JB

VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING IT SUDDENLY JUMPED OUT OF GEAR, ACCELERATING UP TO 55 MPH. UPON UNCONTROLLABLE ACCELERATION CONSUMER'S VEHICLE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. *AK