2005 Hyundai Sonata problems
Owners have filed 217 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Hyundai Sonata. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 26% of complaints. Next are body & structure (14%) and suspension (12%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 217 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 26% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 44 and 6
- Injuries and deaths
- 36 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 80,000 miles 159 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 21 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 21 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 22 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 15 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 20 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 17 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 15 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 14 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 8 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 3 |
| 200k+ miles | 3 |
What the data shows
Of the 159 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 80,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 65,000 miles (46 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 44 complaints mention a crash; 6 complaints mention a fire; 36 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 92% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 24th most-complained-about out of 34 model years of the Hyundai Sonata with enough data (83 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl*the contact owned a 2005 hyundai sonata. While driving at approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle was involved in a crash that destroyed the vehicle and the air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed and three injuries were reported. The driver and two rear passengers were reported injured. The vehicle was towed to a towing company lot. Hyundai inspected the vehicle and informed the contact that the air bags functioned properly. The failure and current mileages were 95,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 hyundai sonata. While making a left turn at 15 MPH, another vehicle struck the front and left side of the contact's vehicle. The vehicle spun 180 degrees and the air bags failed to deploy. The vehicle was destroyed. The road conditions were dry. Two passengers suffered neck and back injuries and are under a doctor's care. The police report number is 07-04457. The current and failure mileages were 41,000.
Dt: the contact owns a 2005 hyundai sonata. The passenger side front suspension failed while driving. The air bag deployed before impact. The contact did not know exactly what part failed because he did not have the vehicle right now because it was at the repair shop. The tie rod end was bent. While driving at about 10-15 MPH heard like a crack, and then the air bags deployed, and vehicle hit a parked car. The road conditions were normal on pavement.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 hyundai sonata. The contact stated that she has repeatedly experienced failures with the electrical system. On nine occasions, she had to replace the bulbs for the headlights and brake lights. The vehicle has been inspected by numerous dealers, but none of the technicians could determine the cause of the failure or provide a sufficient remedy. The failure mileage was 15,000 and current mileage was 83,000.
Failed inspection in part due to front subframe rust through. Called hyundai and spoke to a claims rep. By the name of mike ext.631677. Mike told me there were recalls on sonatas up to 2004 for this problem, but not 2005. The 2005 model is the same model as 2004. The model year didn't change till 2006 so why was 2005 excluded from the recall? My car has 115k miles on it and the underbody is always washed during winter seasons.