372 complaints reported

2015 Hyundai Sonata Engine

Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.

Reports
372
Crashes
1
Fires
19
Injuries
0

Complaint Timeline

Chronological view of owner reports

Apr 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not under warranty and there was no recall on the vehicle. The failure mileage was 27,055.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Feb 2022
Apr 2022

Engine had knocking then completely froze while driving due to low oil pressure. Car has been well maintained, regular oil changes and just had axle repaired. Hyundai has extended warranty to cover this issue that is common on these vehicles and should cover the cost of the new motor. Consumer spoke with Hyundai corporate and the case number is [XXX]. Although they are well aware of cars catching fire and are even part of a major litigation lawsuit for this same situation consumer is getting nowhere with them. Consumer's daughter could have been seriously hurt in this incident. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).”

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Apr 2022
Mar 2022

My engine is seized. Driving down the road normal all the sudden driving 14mph peddle all the way down to the floor. Mph slowly decreasing until it get to a complete stop and dies. The car turns on but does not crank. Check engine light is now on battery light, oil light and key fob light without warning. Did not have knocking ,shaking or stalling of the vehicle. Vehicle was diagnosed and towed twice.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Mar 2022
Mar 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made an abnormal sound and was shaking while coming to a complete stop. Additionally, the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The check engine warning light was illuminated. Upon inspection, the contact noticed there was no oil in the oil reservoir and refilled the engine oil. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer; however, the vehicle had previously had an oil change less than one month prior to the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 177,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Mar 2022
Mar 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would lose motive power and decelerate without warning. The contact stated that the failure occurred consistently while making turns in either direction. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable the duplicate the failure and the cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 30,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jan 2022
Mar 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light continued to flash on and off. Additionally, the vehicle would not properly accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer where notified of the failure but no assistance was available. The failure mileage was 103,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Mar 2022
Mar 2022 Fire

The contact owned a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while her 16-year-old son was driving at 25 MPH and making a right turn, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled without warning. The driver attempted to restart the vehicle but failed. The driver saw smoke coming from the passenger side of the hood and stated that the vehicle was locking and unlocking independently. The vehicle caught on fire. The driver could not get out of the vehicle was locked in however, eventually was able to exit. A fire report was filed. There were no injuries sustained. The vehicle was towed to a dealer and deemed a total loss. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 110,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Mar 2022
Mar 2022

Notice that my car has a leak or is burning oil. The dealership inspected my car and had the oil changed. Has not been a month and a half. Engine light came on. Checked the dipstick, and no oil. Second time this has happened.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Dec 2022
Mar 2022

Faulty motor. No warning lamps or any other symptoms prior motor failure. At 123,310 miles motor spun lower camshaft bearing cause motor to lock up on a busy highway. Same as the 2013's & 2014's.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jul 2022
Mar 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. After checking the dipstick it was determined that the engine was consuming one quart of oil per week. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 75,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jan 2022
Feb 2022 Fire

I was driving with my 2year old grandson and my car stalled. My neighbors waving trying to alert me that my car was on fire.By the time I realized that the smoke began to come in through the vents. I had to use the key fobe to open the doors to hurry and remove my grandson from the car. The door's wouldn't open by pulling the handles. There were no warning lights or lamps messages or problems prior to the engine failure. The safety of my grandsons and my life were put to risk because of me not getting any notifications about recalls and defects.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Feb 2022
Feb 2022

The engine rattles and knocks and has stalled out multiple times, crossing traffic and stopping. The airbag light is illuminated on dash. When I’m driving the steering sticks in corners badly I’ve taken to Hyundai and they supposedly did an update to keep it from doing it but it’s still grabbing and sticking very dangerous.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Oct 2022
Feb 2022

Excessive oil consumption-1-2 quarts per week Losing power almost comes to stop on highway-Dangerous Knocking noise at times from engine White smoke at times from tailpipe Rough high idling Code P1326 Code P0010 Hyundai is very aware these issues in their engines. Many complaints on Hyundai forms. Many articles written about these issues with their engines. Class action lawsuit against Hyundai about their engines. Hyundai corporate won’t help nor will the local service department at the dealer. All they want to say it’s out of warranty. Because the issue happened after 100000 mile warranty shouldn’t mean Hyundai shouldn’t fix the issue they are very aware of.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Nov 2022
Feb 2022

My wife is concerned for her safety and our three children. On start up and driving engine feels like it's shutting off and turning back on. I was told by a local mechanic that there are several issues that Hyundai knows about and basically aren't fixing. Engine light keeps coming on and off with a different code everytime. Issue has been going on for about a year replaced spark plugs and had decarbonization process done to no avail.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Feb 2022
Jan 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of oil. The contact stated that the vehicle consumed two quarts of oil per week. Additionally, the vehicle made abnormal sounds and had lost motive power while driving. The check engine warning illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer replaced the oil pan gasket and made other unknown repairs; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Oct 2022
Jan 2022

The engine is burning over 5 quarts of oil between 600 and 1000 miles. The engine is the 2.4 litre and it is doing the same as the 2014 and previous model. It is also known that the 2016 has the same issue. Hyundai refuses to replace the motor or cover any cost. They are saying that the car is out of warranty when it has been in the shop for oil consumption pre-mileage but they said it was normal to be a quart or 2 low. Now the motor will be empty by 600 to 1000 miles. The dealers wants to put chemicals in the motor at a cost of 200 plus with now promise of resolving the issue. In addition it has been proven that these quick fixes are catastrophic and will cost more than an engine maybe a life in traffic.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Dec 2021
Jan 2022

Hyundai reprogramed their Theta engines to prevent an ongoing problem related to Theta engines not receiving oil to the crankshaft and connecting rod bearings. The software modification was done by an unknown software house. When I got the first notice, I asked both the local dealer, and the official Hyundai site if this software would cut power, potentially at the wrong time, like going up an entrance ramp. I got no response and I found out why. I tried entering a highway where traffic was at 75 mph. When I got onto the ramp the car was running fine. Suddenly the power just went away. I had the gas pedal all the way to the floor and watched the tachometer and speedometer go down rather than up. I pulled off at the next exit and switched the programming on my transmission to normal from econ mode. Up the ramp I went, and car started slowing down. Tried one more time using the sport mode and the power went away. I'm afraid to try and run on a freeway at rush our because of the lack of power. I think the needs to be a review of the software and see if changes can be made.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jun 2021
Jan 2022

During weekend road trip, on the way back, engine has developed knocking noise, unusual vibrations, and loss of power. Car was able to make it home at low speeds with minimal acceleration. Oil check revealed that all of oil was burned up over a few days, as the oil check before the weekend trip showed full levels. Dealer would not even accept looking at the car for over a month, before their first available appointment. Independent mechanic confirmed engine knocking, burned up oil. They recommended engine replacement, but were not able to complete the job as the company would not make replacement parts available to them. Dealer has finally accepted car, also confirmed knocking noise and burned up oil. It would take another month for dealer to produce a repair quote -- $14,000 for engine replacement and additional 2 months of wait time for some parts to arrive -- much higher than what I understand it typically costs for a full engine replacement, but the dealer is left as the only option to charge however much they want, as independent services are blocked from acquiring needed parts. 87,000 mi in just over 6 years of use. No warning lights on the dash. No OBD status codes. All together this would add up to at least 5 months of inoperable car, and what looks to be a very inflated repair bill. Dealer is recommending a purchase of a new car from them instead.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Oct 2021
Jan 2022

Car engine light turns on indicating connecting rod bearing failure. Vehicle has stopped running properly while driving at high speeds & caused safety concerns. Issue has shown to be consistent across many other Hyundai vehicles. Issue has not yet been checked by manufacturer but is available for future inspection.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jan 2022
Jan 2022

Vehicle info: 2015 Sonata Se. 97450 Mileage. As with most all complaints with this engine, it is deteriorating slowly as the knock sensor code P1326 has sensed a knock. A private mechanic has verified that a rod bearing is either bent or broken and knocking against the engine. This is after two Hyundai dealers have denied even inspecting my vehicle. Due to the title status of my vehicle (rebuilt title) Hyundai dealers (King Hyundai in Deerfield Beach, FL and Coconut Creek Hyundai in Coconut Creek, FL) are denying repairs because the engine has no active campaigns or recalls on the engine even though Hyundai Motors of America has extended the warranty to a lifetime duration for this exact issue. This is a huge liability situation as these engines are known to catch fire for this very issue and Hyundai/Kia has been fined $140 Million for not acting sooner on this matter. These vehicles have been known to catch fire inside the dealership service center while going through diagnostic testing by certified mechanics. I have had the Campaign 953 serviced in 2018, which was a software update to alert owners when the engine is already failing (sensing a bearing rod broken). This campaign did not address the faulty engine but only alert you. Hyundai Motor America has told me that a Hyundai dealership should not deny me warranty coverage however every dealership in Palm Beach and Broward counties are denying my service order approval. Service managers refuse to send in a pre-authorization to Hyundai Motor America despite corporates approval of this warranty coverage therefore nobody wants to take responsibility nor liability for a known safety defect in Hyundai engines.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jan 2022
Jan 2022

The Camshaft Seals are defective and cause the engine light to come on and also I experience power loss while driving on the highway.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Oct 2021
Jan 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated the vehicle was hard to start. After the vehicle was started, the started shaking abnormally. The check engine and ABS warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed the contact about the engine combustion. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that oil was leaking onto the spark plugs. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure however, no further assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 124,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jul 2022
Jan 2022

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently stalled. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic where it was diagnosed with needing the engine replaced however, the vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then towed to the local dealer. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jan 2022
Dec 2021

While traveling on the interstate, the car started shuddering. Pulled off and went to auto part store and they read the code #4 misfire. Took car to my mechanic and he said #4 cylinder was dead. Proceeded to take car to dealership and they said #4 cylinder had burn valve with hole in valve. We hey gave a quote for engine replacement. Took car back to my mechanic and he replaced engine at a cost of $5466.28. The replacement engine was a 2014 with 13k miles. The car only had 107186 miles at time of incident.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Jun 2021
Dec 2021

Engine started knocking out of nowhere took it to the dealership to see if I had a recall was told that I needed to replace engine which would cost between 8k-10k . The recalls for engines on Hyundai sonatas were for 2011-2013 and 2016 . Not really understanding how they skip a year with everyone with this year . I don’t have the money to replace engine

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2015 HYUNDAI SONATA, Manufacturer: Hyundai Motor America
Incident: Aug 2021

Trend Over Time

Complaints by year

Quick Summary

The 2015 Hyundai Sonata has 372 Engine complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.