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Some cars are just problematic, for whatever reason :lemon: and you seem to have somehow gotten THAT car. Most folks with this current generation of Sonata are VERY pleased :shades: with their car. I'm sorry you got a bad one but I wouldn't give up on ALL of them just because of that (would be different if it was a very high percentage of folks having the same issues; other than the thunk and the brakes, every other issue you've had seems to be unique to you in here, and no one has figured out what causes the thunk... my car doesn't have it, for example, but I don't doubt it's real). I can understand your frustration though... I will NEVER buy another Ford because of the transmission on our old 1995; went out and needed to be replaced at 70K, 70.1K, and 92K; only the 70.1K was covered by any warrenty. That's after having continuous problems with the Speedometer/Odometer since 10K (replaced >9< times under warranty, once not under, for 10 times before we just said the heck with it.... and that was all BEFORE the 70K mark! In retrospect, it was always about the transmission (where the speedometer cable hooked in) and Ford KNEW. Shame is, the transmissions were garbage, but otherwise that car would still be on the road, it was like new otherwise when we donated it to the Kidney fund three years ago, with 94K miles and a still screwed up transmission.
I could conceivable buy another Hyundai since the total cost of ownership is relatively low, but these nuisances have put me into the "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me" mode.
Have a Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season.
Ayeu/Ed
Tom
An interesting question that needs to be asked is whether the brakes wear out prematurely on those northern cars after they've been replaced the first time; I imagine most shops aren't going to use pure Hyundai brake pads, but will use a major name brand pad. If the retail brake pads are failing too, then that's indicative of an engineering flaw; if only the OEM parts fail, and after replacement they're fine, then it was poor material choice for the first set of pads. Of course, some folks are saying it's the caliper pistons themselves; that would mean a new set of brake calipers; I'm not sure whether or not those are as readily available as aftermarket items, since they aren't wear items.
It's too bad that if they silently fix the problem, they've lost some buyers, including probably me.
I believe the problem is inferior material and poor design of the rear pistons. Accumulation of road gunk in the pad clips also contributes. This is a MAJOR engineering snafu. They definitey need a recall.
I have bought two cars and my family two all in the past 10 years, I am not happy right now. I check my brakes every 5,000 miles now.
Anyone having any trouble with the auto trans at 40 mph wanting to down shift but it stays in OD and just kind of hesitates until you speed up?
Marc
rate. The rear pads are wearing faster because the pads are hanging up in the gunk that accumulates in the pad clips. They need to be cleaned every year. But this is a DESIGN flaw in the car. It is a safety issue and needs to be addressed by Hyndai.
Otherwise you will be replacing your rear brakes every 25000 miles at your own expense. Now if you can do the work yourself it is not too bad, you can buy lifetime pads at Autozone or Advanced Auto and just replace them every two years or so. But this is a design error and a potentially fatal flaw in the braking system design and operation.
Brake pads are wear items and usually not covered by any warranty after 12k miles. If it's some other issue with the brakes like the calipers or rotors, then that's a different story because those items are covered by the warranty. Everyone here should probably forget about their being a recall for these brake pads though. Heck, Chryler's minivan vans brake wear out at 20k-25k miles and you don't hear them screaming that there should be a recall for them. If you guys want brake pads that last a long time, either go easy on your brakes or buy some really expensive ones like what they put on high end sports cars ie Porsche, Ferrari, Corvette ZR1. Questions or Comments are now welcome.
Thanks
Tom
It might be interesting to note that my dealer recommends lubing the pad slides every year at a cost of $130. Last week I had it done at a local tire & brake shop for $35. They disassembled the pads and lubed the slides. Also, my dealer's service manager said they did not solve the problem on the beautiful new 2011 Sonata. It is destined to have the same rear brake issues! I would consider buying one under the condition that service modifies the brakes before delivery, i.e., gives more pad slide clearance.
I removed front and rear break pads, and the slides that the break pads sit in. The front pads were fine but the back pads would not budge, it seemed as if they were welded on. After removing the pads, I cleaned everything, filed down the metal break pad guides that sit in the slides, removing some rust and dirt. Cleaned and lubercated the caliper as well.
The squeel is gone. Thanks again for sharing.
http://www.nhtsa.gov/
There has been road construction in various areas of the county over the past year, of which I've driven through on an almost daily basis with dirt and gravel kicking-up from the road. Not to mention the rainy season every year, when some roads around here get covered with sludgy muck from the runoff, which gets splashed all over the brake rotors while driving.
So I guess I'm one of the "few" lucky ones with properly functioning brakes, right? :confuse:
"There is a small number of customers who fail to maintain the brakes properly. Cleaning rust and lubricating the sliding surfaces is essential to a properly functioning brake caliper. It is probably best to do this maybe twice a year. Once before winter - once after. The road salt used in many areas cause parts to rust. The rust builds up in places like the caliper bracket and prevents the pad from sliding freely. Then it hangs up and wears out - sometimes damaging the rotor along with it.
This is a maintenance issue, not a manufacturing issue. This can be proven by the fair weather folks in places it doesn't snow. They never have issues with brake pads wear like this."
As someone who has never lived in an area that gets snow, I was completely oblivious to this. Still, why are some people presenting this as a problem with the way Hyundai engineered the brakes? It appears that cars, in gereral, require additional brake system maintenance when driven on salted roads.
How about I email all my many relatives who live in Illinois/Minnesota/Wisconsin, and ask them to all post on here and explain what road salt does to brake system components on their various makes/models of vehicles?
Of all the, what - 150,000, 200,000+? - 4th Gen+ Sonatas in sub-freezing regions of North America, where are all the thousands and thousands of owners who believe their Sonata's brakes have have been more prone to winter corrosion than any other vehicles they have owned and driven in those regions???