Hyundai Sonata Limited 2010 - Rusted

gtandea

I have a Sonata Limited model 2010 on the roads since July 2009. When I got the car I got extended warranty and rust proofing.

In January I noticed that on the hood, around the crome inserts there are some rust spots.

I took the car back to the dealership (kingskross - Toronto) and they said it is not covered by warranty.

Since early February I am tring to find Hyundai Canada position on this and I got no answer (claiming that they did not received the pictures from dealership and they cannot accept my pictures)

Did any of you had any similar experiences? Where did you find the solution for your problem?

Thank you!

lkeldy

gtandea,

I too have a 2010 Hyundai Sonata, with rust forming on the hood. I live in New York and I purchased new less than 1 year ago. UGHHH... Any word from the dealer? I will keep you posted on the respnse I recieve.

gtandea

so far the dealeship do not want to take any responsabilities for this and I tried to call Hyundai Canada. I have been calling them at least once a week for the last 4 weeks and I did not hear any answer. Hyundai Canada is waiting for the pictures taken by the dealership (and cannot accept pictures taken by me).

Whenever I pass by a Sonata in the parking lot I look at the hood and I noticed that this is a common problem with these cars.

I am thinking to try to find a lawyer for a class action lawsuit.
Is is really a shame to have a new car rusting and no responsability taken by the manufacturer.

lkeldy

I spoke with the dealer yesterday and they said they can do nothing but buff them out. I am not sure it is going to work. I paid extra for the rust proofing and the paint protection. They said they can't do anything about the rust repair unless it is rusted all the way through.

I agree with you, I think there is a class action suit here. No brand new car should rust in less than a year! My appointment is the 18th. I will let you know I make out at the dealer.

Kirstie_H

Please keep in mind that, while we encourage the sharing of information, and reporting of problems to the NHTSA (or your own national governing board), we don't permit organization of legal action within the forums, so let's make sure to steer clear of that activity.

gtandea

I am totally dissapointed with the dealership (Kingscross - Toronto) or/and Hyundai Canada:

In a month since I contacted the dealership Hyundai Canada did not open a file for my situation because they did not received the pictures from the dealership!

Wow! And one will think that in the digital era everything will go faster! Not the case!

gtandea

since my car start rusting, I started looking at other Sonatas and today i saw one (2011) with more rust than mine. This car is at least 6 months newer than mine.

I am totaly disapointed with Hyunday: they designed some nice cars but this faulty materials give owners a sawer test.

roastbeef

I took delivery of the new Sonata 2011 (limited) in APril of 2010. I love this car. Looks great, drives good - got a lot of compliments.
Last week I was washing the car, and I noticed 3 rust spots on my front hood and 2 just above the front windshield....
A friend of mine who loved my car so much he bought one as well - also has rust spots on his. He bought his car, mine is leased. His dealership basically sent him home, I have not spoken to mine yet.
After one winter (in Montreal) rust is already an issue....really heart breaking as I really love this car...(luckily I leased it - as I was not not sure on Hyundai long-term quality...)
RB

targettuning

To all of you who say you see rust on your 2010 or your 2011 (as unbelievable as that sounds to me) I would guess it is forming as a result of stones or "anti-skid", as Pa. refers to it, being flung into your car from passing vehicles or the vehicle in front of you with enough velocity to chip the paint exposing bare metal. Unless you touch these up quickly the next blast of snow and the resulting salt water and salt slush then attacks the bare metal with overnight rust forming. This is not a result of Hyundai using any poorer materials than say, Honda or Toyota but it is a result of winter. Bare steel and salt water always equals rust...always.

gtandea

Thank you for your intention to cover Hyundai. It is lame!

The cars are ment to be driven on the roads. Do you think this came as a surpise to the car manufacturer?

The quality of paint is not up tu the requirements. And let's be onest Hyundai is the seapest car in their class. They did not cut the mergin, thay cut the costs. As paintful as it is we discover, on our expense, where they cut the corner.

I have another car which is 10 years old, driven on the same streets and I do not have this rust on the hood. :lemon:

kmckinnon

I own a 06 Acura TSX. It also has lousy paint that chips easily. I try to keep up on it with touch-up paint. I also have owned numerous older vehicles, including hyundais that held up alot better paint wise. I think it is due to the laws of what kind of paint can be used thanks to the envirement.

targettuning

I am having a problem following your logic. First, I am not "covering" for Hyundai and I am most certainly not "lame" nor do I make it a habit to make lame statements. I am only trying to present other alternatives as to why you might be seeing small rust spots appear on a new car. Not only is this a reasonable possibility but it probably is the actual reason. If you do not take reasonable precautions to keep your vehicle clean and chips touched up please don't be suprised and outraged when rust shows up. The only corners cut are on your part when you fail to spend a few bucks a week for a decent car wash and small bottle of touch up paint. Sorry for your lack of preventative maintenance but don't blame me or (probably) Hyundai. Someone else brought up another good possibility.... the changes in paint formulation due to increasingly strict EPA restrictions on paint volitility. These changes prompted the use of a water based automotive paint so if you own a car more than several years old it MIGHT have increased durability but again to blame Hyundai is absurd since ALL auto manufacturers now have to "toe" that EPA line.

LASHAWN

That is just another good reason why I live down in the South. Never have to worry about rust.

gtandea

Hyundai finaly accepted to fix my hood. But they did not want to give me any papers (invoice, work order, ...) for the job done.

I guess soon I have to start again as around the chrome inserts on the doors the rust start to show!

Do I have the worst Sonata or Sonata is the worst?

backy

You must have a bad sample. I have a 2007 Sonata, same body design as 2010, that's been through 4 Rust Belt winters. Lots of salt used on roads. No signs of rust anywhere.

Some cars get "rail dust" on them that leads to rust spots. I wonder if that could have happened with your car, on the hood?

FWIW, I also have a 2004 Elantra purchased new 7 years ago, so it's been through 7 Rust Belt winters. No rust there either. I am good about waxing every painted surface a few times a year and washing salt off the car in the winter. I've done that with all my cars over the years, and never had rust show up except on a 1985 Civic that I owned for 7+ years, and on a 2002 MPV that I bought when it was 4 years old, so it might not have been washed/waxed a lot by previous owner.

jeannybean

I agree. The rust spots are due to rock chips. We get lots of rocks kicked up from the DC Beltway and road work. Touch them up asap.

Also, steering pulls to the left, like others have reported. In shift-tronic, when slowing down, the transmission shifts from 3 to 1, not 3 to 2 to 1. Does anybody else notice this downshifting pattern in shift-tronic?

tonyj23911

I have a 2011 Sonata and right by the tail lights on my trunk both sides are rusting. You got a dealer to fix or rust issue ? I havent even had it a year yet

jeanbean1

Try taking your Sonata to the dealership where you bought the Sonata or near your home. They will fix it. I didn't like the condensation that formed when it was rainy or went through a car wash. There seems to be much less condensation now.

tlu71

I also have a problem as well with rust spots close to the chrome on the front of the hood. I was told by the dealership that the paint was fractured from rock chips and therefore not covered on warranty. But the spots are very close to the chrome, and appear to be coming from underneath it. There are also two spots on the corners of the trunk by the taillights. This sounds like a common problem for others as well. I am furious that a one year old car has rust...I don't care WHAT the reason. Hyundai needs to stand behind their product. I have owned many vehicles in the past that had rock chips and didn't rust. I paid a lot of money for the fully loaded turbo, so I'm not impressed! The more people that report these issues, the more awareness there will be and perhaps some action taken.

tahimi

I have a 2011 White fleck Sonata that I took to Kingscross Dealership on Sept 13/12. This is where I purchased the car from. I showed them the rust spots that are on the body of the car. The worst spot is when you open the truck you can see on the top part of the trunk where there is the rubber casing& it is solid rust. No stone chips etc could reach here as it is not exposed unless the truck was open.

Kingscross took pictures and said that they had not seen this before?????They said that Hyundai head office would phone me within 48 hrs.

The car has only been hand washed by myself and it is kept immaculate.

Will keep you posted on how Hyundai/Kingscross have taken care of their customer.

tahimi

Head office said that Kingscross had not contacted them. They phoned dealer directly and they resubmitted work order, but only for the rust in the trunk lip. It was approved, but told them that we also needed the body work done. Kingscross advised it was resent and it was not approved.
Talked with Head office again and they said not submitted and had to once again they had to phone Dealership. Terrible service from Kingscross from Service Dept. If it wasn't for our persistance and a great Head office rep we would still be waiting. Car needed to be polished as it appears on delivery to dealership it wasn't properly polished for the pre delivery customer pick up.
Had it buffed but they missed quite a few spots and has to be redone.

wsonata2012

I own a Sonata GL 2012 white. It's only 6 months old and I have found rust in a similar place on the trunk hood and it goes right underneath, there's also a spot below it as well. I have been very meticulous with cleaning, so the whole salt thing doesn't fly with me. I have paint missing on the driver's door, it happened two weeks after I bought it and there is no rust there. I've contacted the dealer so we'll see what happens. I live in a snow belt area, drove a vehicle for years and did't see rust until it was about 5 years old. I think a car this new should never have rust so early. I will keep updates on this post as the process continues.

tahimi

Keep meticulous records of date and name and position of person speaking to. Immediately phone head office to open a file and advise them of your claim. They will give you a file number. Keep on top of it.

Give them all the info that you gave the dealer and ask Hyundai head office when you can expect an answer from them. Follow up....it worked for us.

Dealer makes lots of excuses etc.... Our rep at head office was excellent.

Good luck ..Tahimi , whose post is just above yours.

puttick

I own (purchased new) a 2010 Sonata that is showing rust spots on the inside of the trunk lid where it closes on the rear panel. Although I live in the rust belt, this area of the vehicle is not exposed to the elements. 3 visits or conversations with the dealer resulted in no assistance. An e mail to Hyundai USA resulted in the backing of the dealership. It appears that Hyundai is digressing back into the early years, producing rusting buckets. anyone else with this same issue?