Hyundai Sonata 2006-2007

bhmr59

Dealerships can be quirky.

The local dealer was no where's near competitive on buying the car new, but the service department is quite good.

pat

Maybe you could elaborate on the proof you have? That would be helpful to everyone here.

duke16

Have already,previous post.Former dealer mechanic verification.

pat

Okay, well let's attribute that to one dealership and not assume that all Hyundai dealers everywhere do the same thing, okay?

In any case, someone told you something and you told us that something. It's okay if people don't believe everything they hear/read around here. I'm sure you don't either.

duke16

Your the one who said Hyundai dealers every where did it not me.I don't believe half of the posts here.Case closed.

pat

I was responding to this statement: "My complaint with Hyundai dealers is that they use re-cycled oil,without telling their customers" and so was the poster you took to task for being dubious.

Glad to hear we're on the same page about taking things we read online with at least one grain of salt.

mamamia2

Are you all asleep here?! Wake up!

pat

I'm awake, I'm awake!! :P

bchris6648

Awake and happily driving my 07 sonata 7,100 miles so far!

craigbrooks

Very much awake and waiting for GOLD to show up...... :P

bobad

Is he the same guy that owns the little Urkelmobile and bashes Hyundais for a hobby? :P

Now sitting at 2 years and 24K miles on my 06 Sonata V6. Not a single squeak, rattle, leak, drip, or regret. Best $16,600 I spent in my entire life.

duke16

What does dealer tricks have to do with every ones in put.

craigbrooks

C'mon bobad.......you know Mr. Gold.

jal012773

My '06 GLS V-6 just ate one of my CDs, I think. It is the standard radio (not with 6-disc changer) and has worked perfectly all 20,000 miles of my ownership of the vehicle. This morning I turned the radio on and the disc in the player started spinning, but was making a clicking sound. I tried to eject it but it just made some racket, then gave me the "Eject Error". Now it's telling me there is no disc, even though it never spit the other one out. Anyone know if this is something a mechanically declined person can fix on his own, or should I just take it to the dealer and hope it's covered under the warranty?

craigbrooks

You could try the dealer and see what they say. If not, any good...local..stereo shop can probably get it out for you. This CD didn't have a stick on label did it? Those are bad for car stereos.

tenpin288

From Hyundai's website regarding the warranty on a radio...

Following components covered for time and mileage limits indicated:
- Radio And Sound Systems (i.e. radio, cassette tape drive mechanism, and compact disc player): 3 years / 36,000 miles

If you have had your Sonata for less than 3 years, you are covered.

trevorr77

Hey everyone
I am new to the board, just bought a 2006 Sonata GLS with about 25K on it...we LOVE it so far. Got a great deal.

Anyway, we have been Sirius subscribers for a while now and are thinking about adding a new radio into the car. I wanted to find out if anyone else in here has done this and how they did it! We use the FM transmitter right now on our Sportster replay but I hear that the new units are weaker so I wanted to find out if anyone direct connected theirs to their factory stereo. Anyone have any suggestions on what to do??

jal012773

Meant to update before now... Yes, the CD was the first and last CD I put a stick-on label on. I called the dealer and they said the warranty would cover the CD player if the motor in it was bad, but not for removing a CD with a popped up label. After careful inspection, I saw that each time I pressed the eject button, the disc would come out just a smidge more. After umpteen zillion tries, the disc finally came out, and went straight to the trash.

Has anyone put an aftermarket stereo in their Sonata? Seems like a huge face on the factory stereo, so I was wondering how you fill in the gaps around an aftermarket.

mstem

Glad it "worked out" for you! Guess we all live and learn, eh?!

You are correct about the large face of the factory radio. I ended up upgrading mine to the factory model with built-in XM so it was a direct replacement. I had toyed with the idea of doing an aftermarket system,,, if I had proceeded with that course I would have gone to Crutchfield. They have some amazing products when it comes to doing "OEM" replacements. I suspect they might have kits that mimic the factory bezel and allow for the use of aftermarket stuff like Sony, Pioneer, etc.

Having said that, I have to admit I am pleasantly surprised with the performance of my OEM Hyundai sound system. I have the Premium setup as they call it, with the Infinity speakers and sub. Could be also due to advanced age, my old ears aren't like they used to be!

Mike

carinfo4me

I have 30,000 miles on my 2006 Sonata-it's loaded- top of the line model and I love it! Bought it new May'06- had some dealer issues -and the 6CD player had to be replaced when I bought it- think it was a factory defect cuz the one that's been in there ever since I bought it works great! Never have a 1-CD player again.Sometimes I hear a mild low hum when I turn a corner- like it's in the steering maybe? Not had it checked. So much power when travelling -Got a great deal- worth every penney so far !

pinktiffany

I have a Platinum Edition 07 Sonata. My car full throttled yesterday when my daughter and I were returning home. It felt like the acceleration just ran away from me. I tried the brakes and only slowed it by 10 miles per hour or so. I finally put it in neutral and shut it off. I contacted roadside assistance and my car is at the dealership right now. The service manager told me this morning that they've been unable to duplicate my issue. Please if there's anyone who's experienced this, please let me know how the issue is to be resolved. My car had 4950 miles when it was towed. And the cruise control was not turned on. Thanks to anyone who can help me out here. Yesterday's experience has really got me shaken up.

wanna_azzy

Thankfully you are OK. That could have been tragic. Please post when you have an update, it might prevent someone else from having a really bad day.

pinktiffany

I've been doing reasearch on www.mycarstats.com and have found several Hyundai's with cosumer complaints for acceleration problems just like I experienced. Two of the complaints resulted in crashes with a total of two injuries.
2007 HYUNDAI ACCENT (1 CASE)
2007 HYUNDAI ELANTRA (1 CASE)
2006 HYUNDAI AZERA (3 CASES)
2006 HYUNDAI ELANTRA (1 CASE)
2006 HYUNDAI SONATA (1 CASE)
2005 HYUNDAI ELANTRA (3 CASES)
I'm going to be filing my own cunsumer complaint tomorrow. I'm also taking a detailed printout of all the cases (listed above) to Athens Hyundai tomorrow. This issue definitly warrants further investigation by Hyundai and NHTSA. I'll keep the updates coming!

bobad

Thank your government for that little problem.

Because of all the government anti-smog restrictions on cars, the car makers have been forced to use computers and electronic throttle. We all know how cantankerous computers can be, and they do fail. I personally think computers have no place in cars. The runaway throttle problem is not a problem specific to your Hyundai. You can research the problem further, and it appears in every make and model. It's not a widespread problem, but nevertheless can be serious. Instead of removing dangerous computers, the government will probably mandate more computers to mind the existing computers. Just what we need!

Here's 1 of many stories I have run across. It sounds very familiar, doesn't it?

Unintended Acceleration

targettuning

Not to diminish your experience but most cases of unintended acceleration have been found to be operator error or something, most likely a floormat, wedging under the accelerator pedel obstructing its return. Sometimes the operator can hit the accelerator AND the brake while trying for the brake pedal while wearing bulky snow footwear due to the limited clearance between them. Believe me I have done this...hitting the accelerator when my mind said "no stupid the brake" and in the moment it is hard not to blame the car because it couldn't possibly be me. Anyhow, another point is brakes, modern brakes can hold a car at full throttle while stopped so there is no reason they couldn't reduce your speed by more than 10 mph even if the car is accelerating. This is not good for the brakes but... Finally, how fast were you travelling when this occurred?

targettuning

If you think computers have no place in cars then we would be walking or using a horse and buggy again by now if you were running the show. How do you think automobiles are able to start, run and drive better than they ever have in their history? They are quicker AND produce less emissions AND produce better fuel economy too. Thank, or blame in your case, those hated computers. Further I am not sure Hyundai even uses "drive by wire" throttles in their vehicles yet. I need to research that further. Computers are NOT dangerous and they do not fail with any regularity. You sound like a "luddite"...look it up.

trevorr77

Our 2006 Sonata started doing two very interesting things yesterday on the way home from the dealership:

First thing I noticed was a red blinking light on left side of steering wheel right next to the left fan blower thing. It wasn't a part of the main display at all and I don't remember noticing it before last night. When you are driving its kind of hidden by the steering wheel though so its possible I just never noticed it (though highly unlikely). Anyone know what this blinking light means? I couldn't find it in the manual.

Second thing was a clicking sound that sounded like a blinker but it was a little different (I compared them). It would come on and go for maybe 20 seconds and then stop. There was no pattern to when it would come on but it came on about 5 times during our 20 minute drive home. Any hints would be REALLY helpful

wanna_azzy

My '07 V6 is definitely drive-by-wire, there is NO mechanical link from the pedal to the throttle. Computers are known for having errant glitches (seldom, but it happens) that often cannot be duplicated. That is one reason NASA has 2 or 3 redundant computers for every computer-controlled function on the space shuttle. Even they know computers fail and/or output false information. It used to be that unexpected acceleration was typically attributed to the older or inexperienced driver hitting the wrong pedal. It now seems that it could happen to anyone, not by their own fault, but by erroneous computer output. It just means everyone needs to think about more than push one pedal to go, and another pedal to stop.

targettuning

That may be true and there may be the off chance that unintended acceleration may occur through no fault of the driver there is still the matter of what to do if it occurs. The fact is that brakes, especially on a new car can easily overpower an accelerating vehicle. True, you must bear down on them and be aware that they will stop the car but with much longer distances involved. A car will not generally race off uncontrolled if the driver has the presence of mind (and I admit this may be the problem) to try the brakes, put the transmission into neutral, turn off the key in that order. This assuming of course that the gas isn't inadvertently being pressed. I did a small amount of research since my prior post and found a few interesting "facts". The first is that even though many drivers involved in accidents blaming unintended acceleration on the vehicle only a very small handful were able to be blamed on the car and even then there was an obstruction or object on the floor that impeded the correct operation of the accelerator pedal. Toyota has had quite a large amount of recent unintended acceleration cases and from the thousands of instances the number not tied to driver error has been reduced to 11 and even those are questionable. So, it looks like the " the older driver or the inexperienced driver hitting the wrong pedal" fact is alive and well. As stated, I did a small amount of research and much of what I found is technospeak or court case information. One plainly written and clearly understood article is found at the "Automedia" website: automedia.com. Once there the key word is "unintended acceleration. The opinion of the automobile expert there is that operator error is by far the main reason for this phenonom. Oh, almost forgot, if a drive by wire system momentarily fails or any engine management computer function fails there will be a fault code and a resulting check engine lamp illumination.

bobad

Oh, almost forgot, if a drive by wire system momentarily fails or any engine management computer function fails there will be a fault code and a resulting check engine lamp illumination

Will that C.E.L. come on before, or after you rear end someone?

All seriousness aside, true runaway throttle is rare. If the brakes don't slow the car, that's probably proof it was driver error.

wanna_azzy

I agree that brakes should slow you somewhat. But if you think they will slow you quickly while under full throttle, try it sometime. In an open space, try braking at 40-50 mph while also giving full throttle. Not a safe feeling, I'm sure. As the old saying goes "Computers never mak mistooks". Trying to anticipate something that you would never imagine is difficult. Drivers, including me, need to be aware that Murphy is hard at work trying to make the unexpected happen. I would never expect something like that to happen, but if it does, hopefully we will all have the presence of mind to react properly.

targettuning

I concur this is a rare thing. I wonder if it didn't occur more frequently in decades past due to frayed, kinked, frozen or otherwise damaged throttle cables catching in their protective sheaths? In the original post the person with the 07 Sonata had the car towed or trucked to their dealer where investigation could not duplicate the problem. In this type of case (where nothing was damaged) a fault code, if logged, could provide a reason for the glitch if indeed it was a mechanical problem.
I inadvertantlystepped on the throttle not too long ago in an attempt to stop (I was coasting). It was a great suprise when the car surged forward and I actually thought there was a failure until I popped into neutral and found the engine began to race. I then took stock of the situation and lo and behold my foot was on the gas yet if asked just then I would have sworn I was on the brake....I can attest first hand that it happens and yes people will swear they were not the cause.

duke16

Last Sunday my 07 Sonata Ltd.,lurched forward when I put in drive.I had not even touched the gas pedal,the floor mat was in the correct place,I didn't have winter boots on[not needed in LAS VEGAS] so now we can all wonder why this happened.Should dealer re-set the transmission computer.Any suggestions would help.

pinktiffany

First off, I understand that sometimes we as drivers make errors. However, I took my foot completely off of the gas and the gas pedal was still down. I a 36 year old woman and am considered by my family and friends to be a very accomplished driver. My other car is an Acura Integra GSR 5 speed and I also have much experience with other vehicles due to the fact I used to work for a GM conversion company. This was not operator error. All new cars that have a drive wire vs. cable are seemingly supceptible to acceleration issues. (I've done my research and the Service Mgr. at Hyundai is aware of this fact now, also.) They gave me a 2008 Santa Fe today (loaner) until they resolve this issue even if it means replacing the entire throttle body assembly. I'm very pleased with the treatment I've received from Hyundai thus far and I CANNOT wait to get "SilverBelle" back! )

targettuning

I want to make it clear that I don't totally discount mechanical/electrical glitches as a potential cause for things like this however, extensive investigation by both automobile engineers and the NTSA seem to indicate driver error as the cause in the vast majority of reported cases. So, based on the statistics I would be inclined to lean toward driver error when presented with one of these stories or accounts. I am also, as I said, a victim of one of these episodes and in the end in spite of what I believed originally (that the car failed somehow) it was my fault.

targettuning

Lurched forward...how much of a lurch? It could be that you placed it into drive while it was simply in fast idle mode i.e. about ~1200-1500 RPM as opposed to normal warm idle of 750 or so RPM. This alone would cause a small lurch. I always have my foot on the brake when changing gears from park to drive to reverse so a small lurch especially if on fast idle is not unexpected. Lets not get overwrought about this topic of unintended acceleration which is very rare and very different from a small lurch.

pinktiffany

I wish it were as simple as driver error. But, I'm telling you it wasn't. I had absolutley zero control over the accelerator. I had a "floor mat" incident some years ago driving a Lumina. And this wasn't even close. The car took off so fast it literally snapped mine and my daughter's heads back. If a majority of these cosumer complaints are driver error, then why are they being assigned case numbers? I think there is some kind of glitch (not just in Hyundai) in the drive by wire systems. I also think, until someone gets seriously injured, it will most likely be pushed under the rug.( Like so many other defects have been in the past) At least Hyundai of Athens is taking me seriously. I guess it helps that I have my daughter as a witness to the event.

bobad

I believe you.

You'll probably have to be very patient with Hyundai. Occurrences of runaway throttle are exceedingly rare, and in fact yours may be 1 of a kind. Reproducing such rare events can be exceedingly hard to duplicate, or even impossible.

There's no guarantee at all that the other incident you mentioned has the same cause as yours. It may have been driver error, different from yours, or indeed identical to yours. I bet even Hyundai has no idea at this point.

I hope you are enjoying your Santa Fe, because SilverBelle may be sequestered in the name of science for a long time.

Good luck, and do keep us up to date.

targettuning

To answer your question as to why these incidents are being issued case numbers. If you are talking about the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) it is their job to collect data, investigate if possible, and either come to the conclusion a manufacturer defect is the cause (a recall is the result if wide spread) or some other reason is the cause. In the past these types of incidences were investigated and no mechanical/electrical failure was found in most, but not all, cases therefore driver error (in spite of the insistance that the car just "took off" by operators involved) was the most likely the cause in the majority of these cases. If you are referring to Hyundai it is to track your particular case. I look at the statistics as a basis for my argument for driver error as the likely cause. Of course I do not necessarily disbelieve what you say but (playing the devils advocate) state that there could be other, more likely, causes. I would be interested in following your specific case. If Hyundai finds a physical/mechanical/electrical reason for your particular episode I would be most interested in what they found. By the way, did your car have a "fault code" logged in the buffer? If the drive by wire system failed or glitched even briefly there should have been a fault code logged and a tech. at the dealership using a handheld code reader would have been able to access it then decode it.

wanna_azzy

I can't see this as being a throttle body problem. I would be looking first to the computer, then the accellerator pedal assembly. If the pedal went to the floor by itself, something caused it. The throttle body would only respond to its input. Maybe an internal spring or actuator malfunction in the pedal assembly, or the computer, would cause the full throttle. Keep us posted.

jamie5455

I have a 2005 kia amanti that had this problem as well as the problem of barely going when I depressed the accelerator. I believe hyndai and kia merged so the problem could be related. To make a long story short, kia roadside towed it to dealership when it did this because the check engine light came on - once in 1/08 and again on 2/08, both giving the same codes, p2127. they thought they fixed it the first time, and the second time they put in a new throttle assembly. I've only had the car back a couple of days and haven't had a problem yet, but then again it took a month to do it after the first fix! It's very scary - my son has his permit and I won't let him drive this vehicle

kubas

Hi Everyone,
about 1 month ago I started hearing a grinfing noise coming from the engine compartment. My car has roughly 28k miles. I took my car to my dealer and he said that the timing chain tensioner needs to be replaced with the revised one. A couple days later I got my car back and everything was fine until a few days later when the check engine light came on. I took the car back to the dealer - he said it was P0016 error code and he replaced a crank sensor which he said was faulty. I week later the errord showed up again - same code. Does anyone have any ideas what it could be? My guess (at the first time) was theat the dealer did not install the chain/tensioner properly, however he insisted it was the crank sensor.

thanks

mamamia2

Obviously the dealer did SOMETHING wrong, and obviously you need to go back to him....

Come back with an update, please.

rick2456

Like you, I am not a fan of "drive by wire". Especially with regards to things like the steering, braking, and accelerator. Some things you want to remain mechanical just to prevent such computer gliches that may well kill you (or someone else on the road).

Fortunately, we have not had any problems with either of our cars (07 Sonata SE and 07 Santa Fe SE). Knock on fake wood.

asdf9

Aren't the glitches gone by 2007. Anyhow I'm going to carmax to by a 2007. Unless...you all think otherwise.

sonatacv

I have a 2006 hyundai sonata, 4 cyl. i am waiting for a second dash board to be replaced. has been in order since March 18. the problem: dashboard cracks around the right airbag. anyone having the same problem?

ctc1

Had mine replaced about 6 months ago,also a 2006 GLS. they told me it was caused by a misadjusted robot arm at factory in korea. Was yours korean built.

kubas

The timing chain tensioner they installed was faulty as well as the timing chain slightly misaligned because of that.

bhmr59

His '06 Sonata 4 cyl was probably built in Korea since the Alabama plant didn't start producing I4's until late in the model year, or possibly not until the '07 model year.

craigbrooks

Have seen and heard of this before. Get a bamma built dash.