Hyundai Sonata Pulling to the Right

june21june21 Member Posts: 8
edited October 2014 in Hyundai
I have owned my 2007 Sonata for 2 months. Last month while only going about 25 mph the gas pedal started pulsating and the ESC Off light came on. A couple weeks later it did it again and the steering wheel began pulling to the right and the ESC Off Light came on. Each time the roads were dry. I took my car into the dealership and they replaced the "YAW Sensor".

Yesterday while driving on the highway I noticed my gas pedal had a little pull feeling. While driving around 65 to 70 mph, my car was suddenly pulled to the right 3 times and the gas pedal pulsated. Dashboard lights flashed but none stayed on. I am so thankful that no one was in the lane next to me or I would have hit them since the car was pulled into the next lane. I went back to the dealership today and was told they could not "duplicate the complaint nor did the computer scan show any failure codes" and was basically dismissed. I wasn't accepting that and the service manager has now contacted Hyundai which says they have not heard of this problem at all and he also called his regional rep to see how he'd like to handle it.

Has anyone experienced what I describe above with their Sonata? I do not feel safe driving this car.
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Comments

  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    If I were you I'd send a complaint to the NHTSA, since this is safety-related, and cc Hyundai on it. If the NHTSA opens an investigation on it, Hyundai will be forced to respond.
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    Thank you; I will look into that.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    While I have never heard of this type of problem it is fairly clear that the ESC has malfunctioned in some manner. The function of the ESC it to maintain an intended path when the car is headed into..for whatever reason...an "out of control" scenario. It seems to me that the car and its path is being altered when there is no reason to do so. Since ESC uses a whole bunch of sensors and the ABS to detect and control this "out of control" path any one or more of those could be the culprit. The dealer has replaced at least one of those sensors the YAW sensor but clearly another sensor has momentarily burped causing the ABS to engage in an attempt to fix something that isn't broke (your car isn't sliding out of control). It is a safety issue and for there to be no record of a fault code in the memory is unusual. BUT when your dealer says they cannot duplicate it they probably are telling you the truth since it is an intermittent problem. It would probably be better for your/and others safety to have them keep the car until either they CAN duplicate the problem and or until it generates a fault code so they have somewhere to start. Probably a loaner can be supplied until a fix is done.
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    Funny you should say that. The guy at the dealership made the comment as to what I wanted him to do because he saw no reason to keep my car.

    I have decided not to drive on any highways to avoid high speeds and in so doing have had to add 20 minutes onto my commute to work.

    I called the service manager today and he said that his district rep wants me to bring the car in so that they can take all the tires off and "manually" (what did people do before they had computers?) inspect every part and all the sensors. I pray they find out what is wrong so that I can truly "drive" my "new" car. They can't get me in until Friday...

    Thank you very much for your response and depending on the outcome after the inspection on Friday, I may have to insist on a loaner.
  • rhduke00rhduke00 Member Posts: 129
    Wouldn't turning ESC prevent it from misfiring?
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    Nope...ESC stands for Electronic Stability Control and it has nothing to do with an engine mis-fire. Although it MAY cut back on engine power as part of its magic.
  • rhduke00rhduke00 Member Posts: 129
    I never said anything about engine misfire. I was simply suggesting that if you turn off ESC it won't malfunction.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    YOU say....misfire and I think ENGINE. Just like one of those association tests.
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    I need to know why it is "malfunctioning". Maybe turning it off would prevent it from happening again, but why is it happening in the first place? And since this is supposed to be a valuable feature to the car - I should get full use of all the functions my car is capable of. This morning the ESC Off light came on while driving to work. However, this time there was no pulling of the steering wheel or pulsating of the gas pedal associated with the occurrence.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    Yes, I agree..you do need to know the why of it. There is no question it is a very valuable safety feature and when needed VERY VERY valuable even if you don't know what just happened or how it saved your bacon.
  • rhduke00rhduke00 Member Posts: 129
    It's not a very valuable safety feature if it's working incorrectly. I was suggesting turning it off only as a temporary measure, until Hyundai or the dealership techs can find the problem and fix it. It's not June21's job to trouble shoot the problem, especially if doing so might cause an accident.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    Absolutely..which is why I suggested in a previous post he/she leave the car with the dealer until either it acts up in their hands or logs a code that indicates an area of failure. At no time did I recommend self trouble shooting. I did suggest it is a valuable safety feature (which it is) but only as you say if working properly.
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    I took my car yesterday afternoon and after 2 hours the service manager said that they were going to get me a rental and keep the car until Mon. because they did find a failure code and he didn't want to rush it (it was 5 pm and all the service tech's were gone), so they would look at it further on Monday. I am grateful that they FINALLY found something and I hope they will take their time to fix it correctly and I'll soon be back in my car and feel safe driving it.
  • ogdlowogdlow Member Posts: 4
    How did it turn out? My 2007 sonata did the same thing. While driving the car 60miles per hr down a strait interstat , no rain soomth payment. theESC light comes on and the ABS engages.. Which pull the car to the right. I almost killed my family by hitting a truck. I have taken it to the dealer 4 times to get the problem fixed and it keeps doing this. I am loosing my cool very quickly ..

    Did they fix yours?
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    Yes, I did get my car fixed. I was blessed the last time I took it in that one of Hyundai's Tech's was going to be in the area the next day and he inspected my car. I will tell you what was on the invoice and then take it to your dealer and tell them you want a Hyundai technician to come and check your car immediately. It's very scary and I know how you feel.

    "Cause: Found loose pin 37 on connector no EM02. Pink/Black into Pink wire YAW Sensor to ESC Module. Part # 914000A030

    Bob Stepanovich Tech Training Instructor assisted. Dealer contacted Hyundai Technical Training Instructor for assistance in diagnosis repair wiring Connector Push Pin was not engaged into the lock all the way."

    Since I had this repair on 8/30/07 I have not had any more problems with the ESC & ABS.

    Please let me know how it turns out for you.
  • ogdlowogdlow Member Posts: 4
    This car seems to be fixed. KNOCK ON WOOD. The dealership has the area Hyundia tech and he seems to find the problem.
    In short the connections into one of the sensors was pinched and causeing the ESC to engage the ABS system.

    At any rate it took them 5 times to get it right. So far so good. Now I can enjoy my car and drive it with my family safely.

    Once again thank you for your response to my post.

    :)
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    You're welcome. As I said, since that repair (and it took 4 trips to the shop for me) I have not had that happen anymore. Enjoy your car!
  • mixjunkmixjunk Member Posts: 1
    I am living this nightmare with the brakes coming on at all speeds. Its very dangerous and the dealer can't figure it out. I gave him this post, "they fixed it" and it just happened again now they say they don't know what to do... they act like they have never hear of this before. My Sonata is a 2007 with 16000 miles and it has been going on from the beginning but is getting worse. It happened to one of the techs when they were test driving the car but...? You stated Bob Stepanovich help out with the problem any idea how I can get in touch with him? Which dealership did you use? I'm in florida and feel like I need to help the dealership make contact with someone who knows what they are doing. Thanks for any help.
  • june21june21 Member Posts: 8
    My car was repaired at Elyria Hyundai in Elyria, OH. Bob was an engineer tech with Hyundai and not the local dealership, so I am not sure where you can locate him at. I have been blessed that after the repair it has not happened anymore. I hope that you are able to find out the problem and have it fully repaired.
  • ogdlowogdlow Member Posts: 4
    I got my repaird at Marhoffer Hyundai in Green Ohio, or Akron Ohio. It did take them many attempts to fix the problem. It all had to do with the ABS and Stabilty control. Very, very dangerous. They did fix the problem, i believe it was somthing with the wiring somthing was to tight and cripped the wires.
  • eddie91eddie91 Member Posts: 1
    I bought 2012 sonata and felt it pulling to the right took it to the dealer they stated the specs for aligning the 2012 were not in , I had to come back. Came back said it was all set, It seemed to be fixed a week later car pulled even worse. Back to the dealer said it must be the road, I asked the mechanic to take a ride said there was a problem and took it back in, came back and said again it must be the road the specs are right. Asked the service manager to take a ride realized there was a problem, said he would have to consult the manufacturer and put me in a rental, will keep you updated
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