2022 Hyundai Kona Complaints

TIRES — Filed 06/09/2026

The tread came off the tire on the highway causing me to crash off I 75. The tires were made 6 of 2025 and the pressure was 31.5 according to the highway patrol officer on scene. I have the paperwork for the tires I purchased at Sams Club in Cape Coral Florida on 7/29/25. The tires are less than 11 months old and this shouldn't have happened. The tread damaged multiple parts of my car.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 06/01/2026

Recall with car regarding coolant. Last year Hyundai apparently addressed; however, coolant light came on, despite coolant being full. Told by different dealership that with these issues, it needs to be checked and rechecked multiple times; otherwise, issues arise again (as in my case). Want this addressed by dealership. They are charging me a diagnostic fee of $198. Previously, when brought car in for recall work, equipment not always working.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 05/29/2026

Charging port door will not open. Not sure if it is an issue with acuator, which employee in service dept at dealer said that is common problem. Seems like if this issue with less than 20k, perhaps should also be recall item.

ENGINE — Filed 10/14/2024

I purchased my 2022 Hyundai Kona on August 28, 2024, and I am the first registered owner. Only 48 days after purchase, the vehicle suddenly broke down without warning while stopped at a red light in [XXX] after traveling from [XXX] . The vehicle had to be towed. Since then, the vehicle has repeatedly experienced dangerous engine and timing-related issues despite major repairs, including an engine replacement, timing chain repairs, and multiple dealership inspections. The most dangerous incidents involve sudden power loss and large clouds of smoke while driving. On January 1, 2026, while attempting to pass a semi-truck on a multi-lane highway, the vehicle suddenly lagged, lost acceleration power, and emitted a large cloud of white smoke from the exhaust. This created an extremely unsafe situation because I was actively passing traffic at highway speeds and could have been struck by surrounding vehicles. I have also experienced these failures late at night on busy highways while traveling between [XXX] and [XXX] . In March 2026, the vehicle again emitted a large cloud of smoke and resumed lagging during acceleration. On April 23, 2026, Hyundai of Meridian informed me they personally witnessed the vehicle emit another large cloud of black smoke during test driving. These smoke events can reduce visibility for surrounding drivers and create hazardous roadway conditions. The vehicle has spent approximately 149 days in repair facilities, nearly 24% of the time I have owned it. Multiple dealerships documented timing chain slack, cam timing issues, and major engine concerns. Despite the recurring failures and safety concerns, Hyundai denied replacing the engine again and denied buying back the vehicle. I no longer feel safe operating this vehicle due to the risk of sudden power loss, engine failure, and smoke emissions while driving in traffic. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 02/02/2026

The vehicle trunk doors pops open. This has been happening for several months. We’ve taken it to the dealership. They said that it was not covered and there has been no recall on this, but it’s still happening and it’s very dangerous. It’s happened on the freeway on the back roads at night it doesn’t matter it just when it feels like it wants to open up it beeps loudly and light comes on the dashboard as something is wrong and It will just pop open.

ENGINE — Filed 01/23/2026

In January 2026, my engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power. The dealership found a sudden loss of compression across all four cylinders, requiring a total engine replacement. This occurred without warning, only two months after a routine oil change at the same facility where no issues were reported. Despite opening a case with Hyundai corporate, there has been no progress. My research indicates that while NHTSA Recall 21V301 (Safety Recall 203) specifies 2019–2021 models, the 2022 model shares the same engine design and identical reports of stalling and compression loss. My vehicle has been at the dealership for three months with no resolution. The dealership says they are running tests requested by tech line without providing documentation of the tests or the results. Although, the initial test performed indicated that it was a compression ring issue.

POWER TRAIN,ENGINE — Filed 03/12/2026

I found a lot of shaved metals when I did the oil change for the Gear Reduction. It made a lot of noises when driving or the wheel of fortune sounds whether the car is in Regenerative Braking. The sounds developed as time goes on but Hyundai failed to recall this issue. I found this has been an ongoing issue since 2019 when Hyundai make this Kona EV, but their engineers didn’t fix this type of issue and continue to manufacture the Kona EV with the same Gear Reduction Assembly and it caused a lot of noises with these shaving metals found in the oil changes. This is abnormal for a GRU to have so many metals found in the oil. Thus, it made a lot of noises. Now my car can’t even drive because of this. The GRU has been broken because of this issue that Hyundai didn’t even fix since 2019.

ENGINE — Filed 01/19/2026

The vehicle displayed a warning lamp indicating a Cooling System Performance failure. The specific defect relates to the Integrated Thermal-Management Module (ITM) and the thermostat opening prematurely, corresponding to Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) P218100. This issue requires a repair outlined in Technical Service Bulletin 25-EM-007H, involving a spring installation and ECU update. This failure creates a serious safety concern because improper thermal management can cause the engine to overheat or force the vehicle into a reduced-power 'limp mode' without warning. A sudden loss of acceleration or engine stall while driving in traffic significantly increases the risk of a crash.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 02/27/2023

February 2023: horn failure. Pressed the car's horn, and it FAILED to produce the loud sound that it is SUPPOSED TO make to warn others of possible danger. It continued to not work and needed to be replaced. Part 96611-J9500 was replaced.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 01/22/2024

JANUARY 2024: HORN FAILURE. Pressed the car's horn, and it FAILED to produce the loud sound that it is SUPPOSED TO make to warn others of possible DANGER. It continued to not work and needed to be replaced. Part 96611-J9500 was replaced AGAIN.