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Last week, Hyundai Motor America Inc. was hit with a class action lawsuit in California federal court alleging that the motor company failed to disclose a defect in the engine of its 2011 to 2015 Sonata models.
Lead plaintiff Beth Graham, a Sonata owner, alleged in her class action lawsuit that Hyundai did not disclose that the engine in the Sonata model was manufactured with a defect in its rotating assembly that causes “sudden and catastrophic engine failure.”
“The rotating assembly cannot withstand the long-term stress generated within the Sonata’s combustion chambers and fails within the useful life of the engine (most failures occur between 60,000 to 90,000 miles),” the Hyundai class action lawsuit alleges. “When the rotating assembly fails, it does so without warning and causes the engine to seize suddenly—leaving Sonata drivers without power and struggling to maneuver the vehicle to safety.”
Graham further alleges that in addition to concealing this defect from Sonata owners and failing to issue a recall, Hyundai improperly denied warranty coverage to owners whose engines failed due to the defect. “Hyundai has concealed the problem from consumers and implemented a concerted practice of denying warranty coverage for failed engines,” the engine defect class action lawsuit alleges.
“Hyundai tells Sonata owners that they must submit a complete record of the vehicle’s maintenance history before making a warranty claim—even though it knows that Sonata engines fail regardless of owner maintenance and that the faulty rotating assembly is responsible,” Graham alleges in the Hyundai class action lawsuit. “For those warranty claims that are submitted, Hyundai’s practice is to deny them based on inadequate maintenance records or improper maintenance,” she continues. “Hyundai denies that engine failures are widespread in Sonata vehicles and blames its customers for the problem—forcing them to pay as much as $10,000 for an engine replacement.”
Graham also alleges in her class action lawsuit that Hyundai was or should have been aware of the defect. “Hyundai is, of course, currently aware that Sonata engines are seizing in record numbers,” the Hyundai class action lawsuit alleges. “It provides Hyundai dealerships with replacement engines and carefully tracks both part sales and the type of repairs conducted by its dealerships,” Graham further explains.
“In addition, many Sonata owners have complained to their dealership and to Hyundai’s corporate office—to no avail,” the Hyundai class action lawsuit continues. “The strong likelihood is that Hyundai knew of the rotating assembly defect much earlier, likely before Class Vehicles were ever released to the public.” Graham further points out that discovery and review of Hyundai’s internal records will be necessary to know whether Hyundai was aware of the defect, “but the rotating assembly defect is one that would typically be discovered during standard pre-release testing,” she contends.
Graham alleges that Hyundai violated various state laws and class members are entitled to costs and damages. The proposed Class includes “[a]ll persons who purchased or leased a 2011-2015 Hyundai Sonata within the United States.”
Graham is represented by Eric H. Gibbs, Dylan Hughes, and Steve Lopez of Gibbs Law Group LLP.
The Hyundai Sonata Engine Defect Class Action Lawsuit is Graham v. Hyundai Motor America Inc., Case No. 5:15-cv-02071, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District for California.
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310 thoughts onClass Action: Hyundai Failed to Disclose Sonata Engine Defect
2015 sonata. Bought in 2016 with 36000 mi. Engine blew up 1 week ago at 111000 mi. Always burnt oil scince we had it. Bought extended warranty that went to 100000 mi. They wont cover new engine. We still owe 3000 on loan and dead car. Please help
Happy i found this forum ; 2012 Sonata 120K , observed was burning oil fast just 2 months ago (june 2021) , been adding a quart every month to top it off, have to take it to dealer this week to see what they can do
miles sonata 89000 miles dealer top oil drove . told to drive 1000 miles bring back drove 1100 miles return to dealer 1 quart + low . suggested preform combustion chamber cleaning at cost to me $1,000 Hyundai declined assistance.
I have a 2015 Sonata and this problem just started July 2021 at about 108K miles. My mechanic told me that many of his customers are having this problem. So if a class action suit was started where do we stand ? Anything we can do ? I am having to replace about a quart every 300-400 miles. No more Hyundais for me…and I have driven one since 2008.
I have the same issues… 2015 Sonata
Same issue. 2015Sonata Sport 2.0T. Loosing a quart about 600 to 700 miles. Car has 190000. Had to replace the Turbo at 60000 do to faulty air hose that melted from the turbo. Part was part of recall Hyundai would not honor it because I was the second owner. They wanted me to pay $3,500 for new turbo installed. Had my mechanic do it for a thousand.
I’ve got a pre owned 2016 Sonata, purchased 2017 and up to Aug 12, 2017 have not had an oil issue (yet). It presently has 69K miles. I change its synthetic oil about every 3-4 K miles, along with the filters, with authentic Hundai parts.
I need to have a site to input its VIN to see if the air bags reall I read are for my car…..please inform. Thanks
my 2017 is having the same problem burns
2 quarts almost every 1000 miles
I have the same problem. I have a 2015 Sonata with 87,000 miles.
I have 2016 same issues
my 2017 is same problem burns
2 quarts almost every 1000 miles
I have the same issue.
I have a 2016 Sonata with the same issues.
I have a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. I spent over $1300 on repairs at a Hyundai Dealership for a oil leak/comsumption in May 2021. I’m still having a problem with oil comsumption. I have approx 84000 miles on my 2015 Hyundai Sonata. I’m taking it back to the dealership this week for further testing. I still owe on this car. The dealership want me to trade it. Tell me more about the Class Action Law Suit.
Thank you for providing such an informative essay on automotive engines; it is quite beneficial to us.
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