Update:
- A judge dismissed a class action lawsuit filed by a group of vehicle owners against Hyundai Motor Co. in a California federal court.
- The class action lawsuit claimed a number of Hyundai and Kia model vehicles contained an engine defect that caused them to use an excessive amount of oil.
- The vehicle owners argued the alleged defect, in addition to costing them money for the excess oil, caused the vehicles to stall and eventually fail.
- Court approval of the dismissal was not required as the class had not been certified nor proposed to be certified for purposes of a settlement, according to court documents.
Hyundai excessive oil consumption class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: A group of Hyundai and Kia vehicle owners are suing Hyundai Motor Co.
- Why: The drivers allege numerous models of Hyundai and Kia vehicles are equipped with defective engines that use excessive amounts of oil, stall and eventually fail.
- Where: The lawsuit was filed in a California federal court.
(April 20, 2022)
Hyundai makes numerous models of Hyundai and Kia brand vehicles with defective engines that use excessive amounts of oil, costing their owners huge sums of money, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
On Apr. 12, eight owners of Hyundai and Kia brand vehicles filed a class action lawsuit against Hyundai Motor Co. in a California federal court, alleging violations of federal warranty laws.
The Hyundai excessive oil consumption lawsuit alleges that numerous models of the automaker’s vehicles are equipped with defective Nu, Gamma, Theta, Lambda and Kappa engines.
The defective engines allegedly use excessive amounts of oil, stall and eventually fail. The drivers say Hyundai should have issued a recall for the vehicles a long time ago but hasn’t.
As a result, thousands of Hyundai and Kia owners and lessees have allegedly been forced to constantly check the oil levels, and oil must be added to the engines more frequently than even the owner’s manuals recommend, Car Complaints reports.
The engine issue has flow-on effects like reduction in engine lubrication due to crankshaft submersion and gaskets and seals damage, which leads to oil leaks.
The plaintiffs also claim that oil in their vehicles migrates to places where it shouldn’t be, damaging the combustion and exhaust systems.
This allegedly causes “abnormal wear of engine parts, oversaturation of carbon and deposits of oil sludge, ultimately requiring a costly engine rebuild or replacement.”
Automaker should honor warranty claims outside terms, Hyundai class action says
The plaintiffs allege that Hyundai should honor customers’ warranty claims even when the warranties have expired.
According to the lawsuit, Hyundai can’t adequately repair the oil consumption problems and doesn’t offer any reimbursement for out-of-pocket costs caused by the issue.
The class action states customers must suffer through long wait times for replacement parts, “and in most cases do not receive required engine replacements.”
The cars with the allegedly faulty engines include the 2012-2020 Hyundai Elantra, 2009-2018 Hyundai Genesis Coupe, 2019-2021 Hyundai Kona, 2020-2021 Hyundai Palisade, 2010-2012 and 2015-2021 Hyundai Santa Fe, 2009-2010 and 2015-2021 Hyundai Sonata, 2011–2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, 2010-2013 and 2015-2021 Hyundai Tucson, 2011-2021 Hyundai Veloster, 2020-2021 Hyundai Venue, 2010-2021 Kia Forte, 2017-2020 Kia Niro, 2011-2020 Kia Optima and Optima Hybrid, 2012-2021 Kia Rio, 2011-2020 Kia Sorento, 2012-2021 Kia Soul, 2011-2020 Kia Sportage, 2018-2021 Kia Stinger and 2022 Kia K5.
Meanwhile, Hyundai has expanded its recall of vehicles with an exploding seat belt part issue that has caused multiple injuries to include 6,240 of its 2021-2022 Elantra and 2020 Accent vehicles.
The plaintiffs are represented by Nye, Stirling, Hale & Miller LLP, Sauder Schelkopf LLC and Walsh, PLLC.
The Hyundai Oil Consumption Lawsuit is Cho, et al., v. Hyundai Motor Company, LTD., et al. in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Are you one of the drivers affected by an allegedly faulty Hyundai engine? Let us know in the comments!
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3,222 thoughts onHyundai class action over excessive oil consumption dismissed
I purchased my 2017 used Hyundai Sonata I believe in 2019 at enterprise. Now im noticing every time I get a oil change the guys tell me I have no oil at all in my car. Since then Ive been putting oil in my car recently before oil changes are due. My car makes vague little noises. Now im wondering if my engine is about to die soon. Im still making payments on this car and Im finding out years later that these cars by reading they have faulty engines. What do I do? This car gets me to work everyday.
My 2016 Hyundai Sonata never used much oil until at about 70,000 miles it suddenly started using a quart every 400 miles.
I drama 2016 Hyundai Sonata hybrid with approximately 121,150 MI on it currently it has been at the dealership for over 5 weeks for them to do recall work and I was just notified now that it’s going to cost me about $7,000 to have my car be drivable again. I can’t get my case manager from Hyundai to call me back regarding rental car reimbursement which I paid out of pocket for the past 5 weeks and now they’re telling me that I have to pay for the repairs because they’re not covered.
2016 sonata started consuming oil at 80k or so. I’m the third owner. The engine recently seized at 111k miles. I never let the oil level drop below the low end but still the engine died and I got regular oil changes. I’m hoping it is covered under the other theta II extended warranty as mine did have the knock sensor installed and this happened with out warning and while driving. But we will see.
2016 Sonata started kissing oil around 60,000 miles. Had to do testing and dealership could see it lost oil over a course of 3 months. Finally Hyundai replaced my engine but now at 130,000 it’s doing it all over again. Technically the new engine has about 65,000 miles on it.
We have a 2018 Hyundai santa fe with 66,000 miles that the engine needs to be replaced because of this problem. Starting knocking so we took it to the shop. No warning lights or any warnings at all. We’ve been told it will cost about 10,000 to 12,000 to replace.
My wife and I just purchased a 2017 Hyundai Sonata with 45k miles and after the VERY FIRST oil change, the reservoir was COMPLETELY DRY after only 1500 miles 🤬 How do we join in the suit?
I have a 2014 Hyundai Tucson with 160,000 miles. I have to put oil in every 500 miles. It’s becoming very costly. I don’t understand if Hyundai knows there is a problem with their vehicles then they should do something about it.
My 2017 Santa Fe Sport is burning a quart of oil every 800 miles. I need Hyundai to FIX this
I have to add oil to my 2016 Hyundai Sonata every 1200 miles. When I’ve brought it up to the dealership I was originally just told they couldn’t find any leaks and they thought it was a bad filter. The latest time that I brought it in I was told I was passed my warrenty and they could run a test on my engine because it probably needed to be replaced.
I’ve had my Hyundai for a little over a year . I’ve had to change the oil in my car twice in the last 2 months . The car is at the dealer now and they don’t know what’s wrong . According to them they said the place that I’m changing my oil is lying to me .
My 2017 hyundai sonata is burning to much oil. Have add oil every 800 miles,it’s exhausting. I have done an consumption worksheet and hyundai is saying now since am not the original owner there’s nothing they can do. They are full of shit. it shouldn’t matter who’s the owner.