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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3,221 thoughts onHyundai class action over excessive oil consumption dismissed
Add me to the list. We have a 2016 HHyundai Santa Fa. It’s been using alot of oil and 3 days ago a horrible noise when started, took to mechanic who told us take to dealer had towed to dealer need a new engine and paying for rental out our pocket
To all the folks out there who never check your oil, get a clue. Checking and adding oil in between changes is totally normal. Learn how to do it. I check my Hyundai oil every other week. I change the oil every 2500 miles because it a GDI engine. It’s very hard on oil with things like soot and fuel dilution. It’s a ‘16 Sante fe. I use a dexos approved synthetic 5w30 even though the oil cap says 5w20. The car doesn’t see a lot of driving. Took 8 months to hit 2500 miles. Oil is black by then a smells like exhaust. Change and check your oil people.
Add me to please. I have a 2018 Sonata. Started having problems with oil & engine in November 2021 with only 26,500 miles on the odometer. Burning oil and almost stalls when I come to a stop, sounds horrible when idling, stopped or even in motion, like something is crackling/knocking under the hood.
Dealer stated my oil was extremely low and did an oil change. Expressed how I should come back every 1K miles to have it measured to see what the problem was. I went back twice and both times it was a quart low.
They then tell me “it’s a Sonata thing and they can’t do anything about it. I just need to check my oil level at every fill up and make sure I put in a quart of oil every 1K miles along with doing a complete oil change every 3K miles.” They also told me I could have it looked at further by the service dept (cost $500-not covered under warranty) to see if they could find anything else wrong with it. Along with recommending to have my engine and all fluid lines throughly cleaned (cost $700-800) (*Really? At only 27K miles no one should have to do that!). I would also have to leave my car over night for the cleaning but they would not be able to offer me a loaner(single Mom, one vehicle, that won’t work). Then to fix my idle and acceleration to add in a fuel additive they sold there in the service dept. Told me by the time I filled up my tank again I would see and feel a huge difference. Well that was $50 wasted because nothing changed, still the same problems.
I paid for the extended warranty coverage when i purchased my Sonata. I have always gone to Hyundai for all my scheduled maintenance needs to make sure my warranty stayed active and in compliance. Yet, now at only 30,300 miles I have to worry about checking oil levels at every fill up, putting in oil every 1K miles, more frequent oil changes, worrying about my car stalling or not even starting. I’m sorry, but I don’t have the ability or resources to do all this or to pay for all these extra services due to their faulty engines and parts.
I have Stage 3 liver cancer so my time and monetary funds are very limited. I hope something good comes out of this lawsuit and Hyundai steps up to take care of their customers sooner rather than later. I do not want to get rid of my Sonata, I got it because I loved it & still do. However, I need a dependable vehicle to get me to where I need to be and right now, it’s not looking good if you own a Hyundai.
Add me to the list.
I have a 2014 Hyundai Tucson and mine stalls and has all kinds of issues too! Although my year is not listed add me!
Yes, I have a 2012 Hyundai Veloster been the only owner and always change my oil every 3,000 miles was every 5,000 first five years. Last year took in my car for oil change even before the 3,000 miles and was told no oil registered on my stick! Oil light did not come on. Under 100,000 mile warranty took it in they said I needed to bring in my car to top off the oil every !,000 miles then after the fourth time they will do a conbustion cleaning that will cost me $500. Then I need to have the oil topped off every 1,000 miles again four more times after that they will see in Hyundai can help me with a possible new engine if needed. I told them that im almost up to the warranty as 12/16/2021 I will have own the car for 10 years plus i was almost to 100,000 miles the manager printed me out a paper saying Im now covered for 15 years or 150.000 miles. So I just took my Hyundai in today to Central Valley Hyundai Modesto Ca to get my car topped off for the third time before the cleaning that will cost me 500 dollars. The representive helping me asked me what was my goal and what I was hoping to get accomplished?? I told him I am doing everything I was told to do by Hyundai, He said well just recently Hyundai has decided to not cover any car with issues to do with the pistons not covered after expired warranty, I said I brought my car in with this issue a few weeks before my waaranty expired and that I was given and extended warranty. He said he will send a letter to Hyundai Corporate and see how they want to handle this but he hasnt seen one of these cases covered were the customer gets a new engine. I really feel like Im getting the run around. Frankly feel like im going to get screwed over please add me to this lawsuit.
you should gather all these documents from the service department and have them add to your notes all these visits and exactly what you told them along with dates. Once you gather all those I would contact hyundai recovery department and have them look at your car as a recall and defective. They surely know about these issues and you could possibly get a refund for the full amount you paid for the car along any reimbursement for any trade in if done with the dealer towards that purchase. Again at least 3 or more documented service visits are a must for consideration. Don’t tell the dealer you are going to contact corporate so that they skew the notes. I did all this with FORD Fiesta when it had a defective transmission system and they took it back and paid me full value along with my trade in.. Score no defective old car and a full refund plus they pay off the car if you have any payments left.
Thank you Jennifer for this, I do have all my documents from taking in my car over the years. I will try this. Diane
Yes, I am one of the drivers affected by a faulty engine. I have a 2017 Hyundai Tucson and in the past 6 months, I have been in and out of the Hyundai dealership 3 times, with the same problems listed in this article, no acceleration and excessive oil burning. I am now being told that my engine needs to be replaced. Hyundai covers the replacement and the rental vehicle. My question is, what makes a replacement engine different from my current engine with all of the issues? How are the replacement engines different from the engines in the Hyundai-Kia Engine Recall case? How am i to be assured that my safety isn’t compromised? And what are Hyundai car owners supposed to actually do about this problem?
My 2017 Velostar was at the dealer for engine light – they told me it is burning oil – did an oil change and told me to drive it for 1000 miles and come back. If it is still burning oil, I would have to pay 800 to get the pistons cleaned then drive it for another 1000 miles! if that doesnt fix the issue then they would have to reach out to Hyundai for a new engine — UGGG why cant they handle it right in the first place!
My 2014 Sonata Hybrid Engine exploded and left me paying for a vehicle that’s a shell. I’ve considered filing suit, but haven’t. Located in TN
add me i have a 2021 Palisade
I have a 2017 Elantra, we continue to have to check the oil and add oil to the car before it gets to low.
Checking and adding oil to a vehicle you drive is normal. All vehicles use oil. Some more than others. If you let it get too low and it causes a problem that’s your fault.