"How reliable is the 2004 Hyundai Sonata?"

"Based on 285 NHTSA complaints, the 2004 Hyundai Sonata has a median complaint mileage of 91138 miles. The most common issue is SUSPENSION."

"What are common problems with the 2004 Hyundai Sonata?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2004 Hyundai Sonata is SUSPENSION, accounting for a significant portion of the 285 total complaints filed."

2004 Hyundai Sonata: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 285 complaints

285

Total Complaints

91,138mi

Median Mileage

SUSPENSION

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

55,000 25th Percentile

91,138 Median Mileage

122,500 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SUSPENSION

AIR BAGS

STRUCTURE:BODY

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

STRUCTURE

STEERING

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

WHEELS

SERVICE BRAKES

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHILE PARKED FUEL FUMES ESCAPED FROM THE VEHICLE. *AK TANK AND SEALS WHERE REPLACED PROBLEM STILL OCCURED. *TC"

"VEHICLE STALLED ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS WHILE DRIVING 45-50 MPH. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER, WHO REPLACED THE THROTTLE SENSOR THE FIRST TIME, BUT PROBLEM RECURRED. VEHICLE WAS TOWED BACK TO THE DEALER. CONSUMER HAD A CONCERN OF PICKING THE VEHICLE UP. *AK"

"WHILE DRIVING ON I97, A VW CABRIOLET CHANGED FROM 2/3 OF EXIT TO RIGHT TO PULLING DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF ME PERPENDICULAR. I VEER TO LEFT, JAMMED ON BRAKES BUT HIT HIS DRIVER SIDE DOOR (ORIGIN SPEED 50-55 MPH) THEN CONTINUUED INTO A STEEL GUARDRAIL HEAD ON, THEN PULLED OUT MOST OF THE RAIL AND JOLTED..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

SUSPENSION 52 complaints

25th: 78,000 mi Median: 106,000 mi 75th: 148,000 mi

AIR BAGS 43 complaints

25th: 55,000 mi Median: 84,209 mi 75th: 110,865 mi

STRUCTURE:BODY 22 complaints

25th: 74,500 mi Median: 96,500 mi 75th: 119,500 mi

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 14 complaints

25th: 76,625 mi Median: 99,774 mi 75th: 110,648 mi

STRUCTURE 13 complaints

25th: 87,000 mi Median: 101,825 mi 75th: 124,250 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

NY: 28 PA: 26 VA: 19 NJ: 16 MD: 14 OH: 13 CA: 13 MA: 13 FL: 13 KY: 10

Who Files Complaints?

10.9%

Original Owners

89.1%

Second+ Owners

Hyundai Sonata — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	25	-	POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	0
1991	41	-	SEAT BELTS	3
1992	43	-	POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	1
1993	46	-	POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	1
1995	93	107,263	AIR BAGS:FRONTAL	17
1996	37	-	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE	0
1997	74	86,000	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY	6
1998	68	80,000	POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	3
1999	187	95,000	STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS	25
2000	378	108,000	STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS	22
2001	293	89,863	STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS	34
2002	407	94,724	STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS	50
2003	247	70,178	AIR BAGS	28
2005	217	80,000	AIR BAGS	44
2006	1422	73,838	AIR BAGS	55
2007	905	67,000	AIR BAGS	45
2008	554	65,000	AIR BAGS	24
2009	610	68,783	SERVICE BRAKES	29
2010	415	65,000	STRUCTURE:BODY	23
2011	4582	75,702	STEERING	194
2012	2254	80,000	ENGINE	86
2013	2602	79,000	ENGINE	138
2014	1061	70,000	ENGINE	48
2015	1611	53,758	ENGINE	60
2016	960	62,100	ENGINE	37
2017	964	53,900	ENGINE	46
2018	519	19,862	ENGINE	26
2019	182	23,000	ENGINE	11
2020	236	2,700	FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	8
2021	156	24,725	ENGINE	11
2022	123	13,500	POWER TRAIN	14
2023	130	11,000	FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	12
2024	61	2,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	3

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28