"How reliable is the 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"Based on 143 NHTSA complaints, the 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe has a median complaint mileage of 65700 miles. The most common issue is Air Bags."

"What are common problems with the 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe is Air Bags, accounting for a significant portion of the 143 total complaints filed."

2006 Hyundai Santa Fe: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 143 complaints

143

Total Complaints

65,700mi

Median Mileage

Air Bags

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

27,442 25th Percentile

65,700 Median Mileage

104,301 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Air Bags

Vehicle Speed Control

Service Brakes

Suspension

Electrical System

Seat Belts

Fuel System, Gasoline

Steering

Exterior Lighting

Switch

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE VEHICLE WENT OVER AN EMBANKMENT WHILE GOING 25-30 MPH. THERE WAS PRIOR BRAKING. THE VEHICLE STRUCK A TREE ON THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE, THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE OCCUPANTS WERE WEARING SEATBELTS, BUT SUSTAINED MINOR INJURIES. THERE WAS A POLICE REPORT TAKEN AT T..."

"ABS SYSTEM ACTIVATES ON INTERMITTENT OCCASIONS WHEN BRAKING FROM SLOW <20 MPH, ALSO ABS PUMP CYCLES ON DURING SLOW TURNS. *JB"

"DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING ANY SPEEDS AT NIGHT, THE HEADLIGHTS FAILED TO ILLUMINATE. THIS OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY A DEALER WHO DETERMINED AN ELECTRICAL SENSOR FAILED AND NEEDED REPLACED. AFTER THE REPAIR, THE PROBLEM PERSISTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT AL..."

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.

Air Bags 27 complaints

25th: 50,000 mi Median: 80,000 mi 75th: 117,450 mi

Vehicle Speed Control 19 complaints

25th: 16,125 mi Median: 59,000 mi 75th: 149,750 mi

Service Brakes 12 complaints

25th: 60,000 mi Median: 78,000 mi 75th: 115,000 mi

Suspension 11 complaints

25th: 83,801 mi Median: 104,860 mi 75th: 125,000 mi

Electrical System 10 complaints

25th: 15,000 mi Median: 52,312 mi 75th: 62,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

NY: 19 NJ: 10 CA: 9 AZ: 9 PA: 8 FL: 8 VA: 7 NM: 7 MD: 7 IL: 6

Who Files Complaints?

12.6%

Original Owners

87.4%

Second+ Owners

Hyundai Santa Fe — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
2001	293	105,000	Suspension	7
2002	219	105,000	Suspension	10
2003	390	86,000	Suspension	36
2004	386	73,768	Suspension	40
2005	300	78,250	Air Bags	27
2007	981	75,450	Fuel/Propulsion System	42
2008	718	75,000	Fuel/Propulsion System	32
2009	501	77,900	Fuel/Propulsion System	44
2010	330	41,000	Power Train	14
2011	266	40,000	Engine	26
2012	472	56,500	Engine	41
2013	805	52,500	Engine	25
2014	675	60,000	Engine	27
2015	325	67,430	Engine	13
2016	283	60,000	Engine	7
2017	1182	16,000	Engine	20
2018	138	18,000	Engine	8
2019	253	9,612	Engine	20
2020	242	4,909	Engine	14
2021	224	17,250	Power Train	4
2022	259	10,500	Power Train	13
2023	272	2,689	Unknown Or Other	22
2024	133	9,500	Power Train	8
2025	119	7,250	Unknown Or Other	6

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