"How reliable is the 2009 Hyundai Elantra?"

"Based on 315 NHTSA complaints, the 2009 Hyundai Elantra has a median complaint mileage of 78000 miles. The most common issue is Steering."

"What are common problems with the 2009 Hyundai Elantra?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2009 Hyundai Elantra is Steering, accounting for a significant portion of the 315 total complaints filed."

2009 Hyundai Elantra: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 315 complaints

315

Total Complaints

78,000mi

Median Mileage

Steering

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

41,700 25th Percentile

78,000 Median Mileage

102,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Steering

126

Air Bags

Electrical System

Service Brakes

Vehicle Speed Control

Engine

Electronic Stability Control (Esc)

Unknown Or Other

Body

Power Train

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"FUEL INJECTION AND COMPUTER FAILURE AT APPROXIMATELY 5,600 MILES. CAR STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY WITHOUT WARNING. *TR"

"TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 HYUNDAI ELANTRA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT SHE WAS INVOLVED IN A CRASH THAT INVOLVED FIVE VEHICLES. HER VEHICLE WAS HIT IN THE FRONT WHICH CAUSED HER VEHICLE TO HIT ANOTHER VEHICLE IN THE FRONT AS WELL. SHE STATED THAT THE CRASH WAS NOT A HEAD-ON COLLISION AND THAT IT OCCURR..."

"2009 ELANTRA GAS PEDAL GETS STUCK UNDER FLOOR MAT. WHAT SHOULD I DO? *TR"

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.

Steering 126 complaints

25th: 52,250 mi Median: 78,000 mi 75th: 97,969 mi

Air Bags 40 complaints

25th: 56,480 mi Median: 93,500 mi 75th: 131,175 mi

Electrical System 23 complaints

25th: 58,000 mi Median: 74,500 mi 75th: 97,500 mi

Service Brakes 17 complaints

25th: 32,130 mi Median: 46,543 mi 75th: 72,210 mi

Vehicle Speed Control 17 complaints

25th: 30,000 mi Median: 63,000 mi 75th: 92,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

NY: 31 NJ: 24 TX: 24 FL: 23 PA: 22 OH: 21 CA: 18 IL: 15 GA: 15 IN: 11

Who Files Complaints?

2.5%

Original Owners

97.5%

Second+ Owners

Hyundai Elantra — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1992	46	-	Automatic Transmission	1
1993	39	-	Engine	2
1994	110	-	Frontal	26
1995	179	-	Frontal	32
1996	138	92,000	Gasoline	11
1997	196	89,000	Automatic Transmission	26
1998	75	72,000	Gasoline	10
1999	183	92,750	Automatic Transmission	24
2000	259	48,000	Frontal	43
2001	445	69,000	Air Bags	100
2002	431	72,000	Air Bags	80
2003	310	65,500	Suspension	59
2004	209	31,000	Air Bags	32
2005	180	51,500	Air Bags	43
2006	209	68,250	Air Bags	37
2007	364	70,530	Visibility/Wiper	26
2008	423	55,409	Steering	57
2010	494	62,000	Steering	67
2011	588	70,000	Engine	29
2012	911	60,000	Engine	72
2013	1839	43,000	Steering	157
2014	540	54,000	Engine	58
2015	344	50,550	Engine	45
2016	378	54,128	Engine	30
2017	1054	41,000	Engine	57
2018	385	23,892	Engine	14
2019	309	43,500	Engine	19
2020	294	6,200	Engine	28
2021	205	15,500	Warnings	11
2022	127	23,500	Seat Belts	5
2023	131	7,000	Unknown Or Other	11
2024	86	7,654	Unknown Or Other	11
2025	23	-	Unknown Or Other	4

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