"How reliable is the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"Based on 472 NHTSA complaints, the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe has a median complaint mileage of 56500 miles. The most common issue is Engine."

"What are common problems with the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe is Engine, accounting for a significant portion of the 472 total complaints filed."

2012 Hyundai Santa Fe: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 472 complaints

472

Total Complaints

56,500mi

Median Mileage

Engine

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

16,000 25th Percentile

56,500 Median Mileage

107,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Engine

227

Vehicle Speed Control

Electrical System

Service Brakes

Power Train

Unknown Or Other

Steering

Suspension

Exterior Lighting

Fuel/Propulsion System

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"DRIVER WAS PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE WHEN SANTA FE SUDDENLY SURGED OR LUNGED FORWARD AND TO THE RIGHT CAUSING CAR TO JUMP OVER A CONCRETE BUMPER AND INTO ANOTHER CAR PARKED AT A 90-DEGREE ANGLE. AFTER THE ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION WAS CLEARED DRIVER PROCEEDED TO THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP. ENROUTE THE SAN..."

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.

Engine 227 complaints

25th: 25,717 mi Median: 89,661 mi 75th: 119,031 mi

Vehicle Speed Control 40 complaints

25th: 5,750 mi Median: 16,000 mi 75th: 28,852 mi

Electrical System 39 complaints

25th: 20,750 mi Median: 64,261 mi 75th: 81,000 mi

Service Brakes 25 complaints

25th: 14,600 mi Median: 27,413 mi 75th: 74,687 mi

Power Train 24 complaints

25th: 10,553 mi Median: 21,825 mi 75th: 55,125 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 53 FL: 45 PA: 36 TX: 36 MA: 34 NY: 27 NJ: 27 IL: 23 NC: 19 GA: 15

Who Files Complaints?

1.1%

Original Owners

98.9%

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
2006	143	65,700	Air Bags	16
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
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