"How reliable is the 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"Based on 242 NHTSA complaints, the 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe has a median complaint mileage of 4909 miles. The most common issue is ENGINE."

"What are common problems with the 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe is ENGINE, accounting for a significant portion of the 242 total complaints filed."

2020 Hyundai Santa Fe: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 242 complaints

242

Total Complaints

4,909mi

Median Mileage

ENGINE

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

1,000 25th Percentile

4,909 Median Mileage

31,696 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

POWER TRAIN

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY

SERVICE BRAKES

STRUCTURE:BODY

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

STEERING

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"HAVE ONLY HAD THE 2020 SANTAFE 2.0T FOR A FEW WEEKS - 1,000 MILES. IT IS GOING TO THE SHOP (SELLING DEALER). THE TURBO LAG HAS ALMOST GOT ME T-BONED TWICE WHEN PULLING OUT INTO TRAFFIC. THIS IS CLEARLY A SAFETY ISSUE. IT DID NOT SEEM THIS WAY ON THE TEST DRIVE. THE OVERALL POWER HAS GONE DOWN THE P..."

"THE FCA (FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE) SYSTEM DOES NO WORK AS IT SHOULD. IT DOES NOT SEE VEHICLES OR PEDESTRIANS DIRECTLY IN FRONT WHILE NOT IN CRUISE CONTROL. THE ONLY TIME THE SYSTEM ALARMS IS WHEN FOLLOWING A VEHICLE, WHICH IS IN THE SAME LANE ON CITY STREETS, AND THEN THE TARGET VEHICLE TURNS RI..."

"MY CAR IS SITING IN PARK, RUNNING WITH THE DRIVER'S DOOR OPEN IN MY TOWN HOUSE PARKING LOT. I GET OUT OF MY CAR TO OPEN THE PASSENGER'S BACK DOOR AS WELL AS MY TRUNK FOR HER. I THEN GET BACK INTO THE DRIVER'S SEAT. I AM WAITING ON MY FRIEND TO LOAD HER ITEMS INTO MY NEW SANTA FE FOR AN OUT OF TOWN R..."

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

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