2012 Hyundai Santa Fe Recalls and Problems

NHTSA lists 1 safety recall and 353 owner complaints for the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe.

Recalled components: engine. Most-described problem: stalling or shutting off (97 complaints, 27%). Most-reported area: engine (228 complaints, 65%; median mileage when it happened: 89,700).

Data: NHTSA recall, complaint and investigation filesUpdated Oct 2, 2026

Year to avoid

1 safety recall for the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe

Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.

Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA has opened 3 investigations that name the 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe; all 3 are closed. An investigation means NHTSA is reviewing reports of a problem. It is not a finding that the vehicle has a defect.

A preliminary evaluation is NHTSA's first step, to gather information and decide whether to look further. An engineering analysis is a deeper review, usually opened after a preliminary evaluation. A recall query is a review of whether a recall covered the right vehicles or whether its fix works. NHTSA lists investigations by make, model and model year only, so one can apply to only some versions of a model, such as one engine; its summary says which.

What owners report

Owners have filed 353 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Santa Fe. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.

Problems owners describe

• Stalling or shutting off97 · 27%
  Median 56,500 miles at failure, from 81 reports with mileage
• Engine failure or replacement78 · 22%
  Median 104,000 miles at failure, from 67 reports with mileage
• Check engine light43 · 12%
  Median 66,300 miles at failure, from 34 reports with mileage
• Loss of power or limp mode32 · 9%
  Median 38,000 miles at failure, from 25 reports with mileage
• Power steering problems or locked steering25 · 7%
  Median 27,900 miles at failure, from 24 reports with mileage
• Smoke or a burning smell22 · 6%
  Median 96,100 miles at failure, from 19 reports with mileage
• Hesitation or slow acceleration19 · 5%
  Median 19,900 miles at failure, from 16 reports with mileage
• Unintended acceleration or surging14 · 4%

Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these. Compare other models in the problem owners report most for every model year.

Areas named in complaints

• Engine228 · 65%
  Median 89,700 miles at failure, from 180 reports with mileage
• Electrical system43 · 12%
  Median 55,500 miles at failure, from 30 reports with mileage
• Speed control40 · 11%
  Median 16,000 miles at failure, from 39 reports with mileage
• Brakes28 · 8%
  Median 24,900 miles at failure, from 27 reports with mileage
• Powertrain24 · 7%
  Median 21,800 miles at failure, from 22 reports with mileage
• Steering16 · 5%
  Median 44,300 miles at failure, from 15 reports with mileage
• Suspension14 · 4%
• Unknown or other16 · 5%

A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%. Mileage is shown where at least 15 owners reported it.

Hyundai Santa Fe recalls and complaints by model year

The highlighted bars are the 2012 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2017 Santa Fe drew the most (260) and the 2012 drew 103.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

2012 Santa Fe MPG

Questions