NHTSA lists 2 safety recalls and 345 owner complaints for the 2010 Hyundai Sonata.
Recalled components: suspension and exterior lighting. Most-described problem: door lock or latch problems (62 complaints, 18%). Most-reported area: body structure (164 complaints, 48%; median mileage when it happened: 68,000).
Fewer complaints than a typical Sonata year
The 2010 drew 33 owner complaints in its first three years, against about 92 for a typical Sonata year. Best years are picked only from 2016 on, since counts for older years say less: owners filed fewer complaints in the early 2010s.
Years to avoid: 2011 to 2013 and 2015; best year: 2019. Based on owner complaints, not adjusted for sales.
Road salt and water can enter portions of the rear crossmember, leading to corrosion of the crossmember steel. This may lead to detachment of one of the rear control arms.
Risk: Control arm separation may suddenly change the rear wheel alignment, affecting the handling of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix and full notice
Fix: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will repair or replace the crossmember assembly. The recall began on October 8, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai Customer Care Center at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall number is 113.
Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 Sonata vehicles manufactured March 1, 2005, through January 21, 2010; and model year 2006-2011 Azera vehicles manufactured September 27, 2005, through November 22, 2010 originally sold in, or currently registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.
Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.
Risk: Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.
The fix and full notice
Fix: Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.
Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles.
NHTSA listing: SONATA. Hyundai campaign 110.
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 1 investigation that names the 2010 Hyundai Sonata; it is closed. An investigation means NHTSA is reviewing reports of a problem. It is not a finding that the vehicle has a defect.
Rear control arm failure
Preliminary evaluation PE13007Closed Aug 20, 2013 (opened Mar 25, 2013)
In a letter dated August 9, 2013, Hyundai-Kia America Technical Center, Inc. (Hyundai) notified NHTSA that Hyundaiis conducting a safety recall (13V-354) involving approximately 239,000 vehicles involving model year (MY)… NHTSA's full summary
NHTSA ties this investigation to recall 13V-354, listed above.
A preliminary evaluation is NHTSA's first step, to gather information and decide whether to look further. 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 345 complaints with NHTSA about the 2010 Sonata. 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
Door lock or latch problems62 · 18%
Median 65,500 miles at failure, from 54 reports with mileage
Most named: body (135); body, door (28) · Median 68,000 miles at failure, from 137 reports with mileage
Engine29 · 8%
Median 70,000 miles at failure, from 22 reports with mileage
Brakes28 · 8%
Median 64,500 miles at failure, from 24 reports with mileage
Powertrain21 · 6%
Most named: automatic transmission (3) · Median 47,500 miles at failure, from 18 reports with mileage
Air bags20 · 6%
Median 42,100 miles at failure, from 16 reports with mileage
Electrical system16 · 5%
Steering15 · 4%
Unknown or other36 · 10%
Median 52,600 miles at failure, from 26 reports with mileage
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 Sonata recalls and complaints by model year
The highlighted bars are the 2010 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 2011 Sonata drew the most (624) and the 2010 drew 33.
Owner complaints
2010: 345 complaintsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Hyundai Sonata
Model year
Complaints
2010
345
2011
3,472
2012
1,711
2013
2,019
2014
773
2015
1,197
2016
883
2017
876
2018
382
2019
171
2020
194
2021
189
2022
112
2023
102
2024
55
2025
27
2026
6
Safety recalls
2010: 2 recallsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Hyundai Sonata
Model year
Recalls
2010
2
2011
17
2012
11
2013
11
2014
8
2015
12
2016
9
2017
5
2018
2
2019
0
2020
4
2021
4
2022
3
2023
2
2024
1
2025
0
2026
1
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.
In the 345 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2010 Hyundai Sonata, the problems described most are door lock or latch problems (62), the check engine light coming on (15), and stalling or shutting off (14). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can describe several problems.
Is NHTSA investigating the 2010 Hyundai Sonata?
No. NHTSA's investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026, lists no open investigations for the 2010 Hyundai Sonata. It lists one closed investigation, which closed on Aug 20, 2013.
How do I check if my Sonata has an open recall?
Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Hyundai dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.
Sources and method
NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Oct 2, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
NHTSA investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Defect petitions, which ask NHTSA to open an investigation, are listed apart and only while open. Audit queries, which check whether a company met its recall and reporting duties rather than whether a vehicle has a problem, are not listed.
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
NHTSA model names covered: SONATA.
Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.