2008 Hyundai Santa FE: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE. The newest campaign is 13V113000. NHTSA received the report on 1 Apr 2013. The NHTSA record gives the component Exterior Lighting / Brake Lights / Switch. NHTSA has 541 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 13V113000, in the NHTSA record

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.

NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on 1 Oct 2026. Complaint file through 30 Sep 2026. Recall file through 30 Sep 2026.

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

4 campaigns, newest first. 2,205,630 units in total.

13V1130001 Apr 2013Exterior Lighting / Brake Lights / Switch
12V35400025 Jul 2012Air Bags / Frontal / Sensor/Control Module-Inactive
11V4720009 Sep 2011Air Bags / Frontal
08V27200019 Jun 2008Equipment / Other / Labels

13V113000Received 1 Apr 2013. 1,712,336 units.
Exterior Lighting / Brake Lights / Switch
Defect, in the NHTSA record
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. 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.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
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.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by Hyundai Motor Company. Manufacturer campaign number 110. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 22 Apr 2013.
12V354000Received 25 Jul 2012. 199,118 units.
Air Bags / Frontal / Sensor/Control Module-Inactive
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2007 through 2009 Santa Fe vehicles manufactured from April 19, 2006, through July 7, 2008. The occupant classification system (OCS) may need recalibration to accurately detect small statured adults.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Improper classification or detection may cause the front passenger airbag not to deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will update the classification software free of charge. The safety recall began on September 7, 2012. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.
Report filed by Hyundai Motor Company. Manufacturer campaign number 105. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 7 Sep 2012.
11V472000Received 9 Sep 2011. 205,233 units.
Air Bags / Frontal
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2007-2008 hyundai veracruz vehicles manufactured from december 26, 2006, through march 21, 2008, and model year 2007-2008 hyundai santa fe vehicles manufactured from april 19, 2006 through march 20, 2008. The clock spring contact assembly for the driver's air bag supplemental restraint system (SRS) may become damaged through usage over time. The driver's air bag electrical circuit will experience a high resistance condition, potentially causing the driver's air bag to not deploy.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
If the clock spring develops high resistance, in the event of a crash, the drivers air bag will not deploy and will not be able to properly protect the driver, increasing the risk of injuries.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai dealers will replace the vehicle's driver's air bag clock spring contact assembly free of charge. The safety recall began in november 2011. Owners may contact hyundai customer connect center at 1-800-633-5151.
Report filed by HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY. Manufacturer campaign number 103. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 28 May 2012.
08V272000Received 19 Jun 2008. 88,943 units.
Equipment / Other / Labels
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai is recalling 88,943 my 2007-2008 hyundai santa fe vehicles equipped with p235/60r18 tires. These vehicles fail to comply with the labeling requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110 "tire selection and rims for motor vehicles." the black certification label affixed to the driver's side center pillar, incorrectly lists the gross axle weight ratings (gawr).
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Overloading your vehicle may adversely affect handling and braking and may cause tire damage, resulting in tire failure and a crash without warning.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Hyundai will mail corrected certification labels along with the instructions to the affected owners. The customer will have the option for dealers to install the label free of charge. The recall began on august 5, 2008. Owners may contact hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.
Report filed by Hyundai Motor Company. Manufacturer campaign number 084. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 5 Aug 2008.

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

541 complaints, 718 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.

2008 Hyundai Santa FE
All 2008 vehicles

2008 Hyundai Santa FE: complaints by component, per 1,000 component mentions
Component	2008 Santa FE	All 2008 vehicles	Santa FE, all years	Mentions
Fuel/Propulsion System	299.4	35.5	71.8	215
Electrical System	104.5	140.6	81.7	75
Air Bags	97.5	156.2	48.7	70
Engine	83.6	67	230.6	60
Fuel System, Gasoline	80.8	19.9	18.3	58
Vehicle Speed Control	72.4	39.6	56	52
Power Train	33.4	73.5	88.7	24
Structure	30.6	48.4	27	22
Unknown or Other	26.5	41.8	69.2	19
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)	22.3	18.4	14	16

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 27.

Complaints that report a crash: 17
Complaints that report a fire: 7
Injuries in the complaints: 12
Deaths in the complaints: 0
Date of the newest complaint: 20 Mar 2026

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2014, with 100 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
DP21003	Defect petition	Throttle control system vulnerabilities	Vehicle Speed Control / Throttle	12 Nov 2021	20 Jun 2023

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

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Official channels

NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
NHTSA page of the 2008 Hyundai Santa FEThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 2008 Hyundai Santa FE: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/hyundai/santa-fe/2008/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through 30 Sep 2026.

Sources

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence: US government work, public domain
Recall file through: 30 Sep 2026
Complaint file through: 30 Sep 2026
First complaint in the file: 1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file: Hyundai Motor Company

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE?: 2,205,630 units in 4 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Hyundai Santa FE have for all model years?: NHTSA lists 45 recall campaigns for the Hyundai Santa FE, model years 2001 to 2026. 4 of them name the 2008 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE name most often?: Fuel/Propulsion System: 215 of 718 component mentions, or 299.4 per 1,000. For all 2008 vehicles the figure is 35.5 per 1,000.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2008 Hyundai Santa FE open?: No. The 1 investigation that names this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.