We have been told by mechanic that our car has a manufacturer defect resulting in metal pieces in the oil, and the engine will soon fail. This is the same problem as the 2011-12 Sonatas. The Sonatas have been recalled but Hyundai is doing nothing about the Elantras. Has anyone experienced a similar problem?
I am not aware of Elantraās having these type of problems. There are other complaints, but nothing you describe.
Take it to a dealer. They will have the most up to date informationā¦and you can begin a paper trail there if there ever is actually a problem.
Thank you, thatās a good idea.
What year is your car?
How many miles on your car?
naive analysis based on a posters question.
NHTSA has 6 documented complaints for the same issue for the 2011 Elantra. You can register your complaint there as well.
The Sonata issue is with some 2L and 2.4L engines on cars assembled in Alabama. You can read about the recall for the Sonata at the same web site. Enter ā2011 Hyundai Sonataā in the search box for recalls and you will get to the correct page. Just switch the model to Elantra and enter the right year to register your complaint. Hyundai may extend the recall to the Elantra if your car uses the 2L or 2.4L engine from the affected time frame. If you havenāt done so already, you might call Hyundai directly and follow up with a letter. It is always best to have a paper trail to make discussions with them easier in the future.
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2011 89,000 We bought it used from a dealer so didnāt get the 100,000 mile warranty.
Thank you so much! We have researched the Sonata and found the info re: Alabama etc. but couldnāt find any complaints about the Elantra-or even where to register a complaint. Our car has the same 2 engine as the Sonata. I contacted the attorneyās who did the class action suit for the Sonatas but they havenāt responded to my question about the Elantra.
I was going to say that doesnāt matterā¦until I did a little research.
I am shocked to find out that it DOES matter! The 100K powertrain warranty ONLY applies to the original owner OR the second owner if they are a close family member - wife or kids. Every other 2nd owner gets 5 years 60K powertrain warranty. THAT is just messed up!
Exactly-
The info about filing a complaint with the NHTSA at safercar.gov was so helpful! Iāve done that now and weāll see if they are able to be of any assistance. I really appreciate the assistance from everyone here! Thanks so much!
Yes, it is messed-up, but since that crucial detailā¦somehowā¦ 
doesnāt make it into Hyundaiās advertising, most folks are unaware of it, and manyāperhaps mostābuyers of used Hyundais undoubtedly think that they are getting the remainder of a 100k warranty.
Nope!
Itās unreasonable to think that any engine problem is caused by a factory defect on a used car. If the original owner seldom changed the motor oil or never at all then whose fault is itā¦
As for the NHTSA being of any help; you can forget that. Complaint lodged; that is the end of it.
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+1
Lodging a complaint with NHTSA may eventually help to cause a mandated recall, but the filing of that complaint is not likely to lead to any help (in the near future) for the person filing that complaint.
Since you are maintaining duplicate posts, Iāll duplicate my last post over there. The engine in your Elantra is not the same as either of the engines that were recalled. You have a 1.8L engine, not the 2L or 2.4L engines in the Sonata. Your engine might have similar problems, but that does not automatically follow just because it is a Hyundai engine.
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OP, are you the same poster from a few days ago who had a problem with a cat failure, and the variable valve timing engine function sucked some debris from the cat into the cylinders?
Iām not positive, but I believe that it was a Nissan Sentra that had those problems.
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that problem was definitely present in Altimas in early 2000s, the series right after they redesigned into ārounded bodyā, AFAIK Sentra was not affected. tell-tell sign is cat sitting right on exhaust manifold coming from the engine