2024 Hyundai Kona Electric Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2024 Hyundai Kona Electric, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Electrical1147.8%
- Driver assistance417.4%
- Exterior lighting313.0%
- Powertrain (other)28.7%
- Interior & seats14.3%
- Engine14.3%
- Steering14.3%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
While driving the instrument panel, headlights and infotainment screen all went black. Has happened multiple times but difficult to replicate. Vehicles head lights turned off while driving in the early morning (dark) but turned back on within a second or two. No warnings, no lights, no errors.
Hyundai engages emergency parking brake EPB) automatically when in parked on an incline. The EPB will disengage under normal operation if all doors are closed. If doors are open, EPB will not disengage. If going from park to drive, this is not a problem. However, if in drive, traveling with trunk open for oversized cargo, the vehicle will drive normally until a stop on an incline, when the EPB will engage automatically, and then when the driver tries to proceed from the stop, their vehicle is disabled. The driver can provide power to drive train and burn the EPB. The driver must manually intervene after every stop on an incline to disengage the EPB to avoid being disabled at an intersection.
Driver assistance
Reports naming forward-collision avoidance, lane keeping, back-over prevention, cruise control and related electronic driver-assistance systems.
From owner reports, verbatim
While I was driving the heads up display and the telemeter all go black I lose all lights all blind spot and warnings. Then the car will recycle through and all the displays will come up again. This happens every month and a half or so, and the dealership says they cannot replicate the problem and they don’t know anything.
The steering wheel locks while driving. The headlights have gone out randomly on this car a few times. The steering locked up in a turn and I went into another guys lane and almost caused a major accident. The dealerships say they can’t recreate the issue but never really tried. The vehicle has been lemoned law but the manufacturer now is playing games and not following through on the lemon law replacement vehicle. I do have multiple reports from being towed off the highways and from the police having to chase me down to help avoid a major accident.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Exterior lighting
Reports naming headlights, tail lights, turn signals and other exterior lighting.
From owner reports, verbatim
While driving the instrument panel, headlights and infotainment screen all went black. Has happened multiple times but difficult to replicate. Vehicles head lights turned off while driving in the early morning (dark) but turned back on within a second or two. No warnings, no lights, no errors.
While driving at night with multiple occurances the headlights, infotainment, and gauge cluster seemingly cut out and completely turned off for about 10 seconds before the infotainment system would reboot bringing back the headlights and gauge cluster. The conditions for this safety concern were [Headlamps were set to auto, Apple Carplay was wirelessly connected, and the vehicle was in motion.] After a trip to a dealer, the dealership could not reproduce the concern though an advisor did state this was not an isolated incident. No warning lights or error messages appeared on the gauge cluster that would indicate a problem.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Powertrain (other)
Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials.
From owner reports, verbatim
Hyundai engages emergency parking brake EPB) automatically when in parked on an incline. The EPB will disengage under normal operation if all doors are closed. If doors are open, EPB will not disengage. If going from park to drive, this is not a problem. However, if in drive, traveling with trunk open for oversized cargo, the vehicle will drive normally until a stop on an incline, when the EPB will engage automatically, and then when the driver tries to proceed from the stop, their vehicle is disabled. The driver can provide power to drive train and burn the EPB. The driver must manually intervene after every stop on an incline to disengage the EPB to avoid being disabled at an intersection.
My 2024 Hyundai Kona Electric lost power several times while driving on roads and highways at various speeds. The first instance was on [XXX] near Burlington, MA on [XXX], and then it happened several other times before we were able to get the vehicle to a Hyundai dealership for diagnosis and repair. The power loss typically manifested in the vehicle stuck at about 20-25 mph despite generous use of the accelerator pedal (often to the floor). There were no error messages or similar diagnostic information provided before, during, or after moments when power loss occurred. Often the vehicle would return to normal operation after a few minutes or by turning the vehicle off and back on again. The safety of the driver and passengers was at significant risk, especially on higher speed roadways due to the slow speed of the Kona in these moments. The dealer service department completed extensive diagnostics as detailed in the service report PDF attached. They ultimately found a nut (designated "ge09") connecting several ground wires to the chassis was loose. After replacing the nut and tightening to specification the problem has not recurred. We are satisfied with the communication and fix from the dealership and Hyundai corporate representatives, but concerned other Hyundai owners might encounter this issue with their vehicle. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Interior & seats
Reports naming seats, latches, locks, linkages and interior fittings.
From owner reports, verbatim
On June 5, 2025 I picked up a passenger who couldn't sit in the passenger seat because the headrest is canted at an unsafe angle so the passenger looks down and cannot look straight through the windshield. There is a page in the manual that shows the headrest is adjustable; this is wrong because the headrest is not adjustable. On July 2, 2025 I took it the vehicle in for recalls and asked about this; the service worker said there is no solution because replacement headrests are the same.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Engine
Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.
From owner reports, verbatim
The contact owns a 2024 Hyundai Kona Electric. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the AEB feature was inadvertently activated. The contact also stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that the message “Engine off - Switch to Park or Neutral” was displayed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was contacted but the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Steering
Reports naming the steering system — racks, columns, power-steering assist and steering linkage.
From owner reports, verbatim
The steering wheel locks while driving. The headlights have gone out randomly on this car a few times. The steering locked up in a turn and I went into another guys lane and almost caused a major accident. The dealerships say they can’t recreate the issue but never really tried. The vehicle has been lemoned law but the manufacturer now is playing games and not following through on the lemon law replacement vehicle. I do have multiple reports from being towed off the highways and from the police having to chase me down to help avoid a major accident.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .