2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Fuel system Problems

I was driving on March 20, 2026 at about 12:00 PM when I suddenly noticed smoke, a strong gasoline smell, an oil smell, and a burning odor coming from the vehicle. I pulled over immediately because I believed the vehicle was unsafe and at risk of fire. The vehicle had to be towed. An independent repair shop later found a fuel leak at the high-pressure fuel line / fuel pump area, a loose ground wire on the right-hand side of the engine, a valve cover gasket leak, and engine timing chain noise. I was informed that gasoline had sprayed throughout the engine bay. This created an immediate fire hazard even though no actual fire occurred. This problem was especially concerning because the vehicle had been inspected and serviced by an authorized Hyundai dealer in December 2025, less than about 3,000 miles earlier. The loose engine ground wire and fuel leak raise serious concerns about vehicle safety and the adequacy of the prior inspection. I contacted Hyundai the same day and reported this as a fire-risk safety issue, but I did not receive timely assistance. Because immediate dealer service was not available, I had to authorize emergency repairs at a local shop for safety reasons. No warning lights were noted before the incident. The failure was confirmed by the repair shop.

NHTSA ID

11726301

Incident

Mar 20, 2026

Circuit board inside the fuse box stopped working and there was no speed indicator, no cruise control, no odometer registering while driving. Also the mechanical fuel pump started leaking fuel at 148,000 miles and now at 156,000 miles it is burning through oil and no oil light came on and the engine went into limp mode and is also now going through coolant too.

NHTSA ID

11725066

Incident

Nov 24, 2025

While traveling at approximately 80 mph on the highway, my vehicle suddenly lost all response to the accelerator pedal. Despite continued pressure on the gas, the vehicle rapidly decelerated to approximately 40 mph on its own. There were no warning lights, unusual noises, or physical indicators of a problem before, during, or after the event. I was able to safely navigate the vehicle off the highway. The vehicle appeared to operate normally afterward. The following day, I brought the vehicle to a mechanic who was unable to replicate the issue and found no stored fault codes. No repairs were made. Given the known concerns surrounding the Theta II engine in this model year, I am submitting this incident for documentation purposes and to contribute to any ongoing or future investigation into sudden acceleration loss in 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe vehicles.

NHTSA ID

11724727

Incident

Mar 15, 2026

2013 HYUNDAI SANTA FE SPORT TURBO. PAST/PRESENT SAFETY-SENSITIVE DEFECTS, NOTED OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS: 1. One Confirmed Open Recall [CAMPAIGN #/NHTSA RECALL #—Recall 251 / 23V651000] (To Be Scheduled ASAP). 2. RPM/Propulsion Limp-mode Conditions: Vehicle periodically loses RPM READINGS on Dash and goes into the Propulsion sputtering/restricted-speed limp-mode hesitation condition. This condition may occasionally normalize by stopping, turning off engine and restarting. This intermittent RPM/Propulsion condition sometimes occurs, signified by a temporary sputtering/bucking while driving vehicle. ❓️CHECK STORED CODES ASAP...To Do. 3. Several times the car failed to accelerate predictably. For example, as when trying to accelerate up to highway speed from the on-ramp, leading to a fear of a near-miss, stalling and getting rear-ended. On such occasions, since attention is directed outside of the vehicle for safety, the state of the RPM READING on the dash has not been noted. ❓️CHECK STORED CODES ASAP...To Do.

NHTSA ID

11681829

Incident

Jan 1, 2020

The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated while driving approximately 70 MPH, the contact observed a gasoline odor. The ABS warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the residence and inspected. The contact's husband observed gas around the fuel pump and condensation underneath the engine compartment. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the fuel pressure pump line needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 161,000.

NHTSA ID

11556102

Incident

Nov 5, 2023

Mileage

161,000 mi

The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that fuel was leaking from the fuel line. The contact also stated that the vehicle hesitated at start-up due to the failure. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V934000 (Engine, Fuel System, Gasoline) which he linked to the failure. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that his vehicle was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 114,964.

NHTSA ID

11480170

Incident

Aug 16, 2022

Mileage

114,964 mi

WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY, THE VEHICLE STARTED TO LOOSE POWER, STARTED HAVING A VIBRATION AND COULD SEE SMOKE IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR. I PULLED OVER AND THE ENGINE HAD CAUGHT FIRE. WITHIN MINUTES, THE WHOLE VEHICLE BURST INTO FLAMES.

NHTSA ID

11206589

Incident

May 5, 2019

Mileage

72,400 mi

OBD FUEL SYSTEM SENSOR HAS FAILED NJ INSPECTION 4 TIMES SINCE MARCH 2019.

NHTSA ID

11205785

Incident

Mar 15, 2019

Mileage

59,800 mi

HUSBAND WAS DRIVING MY SANTA FE SPORT 2013 ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THE CAR JUST DIED, 97,000 MILES ON THE CAR, NO WARNING AT ALL. NO ENGINE LIGHTS OR ANYTHING. TOOK TO A MECHANIC, SAID THE ENGINE SEIZED AND WILL NEED TO BE REPLACED. ALSO SAID THERE WAS NO OIL IN THE VEHICLE, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS NOT DUE FOR AN OIL CHANGE YET. HE SAID THEY COULDN'T FIND A REASON FOR THERE TO BE NO OIL, PROPER MAINTENANCE HAS BEEN COMPLETED ON THIS VEHICLE. HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, WAITING TO SEE IF IT IS UNDER WARRANTY, BUT I AM SURE THEY WILL TRY TO FIND A REASON NOT TO PAY TO HAVE IT FIXED. SECOND PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR IN THE LAST 3 MONTHS. THE FUEL PUMP WENT OUT LESS THAN THREE MONTHS AGO AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. WILL NOT BUY HYUNDAI AGAIN.

NHTSA ID

11190549

Incident

Mar 20, 2019

Mileage

97,000 mi

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON, OBD-II TROUBLE CODE P0087: FUEL RAIL/SYSTEM PRESSURE - TOO LOW. HIGH-PRESSURE FUEL PUMP FAILURE AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. I EXPERIENCED THE SYMPTOMS OF P0087: ROUGH RUNNING, POOR ACCELERATION ON THE HIGH WAY, AND HARD STARTING.

NHTSA ID

11056715

Incident

Dec 25, 2017

Mileage

83,120 mi

THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE INCIDENTS WHERE I EXPERIENCED COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE IN MY SANTE FE SPORT 2.0T. INVOICE NUMBER ' 359131 FIRST OCCURRED AT 47,031 MILES. ON FEBRUARY 16, 2017 I WAS DRIVING MY VEHICLE WITH MY SON ON THE FREEWAY WHEN THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT APPEARED AND MY VEHICLE BEGAN JERKING AND MAKING A LOUD CLICKING TAPPING SOUND SLOWING ME DOWN ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. I LOST POWER IN MY STEERING, VEHICLE WAS HARD TO MANEUVER. HYUNDAI ATTEMPTED TO REPAIR THE PROBLEM RETURNED MY VEHICLE AND CHARGED ME PARTIALLY FOR REPAIR. MADE CONTACT WITH THEM ABOUT REPAIR BEING A MISDIAGNOSIS AS THEY FIRST BLAMED THE INCIDENT ON AIR FILTER, SERPENTINE BELT, SPARK PLUGS, FUEL INJECTOR CLEANING, THEY REPLACED MY FUEL PUMP AND ENGINE BLOCK AT NO COST BUT CHARGED ME THE OTHER ITEMS. WORK ORDER NUMBER 201868 THE SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED AT 50,897 MILES ON JULY 14, 2017 I WAS TRAVELING ACROSS STATES FROM EL PASO, TEXAS TO COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO WITH MY 5 YR OLD SON AND MY HUSBAND. WE WERE TRAVELING NORTH ON HIGHWAY I-25 WHEN OUR VEHICLE BEGAN TO LOSE POWER AND STARTING MAKING THE LOUD VIBRATIONS AND TAPPING SOUNDS LIKE IT HAD DONE THE FIRST TIME ABOUT 3,000 MILES AGO WHEN I HAD THE ENGINE REPLACED. WE WERE OVER TAKING A SEMI TRUCK ON THE ROAD WHEN THIS HAPPENED WE WERE BARELY ABLE TO RECOVER OUR LANE AND PULL OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AS WE SLOWED DOWN ALMOST IMMEDIATELY THE SEMI WAS ABLE TO BRAKE AND AVOID REAR ENDING US. WE WERE STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE ABOUT AN HOUR AWAY FROM ALBURQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO. THIS WAS TERRIFYING FOR MY FAMILY AND I. WE HAD VERY LITTLE TIME TO REACT AND FIND A SAFE PLACE TO PULL OVER. I BELIEVE MY VEHICLE WAS NOT INSPECTED PROPERLY THROUGH THEIR QUALITY CONTROL PERSONNEL. IF THERE IS DEBRIS INSIDE MY ENGINE AND IT HAS CONTINUOUSLY PRESENTED ITSELF IT WILL EVENTUALLY TRAVEL THROUGH THE REST OF MY ENGINE EX. TURBO SEALS BEARINGS.

NHTSA ID

11006571

Incident

Jul 14, 2017

Mileage

50,000 mi