RoadVitals

2003 Hyundai Sonata Transmission Problems

Owner-reported complaints naming the transmission system, filed with NHTSA

Data refreshed

Transmission reportsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
8
Latest Nov 24, 2009
Share of all reportsThis category as a share of every owner report on file for this model year. One report can name more than one component, so the categories overlap.
4%
of 199 total
Crash or fire reportedReports in this category whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. The reporter's own answer on the NHTSA form, not a verified finding.
0
Injuries or deaths reportedTotals the submitters entered on their own reports in this category. Not verified by NHTSA and not a casualty statistic.
0

What this page shows

Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2003 Hyundai Sonata submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 8 reports on file name it.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Owner reports naming transmission

Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed

Transmission
Filed Nov 24, 2009

WHEN COMING TO A STOP CAR FEELS LIKE ITS GOING TO TAKE OFF. *TR

NHTSA ID
10293433
Incident
Nov 24, 2009
Mileage
98,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Oct 26, 2006

CAR SEEMS TO LOSE POWER AND THEN JERKS BACK ON. ONLY LASTS ABOUT 1 SECOND. I PURCHASED THIS CAR USED WITH AROUND 13000 MILES. THIS HAS HAPPENED ABOUT 10 TIMES DURING THE 8 MONTHS I HAVE OWNED THE CAR. DEALER SAYS WITHOUT A TROUBLE LIGHT/ERROR CODE THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO. *NM

NHTSA ID
10171904
Incident
Mar 4, 2006
Mileage
14,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Aug 11, 2004

WHILE DRIVING AT STEADY HIGHWAY SPEEDS, CAR EXPERIENCES QUICK POWER SURGES. VISITED DEALERSHIP ON TWO OCCASIONS NOW THEY TELL ME THAT THEY CAN NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM, THAT THEIR COMPUTERS FIND NO PROBLEM. MECHANIC SAYS " PERHAPS THERE IS A PART TRYING TO GO BAD, BUT HASN'T COMMITTED ITSELF YET" WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN? IF YOU ARE JUST BROWSING THIS SITE, DO NOT BUY HYUNDAI! *JB

NHTSA ID
10086623
Incident
Aug 10, 2004
Mileage
200 mi
Transmission
Filed Apr 14, 2004

MY CAR IS 8 MONTHS OLD WITH 9300 MILES, AND I HAD TO PUT ANOTHER TRANSMISSION IN..THE HYUNDAI SERVICE MANAGER CLAIMED HE PUT A NEW TRANSMISSION IN, WHEN IN FACT HE PUT A REBUILT TRANSMISSION IN. THIS HAPPENED 2 WEEKS AGO. THEN YESTERDAY (04-13-04) MY SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING, BROUGHT IT INTO THE SHOP AGAIN, AND WAS TOLD THEY HAD TO ORDER A NEW SPEED SENSOR. WHAT GIVES? DON'T THEY KEEP PARTS IN STOCK. I PHONED THE PARTS DEPARTMENT AND ASKED IF THEY HAD THIS SENSOR IN STOCK AND THEY SAID YES. I ALSO CALLED ANOTHER DEALER IN THE NEXT TOWN AND WAS TOLD THEY ALSO HAD THE PART. SO WHY DID MY DEALER LIE TO ME..

NHTSA ID
10066194
Incident
Mar 27, 2004
Mileage
9,300 mi
Transmission
Filed Feb 18, 2004

ABOUT ONCE A MONTH I WILL BE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AND THE CAR JERKS LIKE IT COMES OUT OF GEAR FOR A SPLIT SECOND FOR NO APPARENT REASON.. IT ONLY HAPPENS ABOVE 55 MPH OR MORE.*AK

NHTSA ID
10058431
Incident
Feb 1, 2004
Transmission
Filed Jan 30, 2004

I HAVE A 2003 SONATA BOUGHT NEW IN JULY 2003, NOW HAS 11000 MILES. 3 WEEKS AGO TEXACO DISCOVERED A LEAK AROUND THE RT. CV JOINT. I TOOK IT TO KEY HYUNDAI WHO SAID THEY FIXED IT. IT WAS STILL LEAKING AS OF YESTERDAY. YESTERDAY I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK WHEN I HEARD A RATTLE FROM THE REAR. MY ENGINE STARTED TICKING. SUDDENLY THE CAR SHOT FORWARD AND SOUNDED LIKE SOMETHING FELL OUT FROM THE BACK. I WAS ABOUT 100 FT FROM MY DRIVEWAY (THANK GOODNESS THIS DID NOT HAPPEN ON THE INTERSTATE) SO I PULLED IN WITH A TRAIL OF RED FLUID FOLLOWING ME. MY DRIVEWAY IS NOW COVERED WITH THIS FLUID. THE KEY HYUNDAI OF JACKSONVILLE HAD SOMEONE BRING ME A LOANER CAR AND SAID THEY'D CLEAN UP THE SPILL. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THEM. NO WORD YET. I TRAVEL THE INTERSTATE BEFORE DAWN DAILY AND HOME AGAIN SOMETIMES VERY LATE. I CAN'T IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF THIS OCCURED DURING THOSE TIMES. I WILL NEVER TRUST THIS CAR AGAIN AND REFUSE TO DRIVE IT AGAIN. IT SCARES ME. I WANT MY MONEY BACK.

NHTSA ID
10056177
Incident
Jan 29, 2004
Mileage
11,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Dec 18, 2003

TRANSMISSION CONTINUALLY SLIPS BETWEEN 2ND AND 3RD GEARS. HAD VEHICLE INTO DEALER NUMEROUS TIMES. TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED AT 11,000 MILES AND WITHIN 8,000 MILES SECOND (REBUILT -BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT HYUNDAI REPLACES NEW TRANSMISSIONS WITH) TRANSMISSION ALSO BEGAN SLIPPING. SLIPPAGE IS MORE PRONOUNCED IN THE COLDER TEMPS. ON ONE OCCASION, REGIONAL SERVICE MANAGER DROVE VEHICLE AND ACKNOWLEDGED SLIP. HE THEN SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT TO FURTHER DIAGNOSE VEHICLE INCLUDING ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, BUT THIS WAS CANCELLED THE DAY BEFORE APPOINTMENT WHEN THEY REALIZED THAT I HAD FILED A LEMON LAW COMPLAINT. FROM THAT DAY ON, HYUNDAI HAS REFUSED TO SERVICE THE TRANSMISSION AND I AM NOW AWAITING LEMON LAW HEARING. MOST RECENTLY, IN THE COLD WEATHER, TRANSMISSION NOT ONLY SLIPS BUT MAKES LOUD METALLIC POPPING NOISE WHEN IT SHIFTS INTO 3RD GEAR.*AK

NHTSA ID
10050723
Incident
Dec 18, 2003
Mileage
8,000 mi
Transmission
Filed May 19, 2003

TRANSMISSION MADE LOUD CLUNKING NOISES, BROUGHT INTO DEALER, "COULDN'T DUPLICATE" (TYPICAL RESPONSE), THEN I FOUND THE TRANSMISSION TO BE LEAKING, TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED AT 1500 MILES, STILL HAD BAD SHIFT PATTERNS AND HANG UPS IN GEARS, MORE SO AFTER THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED. ALSO HAD ALL SORTS OF FRONT END NOISE THAT NATURALLY GOT WORSE AFTER THEY TORE HALF OF THE FRONT END OUT TO CHANGE THE TRANSMISSION. *JB

NHTSA ID
10018937
Incident
Mar 1, 2003
Mileage
500 mi

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.

Other components reported on this vehicle

Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .