2021 Hyundai Elantra problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Seat Belts (22) · Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings (18) · Electrical System (12)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Hyundai Elantra model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (6)
Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera 2024-11-21 · campaign 24V879000 · 226,118 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Santa Fe, Santa Fe HEV, Elantra, Elantra HEV and 2022 Elantra N and Santa Fe PHEV vehicles. Due to a damaged printed circuit board, the rearview camera image may fail to display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
Risk: A rearview image that does not display reduces the driver's visibility and increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the rearview camera, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2025. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 271.
Seat Belts:front 2022-05-19 · campaign 22V354000 · 230,233 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Accent, 2021-2022 Elantra, and 2021-2022 Elantra HEV vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.
Risk: An exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.
Fix: Dealers will secure the seat belt pretensioner(s) with a cap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 28, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 229. This recall expands and replaces NHTSA recall numbers 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-218, and 22V-123 for Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles. All Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles already repaired under the previous recalls will need to have the new r
Seat Belts:front 2022-04-01 · campaign 22V218000 · 6,240 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Elantra and 2020 Accent vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver and passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.
Risk: Exploding seat belt pretensioners can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed on May 31, 2022. A second notice will be sent once remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 223. This recall is replaced by NHTSA recall number 22V-354. Vehicles already repaired under this recall will need to have the new remedy completed.
Visibility:windshield 2021-12-28 · campaign 21V00M000 · 26,413 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Santa Fe, 2021 Sonata, and Elantra vehicles. During manufacturing, the windshield may not have been properly bonded to the vehicle, allowing it to detach in a crash.
Risk: A windshield that detaches from a vehicle during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will remove and reinstall the front windshield panel, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 20, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 216.
Seat Belts:pretensioner 2021-10-13 · campaign 21V796000 · 978 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021 Elantra, Elantra HEV, Venue, Genesis GV80 and 2022 Genesis GV70 vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioner(s) may explode upon deployment.
Risk: An exploding seat belt pretensioner could project metal fragments into the vehicle, striking vehicle occupants and resulting in injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's numbers for this recall are 211 and 009G. This recall is replaced by NHTSA recall numbers 22V-354 for Elantra and Elantra HEV vehicles, 22V-458 for Venue vehicles, and 23V-094 for Genesis vehicles. Elantra, Elantra HEV, Venue, and Genesis vehicles already repaired under this recall will need to hav
Seats:front Assembly:recliner 2021-04-28 · campaign 21V302000 · 1,464 vehicles
Defect: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021 Elantra vehicles. The driver and front passenger seat back recliners may have been improperly welded.
Risk: An improperly welded seat back recliner could separate from the seat back frame during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and if necessary, replace the seat back frame assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on June 21, 2021. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-888-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 204.
Service bulletins (83)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Electrical System 2026-10-27 · 26-GI-003H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin provides information related to the navigation and head unit software changes introduced in the 2026 2nd navigation map and software update. the changes may vary depending on vehicle type, model, and navigation system. refer to the 2026 2nd navigation map and software update key improv
Back Over Prevention: Warnings 2026-10-15 · 26-GI-004H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some hyundai vehicles may be equipped with a parking distance warning (pdw) sensor(s) that may trigger various dtcs and display warning messages on the instrument cluster, resulting in the pdw sensor(s) failing to detect nearby objects or triggering multiple false alarms. this condition may be a res
Engine 2026-10-08 · 26-EM-016H TSB · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some vehicles equipped with internal combustion engines may exhibit higher-than-expected engine oil consumption. this bulletin outlines the combustion chamber cleaning procedure for vehicles diagnosed with this condition. all internal combustion engines consume some engine oil during normal operatio
Engine 2026-10-07 · 26-EM-015H TSB · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certain vehicles equipped with internal combustion engines may exhibit higher-than-expected engine oil consumption. this bulletin provides the inspection and repair procedures for vehicles exhibiting this condition. all internal combustion engines consume engine oil as part of normal engine operatio
Engine 2026-04-18 · 26-EE-003H TSB · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some vehicles may exhibit difficulty starting in cold weather. this bulletin provides the procedure to perform an inspection on the starter magnetic switch for potential freezing and, if necessary, replace the starter magnetic switch (solenoid) assembly.
Air Bags 2026-04-10 · DTN DL · Other
the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) has identified the presence of substandard and dangerous driver’s-side airbag inflators manufactured by jilin province detiannuo automobile safety system co., ltd. (dtn). these inflators were not supplied, approved, or authorized by the vehi
Showing the 6 most recent of 83 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-14 · Electrical System“my car has 60,000 miles and the horns on the car have been replaced 3 times hyundai issued an extended warranty for the horns on certain 2021-2025 model year elantra, 2022-2025 model year elantra n and 2021-2025 model year elantra hybrid vehicles' for the 10 years or 120,000 miles from the date of original retail delivery i don't know what world th…”
2026-09-27 · Exterior Lighting“the passenger side headlight has significant condensation inside the housing. the car is slightly over five years old, with 40,000 miles it was rarely driven the first year due to the pandemic. i have seen there is a tsb regarding the headlights, but clearly this is a far more significant issue than hyundai is letting on. i was getting a …”
2026-09-14 · Visibility/Wiper“windshield wipers intermittently malfunction in the intermittent setting. the wipers stop at random locations in the middle of the windshield, pause, move a short distance, stop again, and behave erratically. this can obstruct the driver’s forward visibility. the problem occurs without snow, ice, or an obstruction on the windshield. a previous nht…”
2026-08-12 · Electrical System“vehicle was serviced to remediate recall 271- backup camera replacement in january, 2025. in june 2026, vehicle is exhibiting the same issue. rear camera is non functional in the following ways: 1. vehicle is shifted to reverse, backup camera does not function; 2. vehicle is in park backup camera button is pressed, backup camera does not function.…”
2026-06-25 · Engine And Engine Cooling“see attached document for complaint.…”
2026-06-22 · Unknown Or Other“door lock actuator, the door latch is stuck on unlock and it won’t close or lock when the lock button is pressed on key fob.…”
2026-04-17 · Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection“i am filing a complaint regarding a safety recall repair for my vehicle that is not being handled in a timely or reasonable manner by an authorized dealership delray hyundai 655 ne sixth ave, delray beach. vehicle information: 2021 hyundai elantra se vin: [xxx] recall information: nhtsa recall #24v879000 recall #271 – backup camera inspection/…”
2026-04-14 · Engine And Engine Cooling“the contact owns a 2021 hyundai elantra. the contact stated that while driving approximately 70 mph, there was an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle. no warning lights were illuminated. the vehicle was towed to a dealer to be diagnosed; however, the cause of the failure was not determined. the vehicle was not repaired. the vehicle was towed bac…”
2026-04-09 · Engine“subject: vehicle safety complaint – engine failure – hyundai to whom it may concern, i am submitting a vehicle safety complaint regarding a serious engine failure involving my hyundai vehicle. the engine experienced a failure significant enough to require replacement. this raises serious safety concerns, as sudden engine failure can result in lo…”
2026-04-02 · Unknown Or Other“i am filing a complaint regarding an unresolved and ongoing issue with my 2021 hyundai elantra n line. the vehicle currently has approximately 80,100 miles. this issue began when the vehicle had under 60,000 miles. at that time, i brought the vehicle to a hyundai dealership because the check engine light was on and i was informed it was related to…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.