It’s tough building a car. You’ve got to get the body panels in place, the wheels have to spin, and the doors need to open and close. Couple all that with an engine that functions, and you’re looking at a lot of work and a lot of potential areas where things can go wrong.
It’s no surprise, then, that from time to time something goes wrong in the process of building a car. But for Hyundai’s Sonata Hybrid, that seems to happen more often than it does for its other vehicles.
The Korean marque has now issued a fifth recall for its 2016 Sonata Hybrid model.
The new recall is a strange one, and involves the turn signals on the Sonata. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there have been instances where the opposite turn signal is activated when drivers try to indicate where they’re going.
The NHTSA describes the error as:
“The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.”
This recall affects the 2016 hybrid, as well as the 2017 model and Sonata Plug-In Hybrid vehicles. In total, this recall could impact 469,377 cars.
It’s similar to a recall of Kia’s Sedona minivan, which we wrote about last week.
But, this isn’t the only ruling that’s hit the 2016 Sonata. Last month, Jalopnik also reported that Hyundai was recalling the hybrid due to an engine problem. According to the NHTSA, connecting rod bearings inside the car’s engine were wearing away, which could result in the car stalling. In the worst case, the motor could even set on fire.
On top of that, Hyundai was forced to recall 348,158 vehicles in August 2021 due to issues with the trunk closure.
In this case, Hyundai said the trunk latch on certain Sonata, Sonata Hybrid, Accent, and Azera vehicles might become damaged. The defect could prevent the trunk from being opened on the inside.
These three recalls joined other measures implemented on the cars, including a 2016 recall stating that the sunroof panels on the Sonata may become detached and, later, a move to recall 33 vehicles over issues affecting the driver’s frontal airbag.
In each instance, Hyundai promised a patch for the damaged vehicles.
With the latest issue affecting the car’s turn signals, dealerships will update each car’s software to remedy the problem. Hyundai said it will contact affected owners next month.
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