NHTSA vehicle safety data

2015 Hyundai Equus Recalls & Complaints

The 2015 Hyundai Equus has 1 NHTSA recall campaign and 9 owner complaints on file as of November 3, 2026. Recall repairs are usually free at an authorized Hyundai dealer.

NHTSA recall and complaint data for the 2015 Hyundai Equus. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

2015 Hyundai Equus owner complaints

Owners have filed 9 complaints with NHTSA about the 2015 Hyundai Equus, describing incidents dated September 4, 2017 to September 20, 2024.

Most-cited components

Electrical System 2 complaints
Seats 2 complaints
Steering 2 complaints
Air Bags 1 complaint
Exterior Lighting 1 complaint
Fuel/Propulsion System 1 complaint

Together, the 9 complaints on file report 1 injury (owner-reported, not verified by NHTSA).

Newest complaints

ODI #11627331 · Filed November 25, 2024
On August, 2nd around noon, I was driving alone, west on a rural road called 1869 in Liberty Hill, TX. I believe the speed limit on this winding rural road is 55mph, and I was about 1 mile west of 183. While my car was in motion, my active headrest activated (exploded) into the back of my head…
ODI #11615717 · Filed September 21, 2024
Within last two years I've been dealing with random and intermittent headlight flickering/turning off when the light stalk switch is in AUTO mode. Also, the cabin lights flicker and turn off at the same time when headlights do. It is very dangerous when it happens during night driving. Luckily…
ODI #11580545 · Filed April 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Equus. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the garage, there was an unknown liquid leaking from under the hood. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V651000 (Services Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall…

Read all 9 complaints

NHTSA defect investigations

NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2015 Hyundai Equus in 1 investigation. Audit Queries and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations: they look at whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules, not at a possible vehicle defect. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.

Audit Query AQ23-002: Hyundai and Kia ABS Module Fires
Open since November 17, 2023

Open and recently closed NHTSA defect investigations

ABS Unit May Cause Engine Compartment Fire

NHTSA #23V651000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic — Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip — Control Unit/Module · NHTSA notice

Reported September 22, 2023 · Hyundai Motor America

Potentially affected: 1,649,478 vehicles

Repair completion: 31.69% (latest rate the manufacturer reported to NHTSA; dataset updated November 3, 2026)

Hyundai campaign 251 · Owners notified April 10, 2024

Recall group: Hyundai and Kia ABS module fires

Park outside only — fire risk while parked indoors or near structures.

Defect description

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2011-2015 Elantra, Genesis Coupe, Sonata Hybrid, 2012-2015 Accent, Azera, Veloster, 2013-2015 Elantra Coupe, Santa Fe, 2014-2015 Equus, 2010-2012 Veracruz, 2010-2013 Tucson, 2015 Tucson Fuel Cell, and 2013 Santa Fe Sport vehicles. The Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) module may leak brake fluid internally and cause an electrical short, which can result in an engine compartment fire while parked or driving.

Safety consequence

An engine compartment fire while parked or driving can increase the risk of injury.

Manufacturer remedy

Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the recall repair is complete. Dealers will replace the ABS fuse, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 10, 2024 through October 11, 2024. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 251.

Notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.

2015 Hyundai Equus 4 DR RWD

—

out of 5

Overall Safety Rating

Not Rated

Frontal Crash

Not Rated

Driver: Not Rated, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Crash

Not Rated

Driver: Not Rated, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Pole

Not Rated

Rollover

Not Rated

Safety Technology

Electronic Stability Control Lane Departure Warning

1 investigation

9 owner complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2015 Hyundai Equus.

Seats

ODI #11627331

1 injury

Incident: August 2, 2024 · Filed: November 25, 2024

On August, 2nd around noon, I was driving alone, west on a rural road called 1869 in Liberty Hill, TX. I believe the speed limit on this winding rural road is 55mph, and I was about 1 mile west of 183. While my car was in motion, my active headrest activated (exploded) into the back of my head, throwing me forward into the steering wheel. This happened randomly and unprompted. There were no other cars on the road with me, I didn’t collide with anything, and the road was smooth. I quickly regained control of the car and continued to my destination. The Hyundai dealership confirms the misfired active headrest, and Hyundai does not want to repair it, as the vehicle is out of warranty. There were no warnings prior to the event. I was resting my head on the headrest when it happened.

Exterior Lighting

ODI #11615717

Incident: September 20, 2024 · Filed: September 21, 2024

Within last two years I've been dealing with random and intermittent headlight flickering/turning off when the light stalk switch is in AUTO mode. Also, the cabin lights flicker and turn off at the same time when headlights do. It is very dangerous when it happens during night driving. Luckily problem can be overridden by switching the stalk to ON modes and the interior cluster lights and headlights come back on again. Problem seems to be happening only when in AUTO mode. I talked to dealer, they tried to replicate the problem without success. Problem happens to me at least once a month. I spent lot of time reading about this problem in forums, and found one same comment on the Equus vehicle and many on Genesis which was sold in much higher volumes. It seems to be the same problem, and Hyundai has issued the extended warranty program (but for Genesis 15-16 cars) 20-BE-009H. I firmly believe it's the same problem, its just not many Equus vehicles was sold as Genesis. Please help - we are hardly driving the car at night anymore and we really like it. And dealer didn't want to replace the stalk without being able to properly diagnose/replicate the problem.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

ODI #11580545

Incident: March 18, 2024 · Filed: April 1, 2024

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Equus. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the garage, there was an unknown liquid leaking from under the hood. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V651000 (Services Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 68,925. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Suspension

ODI #11525381

Incident: June 4, 2020 · Filed: June 5, 2023

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Equus. The contact stated that while driving into the driveway, the front air suspension suddenly failed causing the front-end of the vehicle to collapse onto the front tires, making the vehicle undrivable. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on two previous occasions with the driver’s and passenger’s side rear air suspensions, and the front passenger’s side air suspension. The approximate failure mileage was 35,000.

Air Bags

ODI #11487906

Incident: September 29, 2022 · Filed: October 4, 2022

Active headrest on front passenger side inadvertently deployed while driving on a smooth toll road at normal speed. Any passenger could have been severely injured and there could be risk of driver side deployment that could not only cause severe injury but also collision. There were no warning indicators and the entire unit must be replaced because the plastic retention clips broke. The car is currently in the shop.

Electrical System; Seats

ODI #11397049

Incident: June 27, 2020 · Filed: February 19, 2021

WHENEVER IT GETS HOT IN THIS AREA, MY VEHICLE MALFUNCTIONS. FIRST THE DASH BUBBLED AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE LEATHER ON THE DRIVER DOOR BUBBLES UP AND HAS BEEN REPLACED.. IT IS BUBBLING AGAIN ON THE DRIVER DOOR BUT IS NOT COVERED BY THE EXTENDED WARRANTY. BOTH HEADRESTS HAVE POPPED OPEN. ONE HAPPEN WHILE AT THE CAR WASH AND THE OTHER HAPPENED WHILE I WAS IN THE GROCERY STORE. BOTH TIMES THE CAR WAS AT REST AND WINDOWS UP.. IT COSTS $1600 TO REPLACE. THE DRIVER WINDOW SWITCH DOES NOT WORK WHEN HOT OUTSIDE. HAD IT CHECKED BY THE DEALERSHIP AT LEAST 10 TIMES. MAINTENANCE AGENT WITNESSED IT BUT BY APPOINTMENT TIME WAS NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM SO THE WARRANTY REPAIR NEVER OCCURRED. ADDITIONALLY,, THE RADIO GOES OUT AND FRIES LIKE A CB. COMPLAINED TWO YEARS ABOUT THIS ISSUE BUT AGAIN, THE MECHANIC COULD NEVER DUPLICATE THIS ISSUE WHEN THE CAR WAS RETURNED FOR AN APPOINTMENT. ALL EXCEPT FOR 3 TIMES THE MECHANIC WITNESSED THE PROBLEM AND SHOWED ME HOW TO RESET THE RADIO. THIS ISSUED OCCURRED WHEN CAR WAS IN MOTION AND ABOUT 50% OF THE TIME WHEN THE PHONE WAS CONNECTED AND IN USE. I HAVE TO PUSH A HOLE WITH A PEN TIP TO RESET IT ONCE A MONTH. EVENTUALLY,, I COMPLAINED TO GM AND THEY HAD RADIO REPLACED BUT DEALERSHIP PUT IN A DIFFERENT MODEL OTHER THAN THE ONE FOR THE CAR. NOW PHONE SYSTEM HAS TO BE REPROGRAMMED FOR USE WHENEVER I ENTER THE CAR AS WELL AS THE RADIO SYSTEM RANDOMLY CHANGES THE STATION WHEN TRAVELING. I HAVE VIDEO OF THIS ISSUE. LASTLY THE WINDOWS GET STUCK IN THE UP POSITION WHEN IT IS HOT OUTSIDE. HAD THEM CHECKED BY MAINTENANCE MANAGER, BUT HE COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE ISSUE DURING THE APPOINTMENT . PROBLEM STILL EXISTS.

Steering; Electrical System; Fuel/Propulsion System

ODI #11206172

Incident: May 4, 2019 · Filed: May 8, 2019

MAY 4TH 2019 VEHICLE FOUND DEAD AND WOULD NOT START. NO SIGNS OF ANY BATTERY ISSUES IN THE PAST FEW DAYS. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED DIRECTLY TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT EMPIRE HYUNDAI LOCATED IN FALL RIVER, MA. VEHICLE CONFIRMED BY SERVICE DEPARTMENT TO TURN OVER, HOWEVER NO LIGHTS OR CLOCK AND NO POWER. THEN ALL WENT DEAD FOR THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT. SERVICE MANAGER INFORMED THAT HE WAS NOT ABLE TO PROVIDE THE ROOT CAUSE FOR THE ONGOING ELECTRICAL ISSUE, AND THE SPECIFIC CAUSE OF THIS INCIDENT. THE SOLUTION THAT WAS PROVIDED WAS TO INSTALL A NEW REPLACEMENT BATTERY. WHEN THE BATTERY WAS INSTALLED, THE 'ISSUE' SEEMED TO GO AWAY. THIS IS A RE-OCCURRING ISSUE RELATED TO THE ELECTRICAL HARNESS, AND THAT IT IS UNLIKELY THAT REPLACING BATTERY IS THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM. EMPIRE'S SERVICE DEPARTMENT HAS DOCUMENTED THE ONGOING ELECTRICAL ISSUES AS THE CAR HAS BEEN BROUGHT IN NUMEROUS TIMES USUALLY 'SHUTTING OFF 'AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITH THE WHEELS LOCKING UP. (5 TIMES). WE WERE TOLD IT WAS A GROUND ISSUE AND A 'NEW GROUND BOLT WAS INSTALLED, HOWEVER THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO 'SHUT OFF AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS 'AND THE VEHICLE IS VERY HARD TO CONTROL AS LOSS OF POWER STEERING AND BRAKING OCCURS. WHEN THIS HAPPENS AND IS DANGEROUS AND CAUSE AN ACCIDENT WITH OTHER CARS OR OBJECTS DUE TO LOSS OF CONTROL. THIS IS CLEARLY RELATED TO THE WIRING HARNESS\GROUND BOLT AND THE FAILURE MODE IS SIMILAR TO PREVIOUS INCIDENTS WHEN THE VEHICLE FAILED DURING OPERATION . COMMUNICATED WE DID NOT FEEL SAFE CONTINUING TO OPERATE THIS VEHICLE WITH THIS ISSUE UNRESOLVED. CASE # 15744270 W/ HYUNDAI COMPLAINT DEPT. ATTN: THERE ARE PREVIOUS COMPLAINTS IN NHTSB DATABASE FROM OTHER EQUUS USERS THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THE LOSS OF POWER WHILE VEHICLE IS UNDER OPERATION. THE RISK WITH THIS FAILURE MODE IS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH AND SHOULD BE ASSIGNED YOUR HIGHEST SEVERITY RISK RATING.

Steering

ODI #11161843

Incident: October 7, 2018 · Filed: December 16, 2018

STEERING LOCKS UP WHILE MAKING A COMPLETE TURN

Vehicle Speed Control

ODI #11024056

Incident: September 4, 2017 · Filed: September 18, 2017

ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS WHILE DRIVING WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ENGAGED, AS I APPROACH A VEHICLE FROM THE REAR THAT IS GOING SLOWER, THE AUTOMATIC BRAKING SYSTEM ENGAGES AND DISPLAYS A MESSAGE SIMILAR TO THIS! " SHUT DOWN ENGINE IMMEDIATELY, SERVICE REQUIRED." THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED, I DID SO, AND HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A DEALERSHIP. THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG. I'VE REPORTED THIS PROBLEM TO THE DEALERSHIP THAT REGULARLY SERVICES THE CAR, AND THEY SAY THEY CAN'T RECREATE THE CONDITION. IT APPEARS TO BE A SOFTWARE PROBLEM. ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS RECENTLY WHEN THIS CONDITION APPEARS, THE ABILITY TO RESUME ACCELERATION IS LOST MOMENTARILY, AND THE CAR SLOWS DOWN DRASTICALLY. IT SUDDENLY RELENTS, AND RESUMES TRAVELLING AT THE PRESET SPEED. THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS ON MAJOR HIGHWAYS WHERE CRUISE CONTROL IS ENGAGED. I'M VERY CONCERNED THAT ONE DAY THE WARNING MAY LEAD TO A CATASROPHIC FAILURE OF THE ENGINE

Other Hyundai Equus model years

Check your 2015 Hyundai Equus VIN

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