NHTSA vehicle safety data

2005 Hyundai Sonata Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

The 2005 Hyundai Sonata has 1 NHTSA recall campaign and 165 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 2005 Hyundai Sonata, plus NCAP crash-test ratings. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

2005 Hyundai Sonata owner complaints

Owners have filed 165 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Hyundai Sonata, describing incidents dated December 1, 2004 to May 31, 2025.

Most-cited components

  • Air Bags 55 complaints
  • Structure 30 complaints
  • Suspension 26 complaints
  • Electrical System 19 complaints
  • Exterior Lighting 17 complaints
  • Service Brakes 12 complaints

Of the 165 complaints on file, 26 report a crash and 2 a fire; across all 165 complaints, owners report 27 injuries (owner-reported, not verified by NHTSA).

Newest complaints

  • ODI #11664220 · Filed

    Air Bag light stays on and cannot pass stare inspection without repair. NHSTA site has 54 reports of this issue and dealer cannot figure out how to repair. What can be done?

  • ODI #11560872 · Filed

    My car's engine cradle, cross member or subframe is rusted out and the OEM replacement for my VIN number won't fit it correctly I'm getting really upset because this could be dangerous for me and my two young kids. I've already paid the mechanic $600 for the replacement part when it really only…

  • ODI #11552697 · Filed

    I took my car to the mechanic for a “once over” before driving from New Jersey to North Carolina. This car has only 41,000 original miles on it as we bought it new in 2005. Upon inspection, the mechanic came back with certain repairs that are needed due to age; but he was extremely concerned about a…

Read all 165 complaints

Owner-reported

2005 Hyundai Sonata mileage at failure

125 of the 165 complaints on file for the 2005 Hyundai Sonata give the vehicle's mileage when the problem happened.

Mileage at failure by component, from owners' complaints to NHTSA
Air BagsMedian 65,000 milesMiddle half 40,000–100,000 milesBased on 44 complaints

A component's median is its 50th percentile, and its middle half runs from its 25th to its 75th percentile.

Owners give the mileage themselves, often as a round number, and NHTSA doesn't check it. A complaint that names several components counts under each one, and mileages that can't be right, such as 999,999, or 50 miles on a five-year-old car, are left out.

These figures describe the complaints owners filed. They don't predict when a particular vehicle will have a problem, and vehicles that never had one aren't counted.

Mileage from NHTSA's complaints file of October 31, 2026. How these figures are worked out

STOP LAMP SWITCH

NHTSA #09V280000 · Exterior Lighting · NHTSA notice

Reported July 21, 2009 · HYUNDAI CARIBBEAN-PUERTO RICO

Potentially affected: 3,011 vehicles

Hyundai campaign 91B026 · Owners notified September 2, 2009 · Vehicles built April 1, 2005 – December 31, 2005 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

HYUNDAI IS RECALLING 3,011 MODEL YEAR 2005-2007 ELANTRA, TUCSON, SONATA, AZERA AND ACCENT VEHICLES. A MALFUNCTIONING STOP LAMP SWITCH MAY CAUSE THE BRAKE LIGHTS TO FAIL TO ILLUMINATE WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS DEPRESSED OR MAY CAUSE THE BRAKE LIGHTS TO REMAIN ILLUMINATED WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS RELEASED. A DEFECTIVE STOP LAMP SWITCH MAY ALSO AFFECT THE OPERATION OF THE BRAKE-TRANSMISSION SHIFT INTERLOCK FEATURE SO THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO BE SHIFT OUT OF THE "PARK" POSITION. IT MAY ALSO CAUSE THE ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) MALFUNCTION LIGHT TO ILLUMINATE, AND IT MAY NOT DEACTIVATE THE CRUISE CONTROL WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS DEPRESSED.

Safety consequence

ANY OF THESE MALFUNCTIONS COULD LEAD TO A CRASH.

Manufacturer remedy

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STOP LAMP SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-787-999-4310.

Notes

HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO RECALL NO.91B026.OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV>HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV</A> .

Other Hyundai Sonata model years

Check your 2005 Hyundai Sonata VIN

Not every recall applies to every VIN in a given year. Enter the 17-character VIN from your Hyundai Sonata at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether your specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.

Check a Hyundai VIN