NHTSA vehicle safety data

2008 Hyundai Tiburon Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

The 2008 Hyundai Tiburon has 1 NHTSA recall campaign and 19 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 2008 Hyundai Tiburon, plus NCAP crash-test ratings. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

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2008 Hyundai Tiburon owner complaints

Owners have filed 19 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Hyundai Tiburon, describing incidents dated August 22, 2008 to October 13, 2025.

Most-cited components

Air Bags 10 complaints
Seat Belts 4 complaints
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) 2 complaints
Power Train 2 complaints
Service Brakes 2 complaints
Unknown or Other 2 complaints

Of the 19 complaints on file, 2 report a crash (owner-reported, not verified by NHTSA).

Newest complaints

ODI #11693583 · Filed October 15, 2025
air bags deployed for no reason while driving.
ODI #11427063 · Filed July 29, 2021
The contact owns 2008 Hyundai Tiburon. The contact stated while driving 30 mph, the hydraulic clutch was depressed and ceased in the depressed position. The contact was able to switch lanes and pulled the vehicle into a parking lot. The vehicle was restarted however, the failure persisted. The…
ODI #11375725 · Filed November 21, 2020
WHEN I BOUGHT THE CAR FROM A DEALERSHIP ITS ALSO HAD AN AIRBAG LIGHT ON

Read all 19 complaints

Stop Lamp Switch may Function Intermittently

NHTSA #13V113000 · Exterior Lighting — Brake Lights — Switch · NHTSA notice

Reported April 1, 2013 · Hyundai Motor Company

Potentially affected: 1,712,336 vehicles

Hyundai campaign 110 · Owners notified April 22, 2013 · Vehicles built October 1, 2005 – September 30, 2008 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Accent, model year 2007-2011 Azera, Sonata and Sante Fe,2006-2011 Tucson, 2009-2011 Elantra Touring, 2007-2010 Elantra, 2008-2011 Veracruz, 2009-2011 Genesis, 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, 2007-2008 Entourage, and 2006-2008 Tiburon vehicles. Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model year 2007-2009 Accent and Tucson, model year 2007-2010 Elantra, model year 2007-2011 Santa Fe, model year 2008-2009 Veracruz, model year 2010-2011 Genesis Coupe, and model year 2011 Sonata vehicles. In September 2013, Hyundai informed the agency that it was adding more vehicles to this campaign, representing an additional 652,512 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 1,712,336. In the affected vehicles, the stop lamp switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning stop lamp switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate when the brake pedal is depressed or may cause an inability to deactivate the cruise control by depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, a malfunctioning stop lamp switch may also result in intermittent operation of the push-button start feature, affect the operation of the brake transmission shift interlock feature, preventing the shifter from being moved out of the PARK position and cause the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) malfunction light to illuminate.

Safety consequence

Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash. Additionally, when the ignition is in the 'ON' position, the transmission shifter may be able to be moved out of Park without first applying the brake. This may lead to unintentional movement of the car which may increase the risk of a crash.

Manufacturer remedy

Hyundai will notify owners, and dealers will replace the stop lamp switch, free of charge. The safety recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151. Hyundai's recall campaign number is 110.

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.safercar.gov.

2008 Hyundai Tiburon 2-DR. w/SAB

—

out of 5

Overall Safety Rating

Not Rated

Frontal Crash

Not Rated

Driver: Not Rated, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Crash

Not Rated

Driver: 4, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Pole

Not Rated

Rollover

Not Rated

Safety Technology

19 owner complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2008 Hyundai Tiburon.

Air Bags

ODI #11693583

Incident: October 13, 2025 · Filed: October 15, 2025

air bags deployed for no reason while driving.

Steering; Power Train; Service Brakes

ODI #11427063

Incident: January 12, 2021 · Filed: July 29, 2021

The contact owns 2008 Hyundai Tiburon. The contact stated while driving 30 mph, the hydraulic clutch was depressed and ceased in the depressed position. The contact was able to switch lanes and pulled the vehicle into a parking lot. The vehicle was restarted however, the failure persisted. The contact had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic who inspected the vehicle and diagnosed the failure as a complete clutch failure. The mechanic was able to repair the clutch except for the linkage. The failure persisted after the repair. After the clutch repair was performed, the steering and the brakes became inoperable. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 135,000.

Air Bags

ODI #11375725

Incident: July 25, 2018 · Filed: November 21, 2020

WHEN I BOUGHT THE CAR FROM A DEALERSHIP ITS ALSO HAD AN AIRBAG LIGHT ON

Air Bags

ODI #11318134

Incident: June 15, 2019 · Filed: March 15, 2020

AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON AND NO ONE CAN FIX THE ISSUE BUT THE DEALER WANTED TO KNOW IF THIS YEAR HAVE A RECALL FOR AIR BAGS

Air Bags; Seat Belts

ODI #11207617

Incident: May 14, 2019 · Filed: May 14, 2019

AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON. ERROR CODE LEADS TO PASSENGER SIDE SEATBELT ISSUE. DEALER JUST RESET COMPUTER AND LIGHT CAME BACK ON. KNOWN CAMPAIGN #094 ON THIS BUT DOESN'T APPLY TO THIS VIN. UNKNOWN IF AIRBAG WILL ACTUALLY DEPLOY IN EVENT OF AN ACCIDENT. LIGHT IS ON AND DEALER WANTS TO CHARGE $350 FOR THE PART ALONE (SEAT BELT LATCH)

Seat Belts; Seats

ODI #10909536

Incident: May 12, 2016 · Filed: September 25, 2016

STARTED NOTICING THE ISSUE IN MID MAY 2016. I DON'T USUALLY MOVE MY SEAT FROM THE ORIGINAL POSITION OF COMFORT BUT DRIVER SEAT HAS SHIFTED INADVERTENTLY SLIDING FORWARD OR BACK WITHOUT WARNING WHILE DRIVING (15 - 50MPH). ALONG WITH THE SEAT BELT ON OCCASION UNBUCKLED WHILE MOVING SOMETIMES IN CONJUNCTION WITH SEAT MOVEMENT, OTHER TIMES ALONE. THIS HAS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES LATELY AND I HAVE TAKEN MORE CARE TO HEAR THE CLICK & TUG ON BELT BUT THIS SOMETIMES DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE. WHILE DRIVING ON INTERSTATE (UP TO 75MPH), A SHIFTING OF WEIGHT IN SEAT, OR LOOKING OVER SHOULDER FOR TRAFFIC WHILE CHANGING LANES CAN PULL CLIP OUT OF CLASP.

Visibility

ODI #10897331

Incident: July 21, 2016 · Filed: August 20, 2016

MY SUNROOF EXPLODED WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. I AM UNABLE TO ATTACH A PHOTO TO THIS FORM FOR SOME REASON BUT DO HAVE THEM AND CAN EMAIL.... UPDATED 08/23/16 *BF *TR

Air Bags

ODI #10896882

Incident: August 1, 2010 · Filed: August 18, 2016

AIRBAG LIGHT CONTINUOUSLY ILLUMINATED. I'VE BEEN THE ONLY OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE SINCE NEW (8 YEARS) AND IT STARTED SHORTLY AFTER PURCHASE. HAVE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALERSHIP MULTIPLE TIMES REGARDING AIRBAG LIGHT AND THEY DISCONNECT THE BATTERY AND IT DISAPPEARS FOR A WHILE. I'VE NEVER BEEN IN A CRASH SO HAVE NO IDEA IF THIS LIGHT INDICATES THE AIRBAGS WILL DEPLOY OR NOT.

Air Bags

ODI #10870102

Incident: January 14, 2014 · Filed: May 20, 2016

PURCHASED NEW, ORIGINAL OWNERS. AIRBAG LIGHT HAS COME ON VARIOUS TIMES REQUIRING REPAIR, AND DEALERSHIP OF PURCHASE (NORTH PARK HYUNDAI) HAS ALWAYS REFUSED TO REPAIR DEFECTS UNDER WARRANTY COVERAGE ON VEHICLE. AIRBAG CONTROL MODULE FAILED FOR NO REAL REASON (DEALERSHIP SAID MOISTURE CAUSED FAILURE - VERY HOT AND HUMID IN SOUTH LOUISIANA) AND REFUSED TO COVER THE PART SO WE PAID OVER 600 BUCKS TO CHANGE THE MODULE BECAUSE OUR COLLEGE AGE DAUGHTER IS USING THIS VEHICLE. NOT LONG AFTER THIS REPAIR (THAT WAS TOLD TO US, BY THIS DEALERSHIP, WOULD TAKE CARE OF THIS PROBLEM), THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN. OUR LATEST VISIT TO THIS DEALERSHIP WAS THE SAME - THIS TIME THEY SAID IT IS THE AIRBAG SENSOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SEAT (NOT THE CENTER CONSOLE ONE THAT FAILED LAST TIME) AND (WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT) THEY WANTED ANOTHER 600 DOLLARS TO CHANGE THIS MODULE! THERE ARE OBVIOUSLY ISSUES WITH THE 2008 TIBURON AIRBAG SYSTEM (THIS CAR ONLY HAS AROUND 60K MILES ON IT), AND WE ARE VERY CONCERNED WHEN WE ARE IN IT. LUCKILY THE CAR HAS NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT.

Air Bags

ODI #10749477

Incident: August 18, 2014 · Filed: August 18, 2015

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 HYUNDAI TIBURON. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED CONTINUOUSLY. THE FAILURE RECURRED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000.

Other Hyundai Tiburon model years

Check your 2008 Hyundai Tiburon VIN

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