NHTSA Complaint #11320983 — 2014 HYUNDAI SONATA

HYUNDAI INSTALLED A SOFTWARE UPDATE ON OUR 2014 SONATA DUE TO ENGINE FIRES ABOUT A YEAR AGO. THIS SOFTWARE UPDATE RESULTED IN THE CAR GOING INTO WHAT IS CALLED " LIMP MODE" AND THE MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT COMING ON WHICH RESULTS IN THE CAR LOSING ACCELERATION AND NOT BEING ABLE TO CLIMB HILLS. THIS OCCURRED WHEN THE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN ON THE HIGHWAY AT 65 MPH. ONCE THE CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE IT WOULD BARELY GO UP HILLS AND PRESENTED A HAZARD ON THE HIGHWAY. WHEN I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP THEY TOLD ME MY CAR WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY FOR ANYTHING OTHER THAN ENGINE OR DRIVE TRAIN AND THAT THEY WOULD NOT TOW THE CAR INTO THEIR SHOP. THEY ALSO TOLD ME I SHOULD NOT DRIVE THE CAR. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A LOCAL SHOP AND THEY DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS A P1326, WHICH I HAD TO PAY FOR OUT OF MY POCKET. THE MECHANIC TOLD ME THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE MOTOR AND IT WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED. I THEN CALLED THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY AGREED TO TOW THE CAR TO THEIR DEALERSHIP. AFTER THE DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM THEY INFORMED ME THE SOFTWARE SYSTEM DETECTED A NOISE IN THE ENGINE AND WENT INTO LIMP MODE TO PROTECT THE ENGINE. THEY SAID EVERYTHING WAS FINE AND THAT THE MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT AND LIMP MODE WERE A FALSE POSITIVE DUE TO THE SOFTWARE UPDATE THAT WAS INSTALLED. WHEN I POINTED OUT THE INCONVENIENCE THIS HAD CAUSED ME I WAS TOLD THIS HAPPENS ALL THE TIME AND I WOULD HAVE TO GET USED TO IT OR SELL THE CAR. I ONLY HAVE 64,000 MILES ON THIS VEHICLE AND I NO LONGER HAVE ANY CONFIDENCE IN THIS VEHICLE TO COMMUTE LONG DISTANCES. THE ISSUE WITH THESE FALSE POSITIVES AND THE LIMP MODE NEEDS TO BE ELIMINATED.