NHTSA Complaint #11445038 — 2012 HYUNDAI ACCENT

The electric power steering (EPS) system in my Hyundai Accent 2012 5-door hatchback intermittently stops and starts working, and when it does not work, a dashboard red EPS light comes on. This problem has been occurring on and off for a few months now. When the system is not working, the car becomes very difficult to steer, especially at slow speeds. The problem seems to occur more frequently in cold weather at start up, occasionally occurs in warmer weather, and often resolves itself after driving the vehicle for awhile, but sometimes starts while driving. Because the problem is intermittent and the strength needed to steer at slow speeds is significant, there is a safety risk. Because the problem is intermittent, it has not been reproduced by a dealer or service center. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer but I plan to have them do this when I take the car in for other recall work. This problem sounds very similar to the one triggering a recall in Hyundai Elantra vehicles in 2015 (recall number 127). I see from online reports that other Hyundai Accent owners and owners of other Hyundai vehicles reporting similar issues and I wonder whether Hyundai should be required to recall all vehicles with similar EPS systems to fix this issue. Thank you for reviewing this report.