NHTSA Complaint #11590684 — 2013 HYUNDAI ELANTRA

Engine has "piston" slap or knocking, a precursor to catastrophic engine seizure, diagnosed at Joe Machen's Hyundai at 132k miles on [XXX]. Engine could seize causing rapid deceleration at any moment, while pulling out into traffic or travelling at high speeds on the highway. First noticed a clicking or ticking noise the engine made when it was cold around 130k mi, which goes away as engine warms up. Sound has gotten louder and more persistent and has turned into a knocking. Dealer told me that the entire engine needs replaced, which is prohibitively expensive. So I'm driving it now until I can get a new car or engine replacement. I've submitted a claim to the dealer and Hyundai corporate, but was denied. I don't believe that Hyundai is taking responsibility for the safe operation and reliability of their cars. I have also not found the dealer to be a support and advocate. There was a limited class action lawsuit where Hyundai settled for some faulty engines where there were metal burrs leftover in the oil passageways during manufacturing that causes engines to fail even when oil changes were done regularly [XXX] ). However, I don't think anything close to the number of engines with actual problems have been addressed. Mine wasn't in the recall but has the piston slap. I got regular oil changes with average 4,405 mi interval through today, while 7,500 mi interval is recommended in manual. I have another friend with a 2017 Elantra that failed at 95k miles, and another with a Kia that failed. Since Hyundai/Kia are very common cars, and owners often don't have the ability to replace the entire engine, and sometimes get no warning, the engine manufacturing defect needs to be looked into further by the NHTSA and Hyundai/Kia as a grave safety concern. Hyundai/Kia need to act promptly to prevent death and injury to their customers due to catastrophic engine failure. We don't feel safe. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)