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Feds Get Defect Petition Regarding Hyundai Oil Leakage Allegations

On July 13th, the Office of Defects Investigation received a petition requesting a defect investigation into an alleged defect of the oil drain pan assemblies of various Hyundai and Kia vehicles. A total of 5,231,078 Hyundais and Kias may be recalled if “alleged” turns into “confirmed.”
2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport 19 photos
Photo: Hyundai
2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport
The list of nameplates included in DP 22-003 boggles the mind, and it also boggles common sense because one of the affected vehicles is the 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell that doesn’t even use engine oil. As the name implies, it’s a fuel-cell vehicle that uses hydrogen to create electricity.

There’s another problem with DP 22-003, though. The ODI complaints cited in the petition feature certain vehicles that aren’t included on the list, including the Hyundai Kona, Hyundai Elantra, and Kia Soul. Given time, and if the defects petition is granted, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will add or remove vehicles from the list as it sees fit.

Regarding the alleged defect, “owners have made allegations of oil leakage failures occurring at highway speeds, without malfunction, indicator lights, or the leakage associated with under-tightening an oil drain plug, or a plug or pan with a damaged thread." In the worst-case scenario, suspect engines may seize, leading to a loss of motive power at highway speeds. 10 complaints are cited in the petition, of which two need to be shared.

The owner of a 2019 Hyundai Kona was informed at the service inspection that her subcompact crossover was low on oil even though the oil had been filled only recently. Despite this condition, no warning lights illuminated on the dashboard. The dealer discovered that the oil plug was loose. After filling the Kona up with oil again, the owner stated that the failure had been reoccurring. The car was going through a third of the oil every 1,000 miles, which is completely unacceptable for a 2019 model year Hyundai Kona with 58,200 miles (that would be 93,664 kilometers) on the odometer.

The owner of a 2018 Hyundai Sonata stated that the oil warning light illuminated while driving. They checked the oil level, discovering there was none to speak of. The dealer diagnosed the failure as an oil plug needing replacement. Even though the vehicle was repaired, the failure continued.

On subsequent visits to the dealer, the root cause could not be determined. Following an oil consumption test, the dealer determined that to be the failure cause. However, the manufacturer stated that the failure was due to the owner’s negligence. The approximate failure mileage is listed on the federal watchdog's website as 40,000 miles (make that 63,374 kilometers).

The suspect engines include the 1.6L T-GDI from the Gamma family, 2.4L GDI Theta II, 3.8L V6 GDI Lambda II, and an unspecified Kappa engine.
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Editor's note: 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport pictured in the gallery.

 Download: ODI DP 22-003 (PDF)

About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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