A man says a Hyundai Sonata left his family stranded on a freeway. So he bought a second Hyundai, a Santa Fe, to replace it. He claims that car did the same exact thing.
TikTok user Brian McWilliams (@meanagedaydream) is a Libertarian podcaster who posts “comedy rants” about various subjects. On July 31, however, he posted a video explaining his personal experience with Hyundai. “My first car was a Sonata—broke down, engine stopped working, middle of the freeway, with my daughter … in the car with me,” he says to start the video.
“Hyundai decides they’re not going to fix it, even though it’s under warranty, even though there’s a recall done on the engine,” he continues. “They tell me it’s my fault, even though I just had it serviced. I’m currently in a Hyundai Santa Fe that my wife had gotten. Guess what? Engine just died on us again. Me and my daughter once again in the car, in a Hyundai, on the side of the road, waiting for serviced.”
McWilliams says this Santa Fe has been serviced “multiple times”, and he questions whether Hyundai will tell him the same thing it did when he called about his Sonata. “See if they blame me again this time,” he says.
Viewers weigh in on the Hyundai
The video has amassed 5,000 views. In the caption, McWilliams wrote, “This is the second #Hyundai that has had engine failure (Santa Fe this time), stranding my family AGAIN. Watch my earlier video for the absolutely terrifying story of engine failure in my Sonata at 60k miles, and how Hyundai refused to fix the problem, and then blamed me, despite their having an engine recall.”
In the comments, multiple users suggested trying a different brand of car. One user wrote, “I'm a technician at a Mazda dealership; I highly recommend a Mazda CX-5, or even a CX-50. Very reliable brand!”
Another user said, “You should probably buy another one lol.”
One user said this is likely not a Hyundai-specific problem. “It’s all these cars unfortunately. [Too] much technology on these motors,” they wrote.
Why are Hyundai engines problematic?
This isn’t the first discussion online about problems with Hyundai engines. An Alabama mechanic went viral after warning users that Kia and Hyundai engines are “complete trash” that you should avoid purchasing. Just a few weeks ago, a Hyundai owner said she was stranded on the highway feeder road after getting her car back from the repair shop.
Some experts are speculating that the issue is due to direct gas injection. Either way, Kia and Hyundai are facing a class action lawsuit from drivers who say poor engine design contributed to more than 3,100 fires since 2010.
@meanagedaydream This is the second #Hyundai that has had engine failure (Santa Fe this time), stranding my family AGAIN. Watch my earlier video for the absolutely terrifying story of engine failure in my Sonata at 60k miles, and how Hyundai refused to fix the problem, and then blamed me, despite their having an engine recall. @Hyundai USA @Hyundai Worldwide #fyp #carsoftiktok
♬ original sound - Mean Age Daydream
The Daily Dot reached out to McWilliams via TikTok comment and direct message for comment. We also reached out to Hyundai via press email for comment.
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