Problems · by component

2008 Hyundai Santa Fe vehicle speed control problems

52 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe cite vehicle speed control, 10% of all 541 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
52
10% of all complaints
Crashes
7
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
3
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the vehicle speed control

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“The contact owns a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed with the cruise control activated, the contact stated that after depressing the brake pedal the cruise control briefly failed to disengage. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The Electronic Power Control (EPC) and power train warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the stop lamp switch. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V113000 (Exterior Lighting); the VIN was included, but the vehicle had already been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 195,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 24, 2025Power train, Exterior lighting, Vehicle speed controlODI 11638264
“Reference Number: 11520065 This is a follow up to a previously submitted incident involving this same vehicle. My first submission was May, 2023, This vehicle experienced the exact same hazardous condition on February 26, 2024. on I-75 south. After driving on an interstate highway for about 1 hour, I noticed a traffic backup and proceeded to slow down as the traffic was nearly stopped. As I slowed my car down to nearly a complete stop, the engine suddenly surged forward with high rpm's as though the accelerator was pushed to the floor. I immediately pressed on the brake pedal as hard as I could to stop the car from surging forward and then quickly decided to put the transmission into neutral so I would not hit the car in front of me. The car eventually stopped surging and may have stalled. I finally got the car to move again by turning off the ignition and restarting it. I continued on my way and did not have a similar situation for the rest of my 30 minute highway trip. Like all the times before, the floor mat was NOT involved in this sudden acceleration. Last year when I took this car to a Hyundai dealer for inspection, they could not replicate this…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 14, 2024Power train, Vehicle speed control, EngineODI 11577311
“The contact owns a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at undisclosed speeds, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration. The contact stated that he shifted into neutral(N) to stop the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that two unknown sensors and the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 73,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 2, 2023Vehicle speed controlODI 11520065
“I WAS DRIVING ON THE EXPRESSWAY WHEN MY VEHICLE PICKED UP 65 MPH. I WAS PUSHING ON MY BRAKES WHICH DIDN'T DO ANYTHING, AS I WAS APPROACHING MY EXIT I HAD MY FOOT HOLDING THE BRAKES ALL THE WAY WHICH THEN SLOWED THE CAR DOWN ENOUGH. I GOT OFF THE EXIT AND WAS MET WITH A RED LIGHT AND MY CAR ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING ALMOST CAUSING ME TO SLAM INTO THE BACK OF ANOTHER VEHICLE. I THREW MY CAR IN PARK AND IT STARTED SMOKING SO I TURNED THE VEHICLE COMPLETELY OFF. FRIGHTENING SITUATION AS I HAD MY INFANT TWINS. MAY 7 2021”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 9, 2021Vehicle speed controlODI 11415741
“I WAS PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE WITH MY FOOT ON THE BREAK PEDAL WHEN THE CAR INEXPLICABLY ACCELERATED AND WOULD NOT STOP. LUCKILY THERE WAS A FENCE TO HOLD ME UNTIL I WAS ABLE TO TURN THE CAR OFF TO STOP THE ACCELERATION. THE ENGINE REVVED AND TOOK OFF EVEN WHEN FOOT WAS APPLIED TO BREAK WITH FORCE. I SEE MANY OTHER CASES OF THIS AND YET STILL NO RECALL. HYUNDAI TAKES ZERO ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THIS PROBLEM. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. MY SITUATION WAS A LUCKY ONE AND STILL TERRIFYING. PEOPLE COULD REALLLY GET HURT.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 7, 2020Vehicle speed controlCrash reportedODI 11307829
“WHILE DRIVING ACCELERATION STOPS. HAVE TO TRY TO COAST TO SIDE OF ROAD, TURN OFF VEHICLE AND RESTART. THEN ITS FINE UNTIL THE NEXT TIME. HAS HAPPENED 5 TIMES IN 4 DAYS. NO RECALL BUT MANY OTHERS EXPERIENCING SAME PROBLEM. ON A SIDE STREET, AT AN INTERSECTION, WHILE DRIVING 45,ON A BUSY HWY, AT A STOP SIGN. ONCE TURNING AT A LIGHT.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 1, 2019Vehicle speed controlODI 11204921

Showing 6 of 52 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 28, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.