Problems · by component
2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell engine problems
109 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell cite engine, 50% of all 216 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
109
50% of all complaints
Crashes
1
Reported by owners
Fires
4
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the engine
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“Without any notice, the crankshaft seized while driving 55 mph on the highway. We were on a highway with one lane in each direction and a shoulder. No warning lights appeared until after the engine failed. We were barely able to coast to the shoulder at the time. The incident blew a baseball size hole in the engine. The vehicle was towed to over 60 miles to Noller Hyundai of Lawrence, Kansas. The repair was paid for under the Hyundai warranty without me providing any maintenance records. The engine is not in our possession for you to inspect, but I'm sure you could reach out to the dealership where it was replaced.”
“On [XXX], my husband and I were driving on [XXX] (Highway) in the slow lane, when the engine shutoff without any Service engine light warning. It was frightening because an tractor trailer was directly behind the car as we lost power. There was no sounds of engine parts knocking or pinging when the problem occurred. The only thing was observed was (two) 2 puffs of smoke seen from the tailpipe, witnessed by my son who was following behind in his vehicle. The vehicle was not able to start after shutdown and had to be towed to my home. We purchased a new battery after assuming battery failure--with no resolve. The vehicle was towed to(two) 2 repair shops with the same conclusion: Seized Engine After checking Open Recalls on my vehicle, I contacted Hyundai to check for assistance. The vehicle is now at the Hyundai dealership in McDonough, Georgia for inspection. I am thankful that my husband and I were not injured or laying in a Morgue after this frighten ordeal on the highway when the Engine suddenly shutoff/Seized.”
“The engine uses about 3 to 4 quarts of oil before a oil change the it will go in limp mode. I have to get it rest and then add oil for the engine to run right. Also transmission don't want to shift 3 to 4 gear it will be 35 mph to 65 before it shifts. When the car goes in limp mode I lose power going up a hill and almost got rear ended. They won't do anything do to its a used car. No lights came on the dash till it acts up.”
“--->While I was driving my hyundai tucson engine seized (-engine model (lm) 2.4l theta ii--> 63,664 miles). Yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. ---> As I said before I was driving in a express way when the incident happened. My car just stopped working out of a sudden and I had to take the side road by applying a much force effort from myself not to get hit by several vehicles behind. When I finally managed to step aside, I sensed some sort of smoke smell. And also all warning lights from car dashboard came up with no prior lamp alerts before this incident. ---> I took the vehicle to the nearest repair shop called Sam's certified auto repair. And there it was diagnosed that the vehicle engine was seized. So i inmediately called the dealer and the asked me to tow my SUV. There they diagnosed the vehicle with a seized engine too. From there on I found out that these vehicle i bought have a recall and that the this engine model has a major malfunctioning manufacture issues. Then I tried to get an authorization approval for a new engine but it was denied because they stated that I have a savage title.”
“The engine completely shut off while I was driving 70 mph on the highway. I lost braking and steering power. I had NO warning, no lights came on at all. I bought it used on 11/20/2023 and I have only driven it 6,011 miles.”
“- My engine seized while driving North on [XXX] from San Diego to CA. After having it towed to a shop I was informed it was completely out of oil which caused the engine to seize and would need to be replaced. My last oil change had taken place within about 6k miles and should not have been out of oil. Additionally no oil light, engine light, or any light on the dashboard was on to notify me something was wrong. - I was on a major CA highway in the far left lane when the engine seized and would no longer accelerate. I was incredibly lucky to make it across 4 lanes and that there was an off-ramp right there so I could get off the highway. This could have caused a massive pile-up accident. - The first shop it was towed to confirmed no oil and engine seizure. Hyundai has only acknowledged I need a new engine but won't confirm it was due to lack of oil, likely because they know there are massive oil consumption problems with this Theta II engine. - Hyundai has now had my vehicle for 2 months and is denying warranty coverage as I cannot produce 2 out of 9 years of oil change records. I have provided the other 7, which include records of the last 4 years of…”
Showing 6 of 109 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 8, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.