1991 Hyundai Sonata problems & reliability
29 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1991 Hyundai Sonata. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
3 complaints report injuries (5 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Seat Belts | 9 | 31% |
| Power Train | 7 | 24% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 6 | 21% |
| Electrical System | 5 | 17% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 3 | 10% |
| Unknown OR Other | 2 | 7% |
| Air Bags | 1 | 3% |
| Steering | 1 | 3% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 1 | 3% |
| Visibility | 1 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Ltr expressing his dissatisfaction with the way nhtsa processed his petition for a hearing...*mr the consumer sent a petition for defective airbags. *ts. The consumer stated the air bag recall was performed on the vehicle, however the air bag light continued to illuminate and the vehicle was serviced three times to…”
Air Bags · filed Sep 4, 2003
“Recall 93 v 196 000/passive restraint belts: shoulder belt on driver's side has stop tracking and became inoperative. Dealer and manufacturer were notified, and informed consumer that vehicle was not covered under recall due to vin. *ak *yh”
Seat Belts · filed Mar 19, 2002
“Transmission has failed 3 times since ownership! Transmission is slipping, condition worsens with cold weather.*ak”
Power Train · filed Jun 23, 2000
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- CHARGING SYSTEM FAILURES
Preliminary Evaluation PE94043 · opened May 27, 1994 · closed Oct 31, 1994
- PASS.RESTRAINT SYSTEM FAIL
Preliminary Evaluation PE93061 · opened Jul 8, 1993 · closed Nov 30, 1993 · led to recall 93V196000
Technical service bulletins
11 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1991 Hyundai Sonata. The 10 most recent:
This bulletin provides information regarding condensation related to the accumulated moisture in the headlamp, rear combination lamp, daytime running lamp (DRL), or fog lamp. This TSB illustrates the various causes of…
23-BD-002H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 30, 2023
This bulletin provides the inspection procedure and repair guidelines for certain vehicles listed below.
21-EM-003H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 10, 2021
This bulletin describes the procedure to inspect and identify fluid which may appear around the brake caliper area.
20-BR-002H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 30, 2020
This bulletin provides tire vibration service procedures, including how to optimize vehicle vibration performance. For all wheel/tire balance claims, the â Tire Balance Data Sheetâ must be fully completed including…
20-SS-004H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 19, 2020
This bulletin provides information on identifying dealer stock vehicles with either: â ¢ A Battery SOC alert - low Battery State of Charge (SOC) at or below 50%. â ¢ A 30 Day alert - vehicle has not started and reported…
20-EE-003H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 23, 2020
The Blind Spot Detection (BSD) or Blind-Spot Collision Warning (BCW) is a system that measures the speed of and distance from the following vehicles by using two magnetic wave radar sensors attached in the rear bumper…
19-BE-011H-1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 4, 2019
This bulletin provides information on components, attributes, and precautions of the 7-speed dry-type dual clutch transmission (dct).
5NP-S9D9P-10 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 2, 2016
Provided procedures for the installation of a block heater. *yc
97110120014 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 1, 1997
Shop manual correction on cylinder head bolt torque specification. *yc
97100120012 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 1, 1997
Shift condition caused by short circuit in inhibitor switch. *tw
9740002 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 1997
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 1991 Hyundai Sonata in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1991 Hyundai Sonata?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.