2003 Hyundai Tiburon Recall: ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE WIRING…
NHTSA campaign 03V290000 · Seat Belts · filed Aug 5, 2003 · verified Jul 30, 2026
The defect
ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE WIRING COULD BE DAMAGED BY INTERFERENCE WITH THE DRIVER SEAT CUSHION HEIGHT ADJUSTER MECHANISM. DAMAGED DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE WIRING COULD CAUSE THE SEAT BELT WARNING LAMP OR THE SUPPLEMENTAL RESTRAINT SYSTEM (SRS) AIR BAG WIRING LAMP TO ILLUMINATE. IT COULD ALSO CAUSE THE AIR BAG FUSE (CAVITY NUMBER 5) TO OPEN, PREVENTING AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT. DAMAGED DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE WIRING COULD CAUSE THE SEAT BELT WARNING LAMP OR THE SUPPLEMENTAL RESTRAINT SYSTEM (SRS) AIR BAG WIRING LAMP TO ILLUMINATE. IT COULD ALSO CAUSE THE AIR BAG FUSE (CAVITY NUMBER 5) TO OPEN, PREVENTING AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT.
The risk
NONDEPLOYMENT OF AN SRS AIR BAG IN A CRASH WHERE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT IS WARRANTED COULD INCREASE THE RISK OR SEVERITY OF INJURY IN A CRASH.
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 →The fix — what to do
DEALERS WILL INSTALL A NEW DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE, IF NECESSARY, AND WILL PLACE A PROTECTIVE COVER OVER THE DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE WIRING TO PREVENT DAMAGE FROM OCCURRING. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN SEPTEMBER 23, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT HYUNDAI OF PUERTO RICO AT 1-899-981-0188.
CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).
Affected vehicles
Related recalls
More Hyundai Tiburon recalls
- 2006–2009 Hyundai Accent and 11 other models — Originally, in April 2013, Hyundai recalled 1,059,824 model…
- 2001–2003 Hyundai Elantra and 1 other model — Suspension
- 2005 Hyundai Elantra and 1 other model — CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES MAY HAVE BEEN BUILT WITH…
- 2002–2003 Hyundai Elantra and 3 other models — CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE…
- 2002–2003 Hyundai Elantra and 3 other models — SOME PASSENGER VEHICLES CONTAIN A FUEL TANK ASSEMBLY VALVE…
Other campaigns involving Hyundai vehicles
Source: NHTSA recall database, campaign 03V290000. Data last verified Jul 30, 2026.