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Hyundai Headache: Viewers reach out to 'Ask Anthony' team for help with vehicle repairs

Cody Evans and Wanda Burrow want their cars repaired. But, Hyundai representatives are saying they're not the ones to blame.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two people emailed the "Ask Anthony" team with one common problem.  

They both own Hyundais and their cars are undrivable. 

Cody Evans and Wanda Burrow want their cars repaired. But, Hyundai representatives are saying they're not the ones to blame. 

Evans bought his 2018 Hyundai Tucson, brand-new, after graduating from college.

"100,000-mile warranty. That sounded great. One of the biggest reasons why I bought the vehicle to begin with," Cody Evans explained. 

He says the SUV never gave him any problems in the four years he owned it.

"No issues. Kept it up for all my maintenance changes. They all said it looked fine every time," Evans said. 

But one day in December, about a week before Christmas, Evans and his wife were driving down the highway when the car started having issues.  

"The car just shuts off, and I have to hobble the next mile and a half.  Felt very unsafe the entire time," Evans added. 

Evans says he had the SUV towed to a local Hyundai dealership. The SUV was currently at 96,000 miles, and as previously mentioned, the vehicle had a 100,000-mile warranty.   

"The service advisor I was working with said they know this is a known thing. We see no signs of neglect in your car whatsoever, and I would be shocked if it wasn't covered," Evans said. 

A few weeks later the claim was denied.

"Due to exceptional maintenance neglect...after already being told there were no signs of neglect. They already had my maintenance records. They already had my explanation, and they had already tore apart the engine," Evans told First Coast News Anchor Anthony Austin.

Evans says he doesn't understand why the claim was denied. He says his most recent oil change was around 90,000 miles. He says he was told the SUV was in good shape with no issues.

Evans says Hyundai did offer to fix his Tucson, but at a cost.

"They quoted me $9,000.  I also got a separate quote for $9,400. So, around $9,000 mark," Evans said. 

Evans isn't alone in his problems with Hyundai.  After he emailed me, I received a message from Wanda Burrow.

"Not even within the first 90 days...the engine seized," Burrow said. 

Right before Christmas, Burrow bought a 2016 Hyundai Sonata from a local dealership for her son.

"We were offered two years of free oil changes for the vehicle and life was good," Burrow responded. 

But, they soon noticed a problem.

"The car kept seeming to run out of oil. It was low on oil."

Burrow says they only had the car for a few weeks when it started cutting off while her son was driving. 

"Of all days, Friday the 13th in January, he calls and lets me know that the car cut off on him again."

She says the car was taken back to the dealership, and she thought they would take care of the problem. 

"She (service advisor) proceeded to tell me that this is a common problem. She showed me a leger of maybe 28 entries of cars that were waiting to be looked at by mechanics to determine what the problem was."

But, they didn't take care of the problem. Burrows says she was told it was the driver's fault for lack of maintenance. 

"I'm like...we just bought this vehicle. We just brought it in for it's first oil change. How can that be?" Burrows questioned. 

It's a good question, and it's one both of these Hyundai owners want answered. 

"I just think they are woefully lacking in the ability of customer service and knowledge of their vehicles," Evans said. 

A class action lawsuit was recently filed against Hyundai Motor America over faulty engines. In September, the car company says it entered into an agreement to resolve class action litigation with owners of certain vehicles. 

Anthony Austin had a lengthy conversation with Hyundai corporate about the issues.  A representative told him there are two sides to every story and they stand by their responses to the customers.  But, they are willing to review their cases again. 

If you have a problem you just can't solve, email AskAnthony@firstcoastnews.com

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