Hyundai moves to fix early 2011 Sonata Turbo hose issue

2011 Hyundai Sonata 2.0T – click above for high-res image gallery

Hyundai's eagerly anticipated Sonata 2.0T model has just begun hitting U.S. showrooms, but a small quality issue that cropped up in the first batch of cars is causing some consternation. Conversations have been popping up on internet forums about the issue, and there has been some confusion as to the nature of the problem as well as questions about whether or not a stop-sale has been ordered by the company.

A small rubber hose that feeds oil to the turbo unit in very early 2011 Sonata Turbo models was apparently built to the wrong specification and needs replacement. According to a few user forum reports, some dealers haven't been allowing customers to test drive the vehicles until the correct part has been fitted. Additionally, at least one of the first 2.0T owners informed Autoblog that his dealer actually flat-bedded his car back for service. However, Hyundai officials tell Autoblog that this issue affects very few units, and they want to make it clear that no stop-sale has been issued.

Hyundai spokesman Dan Bedore:

"In about 30 cases, we had to get with customers who already had their cars. We're using the new hose in production and have finished retrofitting those that were built but not sold. We asked dealers to replace the hose before delivery but didn't issue a stop sale. No lost sales, no big disruption, the customer comes first – that's business as usual for Hyundai.

Hyundai says it only sold around 30 units before the hose problem was discovered, and the company has only built around 1,000 units in total, most of which are still in transit to dealers. All new Sonata turbos rolling off of assembly lines are being fitted with the new part, and all new models sold will have the correct hose installed.

Hyundai's Sonata line has been an extremely strong seller since its introduction earlier this year, quickly moving the Korean automaker into third place in the hotly contested family sedan segment. However, the Sonata has also suffered some early teething problems, including the recall of 1,300 units over a possible door latch malfunction in March and the recall of 139,500 units over steering problems in late October. Hat tip to Nic!