NHTSA has received 10 owner complaints about the 2026 Hyundai Kona, or 10.0 per year on the road — far fewer complaints than typical (complaint index 0.25, where 1.00 is the average of all tracked vehicles). Among the 73 model-year 2026 vehicles we track, it ranks #33 of 73 by complaints per year (#1 = fewest). Against other Hyundai models its rate is 81% lower; against other Subcompact SUVs it is 56% lower.
Counts are normalized by time on the road, not by sales volume: a popular model generates more reports than a rare one, and complaints are not verified individually. How we count
Limited data: fewer than 30 complaints, so shares and indexes are unstable.
Complaints filed between 2025-10-02 and 2026-10-05. Median delay from incident to filing: 13 days.
10Complaints
10.0Complaints per year on the road
0.25Complaint index vs. all tracked vehicles
3Recalls
10.0%Share involving a crash or fire
9Last 12 months
Analysis
The previous model year (2025) drew 16.2 complaints per year, more than this one.
The most common problem area is Electrical (20.0% of complaints), followed by Unspecified or other (20.0%) and Engine (10.0%). 1 report (10.0%) describes a crash or fire; owners mention 2 injuries and 0 deaths.
Half of the reported incidents happened within 4 months of the model year's start; the busiest period was the first year (100% of incidents). 9 complaints were filed in the last 12 months.
On April 20, 2026 I was pulling into a parking space. I began to break but something went terribly wrong. My car accelerated on it's own, went over the curb and crashed into a building.
Brakes · 2026-04-27 · ODI 11733958 · Crash
I have a 2026 Hyundai Kona that I’ve only had for 3 months and it has 7192 miles on it. Today I turned my vehicle on and the screen that displays my mileage, speedometer, gas level, coolant temp gauge, tire pressure monitor, and other safety features was…
Electrical · 2026-10-05 · ODI 11769128
I purchased this vehicle new on July 28, 2026. NHTSA Recall 26V-452 / Hyundai Recall 306 was dated July 13, 2026, and the VIN showed the recall as incomplete when I discovered it. The dealer states that it was unaware of the recall at the time of sale.
Airbags & seat belts · 2026-08-20 · ODI 11758247
The contact owns a 2026 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated that while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and went into LIMP Mode before the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted and resumed normal functionality.
Engine · 2026-08-11 · ODI 11756273
Car went into a limp mode several times, potentially could cause major accident. Towed to dealer who found nothing wrong. Would not give me loaner. I had to sell the Kona in order to have a car, car was bought new had 770 mikes on it. What can I do?
Unspecified or other · 2026-08-09 · ODI 11755720
Excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length. The ODI number is NHTSA's record identifier.
Summary: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Kona Electric and 2024-2026 Kona vehicles. The seat belt buckle in the rear center seat may fail to properly restrain an occupant during a crash.
Risk: A seat belt buckle that fails to properly restrain an occupant in a crash increases the risk of injury.
Remedy: Passengers are advised not to use the rear center seat until the recall remedy is performed. Dealers will replace the seat belt buckle assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 2, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 306. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 15, 2026.
Summary: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2026 Kona vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the front steering knuckles may crack and break, which can result in a loss of vehicle steering control.
Risk: A loss of vehicle steering control increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the front steering knuckles, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 5, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 295. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on February 7, 2026.
Summary: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Tucson Hybrid, Tucson Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV), 2026 IONIQ 5, Santa Cruz, Kona, Palisade, Palisade Hybrid, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, Sonata, Sonata Hybrid, and Tucson vehicles. Due to a software error, the instrument panel display may fail. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 101, "Controls and Displays."
Risk: An instrument panel display that fails to show critical safety information, such as the speedometer or warning lights, increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy: The instrument panel display software will be updated over-the-air (OTA) or by a dealer, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 24, 2026. Owners may contact Hyundai's customer service at 855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 293. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on January 28, 2026.
