Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2009 Hyundai Genesis owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
My son was driving this car home from college mid-day on October 8. He had not driven the car for 10 days or so while at school and he did notice the brakes making an unusual sound that day he had never heard. While on the highway, there was a sudden stop ahead of him. When he pressed the brakes they completely stopped working and he rear-ended the car in from of him. The brakes were completely non-functional after the crash and he had to try to stop his car as best as he could without brakes. Luckily there were no injuries, however complete brake failure out of the blue is obviously enormously dangerous. The tow truck driver confirmed that brakes did not work at all and speculated that a "brake-line snapped". I have no idea if that is true or why he thought that. The car is totaled and no inspection of the car has taken place. …
The contact owns a 2009 Hyundai Genesis. The contact stated that while his girlfriend was driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The driver was forced to apply the parking brake to stop the vehicle. His girlfriend was able to drive the vehicle home while the parking brake light remained illuminated on the instrument panel, even after releasing the parking brake. The contact called the dealer and was informed that his vehicle was already serviced prior under NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V489000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) for the same failure. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and provided him with the same information as the dealer. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 154,850.
Passenger side, rear brake line rusted to the point where brakes failed one morning. Brake fluid leaking from rusted brake line. Lost braking pressure while driving. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, independent shop Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No
Forty five minutes after picking up my new ( to me ) car at the dealership I had purchased it from I was driving down the road and in an instant I had to step on the brakes hard because the truck in front of me stopped quickly to make a left hand turn. Upon doing so the brake pedal went all the way down and I crashed into the truck. After the crash I restarted the car to move it to the side of the road and it stopped normally like it should. I was left with the feeling that I had no brakes for that instant. Totally un aware of a brake recall on the new car, when I found out later that night about the recall I was upset because I couldn't believe that a well established 30 years in business dealership would sell me a car and not have mentioned or even taken care of it. …
On 5/11/15 the brakes on my 2010 Hyundai Genesis failed and the car would not stop as the brake pedal sank to the floor. On 5/12/15 I brought my car into global auto mall and drove very slowly to the dealer, pumping the brakes at every stop along the way to get the car to stop. Global auto mall diagnosed the problem and replaced the master brake cylinder assembly under warranty. My car had 45,381 miles on it at the time. On 8/29/15 the brakes on my 2010 Hyundai Genesis failed again and the car would not stop as the brake pedal sank to the floor. On 8/31/15 I brought my car into global auto mall driving very slowly to the dealer, pumping the brakes at every stop along the way to get the car to stop. My car had 49,179 miles on it at the time. Global auto mall has stated that after running diagnostics on the car they did not find any problems and now the brakes are working fine. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Hyundai Genesis. The vehicle was repaired per NHTSA campaign number: 13V489000 (service brakes, hydraulic). After receiving the repair, the brakes began to malfunction. The contact had to pump the brake pedal several times before the vehicle would come to a stop. Also, the brake lights failed to illuminate when the brakes were applied. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who informed the contact that the vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 14V713000 (exterior lighting). The contact received the repair for the recall; however, the failure of the brake pedal was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case on the vehicle. The VIN was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000. …
On September 19, 2015, when approaching a red light, the brake pedal went all the way to the floorboard and the car would not stop. Repeated pumping of the pedal finally brought the car to a stop. Within an hour a second event occurred on the freeway when approaching another car from the rear. The brake pedal had no resistance and went all the way to the floorboard. It has not occurred again. Two days later I took the car (carefully) into the dealer. They have, as yet, been unable to replicate the problem (as Hyundai requires for warranty consideration). However, I will not drive this car or let my wife use it until this is diagnosed and repaired. It is extremely unsafe. This type of brake failure has been noted repeatedly in the 2009 Hyundai Genesis. I am stuck with an unusable car and a manufacturer who will not recognize the severity of this issue. …
On 9/16/15 the brakes on my 2009 Hyundai Genesis failed and the car would not stop as the brake pedal sank to the floor. I finally got the car to stop with excessive pumping of the brakes. On 9/16/15 I brought my car into jim ellis Hyundai to fix the problem. The dealer inspected the car and couldn't replicate the issue I had experienced earlier in the day. The dealership ran diagnostics on the car and did not find any problems and now the brakes seem to be working fine. My car has 115,561 miles. This is the second visit to the dealership for this problem. On 04/30/15, I brought in the car for two recalls, one that included a brake fluid flush. A month later, I had a similar incident while driving on the highway that caused me to lose brake pressure.after a few days the problem subsided. …
At approximately 7:50 am on my way to work, heading westbound on rodeo rd and was going to make a left turn at cloverdale my car stalled. During the stall the engine cutoff and the electrical power in the car seemed to reset itself. As I was coming to a stop, I could feel the brakes not working and I put the car into park and tried to restart the engine by pushing on the start/stop button. When that didn't work, all the power in the car went out and nothing worked, no emergency lights, no power anything. I called roadside assistance and had them tow to the nearest dealership. This is the second time this has happened. The first was on Sunday night September 6th, 2015 at around 8 pm in san jose. I put that as a complaint on this system at that time.
Tl contact owns a 2009 Hyundai Genesis. The contact stated that when attempting to engage the brakes, the brake pedal went to the floor without any warning. The contact was included in NHTSA campaign id number: 13V489000 (service brakes, hydraulic) and indicated that the dealer only replaced the factory brake fluid. The contact stated that the dealer did not inspect the hecu module for proper operation. The contact stated that months later, the failure recurred. The recall repair did not remedy the failure and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer who diagnosed that the hecu needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 88,000. Updated 4/7/15
Related recalls
Service brakes, hydraulic › Fluid
Hyundai is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Genesis vehicles manufactured April 30, 2008, through March 28, 2012. The vehicles may contain brake fluid which does not protect against corrosion of the Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU).
Remedy: Hyundai will notify owners and instruct them to bring their vehicle to a dealer for service. Hyundai will inspect the HECU module for proper operation, and will replace the modules as necessary.
NHTSA investigations
Brake hydraulic control module failure
On October 28, 2013, Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai) submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the braking system of approximately 43,500 model year (MY) 2009 through 2012 Hyundai Genesis sedans (NHTSA Recall No.
Brake complaints in other Genesis years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2009 Hyundai Genesis?
NHTSA has 125 complaints about the brakes of the 2009 Hyundai Genesis, 53% of the model year's 235 complaints. The component named most often is antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip › control unit/module (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2009 Hyundai Genesis brake problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 13V-489 (fluid, Oct 29, 2013). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2009 Hyundai Genesis brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 70,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 7 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries to brakes problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.