Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2002 Hyundai Sonata owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
My wife was driving home from work on a county road doing approx. 45 MPH. The front right tire suddenly tilted 50 degrees inward and she lost control of the auto. After nearly missing a telephone pole, she plowed into a corn field and came to a sudden stop. She suffered a sprained wrist from steering wheel "whip" and bruised her knee in the accident. Upon examination by the mechanic , he found that the a frame on the right side had broke in half. The metal in the frame had rusted from the inside out making it difficult to see by previous under-carriage repairs, such as tire change, oil change etc. The car has had superb maintenance throughout its history and has been bought and sold within the same family since being bought new by the son in 2002. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving at 5 MPH, the power steering stop working and as a result, the vehicle crashed into a barrier. There were no injuries. The driver side air bag deployed and the air bag warning lamp illuminated. Also, the contact mentioned that the vehicle was filled with smoke and there was no pressure on the air bag. The vehicle was towed to her resident. The vehicle had not been repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that there was nothing wrong with the air bag. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 156,000.
I backed out of the driveway and the subframe on the passenger side collapsed and the tie rod and cv joint came loose. The steering went out. A certified frame mechanic said the sub frame rusted out.
On 11/3/08 I filed odi#10248441 regarding rotted right side sub-frame on my 2002 Hyundai Sonata which was repaired by dealer on 11/11/08 as a 1 time "goodwill" replacement. During replacement of sub-frame dealer damaged and replaced flexpipe and bolts. Car was returned and started leaking fluid which was found to be power steering fluid. We monitored and replaced fluid but steering was difficult and made noise mostly on start-up and turning corners. On 12/1/08 we had to have the car towed - we lost the power steering completely and it would no longer hold fluid. Dealer stated that power steering rack mount was completely cracked and had to be replace at a cost of over $1,000. We are refusing to pay for repair stating that cracked steering mount is related to rot problem and is the dealers responsibility. 12/3/08 we opened a case with Hyundai consumer complaints . …
On Monday evening 01/18/2010 my wife and I left our home with our 2002 Hyundai Sonata we drove no more then 3 tenths of a mile when the steering wheel starting pulling very hard to the right we then turned around and drove back toward home but only made it about 2 tenths of a mile before the front right wheel collapsed bringing us to a dead stop in the middle of the road. Thankfully we were only going about 20-25 MPH the police were called for traffic and the car was towed to r.j shore automotive branford ct 06405 the next morning the owner of r.j.auto informed me that my front engine sub-frame had failed due to corrosion, and showed me a print-out of a recall from Hyundai dated April 14, 2009 then stated he called the Hyundai dealer in branford ct 06405 but the dealer refused to pick up the car so I had to pay $81.41 to have the car towed to branford Hyundai. …
Was driving down the when I heard a pop sound that had came from the curbside of the vehicle then the car started pulling to the right side of the road and did not really think to much about because thought needed to just have alignment done to the vehicle then next Friday I had take the car to have the alignment done on the vehicle they called me and said that the sub-frame of the vehicle was rusted in half and that it was unsafe to drive. I looked up the recalls on the vehicle and seen where it had a recall for the sub-frame rusting and set up a apt . To have it taken care of but they are saying that since my car is not registered in one of the salt-belt states that they are not going to honor the recall even though the rust is there and the sub-frame is rusted in half and the lower control arm is rusted off. Ref #[redacted].
My son was operating the vehicle and was making a left turn. During the turn, the right front wheel buckled under and the vehicle became inoperable. Vehicle was towed to a repair facility. They found that there was significant corrosion in the sub-frame which caused it to fail. I have done some research on NHTSA site and it appears that campaign 09V124000 describes the issue. I have contacted Hyundai. They have instructed me to have to vehicle delivered to local dealer for inspection to determine if it is covered under a recall program. Their first response was to tell me that the recall was only covering certain states, kentucky not being one of them. When I told them I had purchased the car used and had no way of knowing what other states the vehicle had been in, they agreed to examine the vehicle. …
My son was driving the vehicle at 45 MPH and heard a loud pop in the right front end of the vehicle and immediately afterwards the vehicle veered of to the right and on to the side of the road he was able to maintain control somewhat but if there had been pedestrians in that area I am not sure there would have not been serious consequences, the car was driven slowly to the nearest Hyundai dealer for assessment and after assessment the dealer stated that the sub-frame has rusted out to the point that the right front wheel could become detached thereby possibly causing a potential catastrophic failure or loss of control of the vehicle and unknown consequences, dealer has submitted information to Hyundai corp, the vehicle has an active recall on this particular safety defect. Recall #089 issued in April 2008. …
Our son who was driving our Hyundai 2002 Sonata noticed that the steering wheel was loose and it felt like the car was pulling and needed an alignment. We took it in to have an alignment and the mechanic called us and told us they were unable to do an alignment and that the problem was much more serious than that; they told us that the cradle rusted through and that it was unsafe to drive. Because of this it also did damage to the tires. We now have a vehicle that is unable to be driven because it is not safe. I shutter every time I think what May have happened to him or his friends if he had been on the road or god forbid driving down the interstate. We live in a state where snow is a part of our lives; we always worry about driving on snow and ice but we should not also have to worry that our vehicle's cradle will rust through potentially causing harm or even death.
We had our vehicle warrantied for the rotten frame on our vehicle last year. At that point you would think Hyundai would have warned us that our brake lines were swiss cheese just like our frame, these cars rot out, the entire vehicle is a death trap. The brake lines broke 3 times in the past 6 months after sections were already replaced. These vehicles need all the brake and fuel lines replaced immediately!!! This is not routine maintenance and should be recalled immediately!! The power steering line rotted out 5 years ago, this car was made out of really crappy metal. Dangerous vehicle. Everything on this vehicle is rotted out beyond what is normal, the wheels, the brake drums, everything on these vehicles rot to the point of swiss cheese. After 10 years these vehicles are very unsafe. Our vehicle only has 50,000 miles on it.
Steering complaints in other Sonata years
Frequently asked questions
How common are steering problems on the 2002 Hyundai Sonata?
NHTSA has 24 complaints about the steering of the 2002 Hyundai Sonata, 8% of the model year's 320 complaints. The component named most often is hydraulic power assist › hose, piping, and connections (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2002 Hyundai Sonata steering problems?
No. NHTSA lists no steering recall for the 2002 Hyundai Sonata, though it has 7 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2002 Hyundai Sonata steering problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 105,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 3 crashes, 1 fire and 1 injury to steering 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.