Problems owners report
Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2026 Hyundai Santa Cruz, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.
- Lane departure2
- Power train2
- Vehicle speed control1
- Steering1
- Visibility/wiper1
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 0 injuries and 0 deaths reported
Compared with other years
NHTSA ODI complaints by model year
New York safety inspections
At its first New York inspection the 2026 Hyundai Santa Cruz failed the safety check 0.00% of the time — 100% less often than the average 2026 passenger car (0.16%). Median odometer at inspection: 17 miles.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
Crash-test ratings
NHTSA 5-star results for 2 variants; 2 of 2 rated variants score five stars overall. Rollover risk is the estimated chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
| Variant | Overall | Rollover risk |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 HYUNDAI SANTA CRUZ PU/CC N/A AWD | ★★★★★ | 16.4 % |
| 2026 HYUNDAI SANTA CRUZ PU/CC N/A FWD | ★★★★★ | 16.4 % |
- Electronic stability control
- Standard
- Forward collision warning
- No
- Lane departure warning
- No
- Best overall rating
- 5 / 5
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (5-Star Safety Ratings), api.nhtsa.gov · US federal work, public domain
Fuel consumption
Official Canadian test results for 2 variants: combined 11.4–11.5 L/100 km (about 20–21 mpg US), CO₂ 267–270 g/km.
| Variant | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz AWD · Sport utility vehicle: Small · Regular gasoline | 13.1 | 9.3 | 11.4 |
| Santa Cruz AWD XRT · Sport utility vehicle: Small · Regular gasoline | 13.1 | 9.5 | 11.5 |
Litres per 100 km. Natural Resources Canada, Fuel consumption ratings (open.canada.ca) · Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Tucson, Tucson Hybrid, and Tucson Plug-In Hybrid Electric (PHEV) vehicles. Software in the front cameras may cause the forward collision avoidance system to activate prematurely and unexpectedly apply the brakes.
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."
Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2025 Tucson, 2025-2026 Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santa Fe Hybrid, and 2026 Genesis GV70 vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not have been installed properly, which can cause the air bags not to deploy as intended.
Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words