HYUNDAI ACCENT · model year

2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT

119 NHTSA complaints, 9 crash reports, and 1 active recall for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2010HYUNDAIACCENT carries 119 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 9 crashes, 0 fires, 7 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2010 ACCENT is service brakes with 17 filings, followed by exterior lighting (16) and electrical system (12). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 1 active recall campaign, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 37 investigation files overlapping the 2010 ACCENT, and 1 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

119
Complaints
9
Crashes
0
Fires
7
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

119 filings

Crashes Reported

9 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
SERVICE BRAKES17
EXTERIOR LIGHTING16
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM12
VISIBILITY/WIPER11
AIR BAGS10
STEERING7
VISIBILITY7
ENGINE7
UNKNOWN OR OTHER6
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC5
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING4
SUSPENSION4
TIRES3
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM3
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL2

Recalls (1)

15V56600008/09/2015

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCH

Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 Hyundai Accent vehicles manufactured March 1, 2009, to February 11, 2011. In the affected vehicles, the brake light switch may malfunction. A malfunctioning brake light switch may cause the brake lights to not illuminate whe

Recent Complaints

20260126AIR BAGS

The airbags failed to deploy in my 2012 car accident. I suffered facial injuries from hitting my face on the dashboard. I got a broken nose, c2 neck fracture and skull fracture.

20240415SERVICE BRAKES

Brake line corrosion and leak on drivers side. Location approximately where drivers door meets passenger door. It appears that all of the brake lines except a one foot section in the above location are coated with a hard rubber for corrosion protection. The one foot section in question however is raw metal which is "protected" on the bottom side by a removable plastic covering. The covering is clearly inadequate as the brake line rusted through, potentially causing a serious accident. I notice that Canada has some recalls on Hyandai vehicles other than the Accent for rusty brake lines.

20230111ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The wiring connection between the blower motor into the hvac resistor is melting. There looks to be burn marks on the plastic female plug that goes into the resistor. I sometimes smell like plastic is burning. I have to keep fan at MAX speed to not use the resistor at all. I believe this could be a fire hazard.

20230111UNKNOWN OR OTHER

The wiring connection between the blower motor into the hvac resistor is melting. There looks to be burn marks on the plastic female plug that goes into the resistor. I sometimes smell like plastic is burning. I have to keep fan at MAX speed to not use the resistor at all. I believe this could be a fire hazard.

20220727FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

Whenever I get gas even when I pump really slow when I go to remove the nozzle gas spurts out. I have had the charcoal cannister replaced as well as replacing the gas cap but it still happens. This is very dangerous since gas is leaking onto the car and area surrounding it.

20211103AIR BAGS

Last week my airbag red light came on out of no where, no accident led to this.This car has been maintained and any repairs done in a TIMELY FASHION I CALLED HYUNDAI HEADQUARTERS AND SPOKE TO A SUPERVISOR. SHE WENT ON AND ON ABOUT EVERYTHING BUT WHAT I WAS CALLING ABOUT. SHE THEN DEVULGED SOME INTERESTING ISSUES REGARDING MY VEHICLE. FIRST SHE SAID THERE WAS A RECALL. ON MY VEHICLE.I BELIEVE SHE SAID 944, WHICH SHE SAID WAS A RUST ISSUE RECALL ON THE UNDERCARRIGE. SHE THEN WENT ON TO SAY THE PASSENGER SIDE SAFETY was an issue and complaints from other accent owners of airbag light SHE THEN SAID OH I BET THATS WHY YOU AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON . SHE DID ALSO SPkEAK OF MY CAR HAVING SOME SORT OF EXTENDED FACTORY WARRANTY., CALLING IT EITHER A TXX OR POSSIBLY PXX WHATEVER THAT MEANS. I HAVE BEEN DOING A LOT OF RESEARCH ON THIS ONLY TO FIND OUT THERE ARE MANY HYUNDAI ACCENTS THAT HAVE HAD airbag IREPAIRED FOR FREE. I WAS NOT TOLD THAT MINE WOULD ALSO BE FIXED FREE OF CHARGE. DUE TO MY PERSI

20211013AIR BAGS

The air bags randomly stopped working. I was not in a collision or near anything that would have made my air bags deploy or stop working. I have two air bag lights that are staying on to let me know that the airbags are not working. I had a mechanic do a free consultation and he could not find anything wrong with the airbags besides the airbag being faulty.

20210916VISIBILITY/WIPER

The driver-side sun visor was falling off during driving when the visor hung at the left (the hanging rod broke from inside) and it's dangous because I could not see. It's definately a safty issue that are talked broadly and a recall is neccessary.

20190726CrashAIR BAGS

TAKATA RECALL: I WAS DRIVING SLOWLY IN THE RAIN WHEN SOME CARS IN FRONT OF ME STARTED TO STOP. I SLOWED DOWN BUT AS I HIT THE BREAKS THE CAR DIDN'T RESPOND. I PRESSED THE PEDAL MORE AND NOTHING HAPPENED, THEN IT WENT DOWN ALL THE WAY. I MOVED THE STEERING WHEEL TO THE RIGHT TO PREVENT A CRASH BUT IT STILL HAPPENED. MY CAR IS A TOTAL LOSS. MY AIRBAGS DIDN'T GO OFF EITHER AND I HAD NO BREAK LIGHT INDICATING THAT MY BREAKS WOULD FAIL OR THAT THEY WERE FAULTY.

Mileage: 101,803

20190726CrashSERVICE BRAKES

TAKATA RECALL: I WAS DRIVING SLOWLY IN THE RAIN WHEN SOME CARS IN FRONT OF ME STARTED TO STOP. I SLOWED DOWN BUT AS I HIT THE BREAKS THE CAR DIDN'T RESPOND. I PRESSED THE PEDAL MORE AND NOTHING HAPPENED, THEN IT WENT DOWN ALL THE WAY. I MOVED THE STEERING WHEEL TO THE RIGHT TO PREVENT A CRASH BUT IT STILL HAPPENED. MY CAR IS A TOTAL LOSS. MY AIRBAGS DIDN'T GO OFF EITHER AND I HAD NO BREAK LIGHT INDICATING THAT MY BREAKS WOULD FAIL OR THAT THEY WERE FAULTY.

Mileage: 101,803

20190525AIR BAGS

THE BREAK LIGHTS ARE NOT ILLUMINATING. I WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF ANY RECALL ON MY CAR AFTER PURCHASE AND I DON'T THINK IT WAS EVER REPAIRED. MY AIR BAG LIGHT IS CONTINUOUSLY ON EVEN THOUGH DIAGNOSTICS HAVE BEEN RAN AND NO CODE COMES UP.

20190525SERVICE BRAKES

THE BREAK LIGHTS ARE NOT ILLUMINATING. I WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF ANY RECALL ON MY CAR AFTER PURCHASE AND I DON'T THINK IT WAS EVER REPAIRED. MY AIR BAG LIGHT IS CONTINUOUSLY ON EVEN THOUGH DIAGNOSTICS HAVE BEEN RAN AND NO CODE COMES UP.

20190417VISIBILITY/WIPER

DRIVER SIDE VISOR FELL AND HIT MY HEAD WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON ROAD.. IT WAS HANGING THERE AND I COULDN'T SEE FOR ABOUT 30 SECONDS UNTIL I HAD TO JUST HOLD IT UP WITH MY HAND UNTIL I GOT HOME AND COULD GET A SCISSORS TO CUT THE CORD THAT KEPT IT HANGING IN MY FACE. A FEW MONTHS LATER THE PASSENGER SIDE VISOR FELL. DIDN'T THINK I SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS, SINCE IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND IN 15 MINUTES I ALREADY FOUND 22 OTHER COMPLAINTS OF THIS ON THIS AND OTHER WEBSITES. CALLED HYUNDAI CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY SAID A CASE MANAGER, OSCAR, WOULD GET BACK TO ME IN 3-5 BUSINESS DAYS. THEY WOULDN'T GIVE ME "NATIONALS" PHONE NUMBER, WHERE HE WORKS. HE NEVER CALLED. AGAIN I CALLED CUSTOMER SERVICE, THEY SAID, SORRY, THEY WOULD SEND ANOTHER EMAIL TO OSCAR TO CALL ME WITHIN 3-5 BUSINESS DAYS. HE NEVER DID. I CALLED CUSTOMER SERVICE AGAIN. THEY SAID OSCAR USUALLY GETS BACK TO PEOPLE WITHIN 1-2 DAYS. THEN A SUPERVISOR CHANGED THE STOREY AND SAID THAT OSCAR WON'T CALL ME UNTIL I CONN

Mileage: 62,000

20190122SERVICE BRAKES

HYUNDAI BRAKE RECALL. NOTHING HAS HAPPENED AS OF YET BUT I NEED THE ISSUE CORRECTED TO PREVENT ANY ISSUES.

20181125ENGINE

CAR STOPPED RUNNING. TIMING BELT BROKE RESULTING IN RUINED ENGINE REQUIRING FULL ENGINE REPLACEMENT. MILEAGE WAS 63K.

Mileage: 63,000

20181019AIR BAGS

AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT KEEPS COMING ON. AFTER TAKING IT TO THE DEALERSHIP NO ERROR CODES POPULATED, BUT THE LATE CAME BACK ON TWO WEEKS LATER. DEALERSHIP CANNOT FIND ANY ISSUES. I'VE SEEN PAST COMPLAINTS OF THIS IN SIMILAR MODEL CARS, HOWEVER HYUNDAI WILL NOT COVER DUE TO WARRANTY BEING EXPIRED.

20181011ENGINE

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT. WHEN OPERATING THE VEHICLE, THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR WOULD REMAIN ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE WOULD HESITATE AND VIBRATE. ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE LOCAL DEALER (STERLING HYUNDAI OF LAFAYETTE, 5001 JOHNSON ST, LAFAYETTE, LA) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE, BUT NO ASSISTANCE WAS OFFERED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 17,000.

Mileage: 17,000

20180601ENGINE

NO COMPLAINT ABOUT AIRBAG BUT HAD TO PUT AN ENGINE IN TWICE OVER 2 YEARS

Mileage: 90,000

20180601ENGINE

MY CAR JUST STOPPED ON ME WHILE DRIVING SO PUT A USED ENGINE IN FROM EBAY AND A COUPLE YEARS LATER THAT ONE DIED ON ME WHILE ON THE HIGHWAY. I BELIEVE THE PISTONS BLEW OUT THE BACK

Mileage: 90,000

20170802VISIBILITY/WIPER

THE DRIVER'S SIDE VISOR FELL OPEN WHILE I WAS DRIVING STEADILY ON AN INTERSTATE. I CAN NO LONGER GET THE VISOR TO STAY UP IN THE CLOSED POSITION.

Mileage: 65,000

Compare 2010HYUNDAIACCENT to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 1 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT have?
The 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT has 119 NHTSA complaints, 9 crashes, 0 fires, 7 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
Are there any recalls for the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT?
Yes, the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT has 1 recall(s). The most common affected component is EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCH. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT?
The most-complained component for the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT is SERVICE BRAKES with 17 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include EXTERIOR LIGHTING and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
Is the 2010 HYUNDAI ACCENT safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.