2020 Hyundai Kona Reliability & Problems

1. 1Stalling or shutting off while drivingCriticalAbout 1 in 4 complaints10,600–38,800 mi28%

   Owners describe a check engine light, the engine stalling while driving, and a car that will not restart afterward, often on the highway or at various speeds. Reports that give a mileage have a median of about 12,500 miles, and half fall between about 10,600 and 38,800 miles. Owners mention recall 21V301000 in 9 of these complaints, and of the 10 who describe a repair outcome, 9 say it did not fix the problem.

   What owners describe

   • Check engine light36%
   • Stalls while driving20%
   • Will not restart14%
   • Knocking or violent shaking14%

   Fix

   Most common repair owners describe: bad oil sensor found (1 report). Recall 21V301000.

   Repair worked in 10% of complaints that describe one (complaints lean toward repairs that failed)

   Mileage

   12,500 mi

   Middle half 10,600–38,800 mi · 20 reports

   Repair cost

   —

   Fewer than 10 owners report a repair cost

   How common

   28%

   44 of 160 complaints

   By engine

   • 2.0L 4-cyl98%
   • 1.6L 4-cyl2%

   In owners' words

   “She stalled out at a stoplight in the center lane of a 4 lane busy road and had to coast to a parking lot where she restarted the car”

   “If you slow down or have to stop it completely shuts down you have to put in park and restart the car to get anywhere”

   “While driving in traffic the engine shut down completely, and we had to coast off the road to restart the engine”

2. 2Engine failureCriticalAbout 1 in 6 complaints12,000–72,000 mi18%

   Owners describe a check engine light, knocking, a P1327 code and an engine that shut down or would not restart, sometimes while driving at 35 mph or 55 mph. Reports that give a mileage have a median of about 18,000 miles, with half between about 12,000 and 72,000 miles. Owners mention recall 21V301000 in 6 of these complaints, and some describe waiting months for a replacement engine.

   What owners describe

   • Check engine light38%
   • Shuts down while driving21%
   • Knocking or diesel-like noise17%
   • Engine needs replacing10%

   Fix

   Most common repair owners describe: new engine needed (1 report). Recall 21V301000.

   Mileage

   18,000 mi

   Middle half 12,000–72,000 mi · 13 reports

   Repair cost

   —

   Fewer than 10 owners report a repair cost

   How common

   18%

   29 of 160 complaints

   Crash, fire or injury

   0%

   of these complaints

   In owners' words

   “The engine on my 2020 Hyundai Kona failed suddenly while driving, causing complete loss of power.”

3. 3Excessive oil consumptionSeriousAbout 1 in 6 complaints9,100–54,300 mi16%

   Owners describe low or empty oil on the dipstick, the engine light, knocking, and some stalling while slowing to a stop on the freeway. Reports that give a mileage have a median of about 11,200 miles, with half between about 9,100 and 54,300 miles. Owners mention recall 21V301000 in 7 of these complaints, and some say the dealer wanted more oil consumption tests before doing the recall repair.

   What owners describe

   • Uses a lot of oil50%
   • Knocking or ticking27%
   • Engine light on19%
   • No oil on dipstick12%

   Fix

   Most common repair owners describe: engine cleaning (1 report). Recall 21V301000.

   Mileage

   11,200 mi

   Middle half 9,100–54,300 mi · 14 reports

   Repair cost

   —

   Fewer than 10 owners report a repair cost

   How common

   16%

   26 of 160 complaints

   By engine

   • 2.0L 4-cyl88%
   • 1.6L 4-cyl12%

   In owners' words

   “Since day one of owning the vehicle I would notice oil level low by at least a 1/2 quart”

4. 4Engine knocking or ticking noiseCriticalAbout 1 in 7 complaints8,300–22,200 mi14%

   Owners describe a loud ticking or rapping noise under the hood that gets louder, often with no oil on the dipstick, and in some cases the car shut down on the highway. Reports that give a mileage have a median of about 11,500 miles, with half between about 8,300 and 22,200 miles. Owners mention recall 21V301000 in 8 of these complaints, and one says the recall part was not available.

   What owners describe

   • Knocking or rapping64%
   • Loud ticking noise18%
   • No oil on dipstick14%
   • Noise getting louder9%

   Fix

   Most common repair owners describe: bad oil sensor found (1 report). Recall 21V301000.

   Mileage

   11,500 mi

   Middle half 8,300–22,200 mi · 12 reports

   Repair cost

   —

   Fewer than 10 owners report a repair cost

   How common

   14%

   22 of 160 complaints

   By engine

   • 2.0L 4-cyl95%
   • 1.6L 4-cyl5%

   In owners' words

   “The engine started making a rapping noise, from the time I start it and drive till its parked and shut off”

Watch for a check engine light, knocking or ticking from the engine, a low oil level on the dipstick, and any stalling or loss of power while driving. If the engine stalls, shuts down or knocks loudly, pull over safely and stop driving. Ask a Hyundai dealer to confirm that recall 21V301000 has been performed, and keep written records of every visit and oil top-up.

44 problems found in all 160 complaints. One complaint can describe more than one problem, so counts add up to more than the total. Not counted as a defect: 17 about recall paperwork or parts delays, 3 describing no vehicle defect. Typical miles, repair cost and fix rate show only when enough owners report them.

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• Complaints. NHTSA's owner complaint file, counted as unique complaint numbers for make HYUNDAI, model KONA, model year 2020. Data through Oct 4, 2026.
• Verdict. Judged from this model year's own complaints, not against other models, using shares rather than counts. Serious known problems: one serious problem (transmission, engine or stalling, steering, brakes, airbags, fire, fuel leaks) is in a quarter or more of complaints; or a smaller but clear cluster comes with an unusual share of crash, fire, injury or loss-of-power reports or early failures; or an urgent recall or NHTSA investigation matches a top complaint. Some known problems: one of those signals on its own. No pattern of serious problems: none of them; this doesn't mean the vehicle is trouble-free. Too few complaints to judge: under 50 complaints. Why this verdict: 29% of complaints (47) describe engine failure or stalling (stalling, fuel pump and injector failures, misfires and head gasket failures); 33% of complaints report a crash, fire, injury or death, or a loss of power while moving (typical: 17%).
• No grade or class ranking. Raw complaint counts favor models that sell fewer cars, so we don't score or rank this vehicle against other models until we can adjust for sales.
• Trouble spots and history. Complaints grouped by the part owners chose when filing. The history grid counts complaints filed in each model year's first 3 years so older and newer years compare fairly; years with fewer than 3 complete years are marked too new.
• Named problems. Every one of the 160 complaints was researched and classified by its problems, severity, symptoms, repairs and any cost the owner mentions; the counts, costs and fix rates on this page are tallies of those classifications. Quotes are verbatim excerpts, checked against the original text. Engines are decoded from partial VINs with NHTSA's vPIC service.
• Repair costs and fix rates. Shown only when at least 10 owners report a repair cost, or at least 10 complaints describe whether a repair worked.
• Not adjusted for sales. Not affiliated with NHTSA. Page updated Oct 9, 2026.