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2021 Hyundai Elantra

HybridGas
Midsize Cars
6 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11
F
Safety Signal
44 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record
RecallsNHTSA campaigns7
Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA158
Crash ratingNHTSA overall5★
Fuel economybest combined, EPA54 mpg
20262025202420232022202120202019201820172016

The 2021 Hyundai Elantra is sold in the U.S. as a hybrid and gas midsize car with 6 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Elantra Hybrid Blue, is EPA-rated at 54 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 158 complaints, most often about the forward collision avoidance. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
Elantra Hybrid BlueHybridFWD1.6L 4-cyl + 240V Li-Ion535654$1,150
Elantra HybridHybridFWD1.6L 4-cyl + 240V Li-Ion495250$1,250
ElantraGasFWD2.0L 4-cyl334337$1,700
ElantraGasFWD2.0L 4-cyl314135$1,800
ElantraGasFWD1.6L 4-cyl turbo283631$2,000
ElantraGasFWD1.6L 4-cyl turbo253428$2,250

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 43613, 43612, 43047, 43046, 43446, 43447.

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Recalls (7)

Source: NHTSA recall database
▲high

Back Over Prevention

271
226,118 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Santa Fe, Santa Fe HEV, Elantra, Elantra HEV and 2022 Elantra N and Santa Fe PHEV vehicles. Due to a damaged printed circuit board, the rearview camera image may fail to display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."RiskA rearview image that does not display reduces the driver's visibility and increases the risk of a crash.FixDealers will replace the rearview camera, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2025. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 271.
NHTSA campaign 24V879000reported Nov 21, 2024Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Electrical System

248
37,997 vehiclesHybrid only
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Elantra HEV vehicles. A software error in the motor control unit may cause unintended vehicle acceleration after the brake pedal is released.RiskUnintended vehicle acceleration can increase the risk of a crash.FixDealers will update the motor control unit software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 29, 2023. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 248.
NHTSA campaign 23V589000reported Aug 18, 2023Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Seat Belts

229
230,233 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Accent, 2021-2022 Elantra, and 2021-2022 Elantra HEV vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.RiskAn exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.FixDealers will secure the seat belt pretensioner(s) with a cap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 28, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 229. This recall expands and replaces NHTSA recall numbers 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-218, and 22V-123 for Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles. All Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles already repaired under the previous recalls will need to have the new r
NHTSA campaign 22V354000reported May 19, 2022Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Seat Belts

223
6,240 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Elantra and 2020 Accent vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver and passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.RiskExploding seat belt pretensioners can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.FixDealers will replace the seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. Interim notification letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed on May 31, 2022. A second notice will be sent once remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 223. This recall is replaced by NHTSA recall number 22V-354. Vehicles already repaired under this recall will need to have the new remedy completed.
NHTSA campaign 22V218000reported Apr 1, 2022Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Visibility

216
26,413 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Santa Fe, 2021 Sonata, and Elantra vehicles. During manufacturing, the windshield may not have been properly bonded to the vehicle, allowing it to detach in a crash.RiskA windshield that detaches from a vehicle during a crash can increase the risk of injury.FixDealers will remove and reinstall the front windshield panel, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 20, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 216.
NHTSA campaign 21V00M000reported Dec 28, 2021Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Seat Belts

211/009G
978 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021 Elantra, Elantra HEV, Venue, Genesis GV80 and 2022 Genesis GV70 vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioner(s) may explode upon deployment.RiskAn exploding seat belt pretensioner could project metal fragments into the vehicle, striking vehicle occupants and resulting in injury.FixDealers will replace the seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's numbers for this recall are 211 and 009G. This recall is replaced by NHTSA recall numbers 22V-354 for Elantra and Elantra HEV vehicles, 22V-458 for Venue vehicles, and 23V-094 for Genesis vehicles. Elantra, Elantra HEV, Venue, and Genesis vehicles already repaired under this recall will need to hav
NHTSA campaign 21V796000reported Oct 13, 2021Hyundai Motor America
▲high

Seats

204
1,464 vehicles
ProblemHyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021 Elantra vehicles. The driver and front passenger seat back recliners may have been improperly welded.RiskAn improperly welded seat back recliner could separate from the seat back frame during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.FixDealers will inspect and if necessary, replace the seat back frame assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on June 21, 2021. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-888-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 204.
NHTSA campaign 21V302000reported Apr 28, 2021Hyundai Motor America

NHTSA defect investigations

Electrical System:Propulsion System — Pedestrian alert sounds closed

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Aug 7, 2023 · action DP22005

Engine — Loss of Motive Power closed

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a letter dated July 13, 2022, petitioning the Agency to initiate a safety defect investigation into loss of motive power allegations attributed to oil drain pan assembly failures on certain Hyundai Motor America, Inc. and Kia America, Inc. vehicles spanning Model Years (MY) 2005-2021. The Petitioners cited examples of complaints indicating that the subject vehicles were experiencing rapid loss of engine oil due to oil drain plug back outs, resulting in loss of motive power and/or catastrophic engine damage. Additional complaints were provided which alleged that the oil drain pans lack sufficient structural integrity and are

Opened Sep 12, 2022 · closed Dec 12, 2023 · action DP22003

Seat Belts:Pretensioner — Seat Belt Pretensioners May Rupture closed

On August 8, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Recall Query (RQ) based on 3 incidents alleging front seat belt pretensioners that may rupture during deployment, on model year (MY) 2020-2022 of various Hyundai and Kia Models, resulting in 3 injuries (note: one incident occurred outside the U.S. and its territories).Between October 2021 and March 2023, Hyundai and Kia have filed the following 11 safety recalls for pretensioner rupture: NHTSA Recall No. 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-123, 22V-127, 22V-218, 22V-354, 22V-447, 22V-458, 22V-816, 23V-094, and 23V-210.Hyundai/Kia have stated that the abnormal deployment of the pretensioners is due to over-pressurization of the preten

Opened Aug 8, 2022 · closed May 26, 2023 · action RQ22003

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database
158complaints filed

8 involved a crash · 1 a fire · 3 injuries · 1 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2021: 13 · 2022: 50 · 2023: 39 · 2024: 24 · 2025: 18 · 2026: 14

Most-cited components

Forward Collision Avoidance57
Electrical System41
Unspecified33
Seat Belts27
Engine21
Vehicle Speed Control20

What owners describe

“I keep getting intermittent HEV warnings and 12-volt light. The engine then shuts down and I have no power. This has occurred several times while on the highway and this creates a safety hazard. I have been fortunate enough that this happened while I was close to the shoulder, otherwise, it could have been critical. - …”Nov 7, 2023 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report
“This is my second time contact and reporting this issue about the vehicle surging unexpectedly and you cannot get it to slow down except by keeping your foot on the brake and pulling off the road. This has happened multiple times since I have had this vehicle. Recently, I had the car in for service and they said they d…”Oct 21, 2023 · Engine · NHTSA owner report
“My 2021 Hyunadai Elantra HEV Blue 12v battery light comes on and I lose power to the engine and all internal electrical components. It has happened while driving on the highway and it is a safety concern. I have addressed it with the dealership and they stated there were no codes and they canot replicate.”Aug 30, 2023 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP
ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
4 DR FWD★★★★★★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★10%
4 DR FWD★★★★★★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★10%
4 DR FWD★★★★★★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★10%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: lane departure warning.

Compare the 2021 Elantra with

2021 Toyota Camry →2021 Honda Civic →

Other Elantra model years

C

2026 Hyundai Elantra

2 recalls · 3 complaints

C

2025 Hyundai Elantra

2 recalls · 33 complaints

C

2024 Hyundai Elantra

2 recalls · 59 complaints

D

2023 Hyundai Elantra

4 recalls · 165 complaints

F

2022 Hyundai Elantra

8 recalls · 155 complaints

D

2020 Hyundai Elantra

3 recalls · 255 complaints

B

2019 Hyundai Elantra

1 recalls · 263 complaints

A

2018 Hyundai Elantra

1 recalls · 330 complaints

D

2017 Hyundai Elantra

4 recalls · 790 complaints

B

2016 Hyundai Elantra

2 recalls · 299 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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