2013 Sonata. Suddenly Very Dark Oil

[Robster]

Originally Posted by Brigadier
Originally Posted by Robster




I agree with wemay on this one. It seems like I find myself defending Hyundai more than I should have to on this forum--I'd expect BITOG to be more aware of real trends vs. internet lore. Hyundai has had some engine recalls. . . but it's not over-represented statistically compared to other OEMs. I'm on my third Hyundai and have had zero serious issues with any of them--first one had the 3.3 V6, last one was the 2.0T, and now I'm on the 2.4L. I'm not concerned about longevity with Hyundai. The other thing I see often repeated is that Hyundai gives everyone a hard time about warranty claims--I've had few issues, but the ones I've had were dealt with "no questions asked" and quickly.


I am new to Hyundai, and I have been researching their honoring of warranties. It seems to me they are excellent in honoring warranty claims until it comes to engine issues. Then they seem to put the brakes on it.



If the powertrain is still under warranty, they'll check to see that it was properly maintained (like any other manufacturer). If you can't provide proof of your routine maintenance, that's on you not Hyundai. Every account I've seen online about powertrain warranty work in which reasonable documentation was provided, the work was done without a hassle. People with poorly kept or no records were justifiably denied in my opinion.

 

[Robster]

Originally Posted by Robster
Originally Posted by Brigadier
Originally Posted by Robster




I agree with wemay on this one. It seems like I find myself defending Hyundai more than I should have to on this forum--I'd expect BITOG to be more aware of real trends vs. internet lore. Hyundai has had some engine recalls. . . but it's not over-represented statistically compared to other OEMs. I'm on my third Hyundai and have had zero serious issues with any of them--first one had the 3.3 V6, last one was the 2.0T, and now I'm on the 2.4L. I'm not concerned about longevity with Hyundai. The other thing I see often repeated is that Hyundai gives everyone a hard time about warranty claims--I've had few issues, but the ones I've had were dealt with "no questions asked" and quickly.


I am new to Hyundai, and I have been researching their honoring of warranties. It seems to me they are excellent in honoring warranty claims until it comes to engine issues. Then they seem to put the brakes on it.



If the powertrain is still under warranty, they'll check to see that it was properly maintained (like any other manufacturer). If you can't provide proof of your routine maintenance, that's on you not Hyundai. Every account I've seen online about powertrain warranty work in which reasonable documentation was provided, the work was done without a hassle. People with poorly kept or no records were justifiably denied in my opinion.


. . .also, Hyundai now provides you with a maintenance record (booklet) with your new vehicle to help keep your maintenance records--just do the service, log it in the booklet and staple the receipt to the page--done deal. It's not hard to do. My system is a little more elaborate, involves spreadsheets and scanning receipts to PDFs, but it's all the same as long as you do it!

 

[supton]

Sudden change would bother me. That with the history of engine problems. It might be a sign... Then again, it seems Hyundai has been taking care of the problem, so I don't think I'd be quick to get rid of the car. Maybe just do an oil analysis and inspect the oil filter while at it, looking for metal shavings.

 

[Driz]

Originally Posted by StevieC
My sister has beaten the absolute snot out of her Hyundai Elantras and is now on her 3rd one. And 0 issues, and believe me it would have shown up in her vehicles if it were a problem. All on dino bulk oil. All have made it well past junk points for most vehicles. I've talked about this before.

Did they have some issues with some engines? Yes,
Is it the norm? NO! Is it still happening? NO! Should we crucify them because they had some issues like all OE's do? NO!



Ok you guys you can think as you like about these cars . I do suggest you do some serious looking around.before you think I'm exaggerating the troubles with these. I'm just not going to hit the whole history of this little problem even though I loosely know most of it. Its long and sordid and as yet no one has seemingly found out the issue. Strange though I do recall seeing a little jingle headline somewhere last week stating that Hyundai's budgeted 800 million for replacements warranty engines Isn't gonna be enough.🤗. Funny also just last week.I watched and Elantra ticking away as it drove byin a parking lot . My daughter said listen to that thing banging away.. He probably thinks he needs a valve adjusted.............
Anyways you are free to think as you like about it all. I would suggest digging into the Hyundai forums. You won't like what you see if you own one. Steve take special notice being Canadian. They have their own thread going and its long and ugly. You really won't like that one as your limp consumer laws are being taken full advantage of by Hyundai. Better tell your sister to treat hers right and keep all those records. Its all there 9 years worth of busted con rods,spun bearings, law suits, recalls and warranty engines. I really wish I didn't know this stuff I truly do.
Back to my concerns which by now you can see are valid. Mine never did get even close to that foul dark prior to this . I play in all my own oil as well as the entire families so I get a good look at it. I even had a catch can on it during that time in the attempt to mitigate the well known GDI valve stem deposits. Nothing grand there just a quarter inch of oil and watery goo. The only thing I wonder is if the catch can could possibly be causing it though I can't see how. I'll definitely be keeping an eye for further developments.

 

[DoubleWasp]

A failing rod bearing won't turn your oil black. Even once it's so bad that it sounds like a 2-stroke diesel.

My experience has been that reports of engines having a proclivity toward death are usually true. I'm not one to automatically believe the rumors, though. Always independently verify.

Take the deniers with a grain of salt too. There I places I go where I still run into people who swear the Powerstroke 6.0 had no more problems than any other diesel engine.

 

[StevieC]

Originally Posted by Driz
Originally Posted by StevieC
My sister has beaten the absolute snot out of her Hyundai Elantras and is now on her 3rd one. And 0 issues, and believe me it would have shown up in her vehicles if it were a problem. All on dino bulk oil. All have made it well past junk points for most vehicles. I've talked about this before.

Did they have some issues with some engines? Yes,
Is it the norm? NO! Is it still happening? NO! Should we crucify them because they had some issues like all OE's do? NO!

Ok you guys you can think as you like about these cars . I do suggest you do some serious looking around.before you think I'm exaggerating the troubles with these. I'm just not going to hit the whole history of this little problem even though I loosely know most of it. Its long and sordid and as yet no one has seemingly found out the issue. Strange though I do recall seeing a little jingle headline somewhere last week stating that Hyundai's budgeted 800 million for replacements warranty engines Isn't gonna be enough.🤗. Funny also just last week.I watched and Elantra ticking away as it drove byin a parking lot . My daughter said listen to that thing banging away.. He probably thinks he needs a valve adjusted.............
Anyways you are free to think as you like about it all. I would suggest digging into the Hyundai forums. You won't like what you see if you own one. Steve take special notice being Canadian. They have their own thread going and its long and ugly. You really won't like that one as your limp consumer laws are being taken full advantage of by Hyundai. Better tell your sister to treat hers right and keep all those records. Its all there 9 years worth of busted con rods,spun bearings, law suits, recalls and warranty engines. I really wish I didn't know this stuff I truly do.
Back to my concerns which by now you can see are valid. Mine never did get even close to that foul dark prior to this . I play in all my own oil as well as the entire families so I get a good look at it. I even had a catch can on it during that time in the attempt to mitigate the well known GDI valve stem deposits. Nothing grand there just a quarter inch of oil and watery goo. The only thing I wonder is if the catch can could possibly be causing it though I can't see how. I'll definitely be keeping an eye for further developments.

Noted... Hasn't been our families experience up here is all, maybe my Sister was lucky with hers. She currently drives one of these affected models but is living in Dubai. It sees it's fair share of extreme heat and lack of maintenance there and it has been fine, she is over 130K KM now. (81K miles).

 

[wemay]

Haters vs Deniers

The truth is somewhere in the middle.

 

[KrisZ]

If the oil suddenly turned dark after just 800 miles, when this didn't happen before on my car, I would take notice and bring this up to to my local dealer so it gets documented with Hyundai.

 

[dishdude]

Agree with sampling the oil and seeing what the UOA says, otherwise it's just a guess. For an engine with known issues and still under warranty, it would be money well spent.

 

[The Critic]

This one is covered by the 10/120K (or longer) warranty extension so I really would not worry about it. Just make sure your maintenance records are in order and take the car to the dealer if a catastrophic failure occurs.

 

[Driz]

That's exactly why I'm not bothering with oil analysis. What good would it do and besides I know I'll get that free engine . The thing that bugs me is the thought that it will be the same old thing as the other one.
When you read around you'll find all the comments and service bulletins concerning this series of engines. What you won't find is that aha moment where they found and fixed the problem. In fact they ruined the one Hyundai engineer who brought forward the problem then got the Korean government after him as well. Along the way their was the aftermarket oil filter warranty denials and fighting warranty replacements tooth and nail until the class action then the safety recall because the power electric steering goes partially out when the engine cages. That was the justification it was based on, oh well...£.
I don't mean to rain on anybody's parade here or goad them by telling them they bought a crappy car but yea the potential for that seriously is there. Remember, I've been following this since early 2013 and I've learned a lot in that time. I went from feeling like I'd dodged the bullet with the engine millings through the dead Elantra and it's noisey replacement. Then the goat rodeo trying to install the wrong engine, busting the coolant tank and alternator to garbage trade in value. A lot of it seems to hinge on the dealership and how Hyundai pays mechanics to install them. Very shoddy is all I can say for our experience. I can say for certain you don't want to go anywhere near one of these once they are getting 🤔shall we say 🤫 mature . You're quite likely to find yourself between a rock and a hard place owing far more than the car is worth holding a loan! I'm sure the used market is full of them at bargain basement prices.

 

[wemay]

Hopefully it all works out and you and your daughter put this frustrating experience in the rear-view mirror.
All the best.