2021 Hyundai Palisade Reliability Report

Child safety locks fail repeatedly. The rear doors click through lock cycles over and over, then a "Child safety lock failure" message appears and the rear doors and windows stay usable by children. One owner reports onset around 11,000 miles, and dealers often cannot reproduce the fault. Other reports cover wiper motors binding in snow despite a recall, trailer hitch fuse removal tied to a fire-risk recall, engine shutdowns at highway speed, and doors that won't unlock. One side-impact crash ended in an immediate fire.

Rear shocks and their upper insulators wear out early. Owners describe popping or clunking from the rear over bumps and in turns, plus a bouncy, unstable ride, and some note leaking shocks. Failures cluster between roughly 33,000 and 84,000 miles, and several owners have had the rear shocks replaced more than once. Owners point to service bulletin 22-SS-001H, though one dealer called it rescinded. Many repairs land just past warranty, and one dealer quoted $2000. Some drivers report reduced control over bumps at speed.

Oil disappears fast, sometimes a quart or more every few hundred miles. Owners find the dipstick nearly dry well before the next oil change, often with no low-oil warning first. Once oil runs low, the motor runs rough, stutters, loses power, or stalls in traffic, and some have needed replacement. Reports cluster around 90,000 miles. Dealers often require repeated oil consumption tests before acting, and some second owners report being denied coverage. Oil filter housing leaks and coolant leaks with cabin fumes also appear.

Heavy oil consumption leads to misfires, knocking, and sudden loss of power, with internal engine failure reported around 86,000 miles and beyond. AWD complaints are the other major thread. The AWD coupler fails with clunking and hesitation when pulling out, sometimes more than once, and an HTRAC warning can leave the car running in front-wheel drive only. Some owners report a vibration between 62 and 73 mph that driveshaft and differential replacements did not cure. Transmission jerking, hesitation, and full replacement also appear.

Sunroof glass shatters without warning, usually at highway speed with no impact. A closed shade typically keeps the glass out of the cabin, but the debris can scratch the roof. Other sunroofs come off their tracks, stick open, and need taping down, and some VINs are left out of the coverage the dealer describes. One owner reports a deep cut from a sharp lower door edge. Scattered reports cover loose door trim, a cracked side window, a lingering chemical odor, and push-button shifter confusion.

Almost all of these complaints are about recall 22V633000, not hitch failures on the road. Owners got the recall notice, but the repair parts were unavailable for a long time. As an interim fix, dealers pulled the tow hitch module fuse, which disables towing, and some dealers declined even that. Owners say the wait has run too long and the manufacturer offers little help. In one case, pulling the fuse also knocked out the exterior lights. None of these owners reports a hitch fire.

Both reports come from crashes, with four injuries between them. In one frontal collision, the passenger airbag appears to deploy upward into the windshield instead of toward the passenger, and the windshield shatters into the cabin. In the other, a severe driver-side impact totals the vehicle, but no airbags deploy, side airbags included. That is too few reports to show a pattern, but both describe the restraint system not protecting occupants the way it should.