Hyundai’s 10-year/100,000-mile warranty can’t be trusted?

Oliver Sean Grant, a U.S. YouTuber with 2.25 million subscribers and fluent in Korean, publicly raised concerns about Hyundai after releasing a video describing inconsistent warranty explanations and repair guidance involving his 2020 Palisade.

Grant said he bought the vehicle five years ago and has driven it about 80,000 miles. While driving, he repeatedly heard a scraping noise, leading him to contact a service center. He was first told the problem was likely the upper insulator and that a free replacement could be done at a Hyundai dealership under warranty. He brought documentation to the dealer, but an employee allegedly said the repair was not eligible after checking the VIN and told him free service was not available. The video audio also captured the employee slamming paperwork down on a desk.

Grant said he called the service center again from a nearby parking lot and was told to contact the dealership manager directly. When he called the manager, the explanation changed again: the upper insulator was covered under warranty, but replacement required changing the attached shock absorber, which would cost the customer about $1,700.

Grant said he then contacted Hyundai Motor America. He reported long waits on the English support line, and said a Korean-language agent told him there was no record of the earlier warranty information and that they had not given such guidance. Grant questioned whether Palisade owners frequently face similar issues and expressed concern over possibly paying $1,700 every six months to a year for ongoing repairs.

The video, posted on November 21, exceeded 290,000 views and more than 1,700 comments by November 25 at 2 p.m. Many reactions were critical of Hyundai, including:

• “This is an international embarrassment.”
• “Even loyal customers will leave.”
• “I didn’t know Hyundai handled things like this overseas.”
• “Corporate support just sends customers in circles.”
• “It’s shocking that someone who once praised Hyundai like an advertisement had this experience.”

Auto outlet Carscoops reported in June that some Palisade owners raised concerns about rear suspension issues including shock leakage and noise, with related complaints filed with the NHTSA. According to that report, Hyundai said at the time that it was aware of customer concerns and was listening to feedback.

Separately, on November 21, protests took place at the LA Auto Show, an event drawing about 1 million visitors annually, where demonstrators called on Hyundai and Kia to improve labor practices involving underage labor and illegal work conditions.

BY HANKIL KANG [kang.hankil@koreadaily.com]