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Chloride, AZ Car Consumer Discussions

Re: BRAKE WARNING TO HYUNDAI OWNERS (ESP. IF YOU HAVE A SONATA) [djado_yotso]

by cathandler on Fri Oct 30 18:48:39 PDT 2009

I had much the same issue as many of you and got it taken care of today. I was experiencing a squeal from the left rear wheel that went away when the brakes were applied. That same wheel would become noticeably hot to the touch after a lengthy drive. With 11,400 on the odometer of my '09 GLS 4cyl I arrived at the dealership with some trepidation. They determined that the brake was sticking and the pads were damaged. They replaced the pads, resurfaced the rotors, and lubricated the pins and slides, all at no charge under the factory warranty (they may have done more, but it wasn't specified in the paperwork I received.) The service writer advised me that premature rust was a big issue with the rear brake hardware due to the highly corrosive calcium chloride solution being applied to roads during the winter driving season; he said the front wheels splash the crud onto the rear wheels. That, plus the front brakes do 80% of the work so the rear brakes are particularly susceptible to this kind of chronic problem. I guess I consider myself lucky for having it done under warranty, but it looks like the brakes will be a money pit post-warranty unless materials less susceptible to road salt-related damage are developed by Hyundai or the aftermarket.

BRAKE WARNING TO HYUNDAI OWNERS (ESP. IF YOU HAVE A SONATA)

by jessc on Fri Oct 30 07:55:08 PDT 2009

I have an 07 Sonata, bought new from the dealer 2.5 years ago. I've always taken it to Hyundai dealers only and on time for routine maintenance. The rear brake pads were replaced in July 08. In February 09, my car had the 30K mile service done (it was actually done at 32K miles because they said with my oil change timing I could wait until then), at which time the front brakes were measured at 60% remaining and rear had 90% remaining. Fast forward to September/October and less than 7K miles later (mostly highway driving by the way, involving much less braking than city driving), and the car was making an awful noise so I took it into the dealership ASAP where I live now in MA and get this --- the front was measuring at 25-30% remaining and the rear was as follows -- ZERO% remaining on one rear side and the other side had 70% pad remaining but that is because it was IMMOBILE in the caliper... in other words, it was not functioning causing the other rear side to wear down to metal-on-metal and wearing the front pads down too. That is frightening that I basically did not have any properly functioning rear brakes for a significant period of time unbeknownst to me!!! Thank god nothing bad happened and the only thing was damage to the car. The rear brakes and rotors were, needless to say, totally destroyed and had to be replaced. This is the part you should be warned about and the reason that I am posting this message-- The dealership that I bought the car from in Pittsburgh said that Hyundai corporation is fully aware that there are two major problems with its brake systems (especially including the Sonatas) 1) like in my case, where the brakes become immobile in the caliper and do not work or 2) the pads stick to the rotors and don't release and wear down to nothing that way. The dealer said that Hyundai refuses to issue a recall or even a TSB bulletin on the issue, instead they have some crappy "goodwill unofficial warranty" that if this happens to your car in the first 2 years or 24K miles they will fix the problem for free. Can you say hush money for not reporting the problem? My car is only 2.5 years old, and the Pittsburgh dealership was upset for me about this, so they contacted their Hyundai rep who is trying to contact the rep here in MA to take care of the issue for me. It cost me $500, hopefully I will get reimbursed. I reported this problem online to the NHTSA, and if this problem has happened to you also you should report it because the more reports they get, the more likely they are to do something about it! It is just plain frightening to me that the dealers admit that Hyundai corporation knows about these brake problems, that they happen often, and they aren't doing anything about it. Regardless of a recall etc., they should at least have the decency and sense of responsibility to tell us car owners that this problem is out there so that we can be proactive and get out brakes looked at every so often to catch things while the pads can still be replaced and avoid having to pay for all new pads and new rotors. The dealership here in MA thinks that the reason they aren't doing a recall or TSB is because this might be a regional thing linked to areas that get a lot of snow (calcium chloride on the road). Regardless, Hyundai should be telling us consumers who live in these areas to be vigilant about our brake systems!! The dealership here implemented a service that they now offer to check your brakes and calipers every X-thousand of miles. Hyundai should be telling all the dealerships to do this at the very least. BE WARNED AND VIGILANT ABOUT CHECKING YOUR BRAKES!

Re: Irony [gagrice]

by steve_ on Sun Aug 16 15:17:01 PDT 2009

There has been an increase in most wild life Not in Prince William Sound where a boatload of Prudhoe Bay oil was dumped. :P Big ol' Texas is: #1 in the Emission of Ozone Causing Air Pollution Chemicals #1 in Toxic Chemical releases into the Air #1 in use of Deep Well Injectors as method of Waste Disposal #1 in counties listed in top 20 of Emitting Cancer Causing Chemicals #1 in Total Number of Hazardous Waste Incinerators #1 in Environmental Justice Title 6 complaints #1 in production of Cancer causing Benzene & Vinyl Chloride #1 Largest Sludge Dump in Country Someone has to complain - the locals are too sick to. (source)

Re: Airflow and TL [Chasboy]

by cebteb on Sat Jul 25 11:40:29 PDT 2009

Wouldn't a clear bra be an appropriate protection for the "blade" and the rest of the forward facing elements of the TL? I have one on the front of my 2003 Olds Bravada, including over some chromed areas, and it has done a great job for 6 years plus even though it is subjected to winter trips up the mountains for skiing (i.e., lots of Mag-Chloride and sand/gravel).

Re: EV charging station with credit card slot [larsb]

by gagrice on Sat May 16 17:21:10 PDT 2009

What is more interesting to me is the Smart ED (EV) being charged. Why don't we have those in the USA? We did not get the Smart diesel capable of 70+ MPG. Now other countries have the Smart electric powered by sodium-nickel chloride Zebra batteries. I don't think the US or state governments want what they say they want. Less use of fossil fuel. I don't like the meter idea either. I would not be taking off cross country in a vehicle with a 62 mile range. Drive for an hour charge for 8 hours. No thanks, I will charge my EV overnight in my driveway. Don't hold your breath on seeing any for a good long while. The EPA and CARB and the Tax collectors will all have a say on when they are sold in the USA. There are at least 10 EVs built world wide capable of highway speeds. NONE are allowed in the USA, except the $100k Tesla. Political talk is cheap. Politicians are not cheap.

Re: Oh I dont know... [iluvmysephia1]

by steve_ on Sun Apr 12 12:13:27 PDT 2009

The electric power has to come from somewhere. There's no free lunch. If you are going to cut oil out, you better find a good source of solar or wind or geothermal or tidal. Or live with ruined mountaintops and dirty air from "clean coal", or the risk of tritium, iodine-129, strontium-90, technetium-99, sodium, chloride, nitrate, uranium, radioactive americium, cesium, potassium, and radium getting into your aquifer from nukes, as has already happened here in Idaho (INL). And you don't even want to think about running electric generation plants with oil from shale. You want lights or drinking water? Oil drilled from the ground has its own set of issues, but it's a stable technology with an infrastructure in place that is going to run its course until it's uneconomical to do so. The best jump in propulsion from that standpoint is a new pair of sneakers. Maybe that's the idea in DC - make cars such a hassle we'll all walk or take the bus? I love Sunday morning rants. :)