2012 Hyundai Genesis Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2012 Genesis most often describe the car shutting off unexpectedly, either while pulling away at low speed, at a stop light, or at highway speed, and in many cases dealers were unable to reproduce it. A second long-running theme is the brake pedal traveling to the floorboard with reduced stopping power, sometimes after ABS activation and sometimes after the brake fluid recall service. Transmission complaints center on slipping, harsh or delayed shifts, usually between the lower gears.

1. 1
   Engine

   Engine stalls and shuts off while driving

   • 66 complaints (25%)
   • median 61,000 mi at 5.9 yrs old (62 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2013–2024

   Complaints describe the engine quitting without warning at low speeds, while turning, when slowing, or occasionally at highway speed, often with no warning light and sometimes with the dash lighting up as the engine dies. Owners say the car restarts after being shifted into park or neutral and restarted, and that the problem recurs. In several cases the dealer could not duplicate the stall or retrieve codes, cleaned the throttle body, or suggested it was normal; in other reports the cause was never found. Reported from roughly 35,000 to 150,000 miles, with many between 40,000 and 90,000 miles.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether any stalling has been reported or repaired and whether diagnostic codes were stored; a scan for historical codes and a test drive through stops and turns is worth doing before purchase.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My vechile stalls while driving at various times. This could cause a serious accident in which lives could be lost . This eems to be problem with the Genesis from 2012 to 2016 from my research. I am not the only owner with this problem . The dealers cant find the problem or why it is occuring . The dealers give you numerous reasons as to what might be the cause of this problem, but they are not sure . This could cost a consumer $1000 of dollars just to find out what the problem is . …”

   NHTSA complaint #11404651, filed 2021-03, 126,000 miles

   “This has been an ongoing issue, I know others have reported a similar problem. When coming to a stop in our 2012 Genesis 3.8l the engine will shut off without any warning. This has happened more than a dozen times at this point. My wife took it to the dealer who said this issue couldn't be duplicated. The car has died in traffic and when going around a curve. Power steering is lost when this occurs making it a bit nerve wracking. This is an issue Hyundai needs to address before someone is injured or worse.”

   NHTSA complaint #10992347, filed 2017-05, 90,158 miles
2. 2
   Brakes

   Brake pedal goes to the floor

   • 60 complaints (23%)
   • median 65,500 mi at 6.2 yrs old (53 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $2,600 (median of 5 quotes)
   • filed 2011–2026

   Owners describe pressing the brake and feeling the pedal sink to the floorboard with little or no stopping power, sometimes having to pump the pedal to slow the car. Several report it happened after ABS or stability control activation, and some report it after the dealer performed the brake fluid recall service on the hydraulic control unit. Dealers diagnosed the ABS hydraulic control unit, brake master cylinder, or brake booster in various cases, and in others no cause was found. Reported from about 25,000 to 181,000 miles, with many cases between 50,000 and 90,000 miles.

   Recall 13V4890005 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether recall 13V489000 was completed and whether the brake fluid was changed to DOT 4; check pedal feel at a stop and after a hard stop, and ask for any hydraulic control unit or master cylinder service records.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My ABS brake module failed on tuesday afternoon 12/13/17. I had very little braking power, pedal goes to the floor. I bought it to the dealer and they said the brake module needs to be replaced. We were going straight and almost hit the car in front of us. I bought the Genesis in oct. 2011 new. It is a 2012 with 32,789 miles.”

   NHTSA complaint #11062267, filed 2018-01, 32,789 miles

   “I was driving to my work. I saw red light signal and stepped on brake pedal. But the pedal just went down very softly without stopping my car. My car stopped after I pressed full force on brake pedal. By the time my car stopped it already passed 15 feet from the stop line where I had to stop.”

   NHTSA complaint #10993734, filed 2017-06, 35,000 miles
3. 3
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Harsh, delayed and slipping transmission shifts

   • 30 complaints (12%)
   • median 66,629 mi at 6.5 yrs old (25 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2013–2024

   Complaints describe the transmission slipping, revving without matching speed, jerking between gears, and hesitating on downshifts, mostly between the lower gears at low speeds. Some owners report the dealer reset adaptive values or updated software with little change, while others had the transmission replaced. A few describe a delay when pulling away that requires extra throttle before the car responds. Mostly reported between about 5,000 and 80,000 miles, often noticed at low speed in city driving.

   6 related service bulletins

   What to check: Test drive at low speed through 2-3 and 3-4 shifts, watch for flare or jerk, and ask whether the transmission fluid level was checked and whether any shift-quality software updates were applied.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The Hyundai Genesis has a transmission problem where it slips out of gear and rough shifts 2-3rd gear and 4-5th gear. I took the car to the dealer and they could not duplicate. They updated software, no change. I contacted Hyundai multiple times. I am second owner of vehicle with 45k on it. They would not honor factory warranty since I am second owner. The TSB no. 15-at-005 applies to this problem. The transmission should have been recalled instead of TSB.”

   NHTSA complaint #11395908, filed 2021-02, 45,000 miles

   “Hello, my 2012 Genesis sedan 5.0l r-spec only has 33k miles on it and I bought it at 21k. I am the 2nd owner and therefore technically outside of warranty, I know this. However, my Genesis' transmission has been experiencing rough and occasional slipping shifts every time I drive it. Through research amongst other owners of the same make and model, I have discovered that this issue is quite common in this model year car and that Hyundai has already replaced hundreds if not thousands of these faulty transmissions. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11183878, filed 2019-03, 31,000 miles
4. 4
   Exterior lighting

   Headlights flicker or cut out when signaling

   • 32 complaints (12%)
   • median 35,500 mi at 4.5 yrs old (30 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2013–2023

   Owners report the headlights flickering or turning off completely when the headlight switch is in the on position rather than auto, and that using the turn signal makes it worse. Several say moving or touching the turn signal stalk brings the lights back on. Dealers replaced a multi-function switch or a computer component in some cases, and in others the problem returned or was hard to reproduce. Mostly reported under 50,000 miles, with some as early as about 12,000 miles.

   What to check: Turn the lights on manually (not auto) and operate the turn signal at night to see whether the headlights flicker or drop out; ask whether the multi-function switch was replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When the headlight switch is in the on position, as opposed to auto, the headlights may occasionally flicker. This problem is exacerbated by using the turn signals. Sometimes the headlights turn off completely when the turn signal is activated and I have to move the turn signal stalk until the lights come back on. Again, this doesn't happen when the headlights are in auto. It's mostly noticeable in the rain when the headlights don't come on automatically and I have to turn them on manually. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11150190, filed 2018-11, 70,000 miles

   “When turn signal is turned on lights go off for 2 to 5 seconds seems to be getting worse, called dealer was told to bring in car for inspection, this is probably happening to other Genesis owners, have restricted my night driving due to safety concerns.”

   NHTSA complaint #10594970, filed 2014-05, 22,245 miles

Buying note. A 2012 Genesis can be a lot of car for the money, but the sample points to stalling, brake pedal sink and transmission shift complaints, so a pre-purchase inspection plus checks of the open recall work on the brakes and wiper motor are worthwhile. Ask for service records and test drive in stop-and-go traffic, including a few hard stops.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.