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2021 Hyundai Accent

Gas Compact car

2022202120202019201820172016
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
D
Safety Signal
68 / 100
DSafety Signal · 68 / 100
4Recalls · NHTSA campaigns
16Complaints · owner reports
4★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
36 mpgFuel economy · best combined

The 2021 Hyundai Accent is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact car with 2 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Accent, is EPA-rated at 36 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of D. Owners have filed 16 complaints, most often about wheels. NHTSA crash-tested it at 4 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
AccentGasFWD1.6L 4-cyl334136$1,750
AccentGasFWD1.6L 4-cyl293933$1,900

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

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Recalls (4)

Seat Belts

high
230,233 vehicles

Problem: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Accent, 2021-2022 Elantra, and 2021-2022 Elantra HEV vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioners may explode upon deployment.

Risk: An exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, strike vehicle occupants, and result in injury.

Fix: Dealers will secure the seat belt pretensioner(s) with a cap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 28, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 229. This recall expands and replaces NHTSA recall numbers 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-218, and 22V-123 for Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles. All Accent, Elantra, and Elantra HEV vehicles already repaired under the previous recalls will need to have the new r

NHTSA campaign 22V354000 · reported May 19, 2022 · Hyundai Motor America

Steering

high
2 vehicles

Problem: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Accent vehicles. A bolt in the steering column may not be secured properly, which can cause the steering column to detach from the steering rack and result in a loss of steering control.

Risk: Loss of steering control can increase the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will inspect and tighten the lower steering column u-joint retention bolt, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 5, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 226.

NHTSA campaign 22V311000 · reported May 6, 2022 · Hyundai Motor America

Seat Belts

high
354 vehicles

Problem: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Accent vehicles. In the event of a crash, the front driver-side and/or passenger-side seat belt pretensioner(s) may explode upon deployment.

Risk: An exploding seat belt pretensioner can project metal fragments into the vehicle, striking vehicle occupants and resulting in injury.

Fix: Dealers will replace the seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 24, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 219. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall number 21V-796. This recall is replaced by NHTSA recall number 22V-354. Vehicles already repaired under this recall will need to have the new remedy completed.

NHTSA campaign 22V069000 · reported Feb 9, 2022 · Hyundai Motor America

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

high
76 vehicles

Problem: Hyundai Motor America (Hyundai) is recalling certain 2021 Accent vehicles. The brake master cylinder may have been manufactured with sharp edges that can damage the inner oil seal, resulting in reduced braking performance.

Risk: Reduced braking performance can cause longer brake pedal travel or extend the distance required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will replace the brake master cylinder, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 10, 2022. Owners may contact Hyundai customer service at 1-855-371-9460. Hyundai's number for this recall is 213.

NHTSA campaign 21V937000 · reported Dec 2, 2021 · Hyundai Motor America

NHTSA investigations

Seat Belts:Pretensioner — Seat Belt Pretensioners May Rupture (closed)

On August 8, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Recall Query (RQ) based on 3 incidents alleging front seat belt pretensioners that may rupture during deployment, on model year (MY) 2020-2022 of various Hyundai and Kia Models, resulting in 3 injuries (note: one incident occurred outside the U.S. and its territories).Between October 2021 and March 2023, Hyundai and Kia have filed the following 11 safety recalls for pretensioner rupture: NHTSA Recall No. 21V-796, 22V-069, 22V-123, 22V-127, 22V-218, 22V-354, 22V-447, 22V-458, 22V-816, 23V-094, and 23V-210.Hyundai/Kia have stated that the abnormal deployment of the pretensioners is due to over-pressurization of the preten

Opened Aug 8, 2022 · closed May 26, 2023 · action RQ22003

Owner complaints

16 complaints filed

0 involved a crash, 1 a fire, 1 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2021: 1 · 2022: 7 · 2023: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2025: 2

Most-cited components

  • Wheels — 8
  • Seat Belts — 6
  • Engine — 4
  • Electrical System — 2
  • Steering — 1
“My 2021 Hyundai accent has randomly not started a in more than 10 different times. The lights go on and you can hear it trying to start but it never catches to actually start. It’s under warranty but the dealer says if they can’t see it when it’s happening then they can’t fix anything. I bought a new battery wi…”Nov 21, 2023 · Engine · NHTSA owner report
“This is the fourth lugnut/stud that has failed. This time it was during routine maintenance at an authorized dealership during tire rotation.”Apr 22, 2023 · Wheels · NHTSA owner report
“Fifth lug nut failure within a span of less than 6 months. Today during winter to summer tire snow change, front passenger side lug nut broke while it was being removed. This is the 4th incident in my vehicle with regards to the lug nuts. Less than two weeks ago, during routine maintenance at a Hyundai dealership, anot…”Apr 22, 2023 · Wheels · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
4 DR FWD★★★★☆★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★☆11%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.

Other Accent model years

B

2022 Accent

2 recalls · 16 complaints

C

2020 Accent

4 recalls · 12 complaints

A

2019 Accent

1 recalls · 30 complaints

A

2018 Accent

1 recalls · 19 complaints

A

2017 Accent

0 recalls · 68 complaints

A

2016 Accent

0 recalls · 100 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 42660, 42661). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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