Hyundai "Tech Line" (California) Is Worthless!

[ctrcbob]

Let me start off by saying that my Selling Dealer Service Department is GREAT. Their Genesis Technician and the two Service Writers I work with are great, and they all treat me like a king. I have issues with the guys at the Hyundai Tech Line in California, who get contacted by local dealer technicians. I've seen this before, (with Honda) and now I'm seeing this with Hyundai, and the things they want my Genesis Technician to do to correct my "issues". Last thing they wanted my Tech to do was to make sure all the electrical grounds were making good contact and tight. If Tech Line can't give good information to my dealer tech, who can?

1. NO AUDIO - The one issue that MUST BE FIXED, (and I know that Hyundai Tech Line knows about it because others have had the exact same problem) is sometimes, when I start the car, the Audio does not come on. No AM/FM/CD/ETC. In order to get the Audio to come on, the ignition must be shut off, for a few minutes. After a few minutes, turn the ignition back on, and all Audio again works as it should. (If ignition turned off, then back on right away, the Audio stays off). This is something that MUST BE FIXED because the audio for the Bluetooth also will not work, and if I get a phone call, I will not be able to hear the person who calls me. Never happens on first start in the morning, but only after the car has been sitting in the sun and something "heats up" causing the malfunction. (Amplifier in trunk hot trunk?????) This it the most important thing that MUST BE FIXED.

2. NO DOOR UNLOCK WITH DOOR BUTTON - This issue is one that I can live with, but SHOULD BE FIXED. Others have had the same problem. When I go to unlock the car using the button on the door handle, nothing. No "beep", no unlock, nothing. To unlock the car, I must either dig into my pocket, get out the key fob, and hit the unlock button there, or go to the passenger side of car and unlock from passenger door button, or use the emergency key that slides into the key fob. This is now happening often enough (and it is happening OFTEN) that I see a pattern. Always happens when car is PARKED IN DIRECT SUNSHINE, and the SUN IS DIRECTLY ON DRIVERS DOOR. I'm sure that the controller, inside the driver door gets over heated and causes the problem. Again, I can live with it, (or always park with the door in the shade <grin>), but it SHOULD BE FIXED.

3. I've had other things happen, but I can live with them as they are rare, and correct themselves quick, without having to wait a long time.

Yesterday, I phoned my favorate Service Writer and "suggested" that he have the Genesis Technician contact Hyundai Tech Line in California as I had both the problems show up yesterday. BOTH PROBLEMS, and I'm getting tired of the lame things Hyundai Tech Line comes up with. Dealer techs can't be expected to see, or know all the problems that show up in various cars, however manufacturer Tech Lines "should" know about all the problems that dealer techs questioned them about. I know my dealer Service Writer, and/or the Genesis Tech will phone me whatever they learned. They've done it before, and like I said before, they do treat me like a king.

 

[moose66]

ctrcbob, everything needs to be fixed! Not sure I can side with the "live with" comment. And I imagine you are just trying to stay grounded when you say that! We have brand freaking new cars! Hopefully the tech team will get their act together and handle your gremlins. And log it in the database for those of us who experience them down the road!

 

[ImInPA]

Bob - Firstly, I think Hyundai must fix these issues. Period. The quality of the treatment you are receiving is a testimony to how important customer service is. I have a buddy that has owned SAABs for as long as I can remember. He always has quirky things go wrong with them, however, the SAAB dealer treats him very well, never makes him feel like he is a complainer, and makes every effort to fix the problems. I always rib him about the problems he has with his SAABs, but, he is very quick to point out to me that he knows the dealer will address the issues and will make him satisfied. His loyalty to SAAB is directly related to the dealership experience and obviously not due to the quality of the vehicle.

 

[ctrcbob]

Took my wife out for supper late this afternoon. Parked the car with the driver door facing the sun on purpose. Came out a little later, and sure enough, door would not unlock with the door button. This was the third time today. I now know that this will happen whenever the door is facing the sun, and the door gets hot. Sure, I can still unlock with the fob button, but thats not the point. Whenever I return to my dealer, I will park with the door facing the sun and have the Genesis Tech come out and do whatever test Hyundai Tech Line tells him to do. Like I said before, although I can live with it, it should still be corrected (probably by replacing whatever is in the door that gets overheated). This did happen once before at the dealership, and one of the Service Writers saw it, and documented it, however the Genesis Technician was on vacation that day, so we did nothing about it that day.

The problem that MUST get fixed is when I get no audio. I expect my dealer to phone me sometime this week to tell me what "Tech Line" said to them.

 

[JamesD]

You guys are scaring the cr*p out of me. I am all set to buy a '10 when they hit, but after following these forums for a couple of months, it is obvious that these cars are not fully matured. There is a clear pattern of underdevelopment in the electrical equipment; I know something about this, having developed electronic products for over 20 years. Many of the cars' systems are apparently just not robust (nor are the Manufacturer's, vis-a-vis the Tech Line referenced here).

I am trading up from my 2000 Acura TL w/nav. It has over 150K miles on it; in the 9 years since I picked it up, it has been to the dealer 4 times, 3 of the visits being for scheduled maintenance. The only thing that has ever failed on the car was the transmission, at 120K miles, and for which Honda picked up 3/4 of the tab, even though it was out of their secret warranty, because they had fleet problems with them. I always got a free loaner car. That thing was built right here in Marysville, Ohio. I've kept the car for so long mainly because it has been such a fabulous ownership experience.

If Acura had anything I was interested in, I'd do business with them again in a heartbeat. But I've gotten spoiled by the quality of that car. Nothing unexpected has occurred, ever. Even the nav has always worked perfectly; it was the first DVD-based model on the market, and it's still got a better UI than most current models I've played with.

I realize that the Genesis has another layer of technical complexity on top of my dated Acura, but so does my girlfriend's '07 Lexus, which has been similarly trouble free. I'm also aware that many upscale brands, particularly the Germans, have their own share of problems. But I'm going to have to reconsider this. Hyundai definitely has a future in this market, but there's no substitute for the years of experience that the best players bring to the table. If I bought a sedan and it caused me this kind of grief, both major and minor, I would not consider that "trading up."

 

[dataguy]

Not dismissing Bob's problem or anyone else's, I'd hardly say there's any pattern emerging yet. I fully expect Bob's issues to be resolved, if for no other reason than he seems to be a tenacious fellow. I'd argue there's more dispute over the suspension, tires, and alignment than over any of the electronics, and even those might be either exceptional cases or personal preference.

At least from me, I have no buyer's remorse from taking a chance on this car. If I was risk averse, I would have spent more for less of a car from a more established luxury brand.

 

[Richard Ft. Lauderdale]

Took my wife out for supper late this afternoon. Parked the car with the driver door facing the sun on purpose. Came out a little later, and sure enough, door would not unlock with the door button. This was the third time today. I now know that this will happen whenever the door is facing the sun, and the door gets hot. Sure, I can still unlock with the fob button, but thats not the point. Whenever I return to my dealer, I will park with the door facing the sun and have the Genesis Tech come out and do whatever test Hyundai Tech Line tells him to do. Like I said before, although I can live with it, it should still be corrected (probably by replacing whatever is in the door that gets overheated). This did happen once before at the dealership, and one of the Service Writers saw it, and documented it, however the Genesis Technician was on vacation that day, so we did nothing about it that day.

The problem that MUST get fixed is when I get no audio. I expect my dealer to phone me sometime this week to tell me what "Tech Line" said to them.

For those of you who think a BMW wouldn't have such a problem. I had a 1997 740 IL that right after the warranty expired over a period of several months three of the doors refused to be unlocked with or without the key or even from the inside. It cost $300 per door the have them fixed. The major problem was trying to get the inside panel off the door when the door could not be opened (the door closes over the inside panel).

 

[ctrcbob]

The strange thing is that although I now have 13,000 miles on the car, the two problems I have talked about really did not start until I had around 8,000 miles on it.

The Audio problem has only happened four or five times. (I have to check my "log" to see). This always happens when the car was parked in the hot sun for a while.
Don't know if it is an amplifier heating problem or not. I'll wait for my dealer to get an answer from Hyundai Tech Line. (I feel bad for my Genesis Tech, as he has spent a lot of time looking for the cause).

The Door Unlock issue is starting to get worse and worse. (three times yesterday) I may have had this issue in more in the past, however I seldom locked the doors, and when I did, the drivers door was probably on the shady side of of the car. Went out today, and door was it partial sun, and it unlocked perfect, the way it should. I'd hate to look for a parking space so the door is in the shade all the time. Just should not be. Problem is either in the device that reads the signal that says my key fob is close, in my pocket, or the device that is connected to the black button in the door. (Good thing that the door will unlock using the (1) key fob button, (2) black button on passenger door, or (3) key in the keyhole). (One time only, could not LOCK the car with the driver black button and door in the hot sun, and as luck would have it, I was at the dealer at the time, and had one of the two Service Writers check it and document it).

Any other problems I've had are very rare, and always fixed themselves, thank goodness.

 

[tarpumn]

Funny Bob, I was in Mt. Dora this Sat. and had read about your issues. It was hot as hell, and I parked with the drivers door in full sun to see if this might happen to me. I happy to report it did not. But I have had some other fleeting issues, that have not repeated, like starting car and traction control light was on and would not go off, restarted car an it cleared. I now have about 6,700 miles on car and am still very happy.

Good luck

Tom
3.8

 

[ctrcbob]

Funny Bob, I was in Mt. Dora this Sat. and had read about your issues. It was hot as hell, and I parked with the drivers door in full sun to see if this might happen to me. I happy to report it did not. But I have had some other fleeting issues, that have not repeated, like starting car and traction control light was on and would not go off, restarted car an it cleared. I now have about 6,700 miles on car and am still very happy.

Good luck

Tom
3.8

Tarpumn,

Are you the guy I saw drive through with the Black 3.8? If so, after you passed, and as I was leaving my parking spot, I tried to find you, and once I saw your car parked, you were nowhere around.

As for "little" problems like the one you had, I've also had "little" problems, but only once or twice, and they always correct when restarting. I don't even bother to keep a record of them because they are so rare.

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[rhyx]

I've had the audio issue happen as well. I believe that sometimes turning the radio on and off fixes it after the car has cooled off. I'll try to make better note when it happens again.

 

[WAGunner]

I have had the audio (no sound issue) at least 4 times now. Its extremely annoying. There are a few other electrical glitches that need to be squared away as well. I hope when my car goes in for service here in a few weeks that they look at these with some sincerity!

 

[oreipa]

Door unlock

I think what you are experiencing with the door is an overheating solenoid. I had one on the trunk switch of the Audi A4 I am about to trade in on a Genesis. When parked in the sun, it would malfunction. I had to use the key to get into the trunk. It should be a relatively simple repair for the dealership.

 

[Eurog]

I've have the audio issues plus - see my post in Hyundai Genesis Sedan Technical Service Bulletins - Weird Electrical Problems for progress in the repair cycle.

 

[ctrcbob]

I've had the audio issue happen as well. I believe that sometimes turning the radio on and off fixes it after the car has cooled off. I'll try to make better note when it happens again.

Its not the turning the radio on/off, or even the "after the car has cooled off" that corrects it, because if you let it cool off, that means that the ignition has been off for a few minutes.

We have all found that all it takes is five (or three) minutes, or so, with the ignition off, then turn the ignition back on, and the audio comes back on. (Duck into the grocery store for five minutes, come back out, and it works perfectly).

Bitch to your dealer. Have them call Hyundai Tech Line (as worthless as they are). They may come out with a fix once they get enough complaints about this. (and no, dealer will not be able to duplicate the problem because it is not an everyday problem).

 

[ctrcbob]

I have found one way to keep my cell phone working (not through bluetooth) when the audio fails.

When the audio fails, I can shut my cell phone off, then back on again, while engine/ignition is on. The cell phone will now just work like a hand held phone and not connect to bluetooth. The next time the ignition is turned off, then back on on, the cell phone bluetooth will autoconnect again.

(I guess I could also go into the DIS and click the autoconnect off, however I would then have to remember to click it back on once the audio comes back on at the next start up - easier to just shut cell phone off, then back on, as I don't have to remember to do anything else).

 

[ctrcbob]

UPDATE: (Really two updates).

First Update: Shutting cell phone off, then back on as stated in my last post did not work the last time I tried. When I turned the cell back on, it connected with the bluetooth, so I guess it connects whenever it feels like it. No Problem!. The next time it happens, I will turn cell off, then go into DIS and click the autoconnect off, then turn cell back on. The good news is that I have not had this problem for a month or so.
See Second Update below.

Second Update. As I've said before, my Dealer Service Department (Orlando Hyundai) is great, and treat me like a king. The Genesis Technician spoke with his Service Tech Line and told them about the two problems I have. The Service Tech Line authorized him to order an amplifier for my audo problem and a new door handle for the problem of the button in the handle not working when the handle gets hot, sitting in the sun. Amplifier has been ordered, however it is on backorder. OK, I can wait.

Third Update: The replacement door handle came in, and the Technician changed it for me. Did not take him long at all. Ten or twenty minutes at the most. Had this done early last week. Although the weather is starting to cool down a bit, I have been parking the car in direct sunlight, with that door handle getting hot. Been doing that for the last five or six days. IT'S FIXED. The door button has worked each and every time. Genesis Tech told me that the replacement door handle retails for over $300.00 so the good news is that my door button now works.

Its great to have a Genesis Technician who knows what he is doing, and can talk with his Service Tech Line, tell them the problem, and have the Service Tech Line trust his judgement.

I delayed posted this update because I wanted to give it a lot of time to make sure the fix worked. After tomorrow, the Genesis will not be driven for two weeks. Taking a trip with the Continental. Have only put on 4000 miles on the Continental since last October 28th (11 months) while the Genesis has 14500 miles since January 10th (almost 9 months).

Taking laptop with me, so I will keep in touch.

 

[crupp]

Have a safe trip!