Our 2002 Santa Fe's clutch has failed two times. The first time we towed it to St Felicien, QC, where they repaired the clutch, charged us, and sent us on our way with a damaged transmission that we later had repaired at another Hyundai delaership in Val d'Or, QC. By that time we'd spent nearly $3000, including towing.

About a year and a few months later (very recently) our clutch failed again and again there was damage to the transmission. This time a mechanic in Chibougamau, QC, told me it was the clutch bearings and quoted me $1400+. He told me it'd still be possible to drive the vehicle if absolutely necessary, as it was only the second gear that was malfunctioning, so I took it to Val d'Or again and this time they once again repaired the clutch bearings and transmission. $1900+.

That's nearly $5000 in repairs. Repairs that should've been done (and, largely, prevented) at Hyundai's expense.

We know two other Santa Fe owners with the 4cyl, manual transmission. One has a 2001, the other a 2002. The 2001's clutch failed and his dealership replaced it for free, saying there was defect and that the clutch had been recalled. His friend with the 2002 had his clutch replaced for free as a preventative measure without any hassle. We, however, have not been provided this same courtesy.

Hyundai Canada Customer Relations denies there is a recall at all, whereas the dealership in Val d'Or that does the maintenance on our vehicle acknowledges there was a recall but assures us that any necessary repairs would've been made, as their technicians are quite knowledgable. We're not quite so sure, though, as our clutch has failed two times now at great expense. At this point we're seriously contemplating turning this matter over to our lawyer.

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