Model Year Index

Which Hyundai Ioniq years to avoid

Across 5 scored model years, the 2017 model year carries the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

Ownership label · Hyundai Ioniq Full report
D
Grade 2017–2021
2017 vs model median 1.5×
Model median3× median
Electrical 8
Engine 5
Fuel System 4
Avoid

2017

Best

2018 · 2021

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2017
1.47× 34 D
2018
0.40× 11 B
2019
1.27× 22 C
2020
1.00× 19 C
2021
0.64× 20 B
2022 P
1.46× 38 C

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2017 D 34 reports · median 7,000 mi

  1. Electrical 8

    Car wouldn't stop on inclines when radar set and operational. Dealer could not correct issue. This has occurred numerous times now and I AM attaching two photos of intersection of india hook rd and celanese rd in rock… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Engine 5

    Purchased vehicle on november 4th, 2017. It is now december 1st, 2017. Problems shortly followed after leaving dealer. Vehicle hesitates, shudders, and jerks while gas engine is engaged while in motion. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Fuel System 4

    The contact owns a 2017 hyundai ioniq hybrid. Within less than 30 days of owning the vehicle, the contact felt nauseous. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

6 crash · 1 fire

2019 C 22 reports · median 33,500 mi

  1. Speed Control 4

    One morning, my father turned on the car. It was still in park. He and my mom heard a noise, as if my dad was pushing on the gas pedal, but he was not. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Engine 3

    For the second cold morning this year my ioniq stalled. I was parked in my driveway. Temperature was -3f, I press the power button, car tried to start and stalled three times in a row then got a check hybrid system… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Driver Assist 3

    07/13/19 car experienced uncontrolled breaking while traveling at 70 MPH on president george bush tollway, texas. All dashboard lights came on and only went off when car turned off then on. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

8 crash · 3 fire · 11 injuries

The best year for the Ioniq

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2021 is the best-scoring Ioniq model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 84.1 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations. On complaint rate alone the lowest is 2018 at 0.40× this model’s median, against 0.64× for 2021.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2021 0.64× 20 B
2018 0.40× 11 B
2020 1.00× 19 C

Recalls

7 campaigns on record, 1 carrying a Park It or Park Outside warning.

Treat that as a minimum. NHTSA's lookup does not answer to this model's published name, so its campaigns are collected one trim at a time and the list may be short of the full count.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
18V704000 HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM: INVERTER 2017, 2018 10,575
22V459000 HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM: INVERTER 2017, 2018 10,575
18V260000 HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM 2017 10,156
21V127000 Park it ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM:TRACTION BATTERY 2020 4,696
21V944000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM:CHARGING:MODULE:ONBOARD (OBCM) 2017–2019 2,679
17V532000 HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM 2017 218
19V720000 WHEELS:LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS/STUDS 2019 48

Recall work is free at any franchised dealer, whoever owns the car and however old it is. Check a specific car’s VIN on NHTSA’s register before you buy — an unrepaired campaign is among the most commonly missed items on a used vehicle. One campaign here carries a Park It or Park Outside warning, which means NHTSA advised owners to stop driving or parking the vehicle indoors until the work was done.

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Where owners gave an odometer reading, faults on the 2017 were reported at a median of 7,000 miles. Treat that as the point problems start being noticed, not a lifespan.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Hyundai Ioniq years should you avoid?
2017 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Hyundai Ioniq model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Hyundai Ioniq?
2021 is the best-scoring Hyundai Ioniq model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 84.1 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Hyundai Ioniq have?
At least 7 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Hyundai Ioniq model years — a minimum, because NHTSA's lookup does not answer to this model's published name and its campaigns have to be collected one trim at a time. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2017 Ioniq
Complaints in window
34
Severity-weighted
56.5
Model median (weighted)
38
vs model median
1.47×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
5
Open investigations
0
Score 50.8 D