Hyundai Accent 2000–2005
2nd generation (LC)
NHTSA data through 13 August 2026587 complaints, 302 with mileageMethod
- Reports with mileage
- 302
- Median of reported failures
- 50,000 mi
- Most-reported system
- Transmission and driveline (17.0%)
- Recalls
- 0
Before-you-buy checklist ↓Check this VIN — NHTSA ↗
On this generation, failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 25,000 and 78,000 miles.
Figure 1 · Hyundai Accent 2000–2005 · 302 reports with mileage
Mileage at failure
Complaints per 10,000-mile bin, 0 to 200,000 miles, equal bins on a linear scale. Tallest bar = 35 complaints.
- Rest of the range
- Median
- 10%
- 9,287
- 25%
- 25,000
- Median
- 50,000
- 75%
- 78,000
- 90%
- 110,825
Show the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 0–10,000 | 31 | 10.3% |
| 10,000–20,000 | 35 | 11.6% |
| 20,000–30,000 | 30 | 9.9% |
| 30,000–40,000 | 34 | 11.3% |
| 40,000–50,000 | 20 | 6.6% |
| 50,000–60,000 | 21 | 7.0% |
| 60,000–70,000 | 34 | 11.3% |
| 70,000–80,000 | 25 | 8.3% |
| 80,000–90,000 | 19 | 6.3% |
| 90,000–100,000 | 11 | 3.6% |
| 100,000–110,000 | 10 | 3.3% |
| 110,000–120,000 | 11 | 3.6% |
| 120,000–130,000 | 5 | 1.7% |
| 130,000–140,000 | 1 | 0.3% |
| 140,000–150,000 | 3 | 1.0% |
| 150,000–160,000 | 5 | 1.7% |
| 160,000–170,000 | 1 | 0.3% |
| 170,000–180,000 | 5 | 1.7% |
| 180,000–190,000 | 1 | 0.3% |
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain. Complaint counts reflect what owners reported and are not a measure of failure rate per vehicle sold.
What this can and cannot tell you: these are complaints owners chose to file, not a failure rate. Popular models accumulate more of them simply by being common. How this is built.
Owners filed 587 complaints with NHTSA about the 2000–2005 Hyundai Accent, and 302 of them record the mileage at which the failure happened. That is enough to show not just what fails, but when.
Failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 25,000 and 78,000 miles. The median is 50,000 miles.
The most-reported areas are the transmission and driveline (17.0% of complaints, typically around 52,000 miles), the airbag system (14.0% of complaints, typically around 36,000 miles), the hydraulic brake circuit (7.7% of complaints, typically around 25,000 miles).
If you arrived asking “is it reliable?” — this page answers the version of that question the data can support: which problems owners reported, and at what mileage.
How many miles does a 2000–2005 Hyundai Accent last?
Half of the failure reports on the 2000–2005 Hyundai Accent were filed by 50,000 miles and 90% by 111,000 miles — figures drawn from 302 NHTSA complaints that record an odometer reading, so they time reported failures, not the cars whose owners never filed one.
Before you buy a 2000–2005 Accent: the 3-minute check
Generated from 302 mileage-tagged complaints, 1 documented problem area. Print this page — the checklist survives print.
- Check engine on 2000–2005 cars. Alpha II timing belt service interval; crank position sensor and ignition coil failures causing stalling are the most commonly reported items.
- Complaint reports are not spread evenly across model years here — see the by-model-year table below before you settle on a year.
- End with a pre-purchase inspection of this car. Aggregate data describes the population; the example in front of you has its own history.
For a buyer, failures on this generation are spread rather than concentrated: the middle half falls between 25,000 and 78,000 miles, with a median of 50,000. There is no single mileage threshold to watch, which means condition and maintenance records are more informative than the odometer.
On inspection, the transmission and driveline and the airbag system are where this generation's reports concentrate, so those are the areas worth a specific look. The airbag system in particular shows a median failure mileage of 36,000, which gives a concrete number to compare against the odometer of any car you are considering.
None of this is a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection on the individual car. Aggregate patterns describe a population; the example in front of you has its own history.
What fails, and when
Figure 2 · Hyundai Accent 2000–2005
When each system fails
Bar spans the middle half of reports; the notch inside each bar is the median. Miles at failure on a proportional scale — equal distances are equal ratios, not equal miles.
- Hydraulic brake circuit45 reports25,00012,000–40,000Hydraulic brake circuit: 45 reports, median 25,000 miles, middle half 12,000 to 40,000 miles.
- Throttle and speed control36 reports35,00018,000–55,000Throttle and speed control: 36 reports, median 35,000 miles, middle half 18,000 to 55,000 miles.
- Airbag system82 reports36,00022,000–66,000Airbag system: 82 reports, median 36,000 miles, middle half 22,000 to 66,000 miles.
- Engine and its cooling system44 reports39,00022,000–71,000Engine and its cooling system: 44 reports, median 39,000 miles, middle half 22,000 to 71,000 miles.
- Electrical system32 reports41,00010,000–96,000Electrical system: 32 reports, median 41,000 miles, middle half 10,000 to 96,000 miles.
- Visibility equipment30 reports49,00010,000–101,000Visibility equipment: 30 reports, median 49,000 miles, middle half 10,000 to 101,000 miles.
- Transmission and driveline100 reports52,00027,000–72,000Transmission and driveline: 100 reports, median 52,000 miles, middle half 27,000 to 72,000 miles.
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it in “Where your car sits”
Ordered by median mileage, earliest first. The first 12,000 miles are shaded: that is the boundary this site uses between a manufacturing defect and ordinary wear, not a property of the world.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
| System | Complaints | Share | Median | 25–75% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transmission and driveline | 100 | 17.0% | 52,000 | 27,000–72,000 |
| Airbag system | 82 | 14.0% | 36,000 | 22,000–66,000 |
| Hydraulic brake circuit | 45 | 7.7% | 25,000 | 12,000–40,000 |
| Engine and its cooling system | 44 | 7.5% | 39,000 | 22,000–71,000 |
| Throttle and speed control | 36 | 6.1% | 35,000 | 18,000–55,000 |
| Electrical system | 32 | 5.5% | 41,000 | 10,000–96,000 |
| Visibility equipment | 30 | 5.1% | 49,000 | 10,000–101,000 |
| Suspension | 30 | 5.1% | 88,000 | 77,000–114,000 |
| Fuel system | 30 | 5.1% | 58,000 | 46,000–70,000 |
| Body structure | 25 | 4.3% | 84,000 | 64,000–114,000 |
Where your car sits
Failure reports by the odometer reading they were filed at. Pick the anchor nearest your car — or type the exact mileage: your marker lands on this curve and on the timing chart above.
Figure 3 · Hyundai Accent 2000–2005 · 302 reports with mileage
Share of reports below each mileage
Share of mileage-tagged reports filed at or below each odometer reading. Steps rise only at bin edges, by exact counted shares.
- 60,000 mi — 57% of reports below
- 90,000 mi — 82% of reports below
- 120,000 mi — 93% of reports below
- Median — the staircase crosses the 50% line here
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it below
Nothing is smoothed or interpolated. Linear axis, same as Figure 1.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
At 60,000 miles
57% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
Reported earlier than this mileage — ask for repair records
- Hydraulic brake circuit — median 25,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — median 35,000 mi
In the reporting window
- Transmission and driveline — middle half 27,000–72,000 mi
- Airbag system — middle half 22,000–66,000 mi
- Engine and its cooling system — middle half 22,000–71,000 mi
- Electrical system — middle half 10,000–96,000 mi
- Visibility equipment — middle half 10,000–101,000 mi
At 90,000 miles
82% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
Reported earlier than this mileage — ask for repair records
- Transmission and driveline — median 52,000 mi
- Airbag system — median 36,000 mi
- Hydraulic brake circuit — median 25,000 mi
- Engine and its cooling system — median 39,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — median 35,000 mi
In the reporting window
- Electrical system — middle half 10,000–96,000 mi
- Visibility equipment — middle half 10,000–101,000 mi
At 120,000 miles
93% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
Reported earlier than this mileage — ask for repair records
- Transmission and driveline — median 52,000 mi
- Airbag system — median 36,000 mi
- Hydraulic brake circuit — median 25,000 mi
- Engine and its cooling system — median 39,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — median 35,000 mi
- Electrical system — median 41,000 mi
- Visibility equipment — median 49,000 mi
Which systems, and when
Complaints about this generation are not spread evenly across the vehicle, and the systems that generate the most of them do not all fail at the same point in a car's life. The median failure across all systems here is 50,000 miles; the figures below show which parts of the car run ahead of that and which run behind.
The transmission and driveline accounts for 17.0% of complaints (100 reports, 50 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 52,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 27,000 and 72,000 miles.
The airbag system accounts for 14.0% of complaints (82 reports, 44 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 36,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 22,000 and 66,000 miles.
The hydraulic brake circuit accounts for 7.7% of complaints (45 reports, 13 of them with a mileage figure), and it fails early — a median of 25,000 miles, well before the vehicle's overall median. Failures clustered this far below the rest of the car usually point to a design or manufacturing problem rather than wear, because wear does not selectively target one system on low-mileage examples. The middle half of these reports falls between 12,000 and 40,000 miles.
The engine and its cooling system accounts for 7.5% of complaints (44 reports, 23 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 39,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 22,000 and 71,000 miles.
Throttle and speed control accounts for 6.1% of complaints (36 reports, 15 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 35,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 18,000 and 55,000 miles.
The electrical system accounts for 5.5% of complaints (32 reports, 19 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 41,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 10,000 and 96,000 miles.
Differences between model years
Within this generation, complaint volume is not constant across model years. The 2002 model year drew the most — 163 complaints — while 2004 drew the fewest at 40. The median year sits at 95.
Recalls and what they cover
No recall campaigns covering this generation appear in NHTSA's post-2010 recall file. That is not the same as an absence of problems — recalls address safety defects specifically, and many of the complaints above concern faults that are expensive or annoying without meeting that threshold.
Reported severity
What owners reported alongside the failure itself, out of 587 complaints against this generation:
- Crashes
- 120 (20.4%)
- Fires
- 23
- Injury reports
- 77
- Fatality reports
- 5
These flags are self-reported by complainants and unverified by NHTSA; one report can carry several flags, so the counts overlap and do not sum to a total. They are not adjusted for how many of these vehicles are on the road. No chart is drawn here on purpose: overlapping counts spanning very different magnitudes cannot be honestly encoded as lengths.
Documented problems
Engine 2000–2005
Alpha II timing belt service interval; crank position sensor and ignition coil failures causing stalling are the most commonly reported items.
By model year
| Year | Complaints | With mileage |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 115 | 47 |
| 2001 | 148 | 50 |
| 2002 | 163 | 88 |
| 2003 | 45 | 22 |
| 2004 | 40 | 29 |
| 2005 | 76 | 66 |
What owners reported
Changing gears when the gear shift let go . I had no more gears couldn't drive. Turns out the shifter rod goes into the transmission and is held in place with a shear pin. Shear pin broke i had to replace transmission pins are not supposed to break according to a Hyundai mechanic. But lately they have had a few…
2000 · 102 miles · Transmission and driveline
I have a Hyundai Accent gl model 2000. The vehicle has run so far 44000 miles. I travel every day on freeway 405 for my work from northridge to culver city. This car has chronic power problems. Even when i press the gas, car does not pick up as expected. In other words, the car cannot be driven smoothly. I have…
2000 · 17,000 miles · Transmission and driveline
I bought my Accent in 2001 at 1 year old, it had 11,000 miles on it. It now has less than 30,000 on it. You advertise 100,000 miles. You don't say it is the driver you warranty. I now seem to have a lot of things wrong with my car that should have been found when i had my check up in the spring. I want to know why i…
2000 · 29,000 miles · Wheels
I have a Hyundai Accent 2000 3 door hatchback in may had to have the entire fuel system flushed out $500 called Hyundai before i repaired said that item was not part of a current campaign for my VIN number however similar problems have been reported by numerous parties. August 1, 2005 three days after roadside…
2000 · 39,000 miles · Fuel system
Built from 302 NHTSA complaints with mileage · snapshot 2026-08-18 · open data · reproduce this page