Battery or starter issues? Need advice

Hyundai Cars and Models Forum Palisade
1

I have a 2022 SEL Premium with 37,000 miles. I’m the second owner; it’s been driven since August 2021, but I bought it in July. Today, I had trouble starting it—lots of clicking, flashing lights, and an error saying to check the ESC system. The brake was really hard to press, but everything else like the radio and Bluetooth was working fine. I even got a low battery warning across the screen while calling my husband for advice. As far as I can tell, nothing was left on during the day.

Luckily, a coworker jumped the car, and it started right up. I made it home without issues, but I’m wondering—does it need a new battery or starter already at 37k miles? Would this be a warranty thing, or should I just take it to a local shop?

UPDATE: Tried starting it last night, and it failed again. We ended up buying a new battery from AutoZone and replaced it ourselves (thanks, YouTube!). Took it for a half-hour drive, and it started up fine this morning. Fingers crossed this solves it!

2

It’s probably the battery. Cars use batteries more often now for things like remote start and stop, and summer heat can be rough on them. Three years and nearly 40k miles sounds about right for needing a replacement.

3

@merrickzedeck
That makes sense, thanks. I’ve been trying to remember to turn off the auto stop, but that’s just one small part of the issue, I guess.

4

Callen said:
@merrickzedeck
That makes sense, thanks. I’ve been trying to remember to turn off the auto stop, but that’s just one small part of the issue, I guess.

Just a heads up—auto stop will turn off by itself when the battery is below 80% capacity. Learned that here, and it explained why my wife’s wasn’t working until we got her a new battery.

5

@shlet
Interesting! Now that I think about it, it hasn’t been kicking on as much lately. Thanks for the info.

6

It’s likely just the battery. 37k miles and three years sounds about right for it to need a replacement. I’d be surprised if it’s the starter.

7

BlueCarEnthusiast said:
It’s likely just the battery. 37k miles and three years sounds about right for it to need a replacement. I’d be surprised if it’s the starter.

Fingers crossed! Tried starting it again earlier, and it did the same thing, so we went to AutoZone and got a new battery. Drove it around for a bit, and it’s been fine so far. We’ll see how the morning goes.

8

@Callen
Did they test the old battery before replacing it? They usually can confirm if it’s bad.

9

merrickzedeck said:
@Callen
Did they test the old battery before replacing it? They usually can confirm if it’s bad.

Didn’t realize that was an option, but it’s already been returned where I got the new one.

10

It’s just the battery. Ignore the other stuff. Replace it with a new one from Costco or similar, and you’ll be fine.

11

If you’re still having trouble after getting a new battery, it could be the alternator. That would need to be checked out.

12

Umbrielle said:
If you’re still having trouble after getting a new battery, it could be the alternator. That would need to be checked out.

I hope it’s just the battery. An alternator sounds like a pricier issue, and I’m guessing it wouldn’t be covered by a warranty either.

13

@Callen
It might be covered under the 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty, but I’d double-check.

14

Umbrielle said:
@Callen
It might be covered under the 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty, but I’d double-check.

Good point, I’ll check into that. Thanks!