VERY DISSAPOINTED IN HYUNDAI SOUTH AFRICA!!!

I recently purchased a brand spanking new Hyundai Venue. What an amazing vehicle I told people, get one. I'm loving mine!!!

So I made my first long distance trip this past weekend, first trip anywhere prior to lockdown actually (27/03/2020). All went well, got to my destination, saw my family, fetched my mum and headed back home on Sunday (04/10/2020).

A whole 9000 kms on the ODO meter and my nightmare begins.

Travelling along the N3, on Van Reenen's Pass and much like always the combination of road works and trucks cause a slow moving traffic piling up. a few minutes in and I get a warning "Transmission temperature too high - pull over slowly". Not knowing what's going on, I obliged. Let it cool down for +/- 30 minutes and started my journey again. Not even 5 minutes into the trip and the warning pops up again but this time there is a smell as though somethings burning (like rubbers burning). At this point, I got really concerned and decided to pull over (again) and call Hyundai roadside assist. Mind you, I am travelling with my wife, daughter and mum around 19:10. I digress, apologies... So I get on the line with the technician (+/- 19:15) and start explaining the situation. The technician immediately says that I should not drive the car any further and should I do so, I will be liable for any damage. Yet again, I oblige. He then informs me that the car needs to be towed and the closest Hyundai branch is in Ladysmith. He requests for a tow truck to be dispatched. This now leaves me in a tough predicament as I am now stranded...After explaining that to him, he tells me that I have two options, which is I could either request to hire a car and the other book accommodation at the nearest motel/hotel. I had opted for the car hire/rental but could not get access to it due to the fact that all rental companies are closed (it's past 20:00).

Back on the line, explain that all car hire companies are closed and after a bit of deliberation we conclude that I should look for suitable accommodation. Luckily we had pulled over not too far from a motel (Pyramid Motel), we had booked in for the night as we had no alternative. In this being said opting for the accommodation option left me with no means of transportation to get home. As mentioned earlier I had 3 females and myself in the vehicle (4 in total), however; Hyundai advised that they can only accommodate for 3 people to the value of R500 per person (R1500 in total). I had to pay the balance of the accommodation fee from my own pocket - however I am still grateful to Hyundai. Bear in mind I had to still cover transportation costs to get home.

The tow truck finally arrived at around 00:10, and had departed around 00:30 with my vehicle, which had been towed to the Ladysmith branch for examination by the mechanic.

I had arranged to be fetched on Monday morning from the motel in Van Reenen’s Pass and en route to Johannesburg, Hyundai Lady Smith had contacted me to find out what happened to my vehicle, to which I explained the entire situation.

I had arrived home at approximately 14:00, relieved that this nightmare was finally over!!!

I received another call from a service technician at Hyundai Ladysmith on Tuesday morning, informing me that they did not find any faults on my vehicle and will be running more tests.

I went in to the Eastrand branch where I purchased the vehicle and notified them of what had happened. A gentleman assisted with inquiring about the status of the vehicle and cause of the problem. I was informed that this supposedly happens occasionally with the Hyundai Venue and should not be driven in auto when in traffic. Please explain to me when, how and who knows of this?!?! This is the first time I have ever been advised of this…

Moving on…I was contacted today (Wednesday 07/10/2020) around 14:00 by Hyundai Ladysmith and informed that there is nothing wrong with my vehicle. In order for them to release the vehicle, I need to pay the towing cost of R973.00 and I am liable for the costs of bringing the car from Ladysmith to Johannesburg.

Hyundai South Africa – Please explain to me how it is my responsibility to get my vehicle transported from Ladysmith to Johannesburg (at my cost) when it was YOUR roadside assist technician that instructed me not to drive the vehicle any further? If this is a problem with the Venues, then why not train your staff so that they can actually assist when notified of this sort of issue?! Better yet, inform your customer when purchasing the vehicle!!!!

I am extremely disappointed and disgusted with the lack of knowledge and the inconvenience that Hyundai had put me through. I will definitely not recommend Hyundai to any of my family and friends after this experience!