Could be some chipped paint by a small rock.

touch up paint?

 

I don't really take care of my car's exterior so I'm not so sure.

 

Do a search on RUST here on this forum. I had an issue which was posted here.

Your spot is very small, so I wouldn't use the SPRAY version of the Rust-Stopper, but rather use a small brush or even better a Q-Tip. Get the touch-up paint from your dealer and do it right.

 

I had actually done a search before posting a new topic, I didn't want to be repeating a question that had already been answered before. But the results yielded 9 pages, and the first 4 I read through had nothing of relevance. But knowing you had a post on this same issue I'll do another search and look for your username as the creator of the topic.
Thanks....

 

I have a 2000 Sonota . Approximately 4 years ago the paint on my hood (near the front) started to bubble and rust. And it was not due to any exterior paint surface chipping. It turned out that the seams along the bottom side of the hood allowed water to enter and be captured. The rusting is more prominent Snow Belt / New England regions where salt is used to melt the ice/snow during the winter months. I had my local Hyundai service manager take a look at the rusting and asked him to communicate with the District Parts and Service Manager (D.P.S.M) requesting Hyundai to replace my hood regardless of my expired warranty. I also took some close up digital photos and sent to the Service manager who in turn sent them to the DPSM. As a result, I received a new hood free of charge. It’s now 4 years later and I have the same problem. Here I go again… Wish me luck trying to get a second replacement hood.

Regards,
Carl

 

im highly doubting they will give you another hood for a car that is 8+ years old.. i certainly wouldn't if i were them... everyon'e cars get f*ed up in New England winters (trust me, i know, i am originally from Rochester, and cars rust out VERY quickly there).. my Beretta that I had actually rusted through the bottom of the car (seat physically pulled through the flooring) before I gave it up...

sounds like you never washed your car during the winter or at least rinsed it off (or go thruogh an automatic car wash just to have stuff sprayed off), and let the salt stay on the car until everything melted in the spring....