Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,245,377 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA, including 140,173 crashes, 56,794 fires, and 8,580 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim, NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,245,377 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports, when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report, that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints, specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened, feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 129,250 complaints - component: AIR BAGS
Incident date: Jul 15, 2021
There has been a recall regarding the airbags for a year now and there's still no remedy available. This is a safety recall that they say could result in death of driver if the airbag module were to explode. This needs to be repaired.
Incident date: Mar 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light intermittently illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stat... Read more
HYUNDAI
GENESIS COUPE
(2011) - AIR BAGS
Apr 19, 2024
Incident date: Oct 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Buick Enclave. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not expe... Read more
Incident date: Feb 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2007 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was pulling to one side. There was an abnormal winding noise detected. The window failed to go up when the button was depressed. The engine and air bag warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was taken to an ind... Read more
Incident date: Apr 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced... Read more
Incident date: Apr 18, 2024
On January 8, 2024, while increasing my speed from 25mph to 35mph, my parking brake automatically engaged and brought my car to a stop in the middle of the road. I quickly turned the car off and back on, and because there were no warning lights or obvious issues, continued to drive. After I increased my speed above 35mph, 3 warning lights were on the dash: Service airbag system, service auto park ... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
E350
(2014) - AIR BAGS
Apr 19, 2024
Incident date: Apr 17, 2024
While driving in the city a warning came up on the dash stating "Supplemental restraint system problem. See your dealer." and the red seat belt/air bag symbol turned on and remained on for the remainder of the drive home (about 45 min at variable speed). As soon as I got home I turned the car off and back on and the warnings disappeared. I drove the vehicle for another 30 minutes and the warnings ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 14, 2024
NHTSA Recall Number23V334 Recall StatusRecall Incomplete, remedy not yet available It will be one year next month and still no remedy. I want to trade this car and dealerships have significantly reduced the value citing the unresolved recall restricting their resale.
Incident date: Mar 25, 2024
The lane assist stopped working properly and pulled me into the guardrail
Crash
Incident date: Mar 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Jeep Wrangler. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V199000 (Air Bags, Steering) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2021) - AIR BAGS
Apr 18, 2024
Incident date: Apr 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, a 2006 Harley Davidson Dyna Glide Custom motorcycle crossed the center line and crashed head-on into her vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The driver-side skirt air bag was deployed. The driver sustained concussions, burns, shoulder, a back pain, and bruises. The front passenger was her son who ... Read more
3 injured
TOYOTA
COROLLA CROSS
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Apr 18, 2024
Incident date: Mar 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, another vehicle driving at a high rate of speed abruptly merged into his lane and collided with the contact on the front passenger side of the vehicle, sending the vehicle careening to the shoulder of the roadway and coming to a complete stop after colliding with a guard rail. The air bags did not deploy. No wa... Read more
Crash
3 injured
Incident date: Mar 16, 2023
The Active Headrest Restraint (AHR) failed. It deployed without cause and was inspected by the dealer. The issue was a small piece of plastic used in the manufacturing process. My wife was driving the car and out of nowhere a loud noise and she was struck in the back of the head. Luckily, she was driving at a slower speed and no other cars were around, she nearly went completely into the other la... Read more
Incident date: Oct 16, 2021
This vehicle was rear ended with rear frame damage. The airbag light stays on and the seat belt was ejected and lock. The seat now will not extend to fit and latch. My wife the owner of the car [XXX] head and body was jerked extremely hard due to the lack of airbag not deploying. My wife completed all required maintenance with the BMW dealer prior to the accident. This is frustrating since we pai... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Feb 10, 2023
During a high-speed collision/accident the vehicle had a high speed impact and rolled several times during the accident. The airbag system did not deploy as it should have the airbags in the seats for the sides, and the back did not deploy the driver of the vehicle myself was injured severely and ejected from the vehicle due to the airbags, not deploying, I sustained multiple injuries the only air... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 1, 2023
It’s a 2015 ford focus 1.0 eco boost 6 speed manual. It studders and shakes and stalls at random while driving. It only has 78000 miles on it and I just bought this car from some punk kid. Shakes the car violently as well.
Incident date: Aug 23, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2011) - AIR BAGS
Apr 18, 2024
Incident date: Apr 16, 2024
I got into a car accident and my air bags never deployed and the seat beat didn’t lock so I cause me to get jerked and my head hit the side door and I messed up my left shoulder and arm in the process of holding myself from hitting the steering wheel and my breaks didn’t stop when I got hit and pressed down my car got stuck on drive accelerating on its own after I had my foot on break to stop ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Apr 8, 2024
The Supplemental air bag warning light illuminated. I call dealership and they are willing to schedule an appointment and charge $225 for a diagnostic test. Depending on the issue, the solution/remedy may cost anywhere between $300 and $1000. In my situation, the supplemental air bag warning light remains on after approximately 7 seconds.
Incident date: Feb 25, 2024
In September 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened [XXX] to assess the malfunction of the Passenger Sensing System (PSS) in the 2012-2013 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. Due to that malfunction, the air bag system malfunction indicator light is activated. This could cause the passenger airbag to be suppressed in a crash. In July 2021, the ODI closed [XXX] after GM instituted a cost re... Read more
Incident date: Apr 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that p... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2024
I was notified of the Takata recall in either May or June of 2023. I was told that the remedy was not yet available. I have been calling the dealership repeatedly. I called again today but was told that they need to order parts to complete my recall and that there hadn't been a fix or parts available to conduct the recall until February of 2024. Given the age and mileage (over 142,000 miles) I... Read more
Incident date: Apr 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Buick Enclave. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 23, 2023
Recall [XXX] FRONT PASSENGER AIR BAG was completed [XXX] by Authorized Dealer 9105803 Replace Dual Stage Front AIR BAG Inflator ,as of [XXX] system light in dash steadily on and system shows to have system serviced, I don't feel I should have to pay the AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR Checking and or Repairing the NEW DEFICIT as the complaint. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT... Read more
FORD
MAVERICK HYBRID
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Apr 17, 2024
Incident date: Jan 18, 2024
The contact owned a 2023 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, another vehicle failed to stop at a stop sign; as a result, the contact's vehicle was struck by the driver's side door, sending the vehicle careening 50 feet before coming to a complete stop. Only the steering wheel air bag was deployed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Apr 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the "Service Safety Restraint" massage was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the front driver's side seat interior air bag connector was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. T... Read more
Incident date: Apr 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, parts to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was made aware of the issue and informed the contact that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of... Read more
FORD
FUSION ENERGI
(2019) - AIR BAGS
Apr 17, 2024
Incident date: Apr 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Volkswagens Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not e... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C250
(2013) - AIR BAGS
Apr 17, 2024
Incident date: Apr 17, 2024
The brake pressure modulator valve leaks the transmission has problems and service airbags is on
Incident date: Nov 9, 2023
My car is a 2015 Mercedes Benz, I bought it at the agency in 2022. When I tested the vehicle at the agency, I noticed the steering was a little hard. I asked the sales person and he told me it was normal. Then, after 1 year and 5 months, it was on its way. I went to work and the steering wheel jammed and it wouldn't cross and the car turned off then it didn't want to start and it said the followin... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
I was driving on the highway when I hydroplaned due to bad weather and hit the cement wall head on. The airbags did not deploy. There were no lights prior to failure. My insurance said that it was surprising that the airbags did not deploy given the extensive frame damage to my vehicle. My safety was put at risk due to potentially enduring life threatening injuries if any other cars hit me. My veh... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Apr 16, 2024
My power steering just went out a sensor, a recall i have read.My ABS just went to the floor for no reason, a part that was not made, also a recall I have read. My ignition is faulty, put another in but it isn't fixed. I have a button to start it. Mechanic fixed this contraception up. Air bags faulty passenger side.The car tells me to check it. All of these are recalls on the 2009 Ford Escape xlt... Read more
Incident date: Mar 28, 2024
The passenger airbag indicator goes on and off with person in passenger seat. We first noticed this Summer 2023. It has gotten worse. Now a passenger can shift weight slightly one way or another and cause the indicator status to change which disables the airbag. Dealer also confirmed (4/16/24) DTC code B0081(internal malfunction with passenger presence module). I have recently learned there was ... Read more
HARLEY-DAVIDSON
FLHXS
(2019) - AIR BAGS
Apr 16, 2024
Incident date: Jul 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V674000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not... Read more
Incident date: Apr 9, 2024
Airbag light came on. Car is in otherwise perfect shape (red flag). Brought to Hyundai dealer. Was told it was a short somewhere on front passenger side. But it will cost $250 to figure out where. Then possibly over $1000 to fix it!! Upon researching it I found many complaints on same issue on otherwise normal good condition sonata’s. Clearly they used inferior components designed to fail. Simil... Read more
Incident date: Apr 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2007 Ford Fusion. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V001000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated to accelerate. The air bag ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2023
I was recently involved in an auto accident and my Chevy Camaro was totaled. I was hit on the right passenger fender/tire side area. My air bags did not deploy and i feel that they should have been deployed with the impact that my vehicle took. Component - Airbags Safety - Airbags did not deploy to prevent injury Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer - Yes, Called Chevy & ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Feb 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2024
None of the air bags deployed. The vehicle is currently sitting in a tow yard, but is awaiting a an assessment by the insurance adjuster. If the car is totaled, I do not know where it will go. My safety was compromised both when I was T boned by the first car on the passenger side of my car, which no air bags deployed at that time, and then from that car, I was pushed into oncoming traffic, where... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact was involved in a head-on collision, however the air bags did not deploy. The contact sustained a concussion and was transported to the local hospital for treatment. The vehicle was towed to a local tow yard. A police report was filed, however the report information was unavailable... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Feb 14, 2024
The contact was driving a 2024 Ford Edge rental vehicle. The contact stated that while traveling in stop-and-go traffic the rental vehicle was involved in a multi-vehicle crash. The rental vehicle was crashed into from the rear and pushed into a second vehicle. A third vehicle was then pushed into the rental vehicle causing the rental vehicle to be pushed into a guard rail and roll down a hill. Du... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer ... Read more
HYUNDAI
SONATA HYBRID
(2012) - AIR BAGS
Apr 16, 2024
Incident date: Apr 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact was notified of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was... Read more
DODGE
GRAND CARAVAN
(2011) - AIR BAGS
Apr 16, 2024
Incident date: Mar 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Honda CR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced... Read more
Incident date: Mar 28, 2024
My horn goes off when I turn the steering wheel or hit bumps when driving and when parked and turned off, if its close to freezing it will go off constantly early in the morning before dawn and I have to disconnect the battery or pull the fuse for the horn under the hood fuse panel to stop it. I can't drive it with a horn fuse in and have tried replacing the steering wheel airbag and it still has ... Read more
FORD
F-150 HYBRID
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Apr 16, 2024
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
I believe my clockspring has malfuncioned and though it has had multiple recalls my car is not listed for recall. My horn is no longer working, as well as all the buttons in my steering wheel including cruise control and my airbag light is on. This is all directly correlated to a clockspring malfunction and I believe my vehicle should be recalled for saftey reasons.
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
The airbags in my vehicle were recalled in May 2023 for having safety issues that could cause injury or death to the drivers. This is my daughter's vehicle and she is now unable to drive it. We need to remedy this situation immediately.
Incident date: Apr 14, 2024
I purchased 2012 Nissan Murano in Jul 2012. Recently the Airbag light is on and keeps flashing when start the car. It happened since 6 months ago. I sent my car to the local Nissan Dealer, they charged me $149 diagnostic fee + $1500 to replace the Airbag DIAG unit under the center console. After the replacement, the airbag light is still on and flashing. My car cannot pass the annual inspection be... Read more