Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,215,138 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA — including 138,663 crashes, 56,255 fires, and 8,561 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 2,215,138 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 187,860 complaints — component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
My fiance and I, bought the vehicle in May 2022? from Carvana. His name is [XXX] . Mine is [XXX] (maiden - [XXX] ) Price. [XXX] passed away August 6, 2025. I wanted to mention this part before I explain the problem. His son is supposed to sign the car over to me as soon as court proceedings are finished. I love the car. But the car came from Carvana with 17K miles. It currently has 42,000K mile... Read more
Incident date: May 26, 2026
For the third time the 2025 KIA Carnival Prestige I own lost power while driving on the interstate! Without warning, the vehicle would no longer respond to the accelerator pedal. No matter what I did I could not get the vehicle to accelerate past 35 mph. The minimum speed limit on the interstate is 45 mph. I had to immediately engage my hazard lights and make my way over to the shoulder of the r... Read more
Incident date: May 18, 2026
Tesla 2026 Model Y was involved in a severe motor vehicle accident directly caused by a critical software and/or hardware malfunction of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. At the time of the incident, the vehicle’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software suite was actively engaged and driving the vehicle. While navigating, the system suffered an abrupt and uncommented control malfunction.... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
I purchased a 2023 Nissan Rogue from Bella Nissan in Union City in September 2025. The dealership failed to disclose to me that there was an open recall on my vehicle. Several weeks later, the car shut down on me while I was driving back to work from lunch, which was extremely dangerous as well as frightening. I missed half a day’s pay because I could not return to work. I had to return the car ... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2021
Touch Screen and/or infotainment center causing ghost touch. Available for inspection. Ghost touch (known Mazda issue) with touch screen has been changing radio stations, increasing volume to max. Will go into user settings and change guidance voice to full volume, increasing bass to full volume, fast forward songs, mute phone call feature, randomly switch from bluetooth to handset of phone. All o... Read more
HARLEY-DAVIDSON
RA1250S
(2023) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: May 27, 2026
Bike has been at the dealer for almost 3 weeks now chasing electrical issues. HD corporate techs can’t even understand what’s wrong. The are running another diagnostic test on it today that will cost me another 3.5hr of labor on top of the other diagnostics they’ve already done. Luckily I wasn’t on a trip and stranded for weeks.
Incident date: May 4, 2025
Infotainment system randomly cycles through menu, as if I'm pressing buttons on the screen. It will lose navigation, randomly call my contacts and audio will turn off and on. This is extremely unsafe. Once it starts doing this the screen becomes unresponsive to actual touch. I can't stop it if I want to. I'm stuck disconnecting my phone and using the screen as navigation, constantly looking down w... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2025) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: Jan 12, 2026
1st incident My son was driving the truck when all the emergency lights came on. He pulled over and the engine was on fire. He ran to a strangers house to get buckets of water not safe for my child at all. Come to find out that an engine rod slipped and put three holes through the engine causing oil to spill and a fire unbelievable! Lucky my son wasn’t injured. Chevy blames my son for that!... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Mar 1, 2025
I am filing a complaint regarding a recurring safety-related electrical and AWD defect in my 2020 Ford Explorer. My vehicle repeatedly displays the following warnings while driving: “4WD Fault Service Required” “Service AdvanceTrac” “Pre-Collision Assist Not Available” “Hill Start Assist Not Available” The issue began about a year ago occurring intermittently every few weeks and... Read more
Incident date: Mar 17, 2026
Problem 1, Check Engine Light: I purchased the used car on Jan 9 2025, around 23,400 miles from Kia Dealership, capitol Expy in San Jose. Today 05/27/2026, the odometer reads 26, 407 miles. My car is used only twice a week - 20 miles on Fridays, 12 miles on Wednesdays. My car has less than minimum wear and tear and is barely used. I completed my 25K service after Thanksgiving in Nov 2025. I ha... Read more
Incident date: May 21, 2026
Vehicle shut off while driving on highway during morning rush. Car shut off within seconds of flashing dashboard. I was in a dangerous situation with the possibility of creating a major highway accident, I was stuck on the highway with disappearing breakdown lane. Pulled code P26CB on OBD code reader at auto zone; P26CB7 pulled on Toyota diagnostic code reader= Engine coolant pump actuator stuc... Read more
DODGE
GRAND CARAVAN
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: Apr 8, 2026
Automatic sliding doors will not unlock or open at all- not manually, not with the inside door buttons, not with my key fob, and not with the automatic buttons on the front ceiling of the van. I have 3 young children all 5 and under. This is an EXTREMELY dangerous fault that puts all of their lives into danger! The inconvenience of a grown adult having to climb through the back hatch to lock her k... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2025
VEHICLE: 2019 Honda Accord LX SUMMARY OF SAFETY DEFECTS & FAILURE: My vehicle is experiencing severe, dangerous mechanical and electrical failures identical to existing national safety recalls, yet my specific VIN is being excluded by the manufacturer. 1. FUEL SYSTEM FAILURE & ENGINE STALLING: The vehicle is experiencing sudden engine stalling and failure to start due to a defective low-pressur... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2024
The vehicle experienced failure of the HVAC heater flap/blend door mechanism on the driver’s side. Specifically, the plastic gear assembly broke at its mounting point, causing the gear to spin freely and preventing the airflow door from opening and functioning properly. As a result, the driver’s side heating and airflow system no longer operated correctly. The failed component is available fo... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
The dashboard turn signal indicators are blocked by the steering wheel unless I adjust the steering wheel to a very high position that makes driving unsafe. When the turn signals are on, there is no clicking noise like many cars have. I suggest that BMW update the vehicle software to allow the driver to adjust the location of the turn signal indicators within the digital dash display, or also inc... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2026
ABS module error , this has been on order for over a year, danger puts jeep in limp mode under hard acceleration stalls out, danger when merging into traffic, manufacture has it under engineering review to keep from issuing a recall please investigate,
Incident date: May 27, 2026
i went online because i was having troubles with my vehicle battery alternator and other electronics , i found out other bmws with the same symptoms as my car led to having a bad footwell module , currently interior lights work when they want to if any constant battery dying from lights not turning off none of the parking sesnors work no back up camera the rear windows do not work some times the p... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
On May 26, 2026, my 2019 Ford Expedition suffered a total systemic safety failure that resulted in my toddler being locked inside the vehicle in direct sunlight, requiring an emergency extraction. I used the FordPass app to unlock the vehicle and opened the driver’s door and passenger door on the diver's side. I placed my bag containing the proximity key fob onto the driver’s seat floorboard w... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2026
On Friday, May 22, 2026, at approximately 59,442 miles, the vehicle's instrument panel cluster (IPC) failed suddenly and without warning. The vehicle was driven to a store in [XXX] , with the display functioning normally, but upon restarting the vehicle less than an hour later, the central information screen went completely blank. The screen remains permanently blank and fails to display any drive... Read more
Incident date: May 10, 2026
on 5 different occasions over the last month, I have had the car go into an engine shut off and said put it into P or N and restart while I am driving on the road!! 05/10-was going to a stop sign and going 5-20 mph. 05/17-happened twice that day, both driving around town 10-30 mph. 05/26- happened driving around town going around a curve 5-20 mph. 05/27 getting off the interstate and getting ready... Read more
FORD
MUSTANG MACH E
(2021) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: Sep 5, 2023
This is a safety issue. The front collision assist is not working. I have returned the car to the Ford Dealer (Biener Ford) several times but the dangerous issue persists. I'm not the only one. There are many complaints listed on the web and the Ford Mach E forum. Ford needs to recall their EV Ford Mach-E vehicles and fix this dangerous safety issue once and for all.
Incident date: May 27, 2026
While the vehicle is in motion, it is loudly beeping that there is a problem with the rear tailgate and that it is open when it is closed. This is due to manufacturing defect wherein water is getting into the tailgate control module and ruining the electronics. This is making the tailgate unusable as it will not open and just reads off the error message. This is a well documented issue all over th... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2025
The rear camera stopped working, fall 2025. Received letter from Ford 10/25. Parts not available. Contacted Ford several times. No satisfaction. Situation dangerous. Small car. I park away from large vehicles. Sometimes, they park next to my car, vision is impaired.
Incident date: Nov 12, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the Traction Control, ABS, Electric Trailer Brake, and Brake warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the local dealer, where it was purchased, and it was scanned with an OBD2 scanner; however, it was cleared for error codes and diagnosed safe to drive. The vehicle was repaired; however, the... Read more
OLDSMOBILE
ALERO
(2004) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 27, 2026
Incident date: Jan 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2004 Oldsmobile Alero. The contact stated that while turning the key the vehicle failed to start. The blinkers were inoperable at times. There was an abnormal grinding sound detected while turning the ignition. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer for NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V400000 (Electrical System). The vehicle was taken back t... Read more
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
Odometer 66466. Hybrid battery charge level 100%. When starting the vehicle the issue started with the transmission shifter knob stuck in gear Park. After turning off and on a few times, the transmission shifter knob would shift into Reverse. I then drove it to a dealer service for repair. During the drive several dash warning messages appeared. Also, the blind spot warning system did not function... Read more
Incident date: May 18, 2026
The contact owns a 2015 Volvo S60. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled and lost motive power. No warning lights illuminated. The contact was a certified mechanic. The contact stated that the failure occurred when the outside temperature was too hot or too cold. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the failure was a known ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2026
My vehicle activates the emergency braking system while driving. It has happened several times now, almost causing a collision. I took it to the dealership, they held it for a week and gave it back to me telling me they could not find anything wrong with it. They did not fix anything at all. It has since done it once more.
Incident date: May 9, 2026
Before the accident which my car was totaled, I would take it in with issues. Electrical lights coming on the car would stop .my transmission locking up . I would tell them that there was something wrong with the car . I had videos to show pannel lights coming on at 70 on freeway and car locking up and would just stop . That's what happened to son driving. My car was totaled. Why should I loose a... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Mar 3, 2026
Multiple times while driving vehicle with shut off and light will flash on dash. Everytime take vehicle to deal to check always told that it can’t be duplicated everything is working. Started happen last summer and happen about 5 times since then. Last time it happen was in march took it to the dealer and they crash the car and still couldn’t figure out what causing it. Car been in the shop fo... Read more
Incident date: Jan 5, 2026
Safety Component Affected: BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA Description of the Safety Defect: The rearview camera system on my 2022 Ford Transit fails completely, displaying either a distorted image, a completely blank blue screen, or a black screen when the vehicle is shifted into reverse. This total loss of rear visibility creates a severe blind-spot hazard and an immediate risk of a... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2026
My 2020 Honda Odyssey power tailgate has failed due to water intrusion through defective rear body seam sealer, a known manufacturing defect. Water leaked into the rear driver's side panel and damaged the power tailgate control module, making the rear door inoperable. I took my vehicle to the Honda dealership, who confirmed this is a factory defect related to improper seam sealing. The quoted repa... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 26, 2026
Incident date: Mar 12, 2026
I have a severe safety concern regarding the auto shut off for this Chevy Silverado pick up. Several times I have almost gotten into an accident because while slowing briefly to stop before making a left, turn across traffic, the engine shuts off. When you press the gas, the engine starts back up, but the delay causes a safety concern with oncoming traffic. This feature should have a longer delay ... Read more
Incident date: May 26, 2026
Driving at 30mph and all the dashboard lights turned on and all the warnings kept popping on the dashboard and 30 seconds later the brakes were not working when I was approaching a busy intersection. I was able to pump the brakes and stop the vehicle and put it in park and the vehicle shut off and nothing would work - not even the hazard lights. The vehicle is currently at the dealership being ass... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
The Auto Idle Stop (AIS) system malfunctions during normal driving. When coming to a stop, the AIS shuts off the engine as designed, but the vehicle then fails to restart when the brake is released. The vehicle shifts itself into Park automatically without driver input, either before or at the same time as a dashboard message appears instructing the driver to depress the brake pedal and press the ... Read more
HYUNDAI
SANTA FE HYBRID
(2025) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 4, 2026
"My 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid has experienced repeated parasitic battery drain. Dealer diagnostic reports dated 5/12/26 and 5/14/26 document 'Excessive dark current draw condition identified' with dark current spikes well above the normal threshold of 50mA. Vehicle was at Kelly Hyundai of Stroudsburg PA for approximately two weeks. Dealer replaced fingerprint sensor module as best guess repair ... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2015) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
For no apparent reason the truck goes into “low power mode” and gives off code p2138 often happens around 30-35 mph. Have had it happen to me also around 45 mph also. I have replaced sensors and parts to which a month or so goes by and it happens again.
Incident date: May 25, 2026
My wife and I had decided to empty our storage unit, so on Memorial Day we began moving everything into the garage. After five or six trips Honda, I pulled the car up beside the RV and close to the house for what turned out to be the last load. I unloaded my bicycle and nearly everything else, leaving only a few small items, and then removed the massage table from the back seat. The engine was off... Read more
Fire
1 injured
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2014) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 17, 2026
While driving on the highway my Jeep GC shifts into neutral. Once I'm able to pull the car over, I'm not able to put the car into park or shut the car off. After a bit of time the car will start back up and will drive. It has been to the shop and they can not find what is the problem. there are no codes to be read. In reading various forums that is a common problem with the 3.2l engine in th... Read more
Incident date: May 8, 2026
I have always kept my Impala in my garage until recently I started keeping my grandson a few days a week. When I am at that home my car is parked in a driveway open to the elements. About a month after starting I notice that my car started having what I would describe as an electronic issue. The seat belt alarm would go off without me ever touching my seat belt. I have also had to replace my tail... Read more
Incident date: Jun 8, 2025
The touchscreen/head unit on my 2022 Honda Accord Sport SE (VIN: [XXX] ) consistently exhibits ghost touch behavior — the screen makes random phantom inputs while I am driving, without any physical contact. This causes the navigation to be rerouted or cancelled mid-drive, audio to change sources and volume unexpectedly, menus to open randomly, and CarPlay to become completely non-functional. Thi... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
While backing up the vehicle, the front passenger seat belt retractor pretensioner suffered an inadvertent, spontaneous pyrotechnic deployment. There was a loud pop resembling a firecracker, immediately followed by smoke in the cabin and the odor of gunpowder. The force of the explosive deployment dislodged the interior B-pillar trim panels. The passenger front seatbelt has been locked into place.... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2026
NHTSA Complaint Description What Happened & Safety Risk: While driving a 2024 Jeep Wrangler 4xe at highway speeds on Interstate 84, the vehicle suffered a catastrophic, unrecoverable loss of motive power. Without any warning, the vehicle completely seized up, shut down, and turned off entirely while moving in active traffic. This exact life-threatening failure has now occurred twice. Operating a v... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2026
Several times, the car put itself into park while driving. Two times, the brakes failed while driving. The brake was pushed all the way to the ground, but the car would not stop.
Incident date: May 25, 2026
On May 25, 2026, at approximately 3:30 p.m. Central Time, after the vehicle had been operated under normal conditions and subsequently parked, a fire originated within the vehicle’s engine compartment and/or under-hood area. Personnel from the Milwaukee Fire Department responded to the scene and extinguished the fire. An official fire investigation report is pending and is expected to be availa... Read more
Fire
Incident date: May 26, 2026
Supplemental Restraint System Problem deactivates airbags and dealers do not want to fix it under warranty.
Incident date: Nov 7, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, and the brake pedal was depressed the pedal remained floored. The contact stated that the vehicle eventually slowed down on its own and came to a complete stop. The was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the master cylinder needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repa... Read more
Incident date: May 14, 2024
my vehicle backup camera has been turning blue i didn't know why because the first couple of months i've had it, it's been fine i found out it was a recall on it
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
I own a 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe that was purchased on 08/15/2025. The first malfunction occurred on 08/25/2025, only days after purchase, and the vehicle has experienced repeated safety-related issues since then. The vehicle has repeatedly displayed false Forward Collision Warning alerts, Blind Spot Warning failures, Park/Neutral errors, and intermittent disabling of safety features. The most serio... Read more