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.

2,215,138 Total Complaints

138,663 Reported Crashes

56,255 Reported Fires

8,561 Reported 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

How to Read NHTSA Consumer Complaints › How NHTSA Investigations Work › Used Car: 7 Recall Checks to Run First › The Takata Airbag Recall: Full Story › OBD-II Codes Explained › All Articles ›

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Showing 187,860 complaints — component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Incident date: Dec 17, 2024

My Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe has an active safety recall involving possible catastrophic engine failure, fire risk, and sudden loss of propulsion. The manufacturer recall states that sand contamination inside the engine may lead to engine failure and vehicle fire. The recall remains incomplete and the manufacturer states the repair remedy is still under development. I was informed that repair parts... Read more

Incident date: Apr 13, 2026

So we took it into Volkswagen in Texarkana Texas. They had the car for an entire week. They said they updated something. The first day we got it back. My daughter drove it and the lane assist turned off. The dealership told us it’s a known issue and then it happens when it’s in the sun well, this was at night at eight something p.m. I’m attaching a photo. If this is a known issue because w... Read more

Incident date: May 21, 2026

I was at a stoplight, waiting to making a U-turn. The light turned green release the brake and went to hit the gas. The entire vehicle shut off. I lost all power and had to restart the vehicle in the middle of the intersection with vehicles behind me. It took at least 30 seconds and I ended up having to wait a cycle on the light because I couldn’t go at the time. Once I got the car back on, I lo... Read more

Incident date: Sep 10, 2025

Electronic parking brake engaged randomly when getting gas and would not disengage letting me leave the pump

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Following completion of Recall Campaign 296, the third-row rear seat continued to exhibit the same hazardous behavior the recall was intended to correct. During testing, the power-folding third-row seat fully closed onto a U.S. military-issued Kevlar helmet and remained latched in the fully seated/down position without reversing or detecting an obstruction. This demonstrates that the recall remedy... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

This vehicle is experiencing an aggressive, heat-accelerated hardware degradation of the central capacitive screen assembly commonly identified as ghost glitching, culminating in a total crash of the primary graphic interface and touch controller hardware. While your customer service infrastructure routinely classifies display anomalies as low-priority convenience or entertainment glitches, an obj... Read more

Incident date: Apr 19, 2026

The vehicle's power steering does not work properly, especially at slow speeds and when attempting to back up. However, it has also failed while traveling on the interstate highway at high speeds. When you attempt to make a turn, the power steering feels like it is fighting you and wants to pull the vehicle back in the opposite direction. I took the vehicle in to be serviced, and they replaced ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2025

This is an ongoing issue. The panel lights and indicators associated with climate control setting module (in front of/below) the dash are very dim. In normal to bright daylight it can be impossible to see. As a result drivers have to take their eyes off the road and bend down a little to see what the climate control lettings are set on or whether a selection has been set properly. This has obviou... Read more

Incident date: May 24, 2026

Body control module catastrophic failure resulting in electrical failure while driving. Horn would not turn off, hazards would not turn off, warning modules firing off messages, burning smell coming from engine compartment. Absolute safety hazard while driving.

Fire

Incident date: Mar 14, 2026

I had a red sign on dashboard saying:*chassis failure, park the car carefully.* the car was towed to Porshe. And, was released after one week as safe to drive and dismissed the sign as a glitch. The second day of releasing the car, I had a major accident while parking the car in the garage. The accident resulted in damage to the outer wall and to cabinets. I requested an investigation of the car a... Read more

Crash

Incident date: Jun 15, 2023

Recurring Defects – 2023 Volkswagen ID.4 Pro S Vehicle * Year/Model: Volkswagen ID.4 Pro S * Ongoing recurring defects across software, electrical, interior, safety, and mechanical systems. Aesthetic / Interior Defects Interior Trim and Structural Noises * Fading light bar panel. * Excessive interior plastic creaking during cold weather. * Roof creaking noises in cold temperatures. Software / ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 21, 2026

We took delivery of the vehicle in March 2025. The vehicle has never been involved in any accident or collision during our possession. • In April 2026, we discovered that the passenger-side rear brake light was no longer functioning. • Upon inspection, dealership personnel informed me that a small crack—approximately one inch in length—in the plastic housing of the driver-side rear turn si... Read more

Incident date: May 24, 2026

The vehicle's Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) / Smart Brake Support system intermittently triggers "false positive" emergency braking events during critical driving maneuvers, specifically while accelerating to merge into highway traffic. During these events, the system violently applies the brakes with no external hazard present. Crucially, the vehicle fails to acknowledge driver override input... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2025

For approximately a year, my vehicle sporadically gives a message when I shut it off staying it is not in park. It can take up to 5 minutes turning it back on, shifting through all gears, and turning it back off before it registers that it is in park.

Incident date: May 22, 2026

I’ve been dealing with some intermittent problems with my 2022 transit for a couple years now. Basically I’ll be driving on the highway and all the sudden I’ll lose gas control, and power braking and the dash displays a message that says “shift to neutral to restart vehicle”, battery icon flashes red and I have to coast to the side of the highway. The electronics in the car will still be... Read more

Incident date: Mar 28, 2026

I am writing to formally report a critical safety defect regarding the OnStar Telematics Control Module in my 2022 Chevrolet Tahoe High Country VIN: [XXX] . My vehicle was recently diagnosed by SERRA CHEVROLET as having a failed module, which has rendered numerous essential features inoperative. This is not an isolated incident; there is clear evidence of a widespread failure affecting thousands o... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

Unknown! sometimes the rear back up camera goes into a black screen and then once in drive the info screens stays black for about 30 seconds. the cars shifting is hard at times especially when going from slow to fast like for instance on a highway on ramp the shifting is very sluggish. the cupholder are a real hazard my cupholder bottomed out and my drink fell thru luckily there was no liquid in ... Read more

Incident date: Dec 31, 1969

All kinds of warning signals come up like 4 wheel drive on, off, roll up and down driver window, no brake pads detected, no washer fluid, service esc, service 4 wheel drive, traction control on and off, radio blacks out, lights dim, feels like rear wheels lock up and release, transmission feels like it's going to shake out of the truck. Dealership sold it like this and was sent back to be fixed an... Read more

Incident date: May 18, 2026

While driving my 2023 BMW i4, the vehicle suddenly displayed multiple drivetrain and chassis malfunction warnings shortly after charging the vehicle at a ChargePoint station. The vehicle experienced a sudden loss of power/propulsion while driving, creating a serious safety concern. After stopping, the vehicle began rolling backward unexpectedly and several systems appeared to malfunction. The cen... Read more

Incident date: May 11, 2026

Horn stopped working

Incident date: Apr 30, 2026

To Whom It May Concern: I am submitting this complaint regarding my 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 and respectfully requesting review of a serious infotainment and electronic system failure that occurred at approximately 49,000 miles. Prior to the failure of the MBUX infotainment system, the vehicle began exhibiting abnormal electrical behavior. On multiple occasions, the right headlight remained illu... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Having issues where the digital instrument cluster that shows fuel, mileage and odometer freezes and goes blank. Only seems to start working once the car if fully warmed up.

Incident date: May 15, 2026

2020 GMC sierra 1500 infotainment system including navigation,OnStar and voice command, stoped working on Friday May 15th with no prior warning. These systems are integral for modern safe travel and severely affects the value and driver confidence in the vehicle. It seems to be running mechanically sound but, with some of the communications and information systems not working properly I am unsure ... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Truck has 170 miles and it suddenly slammed on the breaks on the highway stating that the EBS failed. A loud humming sound came from the transmission and now the truck is saying service transmission and service brakes. The truck will need to be towed to a dealer to review as it is not drivable at this time .

Incident date: May 13, 2026

We were traveling to our son’s college graduation, driving on a rural interstate and suddenly all of the vehicle’s warning lights lit on the dash and the car started losing, and then completely lost power. The car was no longer operational. We were stranded on the roadside of a remote but busy 2-lane interstate for 2 hours until a tow truck could arrive and take the car to the closest car repa... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

While driving the car immediately downshifted and I could not accelerate. The Hill assist came on and service advance trac came on. This happened 3 times. The first time we towed it to the dealership April 17th, and they changed the oil and tested the battery secured wires and verified after the repair on April 26th. After we picked the truck up on April 26th it stalled on the highway on the home ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 10, 2026

My pillar are coming off to the point when it rains water get inside my car. It’s messed up my system in my car. I can’t close my sun roof and water comes down from my lights that’s above my head where you put your sunny sunglasses in. I been calling around and still haven’t got no where.

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Toyota is putting people who purchased their new vehicles at risk. They have my car sitting here with an extraordinarily dangerous recall which they promised to fix by march but they haven't & it is already nearly June. It literally says the car can blow up. The recall says there's a belt problem & it can blow up at certain speeds & it can be fatal. That is crazy. if they cant fix it then they sho... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2026

I was driving on a busy highway at a high but legal speed. For a few seconds the vehicle appeared to reset. I lost control and the screen went blank. It was a miracle I did not hit another vehicle. I contacted the dealer and they stated unless it was happening frequently - there is nothing they could do. I spent hours on the phone with the dealer attempting to schedule an appointment, they st... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2025

Due to a safety recall for possible battery fires, we have not been able to charge the PHEV for more than a year. This significantly affects the vehicle's mileage and performance and reduces the car's value. •We are unable to use the plug-in charging function for an extended period •We leased the vehicle specifically as a plug-in hybrid •The recall materially reduced the vehicle’s usefulne... Read more

Incident date: May 20, 2026

My vehicle wasn’t reading my key fob when I was pressing the lock and unlock button, so I took out the hard key and unlock the doors. Then the alarm set off and I was using the key fob again trying to shut the alarm off no response so I took the key fob and press the start stop button and the engine turn over and the key was working again then I went to shut off the engine same way. The engine w... Read more

Incident date: Mar 31, 2026

Unknown

Incident date: Mar 4, 2026

My radio is ghost glitching. It randomly does it. I can't listen to anything or do anything on the screen.. it keeps the whole drive. It won't allow me to upload the video. I can send it via email.

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Vehicle experienced unintended transmission gear change without driver input from the gear selector. While driving, the transmission shifted unexpectedly into 4H even though the selector was not touched. This created a safety hazard due to sudden change in vehicle behavior, including: loss of acceleration, lurching and unexpected movement. Issue occurred at approximately 30 mph. Concern is potenti... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

While driving my 2024 Hyundai Kona on the freeway on May 22, 2026, at approximately 9:30 AM, traveling around 75 mph, my vehicle suddenly displayed a forward collision warning on the dashboard even though there was no vehicle, object, or road hazard in front of me that would justify emergency braking. Immediately after the warning appeared, the vehicle’s automatic emergency braking / forward col... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

There is a recall on the level 3 charger that has been outstanding for more than 2 years and they still do not have a remedy. We have to rent a car if we need to drive more than 200 miles.

Incident date: May 16, 2026

The wires that control my windows no longer work because the wires are in my door jam and after years of opening and closing the door on the wires they are worn out

Incident date: May 18, 2026

We recently purchased the Palomino from State 48 RV dealer in Mesa Az. We travel for the summer. On our 4th campground, our watchdog surge power unit showed an improper wiring at the pedestal. Campground electrician checked the pedestal and determined it was wired correctly and the problem was with the trailer. We hired an RV TECH and he found the main power supply pinched between the frame and... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

I am filing a safety complaint regarding my 2023 Kia Sportage Hybrid. The vehicle developed a “Check Hybrid System” warning and was diagnosed by a Kia dealership as having a failure involving the high-voltage hybrid system, specifically the MCU (Motor Control Unit). The dealership informed me that the vehicle may be unsafe to drive due to the possibility of fire risk associated with the high... Read more

Incident date: May 9, 2024

The touch screen display malfunctions and is often either unresponsive or it has ghost touches and moves across various screens while you are driving and during navigation. The system will make calls, activate voice assistance, move the map when navigation is active to where you can no longer see your route, switch between audio sources, open random apps, etc while driving leading to distraction. ... Read more

Incident date: May 21, 2026

I own the car and have had it for 3 years well maintenance but I notice when I pump gas it doesn’t want to go water leak in the the car when it rain and the fuel g lm from the gas tank leaks and you can smell gas strongly

Incident date: Feb 3, 2026

hello my name is [XXX] and I bought this 2014 Ford focus from a private dealer without being told what was wrong with the car for 4100 dollars and since I have had it it's been giving me problems it has a salvaged title.also it sounds like the inside of the hood is gurgling water ,sometimes it won't go in to reverse,it has a hard start the tcm module needs to be replaced and I guess it has someth... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

Car indicated 12v battery was critically low and that I should stop safely. I was just starting it in a parking lot. This is a classic ICCU failure and the car is up to date on all recall updates. The car requires manual key unlocking for outside access at this point, and the rear hatch is only unlockable using the manual release mechanism which is recessed into the rear hatch and needs the ke... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

Pcs2 failure

Incident date: May 22, 2026

We were in my vehicle. An audi q7 2021 driving in the highway ([XXX]) Headed to Ohio from Florida and during a traffic jam all the sudden my car stopped and will not react and was “stucked in park” and transmission malfunction, parking brake malfunction, start/stop system malfunction codes popped up all at once. So scary and cars started to move and we couldn’t. Luckily we were able to get ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 8, 2026

On [XXX] while traveling to NJ, the vehicle displayed "check electrical system" and would not accept a charge. With only 40 miles of range remaining, I drove the vehicle to Jack Daniels KIA. It is STILL at the dealership, and neither the dealer nor KIA Corp has provided a date that the car will be repaired. The dealer told me that it is covered under the 100kmi powertrain warranty, but that KIA co... Read more

Incident date: May 13, 2026

While driving at 75 mph, my vehicle displayed warning to pull over because engine/vehicle would shut off. I was on the outside lane and had to pull over all the way to the right immediately. I had recently had my car inspected and no warning lights were on at the time of the incident, which put all 4 passengers in the vehicle at risk. This is the second Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid to display the sa... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

While driving vehicle detected both road departure and engaged the emergency automated braking. The vehicle attempted to correct the "road departure" by steering the vehicle away from the perceived problem and engaged the brakes nearly causing a collision as it has done numerous times before. I have reported this to NHTSA and American Honda multiple times and await a repair of this dangerous issue... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

RE:Safety Complaint - Defective FCIM Causing Hazard Flashers to Activate Randomly May 22, 2026 To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to formally complain about a serious electrical defect affecting my 2012 Ford Edge involving the Front Controls Interface Module (FCIM). The vehicle’s hazard flashers activate randomly and repeatedly without warning, even when the vehicle is completely off and pa... Read more

Incident date: May 13, 2026

The vehicle's electrical system intermittently fails while driving. The entire instrument cluster and electronics shut off (speedometer, gauges, and all warning indicators go dark) while the engine continues running. On one occasion this occurred at night on a highway, with sudden loss of dashboard and electrical function until the vehicle could be pulled to safety, rendering the vehicle essentia... Read more

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Vehicle Safety

Consumer Safety

Infrastructure

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Consumer Safety Complaints

What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?

How to interpret what you read

If you've experienced a defect

Read more from our blog