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: Apr 24, 2026
The truck rapidly accelerated while I was slowly rolling into a parking spot with my foot on the brake. The harder I pushed the brake the more it seemed to accelerate. I luckily avoided hitting anything. I forced the gear shifter out of Drive into park. No warning lights or messages. I contacted 3 Ford dealerships and all said they haven’t heard of this nor do they think they could identify ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
Recall 26V-059 Brake lights and brakes don’t work sometimes. Dealer has no parts. Will not tell me when parts are coming. This is a serious issue and I need it fixed. It should not take this long.
Incident date: May 3, 2026
Car battery can't be charged more than 80 ℅ , fire risk
Incident date: May 9, 2026
Took my 2017 Ford F-150 in for a diagnostic on May 8 2026 for wrench symbol check engine light and issues down shifting and sliding tires shop manager and technician claimed the vehicle is unsafe to drive and talked to the Service manager deemed the vehicle unsafe to drive wanted it grounded do to the safety concerns related to Recall 26S28 (PCM/TRS) stated the down shifting is cause catastrop... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2026
Multiple times in my almost 3 year ownership I have experienced a “dead pedal” while pulling out into traffic from a stop. It has almost caused a t bone accident on a few occasions. It’s been to the dealer and had a software update TSB 0111-22. After the update I didn’t have the issue for a little while, but it has come back and it now happens almost every time I drive it. Online search sh... Read more
Incident date: May 9, 2026
The power steering and Stabilitrak systems intermittently fail while the vehicle is in operation. The issue occurs unpredictably, both immediately after startup and while driving. On several occasions, the systems have failed during turns, requiring sudden corrective action and increased steering effort to maintain control and avoid veering off the road or colliding with nearby vehicles. No warnin... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2025
While driving in hot environments the entire electrical interface would turn off. Some times the engine would stall as well. Nothing electrical works in the car and the motor would cut off while driving.
Incident date: May 2, 2026
My 2019 Honda CR-V experienced a malfunction involving multiple dashboard warning lights illuminating at the same time, including warning messages related to vehicle systems and safety features. There is concern about the vehicle entering limp mode and being unable to accelerate normally. This creates a safety concern because the vehicle may not respond properly in traffic or during highway drivin... Read more
Incident date: Nov 6, 2025
Hi my name Is [XXX] . JD Byrider financed me this car knowing that it had open recalls putting me and my family's lives in danger. The car has had electrical problems since Ive had it. Every other day different lights appear on the dashboard Service Airbags ,Service ABS and traction ESC off are some of the few. The car has been to their service department 14 times since Ive owned it each time they... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 9, 2026
Incident date: May 7, 2026
The central locking / electronic door lock system on my 2019 Audi A6 intermittently malfunctions, sometimes with a long beep sound and an error message appearing on the screen in front of my steering wheel. The affected system is available for inspection upon request. The issue does not happen all the time, but the door sometimes fails to unlock or appears to re-lock while I am trying to open it. ... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2020) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 9, 2026
Incident date: Jan 8, 2025
As I was wiring underneath the chassis to install a new electric black tank valve, I noticed that the wires in the RV and waterlines were lying across the cross-members of the chassis, chafing and almost exposing wires. The water lines were almost chafed through and were not secured on the chassis at all, with no wire looms. In this photo, I put protective sleeves on where the water lines and wiri... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2025
After the vehicle sits for several hours, the remote start system fails every time. Both the key fob remote start and the NissanConnect app remote start do not work, even though the vehicle shows as connected. The start command is aborted internally until the vehicle is physically moved a few feet. A dealership porter also could not remote‑start the vehicle at my home, and this is documented. Th... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2026
On May 8, 2026 at approximately 1:15 PM in [XXX] , my 2023 Tesla Model Y unexpectedly locked with my [XXX] infant inside during approximately 100°F weather. I briefly exited the vehicle while charging to disconnect the charging cable. My authenticated phone key remained inside the cabin. Immediately after unplugging the charger, the vehicle activated Walk-Away Door Lock and locked all doors des... Read more
Incident date: May 4, 2026
The screen goes black, doesn't turn on, or it stalls out and will not let you do anything and has a hard time connecting to phones at all
Incident date: Mar 27, 2026
While driving the vehicle on the freeway, the driver noticed the car was handling unusually at highway speeds. After exiting the freeway at approximately 45 mph, the accelerator pedal failed to decelerate properly when the foot was lifted from the pedal. A warning message appeared on the display screen indicating the vehicle was shutting down while the vehicle was still in motion. The vehicle subs... Read more
Incident date: May 8, 2026
Engine would not restart after the idle stop at a traffic light. I needed to put the car in park and turn the engine off and restart it. Shortly after this, at another traffic light, the idle stop caused a delayed restart of the engine and caused the vehicle to lurch forward suddenly. This has happened once before as well.
Incident date: Mar 3, 2026
The vehicle has experienced recurring suspension, drivability, and pulling issues associated with the 4-corner air ride leveling suspension system since early ownership. The first major incident occurred at approximately 4,600 miles when the vehicle displayed suspension warnings and would not accelerate properly past highway speeds. Since that time, the vehicle has repeatedly experienced pulling d... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2026
While driving my Tesla, Autopilot was engaged and navigating with the destination entered. At the time of the incident, my hand was on the steering wheel when the vehicle suddenly attempted to make a hard right turn toward a divider. This was not an exit or intended route, which raises serious concerns about what caused the vehicle to react that way. In addition, I have experienced multiple batte... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2026
Recurring electronic transmission shift control failure on a 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV. The Electronic Transmission Shift Control Pushbutton Circuit Board (GM part designation K212) has failed twice within approximately 9,300 miles. First failure occurred at approximately 45,695 miles in July 2025. The dashboard displayed a malfunction indicator and a "Service Transmission" warning. Diagnostic troubl... Read more
Incident date: May 8, 2026
Vehicle: 2021 Mercedes-Benz E350 Sedan (W213) VIN: [XXX] While operating the vehicle, the diagnostic system displayed the fault code P240200 related to the Evaporative Emission Control System (EVAP). The warning message indicated a “positive short circuit” in the fuel vapor leak diagnosis pump control circuit. The malfunction appears to involve the EVAP diagnostic module and/or associated el... Read more
Incident date: May 2, 2026
my car is a 2018 we bought it used in 2020 we had to had the transmission flushed and coils replaced . that didn't work . we had drum issues and gear slippage . now i. have to put a new transmission in the car
Incident date: Apr 16, 2026
I bought a 2026 GLC300 4matic SUV a month ago. I am very disappointed and scared of serious bodily damage due to the trunk door closing by itself while my upper body is loading/unloading the trunk. My wife and I were hit on the shoulder, back, arms, or head over a dozen times for 1 month. We took the car to the dealership for the problem but did not hear back from them for 3 days. The loaner... Read more
Incident date: Mar 17, 2026
The contact owns a 2022 Mercedes-Benz EQB 350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V073000 (Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was contacted and then later taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer confirmed that the remedy parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made a... Read more
Incident date: Apr 16, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Chrysler Pacifica PHEV. The contact stated that while driving on the highway, the message "Caution: Vehicle will turn off soon" was displayed on the dashboard and the check engine light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. In addition, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to coast to t... Read more
Incident date: May 4, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V741000 (Electrical System); however, the part required to complete the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer confirmed that the remedy parts were not yet available and were currently backordered. The manufacturer ... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
Driver side window switch that controls all the windows intermittently fails to operate at times which causes the window to not open or not close back again randomly. When wanting to close any window from the drivers seat the switches don’t work causing a safety hazard in a situation where the windows would require to be rolled up or opened immediately. Issue not brought up with Hyundai or any d... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
The head gaskets and turbo supercharger goes out at a certain amount of miles
Incident date: Apr 1, 2026
I have messages on my instrument panel stating I have airbag malfunction going on I also have tail lights that are not working and after trying to replace the bulbs it still don't work so obviously it's the light bulb panel so I went and looked at recalls and says that these are all recalls on my car but that they were fixed. so I don't know why I have them all bad again so I need to know what to... Read more
Incident date: Apr 30, 2026
In Feb 2025, I was involved in an accident where a driver damaged my driver's side door. I brought my car to the Fix Auto Downtown LA location for repairs. Cosmetically the door was repaired, but over the next year my latch would temporarily lock, preventing access and requiring me to enter through my passenger side door/climb over the center console. In Feb 2026, the latch permanently closed. In... Read more
Crash
MERCEDES BENZ
C300
(2009) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: May 8, 2026
My car randomly started alerting me of “ECS service” & “Brake assist service”. The dealership essentially did nothing even though there is an active recall on the 2024 models.
ALFA ROMEO
GIULIA
(2021) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: Jan 29, 2026
The contact owns a 2013 Buick Regal. The contact stated that while stopped at a stop light and depressing the brake pedal, the hybrid battery would power off as intended; however, when the brake pedal was released, the vehicle would lose automotive power before suddenly independently powering on before jolting. The check engine light illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: Apr 16, 2026
Stereo broke in an incredibly unsafe way, have read many similar reports online. Stereo started producing uncontrollable static, turning down volume did nothing, incredibly distracting while driving, volume definitely in excess of 100db, could not hear anything happening outside the car, could not focus easily on the road with the sudden static piercing my ears. Noise was loud enough that my ears ... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2026
this is the second time that the tail lift gate electric module became defective because of water pentation from some roof water seal
Incident date: May 8, 2026
2021 M3 138,000 miles Alerted error code BMS_a074 & BMS_a079 After reading forums, this seems to be a known issue with 2021 in particular. I am reporting in hopes something can be done about it. Yesterday both codes alerted within hours of each other. First that the charging was limited to 50% and would only charge once <50%; then shortly thereafter it alerted with Unable to Charge. I attempted t... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2026
The contact owns a 2023 JEEP Wagoneer. The contact stated that while towing, the vehicle experienced a serious and recurring safety failure where the trailer lights would function for approximately five minutes before a portion of them would blackout. This failure renders towing unsafe and illegal, as it compromises visibility and traffic law compliance. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Numbe... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2022) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: Feb 11, 2026
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while attempting to reverse, the rearview camera became inoperable. The contact stated that the rearview camera image would intermittently fail, flicker on and off, and at times display would appear upside down. The contact also stated that the instrument panel became inoperable. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbe... Read more
FORD
TRANSIT CONNECT
(2014) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: Dec 1, 2014
Weeks before the vehicle completely shut down, my car began stalling and shutting off in traffic without warning while driving. I was usually able to turn the vehicle off and restart it, and it would come back on temporarily. At red lights and stop signs, the vehicle would power down, stall, jerk forward, and then begin moving again when I pressed the accelerator. On 05/01/2026, while stopped at ... Read more
Incident date: May 4, 2026
The contact owns a 2010 Lexus IS. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle stalled, the vehicle independently accelerated while the accelerator pedal was not depressed, and all of the doors locked independently and were inoperative. No warning lights were illuminated. The failure occurred on several different occasions. The contact did research and was made aware of an unknown ... Read more
Incident date: May 8, 2026
Hello: I own a 2007 Lexus IS250. My vehicle has had an ongoing engine misfire issue and has run extremely rough. In addition, my SRS light and there is an issue with the driver's side knee air bag inflator connector. Finally, my dashboard, front and rear door panels have been sticky and melted over time when it is hot and there is no reason why this is occurring. The dashboard and door panels be... Read more
Crash
Incident date: May 1, 2026
While driving, the vehicle will randomly shut off and lose all power. If I jump the car, it starts up and runs fine for a while. Also, there have been several incidents when I park the car, and it immediately loses all power and needs to be jumped. I have had the battery, alternaor and starter checked, and all are working fine per the mechanic. There have also been instances when we are pushing... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
Auto start stop not working. This is happening quite a lot where there auto stop in activated and then the car wont start back. Resulting in the car having to be completely restarted.
Incident date: May 8, 2026
We've been experiencing issues with the Auto Idle Stop feature (the auto restart in particular). On multiple occasions, the vehicle will automatically turn off the engine while stopped in traffic, but will fail to start back up, requiring the driverto manually turn the vehicle off and back on via push button starter (sometimes multiple restarts is necessary to get it moving again). This seems VERY... Read more
MITSUBISHI
OUTLANDER SPORT
(2017) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: May 6, 2026
My 2021 Tesla Model Y HW3 experienced complete failure of all cameras, GPS, Automatic Emergency Braking, and Adaptive Cruise Control following the installation of software update 2026.8.6.1 — the OTA remedy update issued by Tesla for NHTSA Recall 26V283000. The vehicle was fully functional prior to this update. The failure was confirmed and reproduced by Tesla's authorized service center. The s... Read more
Incident date: Sep 24, 2025
The idle stop system frequently fails to restart the car after shutting down the engine at a stop light. In some cases the car is difficult to restart using the starter button. In other instances the car restarts and then dangerously lurches forward.
Incident date: May 7, 2026
My 2016 RAM 1500 has had an issue with the Anti-lock Brakes since August 2025 that is under the manufacturer extended warranty. I am the original owner. The ABS module and other sensors have been replaced and the problem persist. In the last few weeks, the traction control light energizes intermittently (flashes) and the engine loses power-does not stall out, but does not accelerate. The light ... Read more
TOYOTA
CAMRY HYBRID
(2026) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
May 8, 2026
Incident date: May 8, 2026
Left headlight assembly running lights failed. The light fixture. is one unit.so the whole light being replaced instead of one lightbulb.
Incident date: May 5, 2026
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? MULTIPLE DRIVER AID FUNCATIONS IN-OP. DRIVER DOOR LOCKS WILL NOT LOCK OR UNLOCK, DRIVER DOOR LOCK AND UNLOCK SWITCH WILL NOT OPERATE ANY LOCKS, PASSENGER DOOR MIRROR WILL NOT MOVE, SEAT MEMORY WILL NOT SAVE, REAR VIEW MIRROR WILL NOT AUTO DIM AND THERE IS NO MANUAL OPTION TO ADJUST THE MIRROR RESULTI... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
I was on my way home from work approaching a red light coasting to a stop, I tried to slow down then I realized the car was accelerating and I pushed the brakes and pulled into a parking lot by the time I got in the parking lot the car was surging, really trying to takeoff. It went all the way to 5,000 rpm’s while I was in park.
Incident date: Mar 4, 2026
Unexpected PCS2 failure and loss of AC charging. This unable to charge battery where supercharger is not available. Risks of being stranded. Limits current use. Repair unavailable and no estimated time per service center!
Incident date: Apr 6, 2026
My 12 Volt plug does not work. My infatainment system stopped workin