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.

2,245,377 Total Complaints

140,173 Reported Crashes

56,794 Reported Fires

8,580 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 2,245,377 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

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 191,761 complaints - component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Incident date: Jun 29, 2026

I am reporting a potential safety defect involving my 2021 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy AWD. The vehicle has experienced repeated engine and drivability problems and multiple breakdowns following replacement of the engine by Hyundai. The original engine developed excessive oil consumption and was ultimately replaced by Hyundai with a new engine. Following the engine replacement, the vehicle expe... Read more

Incident date: Jun 15, 2026

My 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E (142,009 miles) intermittently fails to accept a charge at public DC fast-charging stations. My husband relies on these stations because our home electrical panel cannot support a home EV charger, and he uses this vehicle daily for his work in commercial real estate, often needing to charge it twice a day while traveling throughout Southern California. We first brought... Read more

Incident date: Aug 24, 2026

The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Tundra. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the check engine, Auto Start/Stop, and another unknown warning light illuminated. The message "Grill Shutter Malfunction Low Voltage" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the battery sensor, alternator, and ECU had short-circuited. The dealer replaced the battery sensor, al... Read more

Incident date: Aug 19, 2026

Car has stalled out on road multiple times. In shop one day for software update. In shop two days for fuel pump replacement. Has been in shop 13 days and counting with no diagnoses currently. First stall out occurred at 55 mph.

Incident date: Aug 17, 2026

I am filing this complaint regarding Nissan's handling of an open safety recall involving my vehicle and the subsequent engine failure. Nissan issued Recall 26V080 concerning an engine-related defect that can cause engine oil breakdown, bearing damage/seizure, engine damage, and loss of motive power. My vehicle developed the red oil warning light, check-engine light, and reduced engine power befo... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

I applied brake and pedal went straight to floor without any stopping. I had to steer into a ditch to avoid a collision resulting in more damage to steering system, frame, windshield and body. This was complete brake system failure and yes is available for inspection. I was in a very rural area at time and was able to avoid a collision however, if I had been in city or on highway it could have eas... Read more

Crash

Incident date: Sep 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2023 Land Rover Defender. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V248000 (Electrical System); 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 ... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2025 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, the rear lights became inoperative. The message "No Trailer Lights" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken back to the residence. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V059000 (EXTERIOR LIGHTING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); however, the part to do the recall repair wa... Read more

Incident date: Jul 4, 2026

My 2015 Kia K900 developed a no-start condition and displayed a “Check Brake Fuse” warning starting July 4th 2026. The vehicle will not start, and the cause of the failure is currently unknown. It was perfectly fine. I took the vehicle to an authorized Kia dealership for diagnosis and paid a diagnostic fee. The dealership inspected the vehicle but told me they were unable to determine what is ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 10, 2026

[XXX] It's security risk, Honda customer service not taking any ownership. Anything happens to my family who is going to take responsibility. Please open case against and help all customers who owns HONDA car. I done what ever honda delears recommanded and paid alomost $2000. Please take some action ASAP anything happens to me or my family then HONDA and NHTSA are responsible. Waiting your rep... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2026 Subaru Solterra. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V393000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer confirmed that parts were not yet available and informed the contact that many of the dealers were experiencing ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 30, 2026

The radio displays Uconnect box requires service, please visit an authorized dealer. When that happens you cannot use the safety call 911 button, if you are using your phone for navigation, you will not be able to see it. It also makes the vehicle run different.

Incident date: Jul 19, 2026

My 2024 Volkswagen Jetta experienced a transmission control module (TCM) failure. The vehicle began having transmission problems and became essentially undriveable. It would not operate/shift normally and required repair. The Volkswagen dealer diagnosed the problem as a failed transmission control module and advised that the TCM needs to be replaced. The required TCM has now been on nationwide bac... Read more

Incident date: Jun 3, 2026

See attached document for complaint.

Incident date: Aug 18, 2026

"Steering Assist is Reduced, Drive With Care" showed up on the dashboard. The temperature gauge dropped to dead cold. Once the car was parked and cut off, the fan still kept running for 5 minutes. From my research it seems these are the signs of a thermostat being stuck open. It also seems this is a very common problem with this car, according to the internet. This vehicle has around 70K miles. Th... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

The electrically-driven intelligent brake unit failed on my 2015 Nissan Leaf. The brakes became inoperative: when pressing the brake pedal there is a loud compression/grinding noise and the pedal goes nearly to the floor with little braking force. The failure appeared suddenly after charging the vehicle; it had been working normally before. The vehicle had to be towed to a Nissan dealership. The d... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

When at a red light the engine cuts off and does not restart when foot comes off the brake. Sometimes it takes several minutes to start. We were stuck in an intersection and almost were rear ended. Took it ti the dealership. had a new battery up in. By the time we got home, it did it again. Took it back to the dealership, they replaced the started. No problems for 4 months. Now it is doing the sa... Read more

Incident date: Jul 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2025 Ram 1500. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 26V059000 (Exterior Lighting, Electrical System), 26V225000 (Electrical System), and 26V495000 (Seat Belts); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the navigation screen display turned black. The contact pulled over, t... Read more

Incident date: Aug 10, 2026

I was driving and all of a sudden all the warning lights start going off on my vehicle’s dashboard and the car jerks back and forth while decelerating. This has happened twice on the highway putting me in danger of crashing or making cars around me crash. On a seperate occasion my brakes failed, causing the car to jerk abruptly in traffic, thankfully I was able to pull over. Some times the ca... Read more

Incident date: Aug 27, 2026

The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle lost automotive power. The message "Shift to Neutral and Restart" was displayed. The contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway and restarted the vehicle; however, the failure progressed. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer and remained at the dealer for additional ... Read more

Incident date: Jul 17, 2025

The vehicle comes equipped with “Auto off/on” at stoplights the vehicle will turn itself off to preserve fuel and is supposed to turn back on. Instead the vehicle dies in the middle of the road. I have to turn vehicle back to off and hope it starts back up. When it does finally start, it’s a slow start, it struggles. There’s been two incidents where it had to be jumped in the middle of th... Read more

Incident date: Apr 16, 2026

Car went into limp mode and was struggling to accelerate, went and got it diagnosed and was notified that my spark plugs needed to be replaced. Car began running fine but a few months went by and the issue came back. I was told I needed my spark plugs changed again. After the third time, I went and had my car diagnosed again and was told I needed a battery for the car because it was drained. Then ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

When at a red light or stop sign the vehicle will idle and turn off. The vehicle doesn’t want to restart. It takes a bit to get started again then it progresses.While parked I turned the car off for 5 minutes and it would not start up again. Tried the jump cables to make sure it wasn’t the battery had to have a tow truck come they were able to get the car jumped and started. Took the battery t... Read more

Incident date: Aug 12, 2026

ALL THE SAFETY DASHBOARD LIGHTS ARE ON, WHAT IS THE PROBLEM? I NEED THIS SITUATION TO BE FIXED ASAP, IT DOESNT EVEN LET ME DRIVE, IT LOSES POWER AND THE BATTERY IS BRAND NEW.

Incident date: Apr 11, 2026

COMPONENT / FAULT CATEGORY: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM / POWER TRAIN / BLIND SPOT WARNING SUMMARY OF THE DEFECT: On April 11, 2026, my 2019 BMW X5 suffered a sudden electronic system shutdown at highway speeds near the 210 exit, stranding the car on the roadway and requiring AAA towing. BMW of Ontario falsely blamed "liquid damage" in the GSW shifter and texted an inflated quote of $6,616.05, later reduce... Read more

Incident date: Aug 28, 2026

I purchased a new 2026 Kia Carnival EX and noticed an unusually intense amount of heat coming from underneath the vehicle on the passenger side, particularly around the rear passenger door/second-row seating area. I first noticed the issue while the vehicle was parked and I was standing outside the open rear passenger door installing car seats and floor mats. The heat radiating from underneath th... Read more

Incident date: Aug 29, 2026

While braking in a left hand turn lane waiting for the vehicles in front to turn left through an intersection, the vehicle stalled, shut off, and forced a manual restart in the turn lane. This same sequence happened again at another red light when the brake was engaged. The dealership the car was purchased from would not evaluate the car as they stated it is under factory warranty and should be ev... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

Dash lights on for Brake system malfunction. Emergency parking brake light on as well as TPS system. Lights around Park, Neutral and drive not illuminated. Battery and alternator are in good standing.

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

warning lights and problems

Incident date: Aug 25, 2026

On or about XXX, I was the authorized subscriber and driver of a 2026 Cadillac CT4 owned by Flexcar, VIN [XXX]. While driving near [XXX] and [XXX], multiple dashboard warning lamps suddenly illuminated and a brake-assist warning appeared. The braking response became abnormally stiff or limited, and I nearly rear-ended another vehicle. The suspected systems are the service-brake/brake-assist syste... Read more

Incident date: Aug 20, 2026

On August 20, 2026, while driving my 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning, the vehicle suffered a sudden, complete, and catastrophic loss of propulsion. The truck stopped abruptly while in motion on an active roadway. This immediate loss of power created an extremely hazardous situation, exposing myself, my passengers, and oncoming traffic to an immediate risk of a collision. The vehicle was towed directly... Read more

Incident date: Nov 3, 2025

Had a engine failure at 93,000 miles and upon doing a vin report found out it also had a engine put it at 7,800 miles so it now has its third engine in it and also had the high pressure pump fail and the gauge cluster fail and had to be replaced

Incident date: Aug 30, 2026

My 2024 Cadillac Escalade had the 6.2 v8 engine recall done in 6/25. I’ve put less than 8k miles on it since and just rolled 32400 miles total. While driving with my family in the car on 8/30 on the highway, it lost all power and just shut off while driving highway speeds. I was able to safely stop but very dangerous. Vehicle would not restart and had to be towed to dealer.

Incident date: Aug 26, 2026

There have been multiple instances where the engine has locked up in the middle of me driving (usually at stop lights) where the only fix is to completely shut the car off and on again which has resulted in me almost being in an accident. This poses an extreme safety risk.

Incident date: Jun 26, 2026

The vehicle experienced a complete loss of infotainment/audio functions immediately following a GM over-the-air software update. The OnStar indicator turned red, all vehicle audio including turn-signal sounds stopped functioning, and the rear backup camera stopped displaying an image. The backup camera failure creates a safety concern because it eliminates a federally required rear visibility safe... Read more

Incident date: Jul 7, 2026

All four exterior door handles on my 2021 Cadillac CT5 have experienced the same intermittent failure. The handles initially work intermittently and then become unable to release the door. This has occurred on all four doors. This creates a serious safety concern because occupants may be unable to enter or exit the vehicle normally, and emergency responders may be unable to access occupants throug... Read more

Incident date: Jul 28, 2026

On XXX we were in the acceleration lane on XXX, merging onto the highway. When we engaged the cruise control the car rapidly accelerated up to 97 mph. We were unable to get car to slow down, or disengage the cruise for approximately 1 minute. The care ran for 97 mph for the minute or so this happened. Husband was driving and he did all we knew to do to disengage the cruise and get the car slowed ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 19, 2026

Subject: 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee – Sudden Loss of Power, PCM Failure, Electrical Failures, and Concern Regarding Recall-Related Symptoms I am filing this complaint because my 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee experienced a sudden and unexpected loss of power while I was driving, and I am very concerned about the safety implications and the possible connection to the recall-related electrical problems a... Read more

Incident date: Aug 27, 2026

About a year ago I brought my car to the dealership because my computer blacked out which resulted in losing power steering and braking ability. I was told they hooked it up to the computer and found nothing and sent me on my way. Last week this same thing happened 5x in one day and I lost all computer function for 24 hours. The computer has since glitched and blacked out multiple times but hav... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

Based on reading some service forms, it seems it may be the hydraulic booster, causing the issue. In order for them to take a look at the brakes system. I was charged a upfront diagnostics fee of $316. While driving warning light comes on " Check brake system " then the car slows down to 10mph immediately. While pressing on the brakes they squeaking, very badly. I have to turn the car off and bac... Read more

Incident date: Jul 27, 2026

Vehicle has loose horn emblem Vehicle Heat/AC front not operable Vehicle driver side sliding door inoperable. Subject: URGENT SUPPLEMENT TO NHTSA COMPLAINT #11753124 — Unresolved Safety Recalls, Airbag Hazards, Dealer Refusal/Delay, and Conflicting Parts Availability Information Vehicle: 2008 Dodge Grand CaravanNHTSA Complaint: #11753124Mopar Corporate Case: #97575701 I am submitting this as... Read more

Incident date: Aug 1, 2025

The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated that the headlights and taillights remained illuminated after the vehicle was turned off. Additionally, the vehicle intermittently failed to start up. The contact stated that AAA jump-started the vehicle, and it was determined that the battery was in good working condition. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

I am the owner of a 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQB that has been identified as being affected by the current high-voltage battery safety recall. I recently contacted my authorized Mercedes-Benz dealer regarding the recall and was informed that the recall is currently pending for my vehicle and that the permanent remedy is not expected to begin until approximately December. I understand that the interim ... Read more

Incident date: Jul 15, 2026

On unusually hot days, my VW Tiguan 2019, pops up a Check Start system and shuts down the dash and all electrical components (speedometer, A/C, infotainment system, blindside monitors, brake lights etc.) Car still runs but everything does not work. On searching, there are other VW users complaining about this issue as well making it a known manufacturer defect/issue. I called my local VW dealer le... Read more

Incident date: Aug 21, 2026

This vehicle is a 2024 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 featuring a 6.2L V8 engine and a 10 speed transmission, currently at 58,136 miles. The vehicle was experiencing a severe shudder. An official GM Technical Assistance Case (TAC) engineering case was opened on July 30, 2026 confirming a verified DFM cylinder deactivation or valve train malfunction. However, on August 21, 2026 the dealership falsified ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

The contact owns a 2022 BMW X3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V438000 (Electrical System); 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 exper... Read more

Incident date: Aug 22, 2026

I heard a loud popped sound from the back of my car while driving home. The car lost power and eventually died on the street. The war displacy came on to tell em to check electrical system. I originally bought th car from Capitol Huyndai in San Jose on September 2025 and it has 5992 miles. I towed the car to Dublin Hyundai for repair and confirmed the DTCP1A9096 for ICCU computer failing to cha... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

Rear camera has blue screen when backing. Has happened twice today.

Incident date: Mar 2, 2026

- The steering system appears to be malfunctioning. The steering wheel becomes sticky or feels like it catches while turning, and there is a clunking and grinding noise when the steering wheel is turned. The vehicle and affected components are available for inspection upon request. - The steering issue creates a potential safety risk because the steering wheel may not turn smoothly or respond as ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2026

On August 31, 2026, while driving my 2025 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport on the highway, multiple warning lights illuminated and the vehicle stopped operating while I was in traffic. The sudden loss of vehicle operation created a serious risk of a collision and placed me and other motorists in danger. This vehicle has experienced repeated problems including rough operation, hesitation/loss of accel... Read more

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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