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 169,480 complaints - component: ENGINE

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

I am a full-time power wheelchair user with Multiple Sclerosis and rely on this 2024 Chrysler Pacifica wheelchair-accessible van as my primary means of transportation. Since purchase, the vehicle has repeatedly experienced dangerous loss-of-power events while being driven. Immediately before the failure occurs, warning beeps sound and multiple warning lights illuminate, including Check Engine, ET... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

My car was in shop for Smog inspection and failed. Mechanic told me that the most likely reason was that the engine has issues related to failing crankshaft position sensor which triggered the check engine light. He further explained that the engine with this condition will have abnormal oil consumption. My experience is that is exactly what I wondered. No smoke in the exhaust, no oil leaks under ... Read more

Incident date: May 21, 2026

The engine head gasket prematurely failed at 90,000 miles with excellent service / maintenance history.

Incident date: May 29, 2026

Air compressor and compression failed engine diagnostic test. Vehicle had high oil and gas consumption.

Incident date: Mar 1, 2025

Oil Change and Check Engine Light continuously appear. Have gotten oil changes during the prescribed timings and still after being within the timeframe of the oil change the sensor appears. The car has stalled while driving due to this and have on multiple occasions have had to buy oil to add to the vehicle even after getting a oil change at a dealership.

Incident date: May 31, 2026

We have been documenting a oil leak on the timing chain cam shaft cover. When the motor heats up the engine seeps/leaks oil on the top of the side of engine. This has been documented for the past few months starting at 37,099 miles when we noticed it, date of first notice was on 4/29/2026. We have pic with time stamps and have taken it to dealership to inspect and have written many times of the is... Read more

Incident date: Jun 3, 2026

Component: Drivetrain, brake, and engine management systems repeatedly fail in a coordinated pattern, with multiple warning indicators activating simultaneously and sudden unintended deceleration occurring without warning. Vehicle available for inspection. Safety risk: Most recent failure occurred at highway speed with family including passengers in the vehicle. Without warning, the vehicle decele... Read more

Incident date: Jun 5, 2026

My wife was driving the vehicle when the emergency lights started going off. She had to pull over because the car wouldn't run and said it was overheated. All the maintenance has been done to the car. We took it to the dealership and they said it is a cracked head and it is a known issue. They even issued a extended warranty for it. It is TSB 01-002/23. There should be a recall on this not just a ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 29, 2026

I own a new 2026 KIA Sportage Hybrid VIN: [XXX] Odometer reading 1,200 miles On XXX while accelerating at freeway speeds the vehicle suddenly lost power and went into “reduced power mode” which slows the vehicle to a near stop. A Check engine light came on and two messages appeared. One message read:” Follow-up check required 1” and the other read: ”There may be a problem with the engine... Read more

Incident date: Jun 1, 2026

My 2020 CR-v hybrid has suddenly lost power on the freeway a total of 4 times in the 6 years I've owned it. It is always at freeway speeds. The flashing engine light appears and the car loses power. After pulling over, turning off the car, and waiting a few minutes, the car can be turned on and driven with no more flashing engine light and no more problems for months. Each time I've taken it t... Read more

Incident date: Jun 2, 2026

-Engine fails to restart on its own from a complete stop at a traffic light or road intersection with the AIS function engaged. -This issue presents a significant safety hazard for my two small children and me. On multiple occasions, we have been unable to move due to severe traffic congestion, leaving us vulnerable to aggressive and hostile behavior from other drivers. The resulting situation is... Read more

Incident date: Dec 16, 2025

I had the car for just 2 years and it's giving me a lot of problems the car smells like gas it has a gas leak the breaks don't work and the electrical system don't work properly

Incident date: Jan 1, 2025

2005 Chrysler Pacifica was purchased from a friend’s grandfather who kept the car garaged the car is literally like new inside and out the under carriage looks like new no rust I was impressed but had a rattling in the front end I figured it was a strut took it in to have struts and all front end parts replaced to my surprise I get a call from the shop engine cradle and it bushings rusted out tr... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2024

Purchased 2023 Nissan Rogue March 2026 drove for 3 months never was informed of a recall. On XXX would not start but it did after removing key from FOB then saw a little gray smoke shut the car down and XXX contacted Lugoff Nissan SC was told of recall and that engine was fully covered. Tuesday called again to inquire about progress none was done. Informed me they would not replace engine unless I... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

My 2023 Dodge Charger SXT with approximately 26,000 miles has experienced multiple incidents where, while turning into traffic or accelerating from a stop, the vehicle loses the ability to continue driving and displays a message instructing me to shift into Park and then Drive. The electronic shifter becomes unresponsive, steering is affected, and I am left stranded in active traffic until I can r... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2024

I am submitting this complaint regarding serious safety concerns with my Volvo vehicle that may affect the safety of my family, especially young children. 1. Second-Row Center Seat Integrated Booster Seat Belt Failure The integrated booster seat belt in the second-row center seat is not functioning properly. The seat belt mechanism appears defective and does not secure the child as intended. Thi... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

Coolant was found to be leaking in cylinder number 4. The Ford dealer told us the vehicle needed a new engine with a repair cost of $8,000.00. It is not available for inspection, since it was auctioned off by the Ford dealer. My wife and children were stopped at a stop sign and the engine started to misfire. She was trying to turn onto a busy highway and it lacked power with no acceleration ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 2, 2026

Coolant intrusion into the engine, coolant flowing into the cylinders. Resulting in major dangerous stuttering, jerking, and dangerous loss of power in middle of freeway with fast moving traffic around vehicle. Ford KNOWN ISSUE!

Incident date: Jan 2, 2026

While driving the vehicle sensor lights began to come on. I assumed it was a dirty outside sensor. Not long after the ABS system lit up and my car said traction even though I was just pulling into my driveway. I quickly turned around and drove to my mechanic. Showed him all the lights and he connected the computer to read the error codes. Found out that my oil pump was the main cause of the issue.... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

The contact owns a 2023 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a knocking sound coming from the engine. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the engine was replaced. However, the failure persisted after the repair. No additional repairs were performed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 146,000.

Incident date: Jun 1, 2019

Since 2024/2025 car has been malfunctioning, I’ve had it checked out but it just got worse and nothing was fixed l, it is I driveable and very unsafe. When driving it abruptly stops like it’s crashing Messages that pop up (Multiple ones at one time flashing as well) - service “ESC” -“service power steering drive with care” -“shift to park” -“low fuel” (but car has gas in ... Read more

Incident date: Dec 9, 2025

I have taken my vehicle or rather had my vehicle towed back to my dealership on three different occasions for repair of a Shift Cable Replacement I can have a very bad accident in my vehicle or lose my life or injure someone else the first time I didn't understand why my vehicle shutdown while I was driving on a very busy highway I was very upset, and I had to pray that none ran into me Lucky for... Read more

Incident date: Oct 1, 2025

Driving on the highway in Dallas, all of a sudden I didn’t have any acceleration. Foot all the way down on the pedal, barely holding 60mph on a 70mph highway. Service light came on and I got an alert on my phone. I had to carefully take side roads and take an hour to get home. It ended up being recall number 23S64. This recall has been in place since January 2024 and I have called multiple times... Read more

Incident date: Mar 1, 2025

I recently purchased a 2020 Hyundai Tucson with a Nu 2.0 GDI engine. Shortly after purchase the engine completely failed and requires full replacement. When taken to a Hyundai dealership, they pulled an internal STUI report showing A95 branding, meaning Hyundai had previously denied warranty coverage blaming the prior owner for outside influence. This A95 designation does not appear on any consume... Read more

Incident date: May 29, 2026

Transmission leak requiring torque converter replacement

Incident date: May 29, 2026

I was driving in GA and my low engine power light came on and I lost complete ability to brake. The brake pedal was hard and would not go down. I towed my car to Jim Ellis Chevrolet in Atlanta. They called a few days later and told me I needed extensive engine repairs that would cost over $5,000 but GM would take care of some of it. I paid $1980.00. I went to pick up my car and was nervous be... Read more

Incident date: May 31, 2026

I had an oil pressure light come on while driving and it was followed by the car shutting off and not starting back up. It was towed to a mechanic who told me the timing belt broke while driving and the car requires a new engine. The car was the towed to a ford dealer who confirmed his diagnosis. The car has the 1.0l ecoboost engine and manual transmission. I saw that there is an open investigatio... Read more

Incident date: Nov 11, 2025

The contact owns a 2021 Kia K5. The contact stated that the driver-side turn signal became inoperable. The vehicle was shifting hard and/or not shifting at all. While driving at unknown speeds, the vehicle shut down. The turn signal and brake lights were illuminated. The contact stated there was a recall for NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V794000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The vehicle was taken to the loc... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

The contact stated that while driving, the engine made clunking noise, sudden loss of power and the check engine light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a connecting rod bearing failure and engine replacement is necessary. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 180,000.

Incident date: Sep 1, 2025

I purchased this vehicle at 0 miles in July 2025 from Honda Accord in Pensacola Florida. I reported in July 2025 that there was a noise and I was unhappy with the vehicle and would like to exchange the vehicle within the 30 days months later, the noise got louder, and I took it in to see what the problem was I was told there was no issue that this is the loud start noise when you first crank the c... Read more

Incident date: May 30, 2026

Hi, my name is [XXX], i bought used Hyndai Santafe sport 2017 from dealership in 2020. It had around 47,000 Miles on it, intitially it was running fine but after driving 2 years i discovered that engine is burning oil and after the oil change right after 1000 miles i had to add a quart of oil and it was like every two weeks. I had many srevices from dealership and other auto mechanic stores but it... Read more

Incident date: Jul 25, 2025

Oil consumption engine ticking hesitate to change gears poor acceleration.

Incident date: Jun 15, 2021

Noticed that the coolant level kept going down with no apparent external leakage and was also getting a code for #2 Cylinder Mis-Fire, After adding a total 1 gallon antifreeze i made an appointment at the local Ford Dealer to see what is wrong. They Diagnosed the Issue to Coolant leaking in to Cylinder #2, there recommendation is to replace Long Block.

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

On Jan 1,2019 under KIA PI-1803 Recall I had a Knock Sensor Detection System(KSDS) installed on my 2013 KIA Sorento. My car broke down and was towed into the Kia Dealership and it indicated a P1326 fault active . It was reset and released to me on 05/12/2026 after conducting a BCT test saying it indicated PASS drove it off the lot went 5 miles, and it broke down, towed back in and they replaced t... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

Vehicle (2019 Kona) is subject to Recall 203 (piston ring/bore defect). On XXX Puente Hills Hyundai refused the mandatory physcial inspection, instead attempting to charge $1,100 for 'leak repairs.' An independent inspection by Valvoline on XXX confirmed the engine is dry with no leaks, proving the dealer's claim was fraudulent. Following a recent ECU update, the vehicle triggered a P0420 code—... Read more

Incident date: Jun 3, 2026

I am reporting a significant safety concern regarding my 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQB. While my specific VIN has not been included in the current high-voltage battery fire risk recall (NHTSA Campaign 26V073000), my vehicle is a 2023 model that shares the identical high-voltage battery architecture, manufacturing window, and platform design as the approximately 12,000 EQB vehicles officially recalled due... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2025

The contact owns a 2015 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH to work, the vehicle shifted into neutral and into low and failed to drive at about 20 MPH. The check engine light was flashing. The front collision was unavailable. The contact left the vehicle at a gas station. Upon research, the contact located NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V374000 (Power Train), which was similar to ... Read more

Incident date: Jun 3, 2026

Car keeps overheating and mis firing causing the car to break down on the side of the road, coming to find out that the engine is having head gasket failure without warning, check engine light doesn't appear to after the fact, causing my 82 year old mother stranded on the side of the road

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

Engine 6.2L failed going down the highway. Very Scary

Incident date: May 30, 2026

I have a 2024 Hybrid Toyota Tundra Equipped with V35-A- FTS 3.4 L Twin- Turbo V6. This motor is the same engine as the non hybrid motors included in the recall. There was recently a defect information report sent out on May 20th 2026 from Toyota stating that there is an issue with the main #1 bearing and the newer motors are now being installed with upgraded new bearing indicating that all motors,... Read more

Incident date: Jun 4, 2026

The vehicle has had breaking issues since I purchased it in September 23, 2023. On April 26, 2025 the car completely shut down while driving it for no apparent reason. Took it to the certified Cadillac dealer (see picture). Said, it was fixed. May 11, 2026 started doing it again while driving, turning, backing up or at a light. Breaks keep saying need to be serviced too. Had it towed in to C... Read more

Incident date: Feb 26, 2026

This recall has not been handled as of yet due to unavailable parts at it has almost been a year since it was issued on 7.16.2025.

Incident date: Sep 4, 2023

I've been experiencing throttle lag on my 2022 Tundra in certain situations during rolling stops (I've also had it occur from a dead stop, though more frequent in rolling stops). Sometimes there is a significant delay in throttle response, and the other day while pulling out into traffic the delay was perhaps 2-3 seconds. This nearly created an accident as the engine had zero response and greatly ... Read more

Incident date: May 25, 2026

The engine had a sudden loss of propulsion on the highway traveling at 70mph. It went into netural and I had to coast to the side. Power cycled and it started back up for 15 more miles, then did it again and would not go out of park. Towed to dealer. PICO L87 recall was completed prior to purchasing the vehicle. 300 miles after purchase, the engine locked up. Dealer confirmed its an L87 recall fai... Read more

Incident date: May 15, 2026

Vehicle: 2021 Subaru Legacy Base 2.5i Mileage:~65,000 miles My engine suddenly began making loud internal knocking/tapping noises with no warning lights, no overheating, and no prior symptoms. The vehicle immediately became unsafe to operate. I had it towed to a Subaru dealership, where technicians confirmed the noise was coming from inside the engine and recommended a full engine replacement. Th... Read more

Incident date: Sep 19, 2025

When continuing forward from a stop sign, the car has a slight shutter when accelerating. This was confirmed by an independent service center. Has not been inspected by the manufacturer. No visual warnings or prior symptoms. There was a recall for this particular issue for a 2014 Nissan Versa, but my VIN number was not included for which I believe should have been. My current mileage to date is 3... Read more

Incident date: Apr 1, 2026

Engine coolant keeps getting severely low. Coolant intrusion into cylinder 3 is occuring causing severe misfire, low compression, coolant consumption, power loss, white smoke, that causes minor throat and eye irritation, and catalytic converter damage. Constant low coolant level increases risk of fire hazard of vehicle.

Incident date: Aug 5, 2025

on 1/13/2026 i took the car to Toyota Dealership in Riverside California to fix 25TB14 SAFETY RECALL. on 6/3/2026, They did not Fix it and I took my Car back and stored it because it's not safe to drive

Incident date: Jan 13, 2026

VEHICLE: 2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport HSE, Original owner since February 2023. NATURE OF DEFECT: Persistent and unresolved coolant loss from the engine cooling system, with evidence suggesting leaked coolant is contacting hot engine components and creating a potential fire hazard. CHRONOLOGY: Beginning in February 2026, the vehicle began displaying recurring "low coolant" warnings on the ins... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

See attached document for complaint.

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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

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