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.
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
Showing 169,480 complaints - component: ENGINE
Incident date: Apr 2, 2026
I was on vacation driving the vehicle when the engine caught fire..There was kids in the car there was nothing wrong with the vehicle all of a sudden it just went boom and caught fire We were slowing down to get off the exit. I have no idea what all was effected I don't know much about cars to know what did or did not catch fire..
Fire
Incident date: Mar 23, 2026
Oil leak that I’ve put so much effort in getting fixed or replaced and nothing is working. The seat belts suck. The seats are ripped.
Incident date: Jan 29, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Mazda CX-90. The contact was informed about a previous recall associated with the steering that was repaired prior to owning the vehicle, but the failure persisted. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds and turning, the steering wheel jerked in the opposite direction, then became soft, and then more difficult to steer. The vehicle was ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 11, 2026
I have the video BUT I AM UNSURE how to upload or share Incident Description: The vehicle is experiencing intermittent, complete engine stalls while in motion at highway speeds. The failure has occurred four times. Initial Symptom: The issue first manifested as "stuttering" and erratic behavior from the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) which I thought it was. Escalation: The vehicle has... Read more
Incident date: Feb 13, 2025
Over the past couple of months the the vehicle has been "throwing" misfiring cylinder errors, particularly cylinder 4 (P0304) and every once in a while cylinder 1 (P0301), and a catalytic converter bank 2 error (P0430). Last week, I filled up with premium fuel and added a catalytic cleaner. This eliminated the P0430 error and reduced the frequency of the P0304 error. Yesterday ([XXX]) we were d... Read more
Incident date: Nov 3, 2025
My vehicle would not start, after jumping and idling for a few moments, all dash lights started flashing and vehicle wouldnt go into gear. I shut it off as it started making a hum and smelled like something wasnt right. A mobile mechanic who came to my rescue after breaking down did a diagnostic of my engine. I was told I had low to no oil. I asked how was this possible as I had only driven around... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) - ENGINE
Apr 13, 2026
Incident date: Sep 13, 2025
* same part gone bad as other recalled vehicles. "Coolant control flow valve bad". Engine fan is staying on high blast, message displaying " engine power is reduced" truck will not drive at full power because the truck thinks its overheating because of bad part. If i remember correctly, it is code p1098. Bad part is intermittent. It Will happen randomly driving down the road. It comes and go... Read more
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
Engine issue - unknown excessive oil consumption. I started the car to drive to work and immediately it had a very rough idle. I turned the car off and checked the oil level. The car was on a level surface and the oil level was below the acceptable range on the dipstick. It has been about 4000 miles since my last oil change (around 82000 miles) and I noticed the engine was consuming oil about 2... Read more
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
In January 2026, my engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power. The dealership found a sudden loss of compression across all four cylinders, requiring a total engine replacement. This occurred without warning, only two months after a routine oil change at the same facility where no issues were reported. Despite opening a case with Hyundai corporate, there has been no progress. My researc... Read more
Incident date: Mar 19, 2026
Suspension system failed- had to replaced, Car difficult to control when operating. Repaired by dealer- Country Chevrolet, Benton KY- owner paid for repair. [XXX] Engine failure- knocking and difficult to drive on returning trip from Louisville KY to Benton, KY. Taken to dealer on 4.6.2026 - made it without being towed- extremely slow- traffic hazard- Tahoe has lots of road miles- always repaire... Read more
Incident date: Nov 9, 2025
Check engine light came on at 87K miles, took to dealership and code was P0303. Dealer had to replace 6 spark plugs, warped head, head gasket and oil change. Dealership knew of this problem with faulty heads from the manufacturer and no recall has been started from Chrysler. Car has never overheated or shown any other symptoms. It has been 2 years, 3 months and less than 27K miles and I have ano... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, an abnormal sound was heard coming from under the hood and would shudder towards the front-passenger side. In addition, the contact stated that the failure caused her to crash into a rail guard, and the rear driver-side tire had deflated, and the rim was damaged. No injuries were sustained, and no medical... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
The contact owns a 2015 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled unexpectedly. The failure also occurred several times while stopped at a stoplight. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic and a dealer; however, neither was able to determine the cause of the failure. The contact was informed that no fault codes were retrieved. The cause of the fa... Read more
Incident date: Apr 13, 2024
On 04/12/2026, I was stopped at a red light. The auto start/stop engaged. I removed my foot from the brake, the auto start kicked on, but did not reengage the engine. The notification panel suddenly started blinking, entire panel lit up. The parking brake automatically engage despite not being touched. The option for selecting terrain started toggling through all options. Vehicle then seemingly di... Read more
Incident date: Mar 12, 2024
Engine overheating without Engine light or any other safety alerts until Engine finally failed
TESLA
CYBERTRUCK
(2024) - ENGINE
Apr 13, 2026
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
I am reporting a safety defect involving my 2022 Nissan Rogue related to NHTSA Recall 25V437 (engine bearing failure). Prior to complete engine failure, I experienced multiple instances of sudden loss of power while driving at highway speeds, creating a serious safety hazard. In one instance, this nearly resulted in a multi-vehicle accident in heavy traffic. The vehicle also exhibited additional... Read more
FORD
F-150 LIGHTNING BEV
(2023) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Apr 1, 2026
While driving approximately 55 miles per hour vehicle started making loud knocking noise then vehicle shifted to neutral. Vehicle was towed to dealership. Waiting for inspection to confirm engine failure. Vehicle has 32,000 miles.
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
My car has started using oil. I was driving home and the low engine oil light came on. I pulled over and checked the oil, the dipstick showed low but not out. I drove it home and put 3 quarts in. I made an appointment to get it checked. It should not be low on oil. I was not due for an oil change or any maintenance. They kept my car for 3 days and did an oil change. Said to bring back after 1000 m... Read more
Incident date: Apr 3, 2026
Tiguans have been reporting excessive burning oil consumption- reported this to the dealership and consider this "normal" but how is going through several oil containers to make sure there's enough oil in the car "normal"??? I've never had this issue with any other car- other Tiguan owners have reported this issue and it's over a 6k repair.
Incident date: Nov 1, 2025
Engine failure due to overheating and leaking antifreeze but not a viable leak Misfire cylinder 1 and 3 repeatedly White smoke
Incident date: Mar 27, 2024
My 2019 Hyundai Sonata has been experiencing excessive oil consumption since I purchased it. The vehicle requires oil to be added approximately every two weeks, which indicates a serious internal engine issue. Recently, the check engine light turned on, and I took the vehicle to a dealership for inspection. I was told that the engine is “operating normally,” despite the ongoing oil consumptio... Read more
Incident date: Apr 9, 2026
Lifter and camshaft failure. Metal shards throughout the engine. Engine knocking and uncontrollable shaking. Safety was at risk of myself (driver) and two kids under the age of [XXX] while being broke down on a highway as vehicle was un-drivable. Reviewed by a Chevrolet dealership and Automotive repair shop both agreed on same repairs needed. No warning lights appeared before incident, multiple ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2026
On April 9, 2026, my daughter came in from school and parked her Honda Pilot at about 5:10PM. At about 7:03PM, my wife and I were sitting outside and heard a loud POP, it sounded like a car backfiring. I went to investigate and saw a little smoke and a small orange glowing piece of something on the ground under the vehicle towards the front of the vehicle. I grab a fire extinguisher from my work ... Read more
Fire
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2022) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Oct 27, 2025
Oil consumption issue. The vehicle is experiencing blue / white smoke from tailpipe when starting also lost of oil due to a valve seal issue with engine that requires dealers to remove head and service it
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
The engine failed and requires a full engine replacement. The vehicle is currently at ALM Hyundai West, 1990 Thornton Rd, Lithia Springs, GA 30122, and is available for inspection upon request. Hyundai Motor America has already approved the engine replacement under a goodwill authorization, implicitly confirming the failure is manufacturer-related. The engine failure left the vehicle undrivable, f... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2026
Excessive oil consumption caused by the PCV Valve failing. The PCV Valve failed causing pressure build up in the engine which luckily for me only caused the valve stem seals to pop out of position on the exhaust valves. This caused oil to leak into the combustion chambers and burn through the exhaust. In other known cases this failure has caused the oil pan and timing covers to Crack and vehicle w... Read more
Incident date: Apr 7, 2026
The twin turbo failure is a known issue with Infiniti. I took my vehicle to the dealership and it was diagnosed with having a passenger side turbo failure. I have 145K miles on my vehicle. It is outside of the warranty period and very expensive to repair. Infiniti knows there is a problem regarding turbo failure in the Infiniti Q50 and the consumer is forced to deal with expensive repairs $7K ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 12, 2026
Engine has excessive oil consumption. Low oil indicator light will come on and Engine oil needs to be topped and added about every 2500 miles sometimes more often depending on driving conditions.
Incident date: Mar 26, 2026
Oil consumption issues affecting all cars of this make and model
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
Told the dealer there’s an issue at 4 thousand miles due to low oil and they changed the oil at my request and told me it’s normal to have to add oil ant the problem continued every couple thousand miles I’ve tried vw America and filed a claim I believe it’s on deaf ears then at 23000 miles I requested a oil consumption test and they confirmed there’s definitely an issue with the valve g... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2024) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Jun 3, 2025
I was driving only going around 35 miles and the car went from no check engine light to flashing check engine light I had it taken to a show and was told the rod bears where grinding away and putting metal in the oil which is what the 2017-2019 model of the engines had the same problem
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2024) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Jun 3, 2025
I am reporting multiple safety-related defects on my 2025 Toyota Tundra (approx. 18.5k miles, purchased 07/25). Toyota has been made aware and has not resolved these issues. The most serious defect is deterioration of the driver-side air intake housing. While replacing the air filters, I observed the airbox shedding internal material directly onto the engine air filter. This is not external debri... Read more
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
Since purchasing this vehicle, along with 2 other tiguans in my family. ALL of them have had excessive oil consumption. I have complained each time I bring the car in for service and i always being told “this is normal”. I was told there was a company notification issued advising that you could use up to 1 Qt every 1,000 miles!! That is INSANE and I’ve never heard anything that absurd in m... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLE 450 4MATIC
(2026) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Apr 2, 2026
The component involved is the engine and associated knock detection system (KSDS). The system triggered a P1326 code indicating abnormal engine knock associated with a known defect condition. On February 14, 2023, while driving on the freeway, the vehicle suddenly entered reduced power (“limp mode”) and lost acceleration capability in active traffic. This created a safety risk, as the vehicle... Read more
Incident date: Apr 11, 2026
I am filing a safety complaint regarding an unresolved fuel pump recall on my 2019 Honda Civic. My vehicle became inoperable around October 2025 after passing Pennsylvania state inspection in July 2025. The vehicle is currently not drivable and remains inoperable. A VIN-based recall check confirms an active, unrepaired safety recall related to the fuel pump module (2016–2021 Honda Civic fuel p... Read more
Incident date: Mar 20, 2026
Overhearting light flashed on and immediately went off 3 hours into a 4 hour road trip. Car ran rough at the end of a 4 hour road trip. Next time car was started overheating light came on immediately, engine temp when immediately to hot, and would not drive over 5 miles an hour. Through an independent service center determined that the head gasket blew from coolant leaking. Only been inspected... Read more
Incident date: Mar 18, 2026
While sitting at a stop sign, the fuel supply line blue off the fuel filter under the hood. Straying diesel fuel all over. The white clip that hold the hose on had crumbled apart, It soaked the engine with fuel and we were lucky it did not start a fire. The fuel line was reattached and it then blew off again. I had to replace the entire fuel line at a cost of around $1000. Prior to the ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 12, 2026
While traveling to Abilene Tx to see my doctor my check engine light came on. I pulled into the Hyundai dealership and ask the service advisor to plug into my vehicle and let me know what was going on. After he talked to his service manager he advised me that they "where to busy" and the earliest they could get me in would be the next Monday. This was Wednesday. My home is 100 miles from Abilene. ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 26, 2025
The component at issue is the engine, which suffered a sudden and catastrophic failure due to unknown causes. At no time prior to this incident were there any warnings, symptoms, or indications of an underlying mechanical defect that would have allowed for preventative action. While operating the vehicle on the highway with my family present, multiple warning indicators activated simultaneously, ... Read more
CADILLAC
ESCALADE ESV
(2025) - ENGINE
Apr 12, 2026
Incident date: Mar 31, 2026
On January 2, 2026, I brought my vehicle in for service to replace the upper and lower ball joints, as well as the control arms. I retrieved the vehicle from the repair shop on [XXX] and departed the same day for travel to Mississippi. Later that evening, while traveling southbound on [XXX] near Columbia, Tennessee, I stopped at [XXX]. Upon re-entering the highway and accelerating to merge into t... Read more
Incident date: Apr 11, 2026
With only under 23000 miles, engine started clunking on way back home from a day trip. Took the truck to dealer and they said the engine tech will see on Monday, but almost 100% it’s the engine. They want to rebuild and not replace because my vin is not in the Toyota engine recall yet. Please help with this, I can’t be risking pulling my 9000 boat and the rebuild engine to crap on me on the hw... Read more
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
My engine started to make noise so I took it in for service and was told by Cadillac service it was a blown piston rod and it required a full engine replacement.
Incident date: Sep 1, 2021
The car is using a lot of engine coolant and oil. It is also burning the spark plugs. The check engine light comes out 6k miles after I install new spark plugs and it starts shaking, misfiring, running poorly, not accelerating properly and blowing white smoke through the exhaust on cold start. I know the engines have a defect from factory that causes them to do this. It usually needs a new head ga... Read more
Incident date: Jan 8, 2023
Once I turn the vehicle off, there is a loud sound coming from the engine area that sounds like a fan. Then the first incident of the fan ongoing after the vehicle was powered off, a battery light was on the internal driver dashboard and stayed on. The battery was recently replaced during 2026 so the battery should not be anywhere near dead, dying, or needing to be checked
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
*What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? -The vehicle downshifts suddenly and hard-shifts down on its own. It is worriesome as it randomly happens and oftentimes at high speeds. Yes it is available for immediate inspection. *How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? -On more than one occasion the vehicle has sudd... Read more
Incident date: Apr 8, 2026
Engine has rod bearing knock noise. Transmission has a torque converter issue, acts up once in a while when shifting from park to drive or reverse.
Incident date: Aug 27, 2025
The warning steering assist reduced, drive with caution appears. Shift to park appears. Temperature gauge drops to zero. Fan runs on high. A/C & heater don’t not work when this happens. We certainly do not feel safe driving our Acadia like this. Can’t trust that it won’t start on fire.
Incident date: Apr 11, 2026
My 2021 Kia Seltos S 2.0 Nu MPI suffered engine failure at highway speed •The car was found 3 quarts low on oil and Smith KIA Bellingham, WA performed maintenance previously. •Smith KIA dealer indicated the failure is likely tied to the known piston-ring defect. •The VIN lookup does not show the recall, but the defect exists in my vehicle and creates a safety risk. •VIN [XXX] •2021 KIA... Read more
Incident date: Apr 11, 2026
Component or system failed: The electrical and/or engine system failed spontaneously. Gray smoke originated from under the hood, followed by black smoke and an intense fire. The vehicle is NOT available for inspection as it was declared a total loss and scrapped 30 days after the incident. Safety risk: My safety was at immediate risk as I was inside the vehicle when the fire began. Public safety w... Read more
Fire