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: Mar 14, 2026

While traveling from upstate New York, the vehicle displayed an engine overheating warning shortly after startup while the engine was still cold. Because I was away from home, I stayed overnight and the next morning took the vehicle to a Kia dealership for inspection. The dealership inspected the vehicle and diagnosed a problem with the exhaust heat recovery system pipe. According to the service ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 4, 2026

I was driving and the vehicle stopped like it was in neutral. I started rolling backwards into a vehicle. He honked and I slammed on breaks. I put flashers on. Waited a bit. Turned off and on and it started. I drove home and called service dept

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

My 2022 Nissan Rogue experienced sudden engine failure due to coolant loss and a blown head gasket while driving. The engine became inoperable and the dealership denied coverage. This appears to be a premature engine defect and created a safety risk due to sudden loss of power.

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

Car burns/ consumes oil constantly having to top off 2-3 quarts every 1,000 miles maybe even less I do my oil change every 3,000 miles Kia auto contract state I need to do oil change every 5,000

Incident date: Mar 14, 2026

2023 1500 RST 6.2. Recall was done and performed last year. Truck passed so they changed the oil and sent me on my way. I have had zero issues up until last week. My gut tells me the replacement is going to be the same engine with the same failing parts that I already have so expect I may have issues in the future even after the new engine. -on interstate going 55MPH, went to accelerate to 70M... Read more

Incident date: Mar 1, 2026

Coolant intrusion to cylinder #3 deeming the engine bad needing to be replaced.

Incident date: Jul 2, 2005

The car was up on ramps, to replace a sensor, in park and slipped out of gear rolling backwards with force. Someone could have been under or behind the vehicle. Other vehicles could have been behind, property could have been damaged. The cars door caught the building and pulled it all the way back against the front fender.

Crash

Incident date: Jan 26, 2026

I am reporting a safety issue with my 2023 Nissan Rogue Platinum involving engine failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealership for repairs under warranty and remained there for approximately 8 months. I was only provided a loaner vehicle for one month during this time. After finally receiving the vehicle back, the engine is still not running properly and the issue appears unresolved. An engin... Read more

Incident date: Mar 12, 2026

⸻ My 2022 Nissan Pathfinder experienced a catastrophic engine failure at approximately 70,000 miles. The vehicle suddenly developed severe engine knocking and required a complete engine replacement. There were no engine warning lights or oil pressure warning lights prior to the failure. The vehicle had been maintained according to the manufacturer’s recommended service intervals, including o... Read more

Incident date: Jul 15, 2025

Catastrophic engine failure; no warning lights,etc. took place on or about end of January 2026. Car completely died and would not start. Car towed to dealer (GMC Blaise Alexander, Hazleton, PA) Vehicle inspected by dealer master mechanic and others. Engine completely disassembled. Unable to repair. No warnings, lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to failure. Tremendous expense had to be inc... Read more

Incident date: Feb 13, 2026

Wa driving with cruise on at 60 mph. Truck stalled with no notice, no warning lights or check engine light. All temperatures and pressures seemed okay at time of incident. Could not move electronic shifter into neutral, was stuck in drive. Alarm came up to shift to park, I did not shift due to moving at 55mph at this time. Coasted to a stop on side of the road. At about 2-3 mph, truck automaticall... Read more

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

The car would not shift causing me to pull over on the side of a highway to restart the car this happened 5 times in a row b4 the car would shift into proper gear

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

I have owned this car for a year have taken it to multiple mechanics to get the overheating issue fixed. Well the most recent time my car had overheated my whole car had smelt like it was on fire. I've had to fix this issue 5 times in the last year and mechanics are not cheap

Incident date: Feb 1, 2026

While driving on highway, on 3/11/26, car powered down. I had to coast to side of highway. I was able to turn vehicle on after several minutes, but SEVERAL system malfunction error messages (hybrid, accelerator, pre-collision, tpms, airbag, engine…) appeared. The vehicle would not accelerate beyond 10mph. Once I moved it to a safe location, I had the vehicle towed to the dealership. The deale... Read more

Incident date: Mar 8, 2026

My 2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon (3.6L eTorque, automatic transmission) has had recurring drivetrain instability since about 2,000 miles while under factory warranty. It intermittently has high RPM flare during acceleration, delayed shifting, shuddering under load, and abrupt engagement. At low speeds (about 10–5 mph), it harshly downshifts, grabs suddenly, RPMs jump up and down, and it can feel li... Read more

Incident date: Mar 1, 2020

Coolant Intrusion caused my engine to be blown.

Incident date: Mar 4, 2026

My issue seems consistent with NHTSA Action Number PE25016. On March 4, 2026, I was driving and my check engine light start flashing. Shortly thereafter, I lost motive power. I was driving approximately 50 mph at the time. I pulled over and turned my car off and then back on, at which point the check engine light turned off and motive power was restored. I brought my car into the dealership later... Read more

Incident date: Mar 9, 2026

Valve lifter issue. Gm service told me 15000$ engine replace. 1 year no used the vehicle. I buy the vehicle 35000$. no recall or warranty. Have to much people this problem. And a gm just laughing at how the vehicle owners behaved.

Incident date: Mar 10, 2026

The abs braking and stability control light came on and has stayed on and took to mechanic shop and was told to repair would be $4000 .that's more than what the car is worth!changed motor oil many times since I owned the car and it uses oil quite much.ihe oil gauge can say I have 70 percent oil and the dipstick reads no oil so I must put 2 -3 quarts of oil in car because I can hear lifters rattle ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 2, 2026

I am submitting a complaint regarding NHTSA Recall 25V-766 affecting my Jeep 4xe vehicle. This recall states that engines may have been contaminated with sand during manufacturing, which can lead to catastrophic engine failure, sudden loss of propulsion, or vehicle fire. My vehicle currently shows the recall as open with the status “remedy not yet available / parts unavailable.” This means th... Read more

Incident date: Mar 9, 2026

The engine seized up at 165,000 miles. According to one [XXX] at Trinity Automotive in Fairfield, Ohio, it's a known issue. According to [XXX] at PrebCo in Eaton, Ohio, the issue is related to low-pressure piston rings. Compression tests showed between 0 psi in one cylinder and between 55 and 58 psi in the other three cylinders. These issues have been verified at Matt Castrucci Service Center. W... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

I am the owner of a 2026 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate equipped with the 6.2L V8 L87 engine (VIN: [XXX] ), purchased new approximately three months ago. I am filing this complaint proactively. I have experienced no engine failure or symptoms to date. However, I am filing based on a documented pattern of L87 engine failures in 2025 and 2026 production vehicles, confirmed by multiple GM dealership... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

After recent service from local honda dealership vehicle started to drive sluggish. Had all fluids changed and the coolant flushed when serviced at the dealership. The vehicle now displays several different alerts upon start up "Emissions systems failure" Brake system failure" Hill Assist failure" Power Steering failure". Vehicle was returned to dealership and it was determined the head gaskets... Read more

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

My 2022 Kia Stinger first went into the dealership because it would not accelerate properly even at full throttle, creating an immediate safety risk in traffic. Over multiple visits, the dealership replaced the ECM, ABS module, brake booster, vacuum pump, and a fuel injector, and confirmed repeated electrical shorts across major systems including throttle control, braking, and fuel delivery. Despi... Read more

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

Drove vehicle to town and back, 20 mile round trip. When entering my property, the Engine stalled while pulling into driveway. Upon cranking, was very hard to start. When taking the next trip after engine stall, vehicle died in motion at 60mph approaching a traffic intersection with no warning, leaving very little time to navigate to the shoulder and off the roadway. Engine will not crank over, su... Read more

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

The Variable Geometry Turbocharger Actuator failed on my 2019 2500HD Silverado. There was a significant decrease in power. This was most noticeable on uphill grades where speed would drop to between 35 and 40 mph on a 75mph speed limit highway. On several occasions, vehicles came close to hitting me because of my slow speed.

Incident date: Feb 21, 2026

The engine stopped working while driving. Honda needs to replace the engine due to a known defect. I live in [XXX] and temperatures get very cold. What if we had been on a trip. This is crazy! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident date: Aug 15, 2025

On February 21, 2026, my 2022 Cadillac Escalade ESV experienced a sudden and complete engine seizure at highway speed at 57,825 miles just 8,613 miles after passing GM's PicoScope inspection under Safety Recall N252494000 (NHTSA Campaign 25V274). After fueling, I entered a highway on-ramp and accelerated to approximately 70 mph. Within 30 seconds, the engine lost power completely with no prior war... Read more

Incident date: Mar 10, 2020

I was driving along in my 2013 MB GL450 with the M278 engine when the engine stopped. I had it towed to my home and checked it out. I had a suspicion the engine was seized. I eventually had to towed to my closest MB dealership for evaluation. The engine was seized. Their further investigation revealed that a wrong oil filter had been installed when the oil was changed 5 months and 3000 miles ... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2025

The vehicle shifted itself into neutral and shut off while driving. It happened twice in three days. The first time I was pulling into the driveway so I was able to put it in park and restart the car safely. The second time I was in the middle of traffic in Tampa and it shifted into neutral and shut off in the middle of the road. Luckily no cars hit me but again I had to apply the break , restart ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 3, 2026

While driving on the freeway, my 2021 Hyundai Tucson SE (72,021 miles) suddenly and without warning lost power and entered limp mode. I was able to safely maneuver to the shoulder and exit the freeway. The check engine light came on and is currently flashing. I took the vehicle to AutoZone where code P1326 was retrieved. I then took it to Pep Boys for a full diagnostic where P1326 was the only cod... Read more

Incident date: Mar 4, 2026

Misfire code check engine light on now once before only 4000 miles insturment panel went black odometer will flash one day the locks would not work Help

Incident date: Feb 24, 2026

While driving to work in negative degree weather I got a message saying reduce engine power and before I could pull over it had lost all power. Having it towed and now needing a new engine I see im not the first one with this problem. I also still have a loan im paying for on a dead car. Idk why theres not a recall on this .

Incident date: Feb 1, 2026

Owner of 2020 Kia soul experiencing engine failure symptoms including stalling and oil consumption vehicl is associated with engine fire risk safety recall vehicle is currently disabled at mechanic and unsafe to drive I requested kia arrange a tow to authorized dealership for recall diagnosis but kia customer service refused to cover tow bc this involves potential engine fire hazard I believe manu... Read more

Incident date: Jan 9, 2026

I am reporting a safety concern involving BMW vehicles equipped with the B58 Technical Update (B58TU) engine, commonly found in model years 2019–2021. These vehicles utilize a variable-displacement engine oil pump containing an internal thermoplastic adjusting component responsible for regulating oil pressure. Field failures are increasingly being reported in which this internal component fract... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

Please see attached letter

Incident date: Feb 3, 2026

February 1st 2026, I done my oil change. My car was running fine. No check engine light was on or anything, my forward collision warning started disabling itself when I always kept it on. When I try to accelerate my vehicle it would take a while to accelerate. March 7th 2026, while I was driving, my car quit while it was still running. It also quit the same day again just in park. March 8th 2026, ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 12, 2026

Vehicle head gasket blown. Stated by mechanic that this is a chronic problem with model due to cylinder head warming and gasket failure. Shortly after repaired the left rear Factory OEM rocker arm broke and damaged one of the overhead cams. Again stated by mechanic that this is a common problem due to known oiling problems with this model. Repaired once again. Vehicle drove less than 500 miles b... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

I found a lot of shaved metals when I did the oil change for the Gear Reduction. It made a lot of noises when driving or the wheel of fortune sounds whether the car is in Regenerative Braking. The sounds developed as time goes on but Hyundai failed to recall this issue. I found this has been an ongoing issue since 2019 when Hyundai make this Kona EV, but their engineers didn’t fix this type of ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 9, 2026

I am reporting a persistent safety issue involving exhaust fumes entering the passenger cabin of my 2018 Ford F-150. The vehicle was purchased January 20, 2025 and has since experienced repeated mechanical failures and extended repair attempts. Despite extensive work completed under warranty - including a transmission rebuild, full engine replacement, alternator/battery/starter replacement, rear m... Read more

Incident date: Mar 7, 2026

I was driving in highway and just engine lockout and vehicle shutdown

Incident date: Feb 3, 2026

Leading coolant due to coolant infusion in the block of engine.

Incident date: Feb 3, 2026

Recall 23s64 was completed and immediately was smelling and losing oil. Took back to dealer twice and second time they said it was fixed. A few thousand miles later I had sudden turbo failure. Lost all power and a huge amount of smoke making it impossible for me and other highway drivers to see. The turbo failed

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

I was driving the truck on the freeway and the engine completely shut off with no warning. I pulled to the side of the shoulder and I could smell a burning smell. The truck wouldn’t start back up or move in neutral. Towed it to a shop and they said it had a camshaft issue and a slight knocking noise when they got it to fire up only would run for a little then shut back off. Now I’m having to r... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2026

We purchased a 2018 Fully Loaded Chevy Silverado LTZ/Z71 ($60,000) in 2019, with the idea it would last. After being super meticulous with maintenance and keeping this vehicle in top condition, we just passed the 110,000 mile mark. I have receipts of all the work/maintenance completed on this vehicle. I began to hear a ticking noise in the engine block, and the check engine light came on, so I pul... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

I own a 2017 Ford F‑150 equipped with the 3.5L EcoBoost engine. The vehicle currently has approximately 70,500 miles. The dealer diagnosed a ticking/rattling noise coming from the top left side of the engine near the timing cover. Using a stethoscope, the technician determined the noise was related to the timing system. The dealer recommended replacing the cam phasers, timing chain guides, and ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 11, 2026

I bought this 2022 Jeep Renegade in 2023. Upon changing the oil today (3/13/2026) my mechanic found a rear main seal leak. He stated to check for recalls/safety as this should not be happening; the car only has 54,000 miles on it. I have called a couple friends that have one and they too have leaks. Is this covered for repair under a recall? Also the engine stalls when I try to take off, jerking ... Read more

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

The engine oil light came on during late September or early October of 2024 while on the highway. There was a severe loss of power. I was able to get the car back to my residence and changed the oil filter and oil. The error persisted, I then changed the oil pressure switch to see if that was the issue, but it did not resolve. In approximately December of 2024, a friend who is a mechanic and has t... Read more

Incident date: Jan 30, 2026

Car lost power on freeway, had the car towed to local Honda. After several hours of sitting at dealership and talking to several different employees. One employee comes back to tell me the head gasket was blown and needed repaired. And that this is a common issue he has been seeing in this make/model of car.

Incident date: Mar 13, 2026

I am writing to formally escalate a serious unresolved issue with my Genesis vehicle and the service experience I have received from Genesis of Huntington. My vehicle has experienced repeated and dangerous malfunctions despite multiple repair attempts. The most concerning issue is that the vehicle suddenly stops functioning properly while driving, accompanied by all dashboard warning lights flash... 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

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