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 40,517 complaints — component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 17, 2024
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, there was a rattling sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer who diagnosed and determined that the coolant level was low. The contact was informed that the head gasket was leaking coolant into cylinder #1. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2015) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 17, 2024
Incident date: Jul 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, there was an extremely loud sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the catalytic converter, observing that the catalytic converter had detached from the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was re... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the vehicle was overheating, after which the vehicle entered LIMP Mode and lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experie... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated, and the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced an oxygen sensor, but the failures persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 68,000.
Incident date: Jul 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 stated while driving approximately 65 MPH... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2020
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine started overheating. The contact inspected the coolant reservoir and became aware that the coolant level was low. The contact refilled the coolant reservoir; however, two days later, the coolant level was low again. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and it was diagnosed and... Read more
Incident date: Jul 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford F-150. The contact stated that on several occasions while the vehicle was started, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the abnormal rattling sound ceased after the engine warmed up. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the cam phasers needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. T... Read more
Incident date: Feb 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Hyundai Palisade. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated while attempting to accelerate. The contact stated that on another occasion while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed and th... Read more
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the vehicle was shaking and vibrating abnormally with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that coolant was intruding into the cylinders, causing severe damages to the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed... Read more
Incident date: May 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, there was an abnormally loud sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to properly accelerate before the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine oil pump tensioner had failed, and the engine needed to be replaced. Th... Read more
Incident date: Jul 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle was idling abnormally rough, after which the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the residence. The contact stated that when the vehicle was parked, the contact raised the hood to inspect the vehicle and became aware that the coolant reservoir was extremely low. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an indep... Read more
Incident date: Jul 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the engine temperature warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was able to be restarted however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engi... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 16, 2024
Incident date: Jul 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that there was coolant intrusion into cylinder #3, causing an engine mis... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 16, 2024
Incident date: Jul 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered, and smoke came out the exhaust system. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed; however, the independent mechanic was unable to repair the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to another independent mec... Read more
Incident date: Jan 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 not experienced a failure. VIN tool conf... Read more
Incident date: Mar 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 60 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact attempted to slow down to exit the Interstate and the vehicle started jerking and driving rough. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was determined that coolant had leaked into cylinder #2, causing engine failure. The contact was informed that... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 15, 2024
Incident date: Jun 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Acura MDX. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, there was a sound as if the engine was choking. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the rod bearings had failed. The dealer informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact learned of N... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The man... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 not experienced a failure. VIN tool c... Read more
Incident date: Jul 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the coolant fluid was significantly low. The contact was able to drive a short distance to the residence. The vehicle was inspected by a relative who replaced the spark plugs; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that the vehicle was losing an ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 stated that while driving approximately 5... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 15, 2024
Incident date: Jul 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to be restarted and was taken to an independent mechanic where the spark plugs were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was diagnosed, and the failure was related to a misfire in the engine. The con... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 15, 2024
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the vehicle t was rattling and vibrating abnormally until the engine had warmed up. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated the failure was intermittent but had become a recurring failure. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that t... Read more
Incident date: Jun 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 80 MPH, the vehicle stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with internal water pump failure. The mechanic determined that t... Read more
Incident date: May 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly hesitated and jerked, prompting the contact to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway. After pulling over, the contact observed that the vehicle was idling rough and turned off the vehicle. Upon attempting to restart the vehicle, the vehicle initially failed to start and requir... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 15, 2024
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, he heard a loud rattling sound coming from the engine compartment that dissipated once the vehicle reached an operational temperature. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) 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... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stall... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating, prompting the contact to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway and turn off the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed failures with the water pump and thermost... Read more
Incident date: Mar 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the vehicle transmission shifted to park with the START/STOP system warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where an unknown repair was performed; however, the failure persisted. The contact then took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that the gear sh... Read more
Incident date: Apr 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not 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. VIN tool co... Read more
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that there was a rattling sound coming from the vehicle while attempting to start the vehicle causing a delay while starting. The vehicle had been taken to a certified mechanic where it was diagnosed that the timing chain and cam phasers had failed and needed to be replaced. The mechanic informed the contact that the failure was related t... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 35-40 MPH, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The dealer was contacted, and an appointment was scheduled for diagnostic testing. The contact stated that t... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufactu... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Audi A4. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, a message advising to stop the vehicle immediately was displayed. The contact pulled into a parking lot, where the contact noticed that coolant was leaking onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the coolant pump had failed and needed to be replaced. The local dealer and... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2019) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Apr 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while the vehicle was idling, the vehicle struggled to remain running. The contact stated that the failure persisted, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer where it was discovered that there was coolant on the spark plugs, with coolant intrusion into cylinder #2. Due to the failure, the co... Read more
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with coolant leaking into cylinder #3. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The ve... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2019) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled and failed to restart. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to the residence. The contact stated that prior to the failure an oil change was be... Read more
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH, the vehicle was vibrating and running rough before the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the valve stem keepers had failed, and the valve fell into t... Read more
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the contact became aware of an abnormal coolant odor and a burning odor. Additionally, there was smoke coming from underneath the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact drove back to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that cylinder #2 and #5 were l... Read more
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Acura TLX. The contact had received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling), and the dealer confirmed that the rod bearing had been replaced under the recall remedy. After receiving the repair, while driving approximately 15 MPH, the contact became aware that the vehicle was vibrating abnormally. The contact stated that the vibration bec... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
CLA250
(2016) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the driveway, upon attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start as intended. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started and idling, there was white smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact inspected the vehicle; however, no visible fluid leaks were noticed. The vehicl... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GL450
(2008) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Jul 12, 2024
The contact's son owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while the driver was driving 50-55 MPH in the rain, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated. The driver was able to continue driving; however, the vehicle jerked and lo... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power, and was not able to be restarted. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the tone wheel had delaminated and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V475000 ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30-65 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that coolant was leaking into the engine. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was unknown.
TOYOTA
SEQUOIA HYBRID
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Jul 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 77 MPH, the vehicle was driving rough. The engine and oil warning lights were illuminated. The driver was able to coast to a rest area, and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who determined that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The mechanic in... Read more
SAFETY 1ST
ONBOARD 35 SECURETECH
(9999) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 12, 2024
Incident date: Jul 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 not experienced a failure. VIN tool c... Read more