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 40,899 complaints - component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
TOYOTA
SEQUOIA HYBRID
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 29, 2024
Incident date: May 24, 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 local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair.... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the vehicle made an abnormal rattling sound. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the variable camshaft timing (VCT), the timing chain, and tensioners had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and r... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the vehicle began shaking violently. The contact also stated that she observed a grinding noise emanating from the driver's side undercarriage. The vehicle was taken to a dealer but wa... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 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 local dealer was not contacted. The contact state... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2016) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 29, 2024
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW X3. 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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufac... Read more
FORD
FUSION ENERGI
(2019) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 29, 2024
Incident date: May 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that during a routine oil change, it was discovered that the coolant level was low, due to coolant intrusion into the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to Technical Service Bulletin: 22-229. The manufacturer was made aware of the fail... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated while driving at approximately 40–55 MPH, the vehicle began to jerk, and there was an abnormally loud sound coming from the vehicle. The low oil pressure message was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure was rela... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 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 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... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2019) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 28, 2024
Incident date: May 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local service center who diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the engine cylinders. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact w... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2017) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 28, 2024
Incident date: Feb 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 For 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving at approximatel... Read more
Incident date: Aug 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The contact opened the hood and noticed that the coolant level was extremely low. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
Incident date: Nov 17, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that after the vehicle was at the dealer for a routine oil change and an engine flush, the following day while driving at approximately 10 MPH in a stop-and-go school zone, the vehicle stalled and smoke emitted from underneath the hood. All the warning lights on the instrument panel were illuminated. The contact merged to the shoulder of ... Read more
Fire
Incident date: May 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced an engine misfire, shuddered, and then stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle, and the vehicle operated as needed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a coolant leak into the cylinder w... Read more
Incident date: May 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ram 1500. The contact stated while accelerating from a complete stop, the vehicle hesitated to respond. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred intermittently. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V4... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while his fiancée was driving 15-20 MPH uphill, the vehicle jolted and stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact's fiancée was able to pull to the side of the road. The contact's fiancée was able to restart the vehicle and continued driving; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle failed to restart ... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Expedition. The contact stated there was an abnormal ticking noise coming from the vehicle while idling. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was initially taken back to where the vehicle was purchased and the contact was informed that the noise was related to the engine solenoid; however, the contact was assured that no repair was needed and that the no... Read more
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while her son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the tailpipe started smoking. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to 2 different independent mechanics however, the vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 28, 2024
Incident date: May 24, 2024
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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Genesis G80. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V107000 (Electrical System) and 24V191000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The c... Read more
Incident date: Mar 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while the vehicle was coming to a stop, the contact became aware of white smoke coming from the engine. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehic... Read more
ALFA ROMEO
GIULIA
(2017) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 28, 2024
Incident date: May 22, 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 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 at approx... Read more
Incident date: Mar 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the engine misfired with white exhaust smoke and the vehicle hesitated while accelerating. The contact discovered that the engine coolant reservoir was empty. The contact replaced the spark plugs and coil packs for cylinders #2 and #3 however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not yet diagnosed and rep... Read more
Incident date: May 27, 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN ... Read more
NISSAN
PATHFINDER
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 28, 2024
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and coming to a stop sign, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that the vehicle was losing motive power and the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of fuel. The vehicle was not able to be restarted. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact stated that vehicle would hesitate upon depression of brake pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer but no cause for the failure was found. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the steering wheel seized. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic; however, the vehicle retu... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that upon start the vehicle, there was an abnormal grinding noise coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled soon after while depressing the accelerator pedal. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to Bell Road Mitsubishi (1901 E Bell Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85022) where the ve... Read more
Incident date: May 24, 2024
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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MP... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2010 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost motive power, stalled, and failed to restart. 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 local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The conta... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-150. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the transmission experienced hard shifting while shifting into lower gears. Additionally, on several occasions, the transmission disconnected causing the vehicle the lose motive power and decelerate. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission CDF Drum was faulty and needed to be r... Read more
Incident date: May 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal rattling noise coming from the cam phaser. The vehicle failed to start occasionally. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and was repaired under Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N03: The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The ... Read more
Incident date: May 24, 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 contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving approximately 65-70 MPH, there was a rattling sound coming f... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-150. The contact stated that on three separate occasions, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine compartment upon starting the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to a dealer where the cam phasers were replaced under warranty; however, the vehicle was no longer covered under warranty afte... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, she noticed an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact's wife veered to the side of the road, where she inspected the vehicle, but could not determine the cause of the failure. The contact's wife was able to drive to the reside... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at a slow speed, the "Engine Coolant Overtemperature" warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the water pump was replaced; however, several days later while driving 65 MPH, the "Engine Coolant Overtemperature" warning light illuminated, and the vehicle stalled. Due to the failure, the vehicle was ... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Encore. The contact stated that upon approaching the vehicle, she observed oil leaking 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 oil cooler pipe. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Service ... Read more
Incident date: May 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 15 MPH and making a U-turn, the engine overheated, and the vehicle stalled. There was smoke coming from the tail pipe. There was an abnormal odor of coolant in the vehicle. The contact opened the hood and noticed that the engine oil was milky, and the coolant reservoir was empty. The engine overheated, and... Read more
Incident date: May 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that occasionally the vehicle idled rough with the RMPs seized in place. 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 vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the oil tensioner had ripped and neede... Read more
Incident date: Nov 7, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that after arriving at his workplace and parking the vehicle, he was alerted that the vehicle was smoking. The contact became aware that coolant was leaking from underneath the front of the vehicle and was puddling underneath the vehicle. The contact drove the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the coolant ho... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal clicking sound. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the flex plate was fractured, and the engine short block was replaced. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing rough starts and a rough idling. The check engine warning light was illuminat... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 528I. 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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manuf... Read more
Incident date: Apr 9, 2024
The contact owned a 2013 Dodge Journey. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle in a parking lot, she had observed a small amount of smoke but was not aware of where the smoke was being emitted. The contact stated that she was alerted that her vehicle had burst into flames. The contact stated that when she was able to get to her vehicle the flames had been extinguished by the fire depart... Read more
Fire
Incident date: May 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-550 chassis with an Earth Roamer RV. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle was making an abnormal sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the turbocharger needle on the instrument cluster fell to zero. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was losing motive po... Read more
Incident date: May 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that the engine was almost completely devoid of oil and that the vehicle was consuming oil a... Read more
Incident date: May 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the check engine warning light had illuminated and while attempting to decelerate, the vehicle started shaking and then stalled. The contact made several attempts to restart the vehicle and regain power. The failure had become more persistent. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the radiator coolant... Read more
Incident date: May 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while pulling out of the driveway, the vehicle lost motive power with the low oil pressure warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and the vehicle was diagnosed with a failure with the engine not receiving engine oil. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact received notification of ... Read more
Incident date: May 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH and making a right turn, the contact veered to the side of the road, and the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that there was smoke coming from the hood. The contact opened the hood and noticed smoke and coolant in the engine compartment. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the f... Read more
Incident date: Apr 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal amount of smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. The contact inspected the dipstick and discovered that the engine oil level was low. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was appr... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2013) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 23, 2024
Incident date: May 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving 15 MPH, the contact noticed that the passenger’s side rear seat level had become elevated. The contact stated that his daughter who was seated in the child seat head had started touching the top of the sunroof. The contact became aware of a gasoline odor coming from the engine. The contact also became aware that the vehicle... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 2500
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
May 23, 2024
Incident date: May 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken for routine service at the local dealer, and the technician advised her that the engine oil cooler needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was also taken to several independent mechanics and the diagnostic result was confirmed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the... Read more
Incident date: Oct 7, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he observed condensation underneath the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.