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
Incident date: Sep 10, 2023
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 65 MPH, the brake pedal was firm while being depressed; howe... Read more
Incident date: May 3, 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 while at a complete stop at a traffic light, the engine made an abnormal rattling sound. The contact stated that he continued driving; however, the vehicle stalled. The contact was abl... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 136,000.
FORD
FUSION ENERGI
(2020) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Apr 1, 2024
Incident date: Oct 14, 2022
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 local dealer was contacted and 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 manufacturer... Read more
HONDA
CR-V HYBRID
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Apr 1, 2024
Incident date: Dec 13, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Coolant Level Low message displayed, and there was white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. The vehicle experienced rough idling. The contact pulled over and turned off the vehicle to cool down the engine. The vehicle was able to restart after several attempts. The vehicle was taken to the dealer... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 29, 2024
Incident date: Jul 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 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. The contact had ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 FORD Escape. The contact stated while driving the vehicle, it ran rough and the contact noticed the cooling level was low. No warning lights was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the water pump was replaced. However the failure persisted. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V416000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System) as a possi... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine experienced a misfire. The contact stated that the coolant was leaking into cylinder #3. There was white smoke coming from the exhaust. Additionally, there was an abnormal slushing noise coming from the dashboard. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an indepe... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 29, 2024
Incident date: Dec 5, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled and lost motive power and failed to restart; however, the contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine which caused the engine to become damaged. The contact was informed th... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2024
The contact owned a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, a gasoline and smoke odor was ventilating into the interior of the vehicle through the vents, after which the driver observed flames emanating from the engine compartment on the passenger side of the vehicle, prompting him to pull to the shoulder of the roadway. Upon exiting th... Read more
Fire
2 injured
Incident date: Feb 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contacted stated that the check engine warning light illuminated; and the contact's parents took the vehicle to the dealer where it was repaired; however, the check engine light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the residence and the contact took the vehicle to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a catalytic converter failure. The contact ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, he observed low-frequency rumbles emanating from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken home. The next day when the vehicle was started, the contact observed the rumbling noise again and then the vehicle began shaking. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the hydraulic engine ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the heater was no longer operable. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle experienced excessive coolant consumption. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinders. The mechanic determined that the failur... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the instrument panel displayed an "Engine System Fault" message, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the coolant level was below the minimal level, with coolant intrusion into cylinder #2. The coolant level ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while checking the coolant level routinely, the contact noticed that the coolant was significantly lower than expected. The contact stated that while the coolant level was low the vehicle was driving rough while driving at various speeds. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed, and it was determined that ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated he was noticing oil spotting on his driveway. The contact stated that he also smelled the odor of motor oil in the passenger cabin when he used the air conditioning. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the oil pan and gasket needed... Read more
Incident date: Feb 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact stated that while driving, at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated and stalled. Additionally, while driving on several occasions, the vehicle hesitated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact called another local dealer, Acura of Valley Stream Ser... Read more
Incident date: Mar 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that 11/2 to 2 1/2 quarts of oil was burning every three weeks. The vehicle was using an excessive amount of oil. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact noticed there was a limited amount of oil on the dipstick. The contact had to add additional oil. There was no indication of oil leaking. The vehicle was taken to the local deal... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds the vehicle had experienced engine misfiring and rough operation. Also, the check engine warning light had been illuminated and white smoke was present coming from the exhaust system. While inspecting under the hood it was discovered that the engine coolant level in the coolant reservoir was extremely low.... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 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 repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had experienced a failure. The contact stated while drivi... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2023
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 contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power.... Read more
Incident date: Mar 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, coolant was leaking into cylinder number two and the vehicle misfired. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 64... Read more
Incident date: Mar 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, he heard an abnormal sound emanating from the engine compartment, after which the vehicle lost all 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 the dealer, who diagnosed a fai... Read more
Incident date: Mar 27, 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: Sep 24, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated while her daughter was exiting the driveway, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. Additionally, the contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated and the vehicle lost motive power. The driver was able to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to an inde... Read more
Incident date: Mar 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge began to indicate the engine was overheating, after which the contact observed an excessive amount of smoke emanating from the exhaust. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the coolant reservoir was abnormally low, prompting him to refi... Read more
Incident date: Mar 23, 2024
I am reaching out in regards to my 2017 Ford escape vin: [XXX] . I am hoping you can assist me in resolving this matter quickly. In August 2020 I bought my used Ford Escape from a local dealership (Vandevere Buick, Akron Ohio 44303), with high hopes of a reliable and smooth ride. I did receive the attached letter from Ford in July of 2022 regarding the customer satisfaction programs [XXX] and [XX... Read more
Incident date: Nov 27, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the dashboard warning lights had suddenly activated and the vehicle went into LIMP Mode causing the vehicle to decelerate. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer on several occasions and the NOx sensor, intake manifold and EGR were replaced but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2023
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 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 manufa... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated while the vehicle was idling, there was an abnormal noise coming from under the hood. In addition, the vehicle failed to maintain engine power, while driving at various speeds. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or re... Read more
DODGE
SPRINTER 3500
(2006) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 27, 2024
Incident date: Mar 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 528I. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the engine compartment, after which 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 check warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an indepen... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 27, 2024
Incident date: Mar 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving approximately 70 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer days later where it was diagnosed that the engine was cracked and displayed visual signs of coolant intrusion. The vehicle was not repair... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the vehicle was extremely low on engine oil before an oil change was due. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the O2 sensor. The... Read more
Incident date: Mar 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ram 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V411000 (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. The local... Read more
MERCURY
GRAND MARQUIS
(2005) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 26, 2024
Incident date: Mar 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH with the cruise control activated, the vehicle briefly lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the coolant temperature sensor, requiring that the coolant temperature sensor to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufa... Read more
MERCURY
GRAND MARQUIS
(2005) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 26, 2024
Incident date: Mar 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that anti-freeze was leaking from the vehicle. While driving at unknown speeds, the message that the engine was overheating was displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who replaced the water pump. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The ... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 26, 2024
Incident date: Feb 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH, the vehicle decelerated to 20 MPH with the "Engine, Reduced Power" message had displayed. After restarting the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle was driving rough. The vehicle was later taken to an independent mechanic. The cause of the failure was not yet determ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Hyundai Palisade. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V106000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle needed to remain at the dealer until the remedy was available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a rea... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 26, 2024
Incident date: Sep 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that upon taking the vehicle to the dealer for scheduled maintenance, the contact was informed that an oil pan seal leak had been discovered. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V063000 (Engine and Engine Cooling), and... Read more
HYUNDAI
SONATA PLUG-IN HYBRID
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 26, 2024
Incident date: Mar 24, 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while her daughter was driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that her daughter stated that the... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 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 stated while driving approximately ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated while driving at approximately 40 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from under the hood. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed, but no failure was found. The contact stated several warning lights were illuminated on the... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating; after which, the vehicle lost motive power. The driver was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that coolant intrusio... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at approximately 20 MPH, there was steam coming from under the hood. The contact stated that the Low Coolant warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and checked under the hood. The vehicle was driven to a nearby independent mechanic where the contact was informed that coolant needed to be a... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
Coolant intrusion - coolant leaking into the motor because of the engine block design and the head gasket failing. Can cause fire
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 25, 2024
Incident date: Mar 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, there was a knocking sound coming from the engine, and the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the residence. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the camshaft assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not re... Read more
HONDA
CLARITY PLUG-IN HYBRID
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 25, 2024
Incident date: Mar 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE350. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. The console had overheated. The engine and oil warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that cylinder numbers 1, 2, and 3 was misfiring. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated on the instrument panel, prompting the driver to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the fuel... Read more
Incident date: Mar 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost significant motive power. After which, the contact observed excessive smoke emanating from the exhaust, prompting her to pull to the side of the roadway. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed oil covering the engine. The check engine warning light... Read more
Incident date: Mar 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the rear NOx sensor. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N05. The manufa... Read more