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
Incident date: Mar 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 45 MPH, the "low oil pressure" warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled immediately after the low oil pressure warning illuminated. The contact's wife was able to pull over but was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was d... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 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. 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 ex... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated and flickered on and off. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not y... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that the "Low Engine Oil Pressure" message was displayed on the instrument panel upon starting the vehicle. There was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the instrument panel. The contact then received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet availab... Read more
Incident date: Feb 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle was struggling to start, and there was exhaust fumes coming inside the cabin while starting the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle would temporarily lose motive power while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that coolant was leaking onto the spark plugs, causing the sp... Read more
Incident date: Dec 8, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle began to idle abnormally rough, and the contact observed white smoke coming from the exhaust. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the coolant reservoir was abnormally low. The check warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the deale... Read more
Incident date: Feb 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that coolant had intruded into the cylinders. The dealer recommended that the engine be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 11, 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 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 manu... Read more
Incident date: Feb 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while parked in a parking space with the vehicle in drive and the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle started to roll. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failu... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Dodge Journey. The contact stated that the vehicle would not immediately start, and white exhaust smoke was coming from the vehicle. Also, the message "Coolant Low" was displayed although the coolant reservoir was full. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the head gasket was faulty. The head gasket was replaced but the coolant message continued to d... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. 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 determined that the engine was extremely low on engine oil, even though oil had been added 1,000 miles before the failure. The contact was informed that the engine was consuming oi... Read more
Incident date: Mar 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the High Engine Temperature message displayed, and the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine, and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made a... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the engine temperature gauge increased, and the air conditioner would not blow cool air. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who discovered that the engine coolant level was extremely low, and that the water pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. Recently while driving at a... Read more
Incident date: Feb 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. There was white smoke coming from the exhaust. Additionally, the vehicle had failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact about a coolant leak and a Customer Satisfactio... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact initially stated that upon checking the oil level, the oil level was a quart lower. The contact then stated that while driving up a hill at a moderate rate of speed, an abnormal knocking sound began to emit from the vehicle as the vehicle started to lose power. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the mechanic reprogrammed the Powertrain Control... Read more
Incident date: Dec 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH, the engine overheating warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over and waited for the engine to cool down, restarted the vehicle, and continued driving. The failure became a recurring failure however, after the last failure the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to an ind... Read more
FORD
F-150 HYBRID
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 6, 2024
Incident date: Mar 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. The contact stated after driving 35 MPH, the contact attempted to park the vehicle and heard water gurgling through the engine. The contact also stated that the vehicle had lost a significant amount of gasoline after being refueled and then driving 20 miles to the residence. The contact also stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal, the... Read more
Incident date: Feb 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (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 n... Read more
Incident date: Feb 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact received notification NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while his wife was driving 50-55 MPH, the vehicle started shaking and lost motive power. The contact’s wife pulled to the side of the road. The contact’s wife was unsure if any warn... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 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 while driving at an undisclosed speed, the oil pressure warning light illu... Read more
Incident date: Mar 6, 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 that the vehicle was taken for ro... Read more
Incident date: Feb 6, 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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The m... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLA 250
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 6, 2024
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that the check engine warning light had been illuminated. Additionally, there was an audible chime indicating a possible oxygen sensor failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that coolant was leaking into cylinder #2. The dealer stated that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The ma... Read more
Incident date: Feb 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to two independent mechanics and the contact was informed that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The second mechanic informed the contact of NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V226000 (Engine and Engine Colling) which ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the contact heard an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine compartment, after which the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure... Read more
Incident date: Mar 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 BMW X3. The contact stated while his wife was driving 65 MPH, a message advising to stop driving was displayed, and the vehicle simultaneously shifted into neutral(N) independently. The vehicle stalled in the middle of the highway and failed to respond while depressing the accelerator pedal. The message advising to drive with caution was displayed after several minutes, and... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2014) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 6, 2024
Incident date: Mar 1, 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 at approximate... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered, and a burning odor was detected. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who replaced the water pump and timing belt; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where the spark plugs were r... Read more
Incident date: Jul 25, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he observed smoke emanating from the engine compartment, after which a message displayed reading "High Engine Temperature". The check engine and temperature warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that coolant intrusion had damaged the engine and the engi... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 6, 2024
Incident date: Feb 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine and low oil pressure warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. 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: 23V905000 (Engine a... Read more
Incident date: May 10, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (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 time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the parts were ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 5, 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 that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the oil warning light illumina... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH and attempting to accelerate, he heard an abnormal sound emanating from the engine compartment. After which, the vehicle lost significant motive power and was unable to accelerate above 45 MPH. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed failures with the ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 4, 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 while his wife was driving approximately 35 MPH, the engine made an abnormal sound, and the low-oil pressure warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle lost motive po... Read more
Incident date: Apr 18, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while at a stoplight, the light turned green, the contact depressed the accelerator pedal and the RPM revved up, the vehicle lunged forward but did not properly move forward. The general fault light was illuminated. The contact pulled to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who informed the contact that the ve... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated driving 60 MPH, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated, and the vehicle stalled. The contact shifted into neutral(N), and the vehicle rolled to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart after several attempts. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed. The dealer determined that the failure was related to... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated while his wife was driving at approximately 80–85 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The driver was able to veer safely off the road. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V411000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was repaired. After re... Read more
Incident date: Mar 9, 2022
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 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 10 ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 21, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal sound coming from under the hood of the vehicle. No warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic and the contact was informed that the water pump was leaking, and that the bearing in the water pump was inoperable causing the abnormal sound. The mec... Read more
Incident date: Feb 23, 2024
See attached document for complaint
Incident date: Jan 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Audi Q5. The contact stated that while driving at 10 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The engine and EPC warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who stated that the failure was due to the timing chain, piston rings, and a hole in the valve. The local dealer was not con... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that during a routine oil change, the technician observed that the coolant level was low. The coolant reservoir was filled however, the contact reported that when another oil change was made, the coolant level was again very low and was refilled. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. However, the contact stated that he noticed... Read more
Incident date: Dec 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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The m... Read more
Incident date: Mar 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while his partner was driving at 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to a dealer and was diagnosed with a defective starter; however, the failure persisted after the starter was replaced. Upon further investigation, the contact was informed that the engine had failed due to a damaged con... Read more
Incident date: Mar 3, 2024
Heat stopped working in Dec. Had it checked by local mechanic coolant very low but couldn’t find leak. Heat was working and no check engine light ever went on. About month later had car back for oil change and mechanic found leak, again no check engine or warning ever came on. Finally got appt at ford dealer $3000 to repair and was told would take 11 hrs. Ten days later car was supposed to ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the contact became aware of a coolant odor inside the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the coil pack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of t... Read more
Incident date: Feb 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Sedona. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, he heard an abnormal clicking noise coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle back to the residence and checked the oil and the coolant level. The contact stated that there was coolant leaking and that the oil level was low. The ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2021
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the "Engine Maintenance Required Please See Dealer" message was displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle was driving normally, however the message was intermittent. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the coolant bypass valve needed to be rep... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, there was a hesitation in acceleration while depressing the accelerator pedal. Days later, the check engine warning illuminated. The vehicle was driven to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that engine coolant had leaked into the engine, causing the engine to need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired.... Read more
Incident date: Dec 24, 2022
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 m... Read more