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: Aug 25, 2023
Car started to misfire and engine light came on. I took it to the autobody shop and was told I have coolant leakibg unto the combustion chamber and my car needs a new engine!
Incident date: Mar 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated when he started the vehicle in the morning, the vehicle was idling roughly, and clouds of white smoke was coming from the exhaust pipe. The contact stated that once the vehicle had warmed up, the smoke would stop. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that additionally, he would lose forward momentum and he s... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 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 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 confir... Read more
Incident date: Mar 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contact received an unknown recall notice for piston rings and engine rod bearing failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was... Read more
Incident date: Mar 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 55–60 MPH on an off-ramp, the contact had to depress and apply additional pressure to the brake pedal. The engine and oil warning lights were illuminated. The contact called the independent mechanic, who informed the contact to check the oil levels. There was no oil on the dipstick, though the oil had been changed a week prior.... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-150. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure mostly recurred while starting the vehicle, and after the vehicle had been turned off for more than an hour. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the ca... Read more
Incident date: Feb 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the engine overheated. The contact stated that the coolant had leaked from the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The driver pulled over to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the water pump was leaking. The engine had to be removed before accessi... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH on a bridge, the low oil pressure, the power train, and the check engine warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that he continued driving at 15 MPH and pulled into a nearby parking lot. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine needed... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 60-65 MPH, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated, and a chime sounded. Additionally, the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact veered to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was determined that the engine had seized. The vehicle was then towed to the residence and... Read more
Incident date: Mar 4, 2024
The contact's friend owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated that while his friend was driving at an undisclosed speed, she heard an abnormal rattling sound emanating from the engine compartment. The driver was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway to turn the vehicle off, after which the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle jerked and stalled. The contact was unable to pull to the side of the road. The check engine warning light and the low oil pressure warning light were illuminated. The contact shifted into park(P) and restarted the vehicle; however, the vehicle made an abnormal grinding sound. The contact then pulled to the... Read more
Incident date: May 9, 2023
Brought vehicle in for check engine light. Ford mechanic stated that the engine is failing due to coolant leaking into the cylinders , and that this is a known problem. Vehicle stalled and is no longer operational.
Incident date: Feb 28, 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 while starting the vehicle, the message "Braking" was displayed, and the oil pressure warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle struggled to... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while decelerating and approaching a stop light, the vehicle suddenly experienced a loss of motive power and stalled. The vehicle could not be restarted and was later towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine had seized and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure.... Read more
HYUNDAI
SONATA HYBRID
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 1, 2024
Incident date: Feb 28, 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 m... Read more
Incident date: Mar 6, 2007
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the oil pressure warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but no assistance was provided. While driving, several instrument cluster warning lights illuminated, and the vehicle lost motive power. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The v... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 1, 2024
Incident date: Feb 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2008 Hyundai Azera. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the battery charging warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the valve cover gasket was leaking onto the alternator, causing the alternator to fail. The mechanic replaced the valve cover gasket, the battery, and the alternator; however, the failure recurr... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2015) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 1, 2024
Incident date: Jan 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she heard an abnormal sound emanating from the engine compartment, prompting her to pull to the shoulder of the roadway. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the coolant level was abnormally low, and an unknown fluid was leaking. The high engine temperat... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the exterior trims on the front passenger's side and the front driver's side windows were detaching. Additionally, the contact stated that while his wife was driving 75 MPH, the vehicle started shuddering and lost motive power. The contact's wife veered to the side of the road. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contac... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Mar 1, 2024
Incident date: Mar 1, 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 not yet available. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The battery warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to pull into a parking lot. The vehicle failed to restart and wa... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving approximately 60 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed; however, the result of the diagnostic was unknown. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact received notification of NHTSA Ca... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the oil light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact of low oil pressure, replaced the solenoid, and completed an oil change but was unable to increase the oil pressure in the engine. The contact called the local dealer and was informed about NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and... Read more
Incident date: Feb 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle revved up but failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking engine oil. The contact added oil to the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated and flickering. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and the contact was in... Read more
Incident date: Dec 12, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at 70 MPH up a hill, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The check engine and oil warning lights were illuminated. The wrench symbol was displayed. The vehicle lost power and failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was next towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the pretensioner ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 29, 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 not made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving at approxi... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Feb 29, 2024
Incident date: Feb 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH and slowing to enter the driveway, he heard an abnormal sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the sound was like a loud clicking sound and then the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that there were no warning lights illuminated. The contact shifted the vehicle into park(P) an... Read more
Incident date: Feb 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to the dealer, where the radiator was repaired. The contact stated while driving 35-40 MPH, the vehicle jerked, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was ta... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2023
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he smelled a burning odor in the interior of the vehicle. After a visual inspection, the contact observed an oil leak and smoke emanating from underneath the vehicle and surmised that that was the reason the vehicle seemed to be consuming oil abnormally quickly. The contact also stated that during the ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the engine oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Camry. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle was making an abnormal clicking noise from the engine compartment. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the noise was constant and the clicking sound happened at various speeds. The contact pulled over opened the hood and smelled a strong coolant odor.... Read more
Incident date: Feb 26, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power, after which the vehicle was unable to accelerate above 30 MPH. The contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The low oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the oi... Read more
Incident date: May 2, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Land Rover Range Rover Sport. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the coolant warning light illuminated, and the engine temperature gauge started to fluctuate. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the coolant outlet pipe was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at 20 MPH in cold weather, there was smoke coming from the engine compartment. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted; however, the contact received no response. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTS... Read more
Incident date: Feb 29, 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 contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illumi... Read more
Incident date: Feb 13, 2024
My vehicle has been maintained by the dealer and myself for the 87800 miles that have been put on it. I purchased the vehicle in August of 2016 brand new with 34 miles on it. The motor has a manufacturing defect, the block was built in the same plant (Hermosillo, HERMOSILLO, MEXICO)that other Ecoboost motors were built in that were recalled for the coolant leaking into cylinders via a "fix" which... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the vehicle was idling roughly and emitting white smoke from the exhaust pipe. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle to a local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that there was coolant intrusion into one of the cylinders. The cylin... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2019) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Feb 28, 2024
Incident date: Feb 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at approximately 20 MPH, he observed smoke coming from the exhaust pipe with an abnormal burning odor. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that coolant intrusion had caused the engine to become blown and that the long block needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of t... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 45 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle failed to restart. The service engine soon message was displayed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the vehicle lost oil pressure, and the drive belt went into the timing chain. The engine was replace... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 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 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal knocking sound emanating from the engine compartment, after which the low oil pressure warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnose... Read more
Incident date: Feb 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving the vehicle, there was a clicking noise coming from the engine. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and was towed to the residence. The contact later took the vehicle to a BMW Specialist, who d... Read more
Incident date: Feb 24, 2023
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. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed... Read more
Incident date: Oct 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 contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the low oil warning light illumin... Read more
Incident date: Jan 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Edge. The contact stated that she observed plumes of smoke coming from the exhaust. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the coolant intrusion had damaged the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the conta... Read more
Incident date: Feb 25, 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 that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while the contact's daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, there ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2023
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 contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light an... Read more
Incident date: Jan 31, 2024
Head gasket failure allowing coolant to leak into cylinder 1. Starts rough, but could result in lost of power or engine failure while driving. Ford dealer has confirmed the issue and said this shouldn't happen to a car with only 77,500 miles on it (2017 Ford Explorer XLT 4WD 2.3L Ecoboost 4 cyl. engine). Have to repair or replace engine depending upon the extend of damage.
Incident date: Jan 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the vehicle shut off. The vehicle restarted but shut off again. The check engine and oil warning lights illuminated upon restarting the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who informed the contact that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufactu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 25, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine oil pressure warning light illuminated, and the vehicle lost motive power. The Police arrived on the scene and had the vehicle towed to a parking lot. The contact's son, an independent mechanic, later arrived and determined that the engine was faulty. The contact stated that the engine ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle briefly sputtered before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the coolant intrusion had damaged the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Afte... Read more