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.

2,245,377 Total Complaints

140,173 Reported Crashes

56,794 Reported Fires

8,580 Reported 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

How to Read NHTSA Consumer Complaints › How NHTSA Investigations Work › Used Car: 7 Recall Checks to Run First › The Takata Airbag Recall: Full Story › OBD-II Codes Explained › All Articles ›

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Showing 40,899 complaints - component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

Incident date: Feb 10, 2024

my car randomly would not start upon shutting car off and returning to vehicle the car would not start with the keys that was given to me from the dealership that i purchased the vehicle from. it has been having coolant issues where it was reading high temperature then would go back to normal operating temperature very shortly and would happen off and on. it was serviced for this issue at Boubin A... Read more

Incident date: Dec 21, 2023

Coolant intrusion around 130,000 miles. I swapped the motor from a 2013 Escape that had 107,000 miles on it and the coolant intrusion is happening with that one after driving 15,000 more miles.

Incident date: Apr 15, 2023

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Escape. The contact stated that occasionally there was an abnormal gasoline odor while the vehicle was idling and there was white smoke coming from the exhaust. The contact stated coolant was entering into the piston. The contact stated that the power train, ABS, the power train system, and service interval lights were illuminated. The contact stated that there severa... Read more

Incident date: Jan 17, 2024

The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was frequently topping off the engine oil between scheduled oil change service. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and a 3,000-mile oil consumption test was performed. The test concluded that the vehicle was consuming an exce... Read more

Incident date: Aug 24, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced rough starts and rough idling. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine had failed due to coolant leaking into the cylinders. The contact was advised that the engine needed to ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 7, 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving at 55 MPH, the engine made abnormal clicking sounds and was shaking while accelerating. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The independent mechanic recommended that the contact wait to see if the vehicle was included in an upcoming recall. The vehicle was then taken... Read more

Incident date: Feb 8, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 65 MPH, the low oil pressure and oil warning light started flashing. On another occasion, while driving at various speeds, the contact observed a knocking sound coming from the engine compartment which progressed throughout the day while driving the vehicle. The oil was changed but the abnormal sound pers... Read more

Incident date: Jan 11, 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled. There was a rattling sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle then entered LIMP Mode. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The driver was able to drive to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine had ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge began to indicate that the engine was overheating, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken t... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The driver was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that coolant intrusion into the engine had dam... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH and above, the vehicle failed to accelerate as designed. The vehicle hesitated while accelerating. The contact stated the failure had occurred approximately 2 months after receiving the first diagnosis. The RPMs began increasing at the time of the second failure with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and accelerating, the vehicle hesitated. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic where a diagnostic test was performed. The mechanic determined that the anti-freeze level was low and leaking into the engine, causing a misfire in cylinder #1. The vehicle was ... Read more

Incident date: Dec 21, 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that while driving approximatel... Read more

Incident date: Feb 2, 2024

The contact owns a 2010 Audi Q5. The contacted stated while sitting in the vehicle, there was an abnormal gasoline odor inside the vehicle. There was a leak coming from the front of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic and was diagnosed with a secondary air injection system bank 1 and 2, insufficient flow, and a possible clogged lef... Read more

Incident date: Nov 15, 2023

The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illu... Read more

Incident date: Feb 8, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal ticking sound coming from the engine compartment, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact's husband was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The v... Read more

Incident date: Feb 8, 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while his friend was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The driver was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the engine connecting rod bearings, req... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2024

The contact owned a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving approximately 35-40 MPH and approaching the red traffic light, she depressed the brake pedal to come to a complete stop. The contact noticed smoke coming out of the cowl of the vehicle. The contact then turned on the AC and smoke came through the A/C vents. The contact opened the windows. The contact stated that the smoke becam... Read more

Fire

Incident date: Feb 8, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle was losing motive power. The contact stated that there were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to stop; however, after numerous attempts to restart the vehicle, the contact had the vehicle towed to the residence. The vehicle was later ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 8, 2024

The contact owns a 2022 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that upon approaching the vehicle, he observed a fluid leak underneath the engine compartment. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who confirmed the fluid leak from an unknown location and informed the contact that there was a misfire in cylinder #2. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the f... Read more

Incident date: Feb 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 after the vehicle was idling at a stop sign, several audible alerts s... Read more

Incident date: Dec 7, 2023

We notice antifreeze was disappearing at a very fast rate without a sign of a leak found out it was leaking in the engine

Incident date: Feb 7, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the check engine warning light started flickering and the vehicle vibrated and lost motive power upon depression of the accelerator pedal. The contact inspected the engine and discovered white rust on the spark plugs. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where a diagnostic machine showed an engine misfire in ... Read more

Incident date: Nov 4, 2020

The contact owns a 2016 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 vehicle sputtered, and the po... Read more

Incident date: Sep 20, 2023

The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she smelled a burning odor in the interior of the vehicle, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact became aware that the ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 24, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, he heard a loud rattle sound coming from the engine compartment. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N03, but the ... Read more

Incident date: Nov 13, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while depressing the brake pedal, the pedal was firm. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, the oil pressure warning light illuminated. The contact pulled off the highway, and the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and the contact was informed that the failure was related to t... Read more

Incident date: Nov 4, 2023

The contact owns a 2010 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the bolts sheared off and entered the engine, and the vehicle began to skip and shut off. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who referred the contact to the BMW dealer. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufactur... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle displayed a message reading "Low Oil Pressure," after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The low oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the d... Read more

Incident date: Dec 19, 2023

I bought a brand new Ford Edge in 2017 with a warranty of 5 years and 60,000 miles. Several weeks ago, my car turned the engine light on and began having difficulty staying on during idle time and at stop signs. Immediately, I took it to the dealer and they diagnosed the problem of a leakage of coolant into the cylinders. They quoted me for an amount greater than the trade in value of the vehicle... Read more

Incident date: Oct 7, 2018

The contact owns a 2019 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated that while his wife was operating the vehicle, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated and moments later turned off. Later, after parking the vehicle, the warning light became illuminated again. The vehicle was towed to the local service center who diagnosed and determined that the oil pressure belt had failed. The vehicle was then t... Read more

Incident date: Feb 4, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle began to drive rough and was hesitating. The vehicle was taken to the local service center who diagnosed a misfire in the cylinder #2 and that the number two spark plug was fractured. The vehicle was repaired but the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was later taken to the local dealer who di... Read more

Incident date: Jan 19, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at 70 MPH, the low oil pressure message was displayed. The oil and engine warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle failed to accelerate and coasted to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the drive belt had fractured, causing the engine to seize. The vehicle was ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 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 that while his wife was driv... Read more

Incident date: Nov 20, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the oil warning light appeared on the instrument panel. The contact stated that the light had appeared prior to the next scheduled oil change. A few days later while driving 60 MPH, an abnormal knocking sound was coming from the engine with an oil burning odor entering the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle then stalled and ... Read more

Incident date: Dec 19, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and accelerating, there was a loud rattling sound coming from underneath the hood of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the cam phaser had malfunctioned and needed to be replaced. The contact was inf... Read more

Incident date: Feb 4, 2024

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the low coolant warning light illuminated. The vehicle was parked at the residence where coolant was added to the vehicle. On another occasion while driving at an undisclosed speed, the low coolant warning light illuminated again. The vehicle was taken to a dealer however, the failure could not be duplicate... Read more

Incident date: Feb 4, 2022

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the low oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine block was cracked and the oil sending unit was damaged. The dealer informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure a... Read more

Incident date: Jan 24, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Honda Ridgeline. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine made abnormal clicking sounds. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who referred the contact to the dealer. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with connecting rod bearing wear and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicl... Read more

Incident date: Feb 6, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power with the check engine warning light displayed. The vehicle was towed to the residence and later driven to the local dealer who diagnosed that coolant was present inside cylinder #2. The contact was advised that the head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 3, 2023

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle went into LIMP Mode. The contact stated that there were metal fragments in the oil. The contact stated that the drive belt was disintegrating, and there were fibers in the engine. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was cont... Read more

Incident date: Sep 23, 2023

The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) and 23V707000 (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 contact stated that the PCV heater overheated ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 5, 2022

The contact owns a 2017 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that there was an abnormally strong gasoline odor inside the cabin of the vehicle after refueling. Additionally, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was initially taken to a dealer where a diagnostic test was performed; however, ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 16, 2024

The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the engine made an abnormal sound, and the vehicle experienced reduced motive power. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to operate as needed. ... Read more

Incident date: Dec 16, 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 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 stopped at a traffic light, t... Read more

Incident date: Feb 5, 2024

The contact owns a 2010 BMW 128I. The contact stated that while driving at a slow speed and pulling into the driveway, the vehicle stalled. While driving on two occasions, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The check engine and other unknown warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, door and trunk failed to open. The contact's husband checked the vehicle and noticed there was power be... Read more

Incident date: Oct 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the timing belt and engine oil pump belt fractured, and the vehicle lost oil pressure and the engine failed. The oil pressure, check engine, and battery warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic and was diagnosed with engine failure. The vehicle was repaired. The contact referenced ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 3, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Acura TLX. The contact stated while the vehicle was idling, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The vehicle was taken the dealer, where the timing belt, unknown bolts, and parts were replaced. Additionally, the contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, several unknown warning lights were illuminated, but the engine failed to turn over. The c... Read more

Incident date: Sep 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Maserati Levante S. The contact stated that while driving at slower speeds, the transmission would independently shift to neutral(N) causing the vehicle to decelerate unintendedly. During the failure the driver was able to shift to the park(P) and back to the drive(D) to correct the failure. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 30, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle unintendedly decelerated to 20 MPH. The contact was uncertain there were any warning lights illuminated. Despite the failure, the contact managed to pull off to the shoulder of the highway and slowly drove the vehicle to the residence. The next day, the vehicle was towed to the dealer and the failure was li... Read more

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Consumer Safety Complaints

What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?

How to interpret what you read

If you've experienced a defect

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