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: Dec 5, 2022

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while his grandmother was driving 35 MPH, the temperature gauge started rising quickly and she saw steam coming from under the hood. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The driver was able to park the vehicle at her friend's residence and called the contact to inspect the vehicle. Upon inspecting the vehicle,... Read more

Incident date: Feb 26, 2022

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated and the engine misfired. The contact detected smoke coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that there was antifreeze leaking into the cylinder head. The local dealer was contacted, a... Read more

Incident date: May 25, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 17V209000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) and 23V162000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the parts to do the recall repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The cont... Read more

Incident date: May 19, 2023

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Edge. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle or while the vehicle was idling, the engine started to sputter, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, there was a misfire in the engine. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that cylinder #3 and #4 were misfir... Read more

Incident date: Apr 5, 2023

The contact owns a 2003 BMW Z4. The contact stated that the coolant warning light illuminated. The contact then stated that she noticed smoke underneath the hood of the vehicle. The contact stated that upon inspecting the vehicle, she noticed a leak on the ground located near the rear passenger’s side tire. Additionally, the contact then stated that while operating the convertible drop top, she ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated, and the contact became aware that the coolant level was low. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that cylinder #2 and #3 were misfiring, and that coolant had leaked into the engine and that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer was contacted and ... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2023

The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Matrix. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights started flashing and the RPM gauge fluctuated from a low RPM to high RPM. The contact stated that he pulled over and attempted to restart the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to restart. The contact had a voltme... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the temperature control valve (TCV) to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000. The cons... Read more

Incident date: May 19, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle started to misfire. The contact was able to drive to his destination. The contact stated he added coolant to the coolant reservoir. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and was informed that the hub gasket was leaking coolant fluid into the en... Read more

Incident date: May 18, 2023

The contact owns a 2020 Land Rover Range Rover Sport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the brakes needed to be replaced. The contact received a second opinion from the dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed that there was a coolant leak. The vehicle was no... Read more

Incident date: Mar 21, 2023

******* DELETE VOQ ******* THIS COMPLAINT IS BEING MARKED FOR DELETION BECAUSE IT IS REQUESTED BY THE CONSUMER THAT THEY WISH TO HAVE IT REMOVED*DJR ******* DELETE VOQ *******

Incident date: May 13, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle overheated. The contact stated that there was smoke coming from underneath the hood. Additionally, the contact stated that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of coolant. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated the vehicle needed to be taken to an authorized... Read more

Incident date: May 16, 2023

The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where a failure code was retrieved for an engine coolant bypass valve circuit short, and it was diagnosed that the bypass hose and valve needed to be replaced. The local dealer was made aware of the failure; however, ... Read more

Incident date: May 18, 2023

The contact owns a 2007 Honda Motorcycle VTX1800. The contact stated while riding approximately 70 MPH and crossing a highway overpass, the motorcycle stalled. The contact stated that he pulled over while still on the overpass and had to wait about 15 minutes before he was able to restart the motorcycle. The contact stated that the oil warning light was illuminated. The contact had experienced a s... Read more

Incident date: Mar 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, he started smelling a burning odor. The contact stated that the oil warning light was illuminated. The contacted pulled over and checked the dip stick which indicated that there was no oil in the oil pan. The contact stated that he had had an oil change several months prior to the failure and had not notice... Read more

Incident date: May 19, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving the message "Service Immediately" was suddenly displayed. The vehicle was immediately driven to the local dealer who diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the engine and that the engine was severely damaged and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no ass... Read more

Incident date: May 18, 2023

The contact owns a 2012 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not holding a charge. Additionally, the vehicle failed to start. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehic... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, an unknown warning light illuminated. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed there was no brake fluid in the reservoir. Additionally, the contact stated that while driving the vehicle was overheating. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 24, 2023

The contact owns a 2012 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the battery warning light illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle overheated. An independent mechanic arrived at the scene and informed the contact that the serpentine belt had detached. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred 2 more times. The contact related the failu... Read more

Incident date: May 17, 2023

The contact owns a 2012 Toyota Tundra. The contact stated that while plowing his driveway, there was an abnormal burning odor detected. The vehicle suddenly lost power. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that oil was needed. The mechanic became aware that oil was dripping through a small crack on the cam shaft o... Read more

Incident date: Nov 15, 2022

The contact owns a 2016 Lincoln MKC. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, he heard a sputtering and knocking sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the vehicle started to overheat. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had become a recurring failure and that the vehicle had begun to c... Read more

Incident date: May 18, 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Mustang GT500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering as the instrument cluster went blank and the charging system error warning message was illuminated. The contact also stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the "Battery Save Mode, Pull Over, and Turn Car Off and On" message was illu... Read more

Crash 1 injured

Incident date: Mar 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the high engine temperature and the check engine warning lights illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed and determined that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the fail... Read more

Incident date: May 16, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH and overtaking another vehicle, the contact heard an abnormal sound before the vehicle started to hesitate. The contact stated that the coolant warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that she parked on the side of the road and restarted the vehicle and drove slowly back to her residence. The contact took the ve... Read more

Incident date: Feb 14, 2018

The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer for an oil change and was informed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that he took the vehicle back to the local dealer on May 3, 2023, for another oil change and was informed for a second time that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was ... Read more

Incident date: May 15, 2023

The contact owns a 2007 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power, with the engine coolant, fuel level, and check engine warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that an unknown part needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. ... Read more

Incident date: May 12, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed that there was a misfire in cylinder #3. The spark plug and coil was replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, approximately 2 days and 30 miles later, the engine started running rough. The contact called and informed the dealer that coo... Read more

Incident date: Mar 22, 2023

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in for a routine oil change, the mechanic discovered that fluid was leaking from the water pump. No further information was available. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 110,000.

Incident date: May 16, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35-45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was internal engine failure. Additionally, antifreeze was leaking into the spark plugs and the engine was overheating. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and... Read more

Incident date: Apr 7, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact looked under the hood and noticed smoke, coolant, and water was pouring from the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who stated that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repair... Read more

Incident date: May 16, 2023

The contact's son owns a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 2500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine and “Service Vehicle" messages was displayed. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) and catalytic converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the ... Read more

Incident date: May 15, 2021

The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that the grille shutter was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.

Incident date: Mar 27, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the contact pulled over and stopped the vehicle. The contact waited for an hour before adding coolant and restarting the vehicle. The contact stated that there was no coolant in the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who found coolant in one of ... Read more

Incident date: May 11, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine coolant above temperature message was displayed with an abnormal booming sound coming from the engine compartment before the vehicle stalled. After restarting the vehicle, the check engine light remained illuminated. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was noti... Read more

Incident date: Apr 23, 2023

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced rough starting and upon inspection it was discovered that the engine coolant was low. Later while driving, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion inside cylinder #1, and the engine might need to be replaced. The vehic... Read more

Incident date: Apr 18, 2023

The contact owns a 2008 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, she noticed an abnormally strong burning odor coming from under the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that an independent mechanic had previously repaired the vehicle for a similar failure. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engin... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2023

The contact owned a 2008 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, he turned on the heater and became aware of smoke coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The vehicle then started to overheat, and the coolant temperature warning light and the check engine warning illuminated. The contact stated that he veered off the road and turned the vehicle off. The contact then st... Read more

Incident date: May 8, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light had been illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that coolant had leaked onto the spark plugs, and cylinder #3 was misfiring. The mechanic informed the contact that it was a known failure and referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was tak... Read more

Incident date: Apr 22, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving at various speeds on several occasions, the vehicle started shaking and the engine overheated. The contact veered to the side of the road and antifreeze was added to the reservoir. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was leaking antifreeze while parked or while driving. The check engine warning light was illumi... Read more

Incident date: Apr 20, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving approximately 75 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated to approximately 45 MPH for approximately 3 seconds, hesitated, and then stalled. The contact stated that before the vehicle stalled, the coolant temperature warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2010 Kia Forte. The contact stated while driving and while at a complete stop, she noticed an abnormal burning odor. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the third brake light assembly had melted. The mechanic replaced the third brake light assembly; however, the burning odor persisted. The vehicle ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that on several occasions after starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact noticed that the coolant reservoir needed to be refilled more frequently. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that there was coolant intrusion into the engine block and a misf... Read more

Incident date: Apr 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the "Electrical Default, Service Engine Soon and Engine Coolant Overheating" messages were displayed. Also, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine had overheated, and steam was coming from under the hood. The vehicle began to lose power and the power steering malfunctioned. The vehicle was later tow... Read more

Incident date: Nov 28, 2022

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle began to jerk and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact restarted the vehicle and continued driving; however, the failure recurred several times while driving, and the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer... Read more

Incident date: Sep 23, 2022

My car had been consuming 2 quarts every 1,000 miles for the past 3-4 months and the kia dealership told me that the best thing i could do is keep getting an oil change. So one day i tried starting my car and it starting shaking and turned off so i turned it back on and it shut off again. I jump started it and it shut off again and i jump started it again but it never turned on. All of the problem... Read more

Incident date: May 8, 2023

Incident date: Apr 28, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, a message indicating that the coolant level was low was displayed. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that she had been adding coolant to the vehicle weekly; however, the failure persisted. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start after several attemp... Read more

Incident date: Mar 31, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving approximately 75 MPH, the contact attempted to accelerate to change lanes however, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that the vehicle started to decelerate and sputtered as if the vehicle before the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was pulled over to ... Read more

Incident date: Apr 1, 2023

The contact's mother owns a 2017 Dodge Challenger. The contact stated that while driving 20 MPH, she noticed an abnormal water odor inside the vehicle and the vehicle was overheating. The contact veered to the side of the road for a moment and then continued driving; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that she veered to the side of the road several times on her way to her residence... Read more

Incident date: May 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was smoke coming from underneath the hood of the vehicle with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle wa... 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

Read more from our blog