Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,215,138 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA — including 138,663 crashes, 56,255 fires, and 8,561 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim — NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,215,138 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports — when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report — that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints — specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened — feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 40,517 complaints — component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Incident date: Nov 11, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that he noticed that the coolant level was low and added coolant to the reservoir. The contact stated that when he returned, he noticed the coolant had leaked onto the ground. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 55,070.
Incident date: Mar 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 had not experienced a failure. VIN tool co... Read more
Incident date: Oct 31, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving up an incline at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact became aware of smoke coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who informed the contact th... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2015
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact stated the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling) for which the catalytic converter was replaced. After the repair the vehicle began to drive sluggishly with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact returned the vehicle to t... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2007 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 had not experienced a failure. VIN tool co... Read more
Incident date: Oct 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while his son was driving at highway speeds, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled without warning. His son was able to coast the vehicle to the shoulder of the highway and then had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that antifreeze had leaked into an engine cylinder which resulted in engine failur... Read more
Incident date: Nov 9, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled at an intersection. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 41,000. The VIN was not available.
Incident date: Feb 4, 2019
The contact owns 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the vehicle started shaking and the contact noticed black smoking coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled when she shifted the to reverse. The service required check engine coolant message was displayed. The contact added coolant into the reservoir and the vehicle was taken to dealer. The... Read more
Incident date: Apr 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that after attempting to turn on the heat, the heat failed to properly operate. The contact stated that the heat was either too low or too hot. The contact was concerned that the system would overheat. No warning lights were illuminated. The deal... Read more
Incident date: Nov 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while having routine maintenance performed on the vehicle, the mechanic noticed there was no coolant in the reservoir and the water pump was leaking. The contact was informed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 115,000.
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2019) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Nov 9, 2022
Incident date: Nov 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle started overheating and the engine overheating light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over and waited for the vehicle to cool down and the vehicle operated normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the mechanic stated that coolant was leaking into the engine and the EGR cooler needed ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328i. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact then stated that he noticed that the front passenger’s side interior door handle disintegrated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the door han... Read more
Incident date: Nov 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted several times. 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. T... Read more
Incident date: Oct 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, abnormal amounts of smoke was coming from the exhaust tip. The contact stated that she had to add more oil to the vehicle every week. The contact stated that she had not noticed any oil spots on the driveway. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated and remained illuminated. The ... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the engine emitted abnormal rattling sounds. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred while driving 30 MPH. The contact then inspected the oil dipstick and noticed that there was no oil, even though he had only driven 3,000 - 3,500 miles after the last oil change. The conta... Read more
Incident date: Oct 5, 2022
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle was overheating however, the contact was able to pull over into an Auto Zone and added more coolant to the reservoir. The vehicle was taken an independent mechanic and no failure was found. The mechanic added more coolant. The dealer was contacted and stated there was no recall on the vehicle for the failure.... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, an audible chime was heard with an unknown message displayed before the vehicle decelerated to 25 MPH. The contact stated after turning off and restarting the vehicle, the failure was self-corrected but recurred. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while inspecting the vehicle, she noticed that the vehicle was low on antifreeze, and added antifreeze. The next day when she returned home from work, she became aware that the antifreeze level was again low. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a message was left. The fa... Read more
Incident date: Aug 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that when he moved the vehicle in his driveway, there was a puddle of oil seen underneath where the vehicle was parked. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred on various occasions and that he had to add oil twice per week as the oil warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the failure co... Read more
Incident date: Oct 30, 2022
My engine failed on me while I was driving on highway. There have been complaints about engine fires with these types of engines and engine failure as well. There’s no reason why my engine should have failed on me.
Incident date: Oct 30, 2022
My engine failed on me while I was driving on highway. There have been complaints about engine fires with these types of engines and engine failure as well. There’s no reason why my engine should have failed on me.
Incident date: Nov 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature sensor indicator and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact then stated that while the accelerator pedal was depressed, the engine failed to engage. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the engine over t... Read more
Incident date: Feb 5, 2018
The contact owned a 2008 BMW 328xi. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact's son was driving approximately 30 MPH when the son noticed that smoke had begun to issue from the dashboard vents. The son pulled over and stopped the vehicle and exited when the vehicle dashboard burs... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jan 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving at an unknown speed, there was an abnormal burning odor coming from the vehicle. There was also smoke entering the cabin of the vehicle through the vents. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, but they were unable to diagnose the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired.... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2022
The contact's daughter owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while her daughter was heading out to start the vehicle, there was a leak coming from underneath the engine compartment. The contact also stated that her daughter needed to refill the antifreeze very frequently. Additionally, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where... Read more
Incident date: Feb 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the engine was shutting off inadvertently. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled in the middle of the road. The contact was unable to veer to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several at... Read more
Incident date: Oct 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while his father was driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle hesitated to respond. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local Pep Boys where it was diagnosed that cylinder #1 was misfiring. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic where cylinder #1... Read more
Incident date: Feb 25, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the check engine warning light illuminated, and a message of cylinder #2 misfire was displayed. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic who stated that coolant was leaking into the cylinder causing the misfire. The contact was informed that the failure was not covered under the warranty. The vehicle had not been repaired. The ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2022
The contact's mother-in-law owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the while his mother-in-law was driving at an undisclosed speed the temperature gauge increased and she pulled over and called for assistance. The son-in-law inspected the engine and discovered an antifreeze coolant leak. The contact stated that he placed cardboard under the vehicle and found that the back side of the eng... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge failed to increase. The contact stated that a message appeared on the instrument panel indicating that the engine power had been reduced to prevent engine failure. The contact stated that after the vehicle was parked, he noticed that coolant was leaking on the ground. The dea... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Nov 1, 2022
Incident date: Oct 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH with her children in the rear seats, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to push the vehicle to the side of the road with the assistance of bystanders. The contact was able to jumpstart the vehicle and drove to her destination. The contact stated... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle overheated, and smoke was coming inside the cabin through the A/C vents. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road to inspect the vehicle and noticed that coolant was leaking onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where the thermostat was replaced; however, the f... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jun 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle started overheating with the high engine temperature warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over and waited until the vehicle cooled down. The vehicle was restarted and operated normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the manufacturer would be notified.... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. While attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle hesitated and stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed him that the #3 coil cylinder solenoid and the spark plug had misfired. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the vacuum pump needed to be replaced... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2020
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 528XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, there was smoke coming from under the hood and through the A/C vents. The contact stated that the failure had become a recurring issue. The contact state... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2020 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at a slow speed, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The driver opened the door and the alarm engaged. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the rear electrical wiring harness was corroded, and water had entered the vehicle and dam... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle started overheating with the high temperature warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over on the side of the road and notice that there was no coolant in the engine due to a coolant leak. The contact added more coolant and the vehicle started to operate normally. The vehicle was diagnosed b... Read more
Incident date: Oct 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undetermined speed, the vehicle would shudder while shifting gears. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the transmission module had caused the failure. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the clutch needed to ... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 28, 2022
Incident date: Jun 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while having a routine oil change, she was informed that the engine oil cooler lines were leaking and had detached from the crimp joint. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred her to the NHTSA Hotline. The approximate failure mileage was 67,434. The co... Read more
Incident date: Oct 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed and accelerating, the heater operated then became inoperable. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that coolant was leaking from the water pump and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. T... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 Ram Promaster. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where there were no codes retrieved; however, the contact was informed that the failure was related to the power control module. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to Chapman Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram Scottsdale (38... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH and accelerating to approximately 40 MPH, another vehicle suddenly pulled in front causing the contact to apply the brakes. While attempting to apply the brakes, the brake pedal went to the floor. The traction control, ABS, ECF, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The contact then pulled ove... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, there was white smoke coming through the HVAC vents. The contact pulled over, stopped, and turned off the vehicle. The contact stated that after turning t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 27, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle had overheated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed that the water pump had failed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The approximate failure mileage was 105,000.
Incident date: Apr 16, 2022
The contact owns a 2006 BMW 525I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, she noticed the odor of burning plastic. The contact stated that the check radiator light was illuminated. The contact stated that she drove the vehicle t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 21, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Optima. The contact stated that oil was leaking from the vehicle onto the driveway of her home. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the mechanic stated that the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The sparks plugs were replaced but the failure persisted. On another occasion, the contact noticed that oil was leaking from under the vehicle again, and the vehicle was t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle started losing motive power. There was white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. The contact drove the vehicle to a dealer who diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the long block and determined that the engine needed to be rep... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving 25-30 MPH, he smelled a burning odor and saw smoke coming out from underneath the hood. The contact veered to the side of the road and allowed the vehicle to cool down. The contact was able to continue driving. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring. The vehicle was taken to several independent mechanics who informe... Read more
Incident date: Oct 5, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, there was a message that cylinder #2 had misfired. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and stated that the engine needed to be replaced due to coolant leaking into cylinder #2. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 42,000.
Incident date: May 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fiesta. The contact had initially taken her vehicle to an independent mechanic for a tune-up. The check engine light appeared on the instrument panel soon after service and the vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic six more times. Despite multiple visits, the engine light remained illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer ... Read more