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: Oct 26, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently shifted into limp mode. The contact stated that the engine was knocking. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the catalytic convertor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contac... Read more
Incident date: Jan 15, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to restart after briefly turning off the vehicle. The vehicle was initially towed to her residence and was later towed to Shawnee Mission Kia (7951 Shawnee Mission Pkwy, Mission, KS 662020). The dealer informed her that the battery would be replaced and that an oil change would be performed; however, the failure conti... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while driving at an undetermined speed, there was an abnormal odor of smoke detected. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where they informed her the coolant had mixed with the CVT transmission fluid. The vehicle was diagnosed and it was d... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact's son owns a 2013 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while her son was driving 40 MPH, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle with the check engine warning light illuminated. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to her home where a mechanic inspected the vehicle and informed her that there was a recall on the vehicle under NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V224000 ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 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 dealer was notified of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer had been notified of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 6, 2019
The contact owns a 2006 BMW 330XI. 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 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 confirm... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, there was smoke detected and the vehicle was making an abnormal popping sound. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who informed him that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who informed the contact that the veh... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at unknown speed, the check engine warning light appeared illuminated. Shortly after the light illuminated, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who discovered that the vehicle was low on oil; however, there was no evidence of an oil leak. Oil was added, however, the vehicle fa... Read more
Incident date: Apr 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, an abnormal clunking sound had emitted from the vehicle. The contact then heard parts falling out of the engine as white smoke began to release from the vehicle's hood. The check engine warning light was also illuminated on the instrument panel as the contact pulled over. The contact lifted that hood and saw flam... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jun 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle would shake and then loose power and slow down. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled of the roadway and turned the vehicle off and waited 20 minutes to restart the vehicle. The failure was recurring and the vehicle would hesitate while getting up to normal... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2022
engine temperature warning light came on. engine coolant leaked out. engine die while we were waiting for help on the side of I-15 freeway. The vehicle is now at Lincoln dealership for repair. They also told me that there is a faulty fuel pump code that they are looking at. They told me that the factory did not place a water hose in the properly designed placement. The truck die at about 500 miles... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2022
The contact owns a 2014 Audi S6. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the turbocharger needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the repair would not be covered due to aftermarket parts. No additional assi... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated and there was smoke coming from underneath the hood. Additionally, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheated. Upon inspection, it was discovered that the engine coolant was constantly low however, there were no visible leaks present. The vehicle ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle jerked and decelerated from 65 MPH to approximately 20 MPH; the vehicle then independently accelerated to 40 MPH. While at a stop sign, the vehicle stalled. The engine power reduced message was displayed. Additionally, water had entered the trunk of the vehicle and the contact ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 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 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 too... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated before the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the catalytic converter was faulty and needed to be replaced. The catalytic converter was replaced however, the check engine warning light remained ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2022
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated while her mother was driving 35 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not drivable. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired.... Read more
Incident date: Jun 20, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Acura RDX. The contact stated that while at a stop light, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle failed to move or shift into neutral(N). The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump motor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified but no additional assistance was provided. The contact stated that the fail... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2022
In 2018 I bought my 2016 Ford Edge which had 60,000 miles on it. I bought the extended warranty plan. I drove it for approximately 30 days and I started having issues with it losing coolant and smoking. I took it back to the dealership and was told it needed a new motor, so they put a new motor in it. Well, I just notice recently that the check engine light comes on (misfire in #2 cylinder ). it w... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was hot. Additionally, a warning chime sounded in the vehicle. The next day, the contact stated that the same failure occurred while driving 40 MPH. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and it was discovered that coolant ha... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while the Auto START/STOP feature was engaged, the engine failed to restart after a stop. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact called the local dealer but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The contact stated the failure was related to NHTSA Action Number: ... Read more
Incident date: May 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X5. The contact stated while pulling into a parking space, he saw smoke coming through the vents. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact then parked and opened the hood but could not find any issues. The contact was able to continue driving however, the failure recurred while driving. The contact stated while driving the vehicle stalled. The check engine wa... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle would not properly accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling) however, after retrieving the vehi... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the low coolant level message was displayed. The contact veered to the side of the road and noticed that the antifreeze was leaking from the radiator onto the ground. The contact looked underneath the vehicle and saw smoke. The contact then opened the hood and noticed that there was no antifreeze in the coolant reservoir... Read more
Incident date: Jun 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2010 BMW 328I. 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 dealer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated there was an abnormal burning odor comi... Read more
Incident date: Jun 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer ... Read more
HARLEY-DAVIDSON
FLHTCUTG
(2015) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 29, 2022
Incident date: Jun 27, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Harley-Davidson FLHTCUTG Tri Glide Ultra Classic. The contact stated while riding 70 MPH, the check engine and coolant temperature warning lights illuminated. The contact pulled over to allow the motorcycle to cool down. The motorcycle cooled down and operated normal; however, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Forte. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V260000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manu... Read more
Incident date: May 25, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined a failure with the spark plugs. The spark plugs were replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The contact then took the vehicle back to the dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and det... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Forte. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number 21V260000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufa... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact stated the vehicle was being driven to the dealer for an oil change when the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was able to be restarted. The contact stated that the oil level warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed and the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced; however, the vehicle was not repair... Read more
Incident date: Jun 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle started jerking and running rough. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle lost motive and electrical power. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an unknown dealer where the failure was diagnosed as engine failure with an inte... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at approximately 40 MPH and rounding a right-hand bend, the steering wheel veered to the left direction. The contact stated the "tire pressure" warning light was illuminated. The contact stated the vehicle crashed into a guard rail on the driver's side and flipped over the rail and landed on the driver's side. The contact said th... Read more
Crash
1 injured
TOYOTA
COROLLA MATRIX
(2007) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 24, 2022
Incident date: Jun 24, 2020
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Corolla Matrix. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a transmission center and the contact was informed that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in NHTSA Campaign Number: 10V384000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to the dealer and it was confirmed that the VIN was not included. ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 18, 2020
The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the coolant needed to be replenished frequently. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer where a pressure test was performed however, the mechanic did not discover failure with the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.
Incident date: Apr 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the engine seized without warning. The contact initially had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact then discovered that his vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was then towed to t... Read more
Incident date: Jun 6, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 328i. The contact stated that while the daughter was driving approximately 60 mph the vehicle suddenly began to lose automotive power and stalled. During the incident, the warning message "battery discharge and start engine had displayed. After replacing the battery the engine eventually was restarted but the next day the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was then towed t... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Rio. The contact stated that after the niece had park and exited the vehicle smoke and flames were present coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The fire department was called to scene to extinguish the flames. During the incident the vehicle was destroyed and towed away. The cause of the failure was not determined. The contact indicated that prior to the incident ... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jun 21, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Rio. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted but stalled again. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who informed the contact that the radiator, transmission, and other parts were melted. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The ma... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2022
The contact owns a 2010 BMW Z4. 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 dealer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2017
The contact owns a 2015 Jeep Patriot. The contact stated that air conditioning system was blowing hot air throughout the vehicle. Additionally, there was a coolant leak. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer three times and was diagnosed and the contact was informed that the air compressor unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2022 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed the instrument cluster warning lights were flickering. On another occasion while driving 65 MPH, several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the parking brake warning light was also flashing. The contact released the parking brake and the brakes locked up and the vehicle drove ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 328I. The contact received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, an abnormal plastic burning odor was coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that there was white colored smoke coming from the engine while sta... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2022
The contact owned a 2016 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph the vehicle suddenly lost automotive power and the check engine light had illuminated. After stopping the vehicle smoke and flames were present coming from under the hood. The fire and police departments were called to the scene and the flames were extinguished. During the incident, the vehicle was des... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the engine cylinders were faulty causing coolant to leak into the engine. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who confirmed the original diagnosis and informed the contact that the engi... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle stalled with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drive to her destination. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHT... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that a message to shift to park(P) and restart the vehicle was displayed. The contact pulled over and restarted the vehicle however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and was test-driven. Additionally, the display screen became inoperable. The vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was extremely hot air was throughout the vehicle. There was an abnormal burning odor detected. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the air condition compressor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufa... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2007 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, he saw steam exiting from under the hood and multiple warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated he parked the vehicle on the side of the road and saw coolant leaking under the vehicle. The contact stated he waited until the engine had cooled down and continued driving to his destination. The contact later received... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2006 Ford F-650 SD. The contact stated that he had noticed a leak coming from the vehicle. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that the fuel injector was leaking. Upon further investigation, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 08E042000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the vehicle was not included. The manufacturer had been notified of the failure an... Read more