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 21, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, she heard an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine. The oil warning light illuminated. The contact stated that she depressed the accelerator pedal however, the vehicle hesitated to respond. The contact stated that she was able to drive the vehicle however, the vehicle was shuddering while driving and stalled... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2020
The contact owned a 2014 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speed the contact noticed that the vehicle would become very hot and coming from the engine and interior of the vehicle and temperature gages was going up and down. The contact placed water in the coolant tank to cool down the vehicle. The contact was going to place a coolant sensor on the vehicle but never had t... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Mar 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that she had initially observed spots on her driveway due to an unknown leak. The contact had taken the vehicle to several independent mechanics however, none of the mechanics could find the source of the leak. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle began to shake with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 mph, when there was an abnormal knocking noise coming from the engine compartment and suddenly there was smoke as well. The contact was able to pull over and EMS were called to the scene, before fire marshals arrived on the scene the fire extinguished on its own. The contact stated no warning lights were illuminat... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Sep 2, 2021
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (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 local dealer was made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was not made aware of the i... Read more
Fire
HYUNDAI
SONATA HYBRID
(2016) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 22, 2021
Incident date: Apr 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while the daughter was driving approximately 55 mph smoke was suddenly present coming from under the hood before the engine failed and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The f... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Oct 2, 2021
The contact owns a 2010 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact stated that there was an abnormal odor of oil detected. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who confirmed that parts were not available... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2021
Vehicle began shaking when idling and was taken to independent repair shop. Upon their inspection oil was found around the spark plugs which was an indication that there was a cracked cylinder head caused by overheating and requiring a new engine. There had been no sensor alert that coolant levels were low.
Incident date: Oct 22, 2021
Vehicle continues to lose coolant. No visible leaks. Vehicle previously tested for coolant loss. Dealership performed pressure test. Tested satisfactory. Problem has persisted. FORD has issued a recall for coolant loss. Contacted FORD, told my vehicle is not on the recall list. My vehicle has the 1.6l ecoboost engine that has a known problem of coolant leaking into the cylinders. FORD customer se... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road with assistance. The contact stated she was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence, where an independent mechanic diagnosed that the alternator ne... Read more
Incident date: Dec 14, 2017
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at 30 MPH, the contact noticed a warning light illuminated on the vehicle stating engine overheating. The contact pulled the vehicle to the side of the road, where the contact noticed black smoke coming from the engine. The contact then drove the vehicle across the road into a mechanic shop where the mechanic who used a fire ext... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Oct 20, 2021
2011 HYUNDAI SONATA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO NHTSA SAFETY RECALL 15V-568. THE CONSUMER REQUESTED TO BE INCLUDED IN THE RECALL, AS THE VEHICLE HAS EXPERIENCED THE SAME FAILURE. THERE WAS METALLIC DEBRIS IN THE ENGINE CRANKSHAFT. THIS CAUSED THE ROD BEARINGS TO BE RESTRICTED OF OIL FLOW AND CAUSED MY ROD BEARINGS TO BE DAMAGED. THE ENGINE FAILED.
Incident date: Aug 17, 2021
The contact owns a 2015 Ram 1500. The contact stated that the coolant level was low. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 19V757000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who stated that the parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer wa... Read more
Incident date: Oct 6, 2021
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (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 available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufa... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the contact noticed that the engine coolant temperature warning light was illuminated, and the vehicle started to shudder. The contact pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road and waited a few minutes before restarting the vehicle and continuing driving however, the failure persisted. The contact took the vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Oct 12, 2021
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle a banging noise was present coming from the engine compartment. Additionally, while driving, the cluster gauges and the air conditioning malfunctioned. The vehicle was later examined by an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the water pump had failed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer but no... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2021
The contact owns a 2009 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the dealer informed the contact that the part for the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle inadvertently lost power. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle after several attemp... Read more
Incident date: Oct 14, 2021
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius. The contact became aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V734000 (Hybrid Propulsion System, Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the dealer informed the contact that the part for 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 notified of the issue... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2018
The contact owns a 2013 KIA Sportage. The contact stated while driving 80 MPH, the vehicle shut-off without warning. The contact pulled to the shoulder of the highway and had the vehicle towed to her home. The contact stated that a knocking noise would emit from the vehicle after multiple failed attempts to restart the engine. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V22... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2019
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 mph when the engine began to knock. The contact stated no warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing engine replaced but was not repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (ENGINE, ENGINE AN... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2021
The contact owns a 2012 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that the vehicle experienced the failure stated in the recall a month prior to receiving the recall notification. The vehicle was repaired by an independent mechanic, who replaced the alternator. After receiving the recall notification, the... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2014) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 7, 2021
Incident date: Jul 30, 2021
The contact 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact had received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V699000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) and the vehicle was taken to the local dealer for the recall repair. The vehicle was repaired. After several months, the contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and approaching a stop sign, the contact saw in the rearview mirror that there was ste... Read more
Incident date: Oct 4, 2021
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 1500. The contact stated while having the oil changed at a local mechanic, the contact was informed of a leak coming from the oil cooler filter housing. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer to be inspected. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle started sputtering then loss motive power. The check engine and oil warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was leaking oil onto the ground. The contact inspected the engine and saw that the rod had pierced the engine block. Upon investigation, the contact r... Read more
Incident date: Sep 29, 2021
The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Armada. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 10E019000 (Suspension) and 10V517000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to the dealer for recall repairs; however, the dealer only completed the recall repair for 10V517000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that the collar weld of the vehicle was separating. The contact ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 29, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Audi SQ5. The contact stated there was excessive heat coming from the engine. Additionally, there was moisture on the water pump. A message stating “Pull Over Immediately” was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the water pump failed and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure ho... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the vehicle overheated. There was an abnormal odor and detection of heat inside the vehicle. A message to pull over and check the engine was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was anti-freeze in the engine and the engine needed to be replaced. The repair p... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2021
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic where it was diagnosed with needing the engine replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V224000 (... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2013) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 28, 2021
Incident date: Sep 1, 2017
The contact owns a 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 17E061000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall was unavailable. The contact called the local dealer who stated the parts were not available. The contact stated the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not not... Read more
Incident date: Aug 23, 2021
The contact's granddaughter owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while his granddaughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power without warning. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed with low engine compression. The dealer informed the contact that the failure was not related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V226000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The... Read more
Incident date: Feb 26, 2021
2nd day I had it temp out side was -15° in Feb. I started my car and warning lamp said low coolant service immediately not even 2 minutes it said pull over safely engine will shut down. dealership came got it said it was a coolant hose.... they lied. it was the coolant bypass valve that was malfunctioning. I got the car back and it was okay for a couple weeks then said low coolant. I've been deal... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2021
I was driving on the highway and all of the sudden the temperature gauge maxed out and the console said engine overheating. I pulled off to the side and as soon as I put the car in park, the gauge returned to normal. The coolant reservoir was full and the radiator was not unreasonably hot. The check engine light came on at the beginning and went away as soon as I pulled off. I do not know what cau... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2021
the car is very bad for manufacture the gasket rocker is in bad conditions almost fired my car the oil is allot the liquid inside the my motor .is allo the noise , the dealer can responsibility for recall because kia close the recall is not fair my car is 2016 is dangerous for my family and for my kids almost pay for this car 25,000.00thousand dollars . am pay for the fixed yesterday 336.32, and ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2021
the car is very bad for manufacture the gasket rocker is in bad conditions almost fired my car the oil is allot the liquid inside the my motor .is allo the noise , the dealer can responsibility for recall because kia close the recall is not fair my car is 2016 is dangerous for my family and for my kids almost pay for this car 25,000.00thousand dollars . am pay for the fixed yesterday 336.32, and ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact pulled over but was unable to restart the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired and was towed to the residence. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was unable to be restarted. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the engine seized and needed to be replaced. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufact... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would not properly accelerate. The failure occurred while operating the vehicle in warmer humid weather. The contact indicated that the failure occurred after the vehicle was serviced under the NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V264000 (Electrical System, Engine and Engine Cooling) which included ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 12, 2019
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle started overheating with a warning light on the instrument panel. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and opened the hood and saw coolant leaking all over the engine. The contact added some water in the vehicle and waited a few minutes and drove back to the residence. The contact’s husband works... Read more
Incident date: Aug 30, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, he became aware that the check engine warning light was illuminated and there was an engine misfire. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The mechanic replaced the spark plug; however, the failure recurred. On another occasion, while driving, the vehicle started to overheat. The ... Read more
Incident date: May 26, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 mph during rainy weather conditions, the vehicle began to produce a knocking noise, decelerated, and smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact's boyfriend opened the hood and confirmed that there was a fire. The fire extinguished itself and the vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was currently ... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jan 1, 2016
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact stated while turning off the vehicle, there was an abnormal fuel odor detected. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who stated that the vehicle was working as designed and that parts ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated upon depression of the accelerator pedal without warning. The contact then discovered that her vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact called a dealer and scheduled an appointment to have the vehicle serviced. A few days after... Read more
Incident date: Feb 6, 2019
I took my car in for a routine check and the dealership noted a potent is coolant /transmission fluid leak. However they said that it could have just been when coolant bubbled over so they decided not to repair anything and to just monitor. The next time I brought my car in my warranty was done and they noted the same issue and told me that I now had a coolant / transmission fluid lead that requir... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was restarted however, several functions remained inoperable. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic and was diagnosed but not repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Camp... Read more
Incident date: Aug 24, 2021
Smelling fuel & coolant leak took to ford & had diagnostic test done they replaced hose's..picked back up drove 1day & started doing same thing saying low coolant pulled over and it was steaming bad .. looked at overflow tank & it was almost full so I just left it in my driveway came out to look at it again and it was empty.... I don't understand why it's leaking coolant and why it's doing this if... Read more
Incident date: Sep 7, 2021
The contact owns a 2008 Volvo XC70. The contact stated that while her husband was leaving a restaurant drive-thru, the vehicle lost motive power without warning while entering the main street. The driver was waiting for a tow truck to tow the vehicle from the scene. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the fail... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2021
The contact owns a 2018 Tiffin Phaeton RV. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the dashboard instrument cluster lights suddenly began to flash off and on and the Diesel Emission Fluid (DEF) sensor light remained illuminated before the vehicles decelerated independently to 5 MPH. The vehicle was driven to a nearby service center(unknown) and the Diesel Emission Fluid sensor ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Aug 2, 2019
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was hesitant to accelerate and would stall on occasion. While driving, several messages regarding the braking system, emission, steering, and the engine were displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the fuel injectors, and flushed and reprogrammed the transmission module ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 8, 2020
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while coming out of a full stop, the vehicle would stall without warning. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 6,500.
Incident date: Sep 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2010 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V705000 (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 made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the vehicle shut down and ... Read more