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.
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
Showing 40,899 complaints - component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2025) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 3, 2025
Incident date: Jun 11, 2025
See attached document for complaint.
Incident date: Jul 2, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The dealer was contacted and confirmed 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 w... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked and occupied, while attempting to start the vehicle, the contact noticed a cloud of white smoke coming from the exhaust. The check engine warning light was illuminated. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that there was coolant leaking into the cylinders, and the engine... Read more
Incident date: Apr 30, 2025
The contact owns a 2007 Hyundai Veracruz. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the instrument cluster gauges were intermittently inoperable, and the doors were locking and unlocking independently. The contact stated that upon raising the hood and inspecting the vehicle, the contact noticed that oil was leaking from the front cylinder bank valve cover gasket onto the alternator... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2019
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the engine overheated, and the temperature gauge had increased to high with the check engine warning light remaining illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the water pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 30, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Cadillac Escalade. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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 co... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 2, 2025
Incident date: Jun 24, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. Th... Read more
Incident date: Jun 11, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Trax. The contact stated that while her niece was driving 40 MPH, she became aware there was coolant leaking from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was drivable until arriving at the residence. The contact added coolant to the coolant reservoir and became aware there was coolant leaking on the driveway.... Read more
MERCURY
GRAND MARQUIS
(2004) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 2, 2025
Incident date: Jul 2, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed an undisclosed failure with the engine. The contact was informed that the engine ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 GMC Yukon. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (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: Apr 15, 2025
The contact owns a 2013 Lincoln MKS. The contact stated that while reversing, there was a huge blast of white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer for routine maintenance and was diagnosed and determined that the water pump was leaking, the turbo charger was losing power, the power transfer unit was overheating, and... Read more
Incident date: Apr 25, 2013
See attached document for complaint.
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 2, 2025
Incident date: May 24, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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 cont... Read more
Incident date: Jun 19, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Ecosport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was restarted after several attempts. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred twice. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 2, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact used a vehicle scanner to scan the vehicle. The contact retrieved DTC: P0446 (Evaporative Emission Control System (EVAP) vent control circuit malfunction). Additionally, the contact stated that the infotainment system was frozen and was inoperable, and there was rust underneath th... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS CROSS SPORT
(2021) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 2, 2025
Incident date: Jun 30, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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 ha... Read more
POLESTAR
POLESTAR 2
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 1, 2025
Incident date: May 9, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light started flashing on and off and the vehicle decelerated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who examined the engine and informed the contact that there were metal shavings inside the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The local dealer was not contacte... Read more
Incident date: Jun 29, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 Cadillac Escalade. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (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 had not experienced a failure. VIN t... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined there was coolant intrusion into several cylinders, resulting in engine damage. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating th... Read more
HYUNDAI
TUCSON HYBRID
(2025) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jul 1, 2025
Incident date: Jun 18, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there a misfire coming from the engine, with an abnormal coolant odor on the inside and outside of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was occasionally illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local O’Reilly’s, where it was diagnosed with a #4-cylinder misfire, and the power pack was replaced; ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine. In addition, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle with coolant i... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2025
The contact's son owned a 2025 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R. The contact stated that while his son was driving at an undisclosed speed, he was involved in a collision with two other vehicles; the cause of the collision was still under investigation by the California Highway Patrol. The contact was unaware if any warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss b... Read more
Crash
1 injured
1 deaths
Incident date: Jan 6, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Kawasaki ZX-6R. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V376000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and refused to accept the motorcycle. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was m... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The mechanic determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to Ford Campaign... Read more
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating, prompting the contact to discontinue driving the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that there was coolant intrusion into various cylinders, causing... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine compartment before the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failu... Read more
Incident date: Oct 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 GMC Yukon XL. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to respond as needed while depressing the accelerator pedal. The failure was more prevalent while shifting gear. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number 25V274000 (... Read more
Incident date: Jun 16, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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 ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed an engine misfire in cylinders #1 and #3. The contact was informed that the engine short block needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating, and the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact turned off the vehicle for three minutes and then immediately drove the vehicle to the local mechanic. The vehicle was taken to two independent mechanics. The first independent mechanic diagnosed the ... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that upon startup, there was a loud knocking sound coming from under the hood. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the cam phasers were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mi... Read more
Incident date: Mar 15, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the vehicle made an abnormal rattling sound on cold starts. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the contact was informed that the cam phasers and connecting belts might need to be replaced. The vehicle was being diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to Ford Campaign Number: 21N03 (Cam phaser repla... Read more
TOYOTA
REDUNDANT SIENNA
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 30, 2025
Incident date: Jun 29, 2025
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, there was a rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. While driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the wrench icon was displayed on the instrument panel before the vehicle stalled. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact stated that undiscl... Read more
Incident date: May 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V376000 ( 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 had not experienced a failure. P... Read more
Incident date: May 2, 2025
The contact owns a 2008 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle slowed down independently and lost automotive power. The contact stated that the vehicle remained in the intersection while awaiting tow services. The contact stated that her boyfriend and son helped to push the vehicle to the right side of the roadway. The contact ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal cranking sound coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N03 (Cam Phaser Replacement); however, the contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLE 350
(2018) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 30, 2025
Incident date: Jun 28, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Sorento. The contact stated that the check engine and low oil pressure warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where an oil change was performed; however, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the nearest dealer for an unknown recall repair, and the contact was informed that the vehicle n... Read more
Incident date: May 12, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated and the engine overheated. The vehicle was driven to the shoulder of the road and the contact turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was restarted and driven to the residence. The contact was aware of white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe with the check engine w... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the heating system was inoperable. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the contact was informed that the coolant reservoir was empty, and coolant was added to the vehicle; however, the failure persisted. Additionally, the contact stated that there was white smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe upon starting the vehicle.... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 2500
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 27, 2025
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Lincoln MKC. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer who diagnosed that the #2 and #3 spark plugs needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, two days after the repair, the check engine warning light illuminated again, and the engine started to overheat. The contact checked to coolant level and ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 27, 2025
Incident date: Jun 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked and occupied, the contact’s husband heard an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that an independent mechanic was contacted. The vehicle was taken an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine block was damaged, t... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Tundra. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V381000 (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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed, and the mechanic determined that coolant intrusion into several cylinders had caused engine damage. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was n... Read more
Incident date: Apr 19, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 4500. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the check engine warning light and other unknown warning lights were illuminated, before the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was diagnosed that the turbo had failed, and there were 39 diagnostic trouble codes retrieved. The dealer determined that the turbo, the intake manifold se... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 BMW 228I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. No further information was 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 i... Read more
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. 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 c... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 GMC Yukon. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. 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... Read more
DODGE
GRAND CARAVAN
(2017) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jun 27, 2025
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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. ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 GMC Yukon XL. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. 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 ... Read more