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
Incident date: Jan 17, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and running, the brake warning light began flashing. The vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that the failure was like NHTSA Action Number: PE22013 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING, ENGINE). The contact called the local dealer and was informed that there were no open recalls on the VIN. The vehicle was n... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2024) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 24, 2025
Incident date: Jan 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving 75-80 MPH, there was oil leaking from the vehicle. The contact also noticed that there was oil on the garage floor. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V202000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who deter... Read more
Incident date: Sep 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact was informed by... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle was bucking and lurching forward. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recently occurred while driving and the vehicle was lurching while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mech... Read more
Incident date: Aug 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving 55 MPH in cold temperatures, the oil light illuminated. There was oil leaking from the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle slid sideways. The driver was able to pull over safely. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the oil coolant line had fractured. The vehicle was n... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 23, 2025
Incident date: Oct 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 BMW 428I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); 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 re... Read more
Incident date: Jan 12, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the message "Engine Failure - SS Repower Mode" and a message advising that the vehicle would shut off in thirty seconds was displayed. The vehicle stalled. The contact was unable to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart. The contact who is disabled was assisted by other motorists pushing the vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Oct 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, there was a whining sound coming from the transmission. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the transmission. Later while operating the vehicle, the message "Engine Overheating" was displayed, and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer who diagnosed that the turbocharger was faulty and ne... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact stated that the engine coolant overheat warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was restarted, and the contact pulled over. The contact then continued driving at 10 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with coolant sensor failure. The conta... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that when the vehicle was parked and was started, the vehicle was shaking abnormally. In addition, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The vehicle was driven to the dealer where it was diagnosed with camshaft failure. The contact was informed that the camshaft needed to be r... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at 25-30 MPH into town, the contact noticed there was white exhaust smoke emerging from the tailpipe. The engine shut down. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to TSB: 20-2234. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that water had leaked int... Read more
Incident date: Jan 17, 2025
The contact's daughter owns a 2015 BMW 428I. 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 not made aware... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2018) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 23, 2025
Incident date: Nov 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (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. Parts distrib... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 23, 2025
Incident date: Nov 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 BMW X3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); 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 while driving at... Read more
Incident date: Jan 19, 2024
See attached document for complaint.
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 23, 2025
Incident date: May 15, 2024
See attached document for complaint.
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2021) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 22, 2025
Incident date: Dec 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Tundra. The contact was notified of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V381000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, and it was confirmed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle remained with the dealer. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amou... Read more
Incident date: Jul 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 BMW X6. The contact stated that the vehicle was running rough, with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact used a vehicle scanner and retrieved diagnostic trouble codes indicating a misfire in cylinder number #5, and the water pump had failed due to a ground short circuit failure. The contact replaced the spark plugs and recharged the battery, and the check... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Tundra. The contact stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal from a standing stop at a traffic signal, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was hesitating before responding as needed and gradually moved forward. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent.... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2019
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 unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that during sudden braking, the vehicle stalled, and the engine seized. The con... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Edge. The contact stated while depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. The contact slightly released and then depressed the accelerator pedal to drive as needed. The check engine warning light illuminated intermittently. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic who diagnosed that there was coolant leaking into cylinder #1 caus... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 528I. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the contact noticed a burning odor coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer e... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while his wife was driving 55 MPH, the vehicle started shaking abnormally. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road and call her husband. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the residence. The contact stated that the dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the d... Read more
Incident date: Jan 16, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the check engine warning light remained illuminated, and the vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced due to coolant intrusion. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 84,024.
Incident date: Jan 14, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 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 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 contac... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ram 2500. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The contact stated that a diagnostic scanner was used to retrieve DTC: P2609; which indicated a failure in the intake air heater system. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealers were contacted and indicated that the part was not available to order. N... Read more
Incident date: Jan 16, 2025
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (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. Parts distribu... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (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 contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the low oil pressure message was displayed. Th... Read more
Incident date: Jan 8, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 528I. 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 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 a... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 22, 2025
Incident date: Sep 22, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 55-60 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to AutoZone, where the contact was informed that there was no coolant in the vehicle. The contact added coolant to the vehicle; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the head gasket had failed,... Read more
Incident date: Jan 6, 2020
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 30 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of automotive power. The check engine oil warning light illuminated. In addition, the contact noticed smoke coming from under the hood and pulled into the residence. The vehicle was diagnosed by a local independent mechanic on scene, that the vehicle had a lack of lu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V707000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). The contact stated while driving 15 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal before the vehicle stalled. The Safe Mode message was displayed. The contact was driving uphill when the vehicle stalled. The contact helped t... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the vehicle was overheating, prompting the contact to momentarily discontinue driving the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that coolant intrusion into various cylinders had resulted in dama... Read more
HONDA
CR-V HYBRID
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 22, 2025
Incident date: Dec 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2006 Scion TC. The contact stated that after performing a vehicle inspection of the engine compartment, he became aware that the coolant reservoir was abnormally low; eventually finding a leak near the rear of the engine. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the cylinder head bolts resulting in a coola... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 22, 2025
Incident date: Sep 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (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 dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was not... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2013 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 contact stated that while attempting to st... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER HYBRID
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 21, 2025
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH the check engine light began flashing, and the vehicle began misfiring. When the contact reached their destination the check engine light turned from flashing to solid. The vehicle was taken to the dealer diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion due to coolant leaking in cylinders 1,2,3 and 4. The dea... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2014 BMW X5. The contact stated while driving 65-70 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact drove to the residence. The following day, the vehicle was towed to SLM Auto Care LLC - Audi VW BMW Porsche, where it was diagnosed that the N63 engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The mechanic also info... Read more
Incident date: Jan 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 528I. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, a RED message that “Engine Overheating” was displayed and to pull over to prevent engine damage. The contact immediately pulled to the side of the road. The contact stated that upon resuming driving, a yellow message advising to proceed with caution was displayed and the vehicle failed to exceed 15 MPH. The contact stat... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The Check Engine Oil warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the VIN not being under recall. The vehicle was towed to the residence. Upon fu... Read more
CHRYSLER
TOWN AND COUNTRY
(2016) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 21, 2025
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
The contact owns a 2014 BMW X1. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated with the radiator fan running at high speeds. The contact pulled over and allowed the engine to cool down before restarting the vehicle and continuing to drive. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and DTC: 348A, 387F were retrie... Read more
Incident date: Sep 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Nissan Titan. The contact stated that there was a knocking sound coming from the driver’s side of the vehicle. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and then while the vehicle was idling, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed failure with cylinder #7. The ... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2023) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 21, 2025
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 535I. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds or while the vehicle was parked, the message “Engine Coolant Level Low" and "Top off Soon as Possible - See Owner’s Manual” were displayed. Additionally, the message “Possible Engine Damages - Attention Scudding Hazard" was displayed. The contact stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal, the ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 14, 2025
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was consuming an abnormal amount of coolant. Additionally, the contact stated there was an abnormal burning odor coming from underneath the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed previously for an engine coolant leak. The vehicle was left parked at a gas station wh... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER HYBRID
(2020) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Jan 21, 2025
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was heavy white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where a diagnostic test showed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact was given an estimate fo... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine overheated. The contact stated that the vehicle was losing coolant, but there was no indication of a coolant leak. There were no warning lights illuminated. There was cool air coming from the heater vents. The contact called an independent mechanic for orange coolant, who informed the c... Read more
Incident date: Jan 19, 2025
The contact's son owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated while his son was driving 50-60 MPH, the engine started overheating. The driver pulled to the side of the road and added coolant to the vehicle. The driver then drove to the residence. The contact stated that the vehicle was difficult to start the following day. The contact's son was able to restart the vehicle and drove to a nearby inde... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the check engine and oil pressure warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to get off the expressway safely. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. While the contact's son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact's son drove the vehicle to the shoulder of the road. Upon inspecting the vehicle, the contact's son noticed that oil was leaking onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with a fracture... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2020 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 contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle started to lose motive power. There wer... Read more