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 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 BMW X1. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System). The contact stated that on several occasions while the vehicle was parked, the contact observed condensation under the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that unknown parts neede... Read more
Incident date: Oct 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Land Rover Range Rover Sport. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the check engine, coolant, and oil warning lights simultaneously flashed on the instrument panel. The contact also stated that the vehicle had failed to start after several attempts. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to a dealer, but the dealer was unable to determine the cause of the ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the "High Engine Temperature - Stop Safely" warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over and waited for the engine to cool down to continue driving. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent but was a recurring failure. The contact checked the coolant level in the coolant reservoir a... Read more
CHEVROLET
EQUINOX EV
(2024) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 23, 2024
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 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 had not experienced a failur... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 535I. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH, the engine temperature and "Pull Over - Stop Vehicle" warning lights were illuminated. The contact pulled over and let the vehicle cool down and drove to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed, and it was determined that the water pump needed to be replaced. The mechanic advised the contact that... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2024
The contact owned a 2015 BMW 328i. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, and while at a complete stop, there was smoke coming from underneath the hood and through the A/C vents. The contact stated that the vehicle was overheating. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the A/C only blew hot air. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the ti... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jul 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 BMW. 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 had not experienced a failure. ... Read more
LAND ROVER
RANGE ROVER
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 23, 2024
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owned a 2016 BMW 528I. The contact stated that while driving at 30 -35 MPH with the windows down, there was a smoke odor present. The contact pulled over into a parking lot and smoke was discovered coming from the front of the vehicle. The vehicle suddenly engulfed in flames as the contact was still seated in the vehicle. The contact was able to safely exit the vehicle. The fire depart... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jul 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal ticking noise detected. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated the noise was coming from cylinder #3 and the lifters. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to duplicate the failure while starting the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. T... Read more
Incident date: Sep 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the engine started misfiring. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the residence, where the contact scanned the vehicle and retrieved a DTC code for cylinder #2 misfire. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where the same ass... Read more
Incident date: Oct 2, 2024
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 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 fail... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 BMW X1. 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 had not experienced a failur... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 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 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 had not experienced a failure. The m... Read more
HYUNDAI
SANTA FE SPORT
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 23, 2024
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 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 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 fail... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 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 had not experienced a failur... Read more
Incident date: Oct 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine misfired with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be re... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 22, 2024
Incident date: Oct 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Kona. The contact stated while her daughter was driving at undisclosed speeds, the engine warning light illuminated. There was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined there was knock in the cylinder. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was determined that the cam was overwor... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle hesitated with an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 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 unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. Additionally, the contact stated that the headlights failed to illuminate while it w... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2024
See attached document for complaint.
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2014) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 22, 2024
Incident date: Aug 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 BMW 528I. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, there was smoke coming through the A/C vents and coming from underneath the hood. The check engine warning light and an unknown warning light were illuminated. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); which the contact related to t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
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 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 fail... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, upon inspecting the vehicle the contact noticed oil burning and an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V226000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage w... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that coolant was leaking into the engine. The mechanic recommended that the engine be replaced. The contact called the local dealer and was referred to the manufacturer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. Th... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while cold starting the vehicle, the engine was idling roughly. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the message “Stop Driving – Engine Overheating” was displayed and an audible chime was heard. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that while conducting a routine inspection on the vehicle, the contact noticed that the coolant was low in the coolant reservoir. The contact drove the vehicle to a local dealer where the vehicle was inspected. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer suggested that the vehicle remain at the dealer to be... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2023) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 22, 2024
Incident date: Jan 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the message "Service Engine Soon" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion in cylinder #3. The dealer determined that the long block needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to TSB Number: 19-2208. The manufacturer was notified of the failu... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced rough starts and the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who discovered coolant inside the cylinders and informed the contact that the engine long block needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notifie... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the floorboard was vibrating, and the vehicle was losing motive power. The contact was depressing the accelerator pedal; however, the vehicle was not responding as needed. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring for several years. The v... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2024
The contact owned a 2014 BMW X1. 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 attempted to start the vehicle and ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinder and that the engine long block needed to be replaced. The dealer made the contact aware of Customer Satisfaction Program Number: 21N12 (Engin... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2024
The contact owned a 2014 BMW 328i. The contact stated that while at a complete stop at the red traffic light, the contact noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled to the side of the road. A bystander advised the contact to exit the vehicle immediately. The contact and his best friend occupying the front passenger's side seat exited t... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V635000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive coolant consumption. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion in the cylinders. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with coolant i... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated upon depressing the accelerator pedal. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start after several attempts, with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was initially taken to an independent mechanic where the ignition coils and spark plugs were re... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 22, 2024
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 25-30 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where the sparks plugs were replaced; however, the failure progressively worsened. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the failure recurred, and the vehicle shuddered. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated there was heavy white smoke coming from the exhaust pipe at start-up. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and a dealer, and a diagnostic test was performed. The contact was informed that coolant had leaked into cylinder #2. The contact was informed by the dealer that the engine need... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated and the message "Coolant Temperature High" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed and determined that there was coolant inside the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet... Read more
NISSAN
PATHFINDER
(2014) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 21, 2024
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that unknown gaskets had malfunctioned, causing fluids to leak into the engine. The engine was currently being replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The manufacturer referred the... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle difficult to start; but was able to start after several attempts. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the spark plugs were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The mechanic determined that the failure was related to Ford Campaign Number: 21N12. The vehic... Read more
Incident date: Oct 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 BMW 328I. The contact received notified 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 upon turning on the heat or the A/C, there was an abnormal loud sound coming from under the hood. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehic... Read more
Incident date: Jul 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the engine overheated and stalled, rendering the vehicle inoperable. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine block had cracked due to coolant intrusion into the cylinders. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manu... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 21, 2024
Incident date: Oct 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine overheated with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine, causing engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted, and the vehicle was diagnosed, and the spark plugs, and ignition coils were replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The vehicle was recently diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approxima... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLC 300
(2020) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 21, 2024
Incident date: Oct 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the engine started to vibrate violently. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that coolant was leaking into the engine block, resulting in damages to the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated while starting the vehicle, the engine revved significantly. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the canister purge valve had failed and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the c... Read more
TOYOTA
GRAND HIGHLANDER
(2024) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 21, 2024
Incident date: Oct 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, there was white smoke intermittently coming from the exhaust pipe. No warning light was illuminated. The failure occurred on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinder and that the engine needed to be replaced. The ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2024
The contact’s son owns a 2015 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System). The contact stated that while his son was driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was not able to be restarted. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed and it was determined that the timing chain had ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Oct 21, 2024
Incident date: Oct 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond while the RPMS had risen significantly high. The contact stated that upon releasing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle responded as needed. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive coolant consumption. The ch... Read more