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: Sep 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Acura MDX. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V858000 (Fuel system, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were 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 h... Read more
Incident date: Sep 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the engine, causing engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 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 manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact stated that while stopped at a traff... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was a cloud of white exhaust coming from the tailpipe causing an odor of exhaust to emit from the vehicle. The contact, an independent mechanic, had inspected the vehicle and noticed water leaking into the cylinders. The contact replaced the water pump, thermostat, and temperature sensors. The failure... Read more
FORD
MUSTANG MACH E
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 23, 2024
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 BMW 430I. The contact stated that while the dealer was servicing the vehicle, the dealer informed the contact there were several coolant leaks found. The dealer advised the contact to regularly add coolant to the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 40-50 MPH, the vehicle experienced reduced power. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The mess... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at 55 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The driver was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The blank warning light was illuminated. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that there was white smoke from the vehicle. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was chugging. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine, and the head gasket and engine needed to be replaced... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated there was an abnormal squeaking noise coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that the engine was overheating, and the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Ranger. The contact stated that there was a misfire in the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was water build up in the spark plug wells, and there were signs of corrosion on electrical component. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed th... Read more
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Accord. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); 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 had... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
See attached document for complaint.
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 20, 2024
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was constantly adding coolant to the coolant reservoir. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the contact was informed that coolant was leaking into the engine. The vehicle was repaired. The contact researched online and b... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle was intermittently sluggish and failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that the vehicle then lost motive power. The contact was unable to pull over to the side of the roadway. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle experienc... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the oil pan was leaking. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the oil pan was leaking and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage w... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2024
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 dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The ... Read more
ALFA ROMEO
GIULIA
(2018) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 19, 2024
Incident date: Sep 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer for a routine oil change and the contact was informed that there was a misfire in cylinder #3, and there was coolant intrusion into the cylinder. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking oil. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the oil pan had rusted and caused the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the part to do the repair was on back order. The manufacturer was contacted and refe... Read more
Incident date: Aug 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Hyundai Veloster. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to AutoZone, where diagnostic test codes indicated a timing chain failure and other diagnostic test codes were retrieved. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed due to low engine oil, a... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2024) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 19, 2024
Incident date: Aug 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact heard an abnormal chain rattling sound. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the failure was due to the unrepaired recall of NHTS... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER HYBRID
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 19, 2024
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
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 local dealer was not 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 contac... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was coolant cooling leaking into the cylinder and the vehicle made an abnormal sound. The vehicle was able to restart on the third attempt; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was driven to the independent mechanic and was diagnosed and determined that engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, an unknown message displayed, and the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the low brake fluid message displayed intermittently even when the brake fluid level was not low. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was determined that the engine nee... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 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 that the head gasket had failed due to coolant leaking into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was con... Read more
Incident date: Aug 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. 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 attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start. The deale... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The low oil pressure warning light illuminated, and the vehicle sputtered. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be re... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Dodge Journey. The contact stated that there was an abnormally strong exhaust odor coming from the vehicle. While attempting to accelerate, the vehicle was hesitating and experiencing a loss of motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the catalytic convertor had failed and need... Read more
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that after an oil change, the vehicle was started and revved up and was running rough. The contact turned off the vehicle and confirmed that the oil cap was secured. The vehicle was restarted and the vehicle self-corrected. The next day while starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact received notification o... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 BMW X5. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine overheated message was displayed, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact pulled over and restarted the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate above 20 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the water pump needed to be replaced. The ve... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLA 250
(2015) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 18, 2024
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge started indicating that the engine was overheating, and the vehicle then lost motive power. The contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted. The engine overheating warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an indepen... Read more
Incident date: Jun 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that there was an abnormal rattling noise coming from the vehicle during cold starts. The failure persisted, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was initially taken to an independent mechanic where a diagnostic test showed that there was coolant intrusion into engine cylinder #4. The vehicle was diagnosed with engine f... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving approximately 60 MP... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle stalled while attempting to start the vehicle. The contact stated that coolant was leaking into the engine. The contact stated that the failure was a persistent failure. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and an independent mechanic to be diagnosed; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufactur... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2019) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 18, 2024
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Tundra. The contact stated while driving at approximately 70 MPH, the engine temporarily lost power. No warning light was illuminated. The contact researched and was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V381000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the VIN was not included, and the part was not available. The vehicle was driven to a dealer to be diagnosed. The deal... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Ram 2500. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated, the headlights flashed off and on, and the battery failed to remain charged. The contact diagnosed an electrical ground short, a low voltage to the intake air heater relay, and the engine grid heater was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not y... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, there was an abnormal sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine. The message "Engine Fault - Service Now" was displayed on the instrument panel. The... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact that the engine temperature gauge was in the red zone. The contact stopped and checked under the hood and became aware that coolant level was very low. The contact refilled the coolant reservoir and drove to the destination. The contact stated that fai... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle lost motive power and decelerated. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that there was coolant intrusion into cylinders #1 and #2, and the long block needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet... Read more
Incident date: Jul 18, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the coolant reservoir was abnormally low, even though the coolant reservoir had recently been refilled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the oil light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V308000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that an oil change was needed. The vehicle was repaired. The vehicle was taken to another loca... Read more
TOYOTA
SIENNA HYBRID
(2024) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 17, 2024
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Tundra. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V566000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 24V381000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were 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 conta... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MP... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 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 while driving approxim... Read more
Incident date: Aug 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle briefly hesitated before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that coolant intrusion had damaged the engine. The contact was informed that the engine nee... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Acura MDX. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact was informed by the dealer that the vehicles fo... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2021) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 16, 2024
Incident date: Sep 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was smoking with the engine overheating. The wrench symbol was displayed and was flashing on and off. The engine warning light was illuminated and flashing on and off. The contact stated that the failure was related to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N12. The vehicle was taken to the local d... Read more
Incident date: Aug 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 BMW 328XI. 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 and confirmed that parts were available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The c... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the engine seized. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with engine failure. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not ... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2017) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Sep 16, 2024
Incident date: Sep 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Tundra. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V566000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 24V381000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reaso... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was steam was coming from under the hood. There was an abnormal odor entering into the cabin of the vehicle. The check temperature warning light was illuminated. The contact attempted to refill the coolant; however, the failure reoccurred, and the vehicle was towed. The local dealer was contacted... Read more