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 42,929 complaints - component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Incident date: Sep 29, 2023
Car came to shop with low beam headlights flashing when high beams are on they still flash the vehicle has L.E.D. headlights it is a 22 toyota camry vehicle hasnt been inspected by the dealer there is a message in the system for led headlight problem for the left front but not the right front the right front flashes more than the left it will eventually quit but if you turn the car on with just ig... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2023
led headlights are not hot enough to keep snow melted off headlights. Jeep design has headlights in a recessed hole, so the snow sticks to headlights and does not blow off. The light is covered in snow and reduces visibility by 90%. This has been extremely dangerous as I have had to stop every mile to 2 miles to clean off manually in order to see. Why is this not a recall? This seems far more... Read more
Incident date: Nov 27, 2023
Turning on the left turn signal causes the headlights to switch from low beams to high beams. It doesn't happen every time. I've taken it to the dealership but it doesn't happen while it's there so they don't take me seriously and, in my opinion, don't thoroughly investigate the problem.
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while waiting in line at a gas station, she smelled a burning odor, and there was smoke coming from the steering wheel. The contact was turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated that upon activating the low-beam headlights, the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that upon restarting the vehicle without activating the l... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2023
I was driving during the night, tried to turn my high beams on and they did not work. This caused a severe driving hazard as we were driving winding roads filled with wild life and I had very limited visablilty.There was no warning indicators shown. Replaced both headlamps and the high beams still do not work.
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
When the vehicle starts up, the adaptive headlights center themselves for driving. They move left right and back to center. This takes about 2 seconds. My right headlight functions normally, but the left does not. The left headlight takes about 15 seconds to move all the way left and does not center itself but rather goes all the way to the right and remains there. As a result, driving down the ro... Read more
TOYOTA
RAV4 PRIME
(2021) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 30, 2023
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
Purge valve has now failed twice since owning the vehicle (1 year and 5 months old). First purge valve went out when the vehicle was only 4 months old (Oct 2022). Second purge valve went out at 1 year old (June/July 2022). The main concern that I am reaching out for- Drivers side headlight - a small bird flew into the headlight and cracked it. Placed a hole in the headlight, causing water to get ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 30, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Cadillac SRX. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed at night, the contact became aware that the passenger’s side headlamp was not functioning. Upon replacing the headlamp, the headlamp failed to function properly. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. Th... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2023) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 30, 2023
Incident date: Nov 29, 2023
On two separate occasions while driving at night two weeks apart, the car dash lights went out, power dropped real quickly, steering became hard. Barely got off overpass and road to safety. Turned the car off. Waited approximately 5 minutes and car restarted and was fine for two weeks. On second time had the car towed to Fred Haas Nissan. They could not reproduce problem and found no codes. Wi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 9, 2023
The headlights are detective. The lowbeams are so dim it's dangerous to drive at night. This can cause a serious accident or other problems.
Incident date: Nov 12, 2023
The automatic headlights are giving me issues and not wanting to come on and off properly along with the auto high beams
Incident date: Jun 23, 2021
Over the past several months I have observed my headlights becoming dimmer when driving at night. It has gotten to the point where I now feel unsafe driving the vehicle as I can barely see the road. It appears the reflective surface inside the headlights has oxidized and no longer reflects at a safe brightness level. I spoke to my local dealership and the service department advised that he has s... Read more
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
My car shows that the vehicle needed to be serviced, in checking the Toyota app I saw there was a warning for the adaptive lighting system/electrical concern. The warning light had been on for some time, thinking I was due for regular maintenance like an oil change I had ignored it for a bit. Everytime I would start the car this warning would appear. I too the car in for service, they also did ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2021) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 29, 2023
Incident date: Nov 29, 2023
Headlights full of condensation, dirty foggy lense, not enough illumination. Bulbs burning out and have become so dim you can't drive at night and not at all in the rain. Very dangerous. November 24, 2023. Purchased car used in October 2023, and did not drive other than during day light. Took car on a 7 hour trip to Uniontown, PA from Virginia Beach. Could not see the road after 5 pm. It was dark ... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2023) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 29, 2023
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
Headlights are so dim I can’t see while driving. Replacing bulbs had no results.
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
Each of the two LED taillights have failed. The right rear LED turn signal failed in the Spring of 2022 when the car had approximately 12,000 miles of use and the left rear LED turn signal failed in the Fall of 2023 when the car had approximately 15,000 miles of use.
Incident date: Nov 2, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Impreza. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V624000 (Exterior Lighting) 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 manufact... Read more
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle at night, the contact became aware that the driver’s side exterior headlamp was not functioning properly, potentially compromising nighttime visibility. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating ... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2013) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 28, 2023
Incident date: Nov 24, 2023
I can't see far enough at night with the low beams on. I drive to work on coastal roads and have had several near misses. I have been to Tacoma Subaru twice to get this fixed. The first time one if the parts was broken then when I went again this morning I was told that the Subaru Corporation would not approve the work. It has been almost 16 months since the recall was issued and I think that's m... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2023
Turn on left blinker and the high beams come on doesn’t matter if it’s daytime, night time, headlights on or off, truck running not running. Obviously you don’t want to high beam other drivers when passing on left or turning left. Opened driver door and passenger rear window shattered with 2800 miles on it.
Incident date: Sep 25, 2023
Auto headlights turn headlights ON in sunshine. Then OFF in daytime shade. (when driving down a tree lined road, lights come on when not under tree shade, then off with every tree shade, gives the appearance I am "flashing" my headlights, same thing with underpasses, etc. Lights work properly at night.) Dealership said they had "no idea" what the problem was and would have to contact GM engin... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Sorento. The contact stated while driving at night, the headlights became inoperable. The contact stated that the failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer however, the cause of the failure could not be duplicated. The contact later received Kia Extended Warranty notification for a multi-function switch assembly failure. The local dealer and a... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2023
Danger light came on tell me to pull over
HYUNDAI
TUCSON PLUG-IN HYBRID
(2023) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 27, 2023
Incident date: Sep 30, 2023
While driving at city speed limit the headlights started flicking on-off very difficult to see in the dark. I pulled over to the side of the road for safety but now realized the turn signals not working and also the hazard lights are not working either. I was in a very dangerous situation sitting on the side of the road without any warning light on. Not only for mine safety but also dangerous ... Read more
FORD
FUSION ENERGI
(2019) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 27, 2023
Incident date: Jun 16, 2023
The Auto High Beam functionality is erratic and dangerous. The high beams go off unexpectedly when needed. The high beams come on unexpectedly when there are close oncoming vehicles blinding these drivers and causing a road rage potential. This is a common complaint on the Honda Ridgeline forum. I made both our dealer and Honda USA aware of this problem weeks after I purchased this truck and r... Read more
FORD
ESCAPE HYBRID
(2008) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 27, 2023
Incident date: May 27, 2022
Headlight Assembly DLR failures
Incident date: May 4, 2023
I have my headlights on auto so they turn on but they turn on during the day and then off at night they turn on they have turn off when I'm diving at night on freeway and turn back on
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
Good afternoon, my name is [XXX] . I purchased my 2009 Hyundai Azera limited edition in 2019 used with 98385 miles after I had the car for 9mths the car stopped running and the company I purchased the car from uses a repair company called Silver Rock which maintained the car I was told a belt popped after receiving the car back 2 days later the engine blow. They replaced the engine and from there ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
GOLF
(2015) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 26, 2023
Incident date: Nov 25, 2023
Headlights will often turn on when unnecessary in Auto mode, for example when the sun is shining but there is no sun directly on the sensor, the headlights will turn on, when driving for example in a shady area with trees, the headlights could end up turning off and on very quickly, making it look like your trying to get someone’s attention, also when driving on the highway and going under a ove... Read more
KIA
SPORTAGE HYBRID
(2023) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 26, 2023
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
The headlight assembly is not sealed properly. I had to have the passenger side headlight assembly replaced due to condensation inside of the assembly which can lead to the headlight shorting out. This was replaced by Lee Hyundai in Fayetteville, NC under the warranty. The driver side headlight assembly is now experiencing the same issue and it is set to be replaced again under warranty by Lee Hyu... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2023
We were on a back country road in the dark, tried to use our high beam lights, but they would not come on. The blue light illuminated as if they were turning on, but nothing happened. We had no warning lights or indication that the system had failed.
Incident date: Nov 20, 2023
Recently purchased a used 2015 RDX, headlights were foggy and the dealer cleaned the outer lens but the inner lens is not possible to restore. They are so dull that you must drive with the high beams on in order to see clearly. The Acura RLX had a recall for the exact same problem, this recall should have been extended to the RDX as well.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2023
When Daylight Savings time changed, I realized that my headlights were not aimed properly. While having them aimed, the tech noticed that the aiming rod had fallen off the track, and the light on the drivers side is shining only five feet from the car, onto the ground, whether on high beams or low beams.
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
My high beams aren't working. All I have access to are my low beams.
FORD
F-150 HYBRID
(2022) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 23, 2023
Incident date: Nov 22, 2023
Parked running boards do. Or always go up, lighting stays on for 10 min, have to go play with on/off over and over and to get it to shutoff. On the HwY BC shuts off out of nowhere, and ping pongs back and forth. Get messages saying drivetrain failure, steering failure go to the Dealer naturally. Nothing wrong. This is a big [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOI... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2023
After purchasing our vehicle we noticed back up camera view was switch to a globe view and noise in vehicle when driving over 40 mph that sound like electric wires shorting. Took to dealership they said they did updates to information center. After a few days it continued to do the same issues. Called dealership back and they took another look at it and said they once again pushed out a large upda... Read more
Incident date: Nov 17, 2023
The low beam headlights do not adequately illuminate the road. It has gotten progressively worse over the last 18-24 months and has gotten to the point that we can’t safely drive the vehicle unless we are able to use the high beams. When I was at the dealership for routine maintenance I asked about replacing the bulbs. I was told replacing the bulbs would not solve the issue and they did not fe... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2023
Issues with headlights turning off while I'm driving in the dark. Sometimes happens when I use turn signal other times just driving on a straight road in the dark country. Also transmission slips every so often but enough that passengers notice and want to know what is happening. Now car can not be shifted out of park even with foot on brake and steering will lock up and key can't be turned. Of co... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2023
Having problems with my rear stop lights, traction control/ indicator light, ECS/ indicator light. When driving center brake light remains on but when I need to apply brakes they go off, lights on dashboard have been on since I purchased the vehicle which were never addressed the only light addressed was the check engine light. All other issues were voided being that they let me drive down to N.C.... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2023
This started in July/August. I went in to get into my car and noticed that although my car was making the sound of unlocking, it wasn’t unlocking. Neither the key fob or pressing the button on the door handle would unlock my car. I manually used the key to get in. Once I got in, I had a rear collision warning on my dash and was unable to shift from park. I overrode the shift mechanism and to... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
Automatic Braking system has almost caused a rear-end collision 5 times, because it thinks a shadow is an object. We’ve brought the car to the dealership but they told us twice that they can’t replicate the problem. That doesn’t change the issue. I don’t want to wait until we have a collision and have to go through physical therapy and repairs to address this. Front headlights are blindin... Read more
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
Daytime running lights faulty from manufacture. Had to replace headlights once already and now out again. Hyundai has made this headlight assembly non repairable and charges over 1k for a replacement.
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2009) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Nov 21, 2023
Incident date: Nov 16, 2023
Low Beam Headlights degraded over the time to the point that driving at night became unsafe. Border line between lighted and dark road surface non exist. Replacing halogen bulbs has not solved the issue.
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
It says a recall on my car was fixed 2014 I purchased vehicle 2022, but just recently it has started just shutting off while driving it. Completely dying. Simular to the alternator recall P60
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
While driving on the highway at night during rainy conditions the wipers stopped in the up position, and at the same time, the headlights turned off. After a few seconds they resumed normal operation. My headlights were in the auto position and my wipers were also in the automatic setting. Being as that I was on a highway at night, in the rain, and going approximately 65mph surrounded by traffic,... Read more
Incident date: Nov 16, 2023
PRESENTO ILUMINACION DEL MAL FUNCIONAMIENTO INDICADOR LAMPARA (MIL),ABS PRECAUCION LIGHT,BURNING/MELTING SMALL,AND SMOKE FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT,ENGINE WITH NOISE AND BROKEN ESTOOCURRIO EL 03/08/2023, NO TENIA LA INFORMACION DEL PROBLEMA Y MANDE A REPARAR EL MOTOR $ 3,890.00.nECESITOQUE USTEDES ME AYUDEN POR ESTE PAGO. I PRESENT LIGHTING OF THE MALFUNCTIONING LAMP INDICATOR (MIL), ABS CAUTION... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2023
I almost drove off the road one night because my headlights were so dim on my 2015 Cadillac SRX are so dim at night you can't see anything properly. I had to put on my high beams to even see. I purchased this vehicle used and missed the short period they would replace them. Cadillac has refused to help with this dangerous issue and it's apalling how much money the dealership wants to replace t... Read more
Incident date: Nov 2, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Dodge Charger. The contact stated while driving at unknown speeds, the driver's side headlight was inoperable. The 20-amp fuse was black and burned. The contact who is a mechanic who replaced the fuse. The contact stated that the fuse was warm to the touch. The contact stated that the fuse box underneath the hood was damaged. The passenger’s side headlight was inoperable.... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2023
My headlights that came on the vehicle are designed to where you can’t see more than 3ft in front of the car at night. There is a class action lawsuit out over these very headlights. I applied and was approved for headlight replacement but Nissan for some reason can’t fix my issue. I am unable to drive my vehicle at night out of fear that i may injury myself, others or even worse while behind ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2023
The low beam head lights have become so dim I Cant see to drive at night. The safety of others are at risk. The item is available for inspection, the dealer's are aware this is a problem on certain years The failure was gradually occuring progressively worse. No warning lamps or codes were evident.