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 42,495 complaints — component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Incident date: Oct 29, 2025
My vehicle’s low beams are vertically obstructed by the front end design of the car - the low beams are set back in the headlight unit and at night they only project to a limited height on the roadway in front of the vehicle - this results in a very distinct line created and anything above that line cannot be seen - on a perfectly level roadway the projection of the low beams is adequate but whe... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2025
The components that are malfunctioning is the windshield wipers (won't turn off), and the windshield wiper fluid won't work either, the turn signals (won't turn on), no high beams when this happens, my monitor will say something about no SOS calls, and something about the airbags not working. I've had to remove the fuse for the windshield wipers to stop them from scratching up my windshield when ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2025
Running light inoperable. Dealer says replacement is only repair, not covered under warranty. Found that many other people are having the same problem within 3 years.
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2012) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 28, 2025
Incident date: Jul 28, 2025
ChatGPT said: There is a design flaw with the automatic light function. When you turn the knob to disable the automatic lights to avoid blinding someone while parked, the knob returns to the auto position as expected. This is a good system to ensure that the next time you start the car, the lights are in auto again. The issue is with the way the system indicates what is happening to the driver.... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2022) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 28, 2025
Incident date: Oct 28, 2025
My truck has an issue where the headlights do not turn on when I press the key fob while approaching the truck. This is at night only. The side mirror lights, rear cargo lights and interior lights activate however the headlights do not. This is an issue for personal safety when approaching the truck in the dark. There must be a glitch. The headlights will illuminate during the daytime when i... Read more
AUDI
E-TRON SPORTBACK
(2022) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 27, 2025
Incident date: Aug 19, 2025
The tailgate light has gone out on my 2018 Dodge Durango R/T. Researching online has lead me to discover that this is a known issue that is costing customers thousands of dollars due to a known design flaw. The tailgate light goes out and usually leads to the brake lights and backup camera going out. I do not know when the brakes lights may glitch or go out which can cause an accident. I asked the... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
Passenger side daytime running lights (DRL) have dimmed, diminishing daytime visibility . LED bulb may be out. Seems to be a common problem per other Expedition owners. There were no warnings or messages stating problem. The only way to fix the problem is by replacing the entire headlamp assembly ($1,200 plus labor).
Incident date: Oct 27, 2025
When driving the vehicle's instrument panel cluster randomly goes blank. When it does so, all of the items related to speed control, lighting, turn signals, etc. become non-operational. Additionally, the driver has no idea what his/her speed is nor any other information about the operation of the vehicle. It is very unsafe.
CHEVROLET
EQUINOX EV
(2025) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 27, 2025
Incident date: Oct 25, 2025
Ford had a safety recall # 23S30 for the rear light bar updated part number NL34-13N466-AE. this recall was done on my truck by the previous owner on 11/16/23 around 9400 miles. It failed again on me on [XXX] around 12000 miles. Failed again on [XXX] around 31000 miles. I found out that it failed again when someone told me that I had no backup lights. Ford is refusing to cover this 4 days out of m... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2025
I am submitting this complaint regarding repeated ineffective repair attempts by Rivian Automotive, Inc. at its Costa Mesa Service Center on my 2025 Rivian R1S Adventure. During multiple service visits at Rivian’s Costa Mesa Service Center (January 29, June 18, July 16, and October 11, 2025), Rivian repeatedly failed to diagnose or correct the same issues affecting my 2025 Rivian R1S Adventure... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2025
Headlight on right side failure - no light. AI shows a recall for this problem, but my vin was not listed. Notice also states 2022, 2023, and 2024 vehicles. It should be as car was only 2 years 10 months old with about 42000 miles. GM has the part now. Dealer inspected the car. Light had less then 750 hours on it; references say average light should last 20,000 hours. An obvious defect. On... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2021) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 27, 2025
Incident date: Oct 24, 2025
Headlight severe crazing/crackle and DLR module failure. Both Porsche NA and extended warranty fail to cover or take responsibility for this poorly mfr’d part that is dangerous as it limits visibility as well as others seeing you. I want Porsche NA to own up to this hazardous parts failure.
Incident date: Oct 27, 2025
Subject: 2019 Hyundai Elantra – High Beam Headlight Failure and Warranty Denial To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to document and request review of an ongoing issue with my 2019 Hyundai Elantra regarding an inoperable high-beam headlight system and the handling of my warranty claim. Shortly after a warranty period service, my vehicle’s high beams stopped working correctly. I reported t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
The headlights ... and: and; yes it is available for inspection at any time, preferably at night!!! If you look at the photos attached you can see when headlights are on there is little or no visibility and what you see is what appears to be like a black line. We live in a very rural area and can not see at night with these headlights. So I would say we and the other vehicles on the road are at... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2025
I have had to replace one or both headlights about every 14 months. The date below represents the latest time this has happened.
Incident date: Oct 17, 2013
No heat gauge, oil pressure gauge on vehicle. Blend door issue, one side blows hot, other cold. Radio not working. Weird noise in dash by ignition. Ignition sticks when trying to start car, keeps turning over. Dimmer switch doesn't work. Car can be tracked by unknown people, without permission.
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
Vehicle continues to have lighting and electrical issues. Particularly, the left rear turn signal. I’ve repaired it 5 times and it burns out immediately. Dealer assured me they would find issue. Still burned out next day again. Notified dealership and they just want you to keep bringing it back but won’t issue a recall despite the plethora of complaints online about the same issue.
Incident date: Jul 16, 2025
daytime running light module fails from improper cooling and melts the light tube (light tube is not sold as replaceable item) and is only sold as an assembly which is roughly $4000-6000 to replace per side and is a failure of the north carolina state inspection
DODGE
GRAND CARAVAN
(2016) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 24, 2025
Incident date: Jul 17, 2025
NHTSA Safety Defect Report – 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning Tailgate Light Bar Condensation My 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning has moisture and condensation building up inside the rear tailgate light bar. It looks exactly like the issue described in Ford recall 23S30, also known as NHTSA recall 23V-418. Even though my VIN is not included in that recall, my truck is showing the same symptoms. The condensat... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 2500
(2024) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 24, 2025
Incident date: Oct 24, 2025
This vehicle exhibits the same failure described in NHTSA Recall N232426400 — spontaneous unlatching after rain due to water intrusion into the exterior tailgate release switch. I’m requesting a goodwill replacement under GM bulletin # N232426400 as the failure mechanism and part are identical. It has caused brake failure and nearly killed me because of battery drain while driving. All America... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2025
Automatic high beam function: Does not work properly, most road signs turn the high beams off, sometimes the high beams turn back on when another car is approaching. They don't activate at all until you speed reaches 45 mph. This is the same issue I experienced with my 2021 Ridgeline. The only difference is that on the 2021 model the function activated at 35 mph. This feature is basically usele... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
The mounted brake light went out 3 days after my purchase. It worked again after i turned the off the car and turned it back on. However, this kept happening that past two years. I noticed it has to do something with the wiring. It is a dangerous issue and will be sending it to the dealership. This keeps happening while i am driving the car.
Incident date: Oct 1, 2025
Driver’s side daytime running light ceased working permanently. This creates a safety issue due to its role in conjunction with the headlights.
Incident date: Oct 2, 2025
I had changed all my bulbs and fuses to my car for my brake lights several times and they still don’t work. My car almost got hit with me and my kids in it due to my break lights not working. Also my car keeps saying service advance trac and keeps saying it every time I drive. My car also keeps running out of power steering fluid every two week I have to add more to keep it from making that loud... Read more
Incident date: Oct 4, 2025
Dual Daytime running light (DRL) LED headlights failures. The LED DRL strips integrated into the headlight assembly stopped functioning within 3 years of ownership (60,000 and 75,000) miles.. The failure requires replacing the entire headlight assembly, which can cost over $2,000 per unit, as the LED strip is not separately serviceable. DRLs are critical for vehicle visibility during daylight, r... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
When turning left, after the turn is complete and the multi function switch returns to home position, the right turn signal activates. This could lead to confusion by surrounding drivers resulting in safety concerns. At night, the headlights will randomly turn off while in auto mode while driving. Numerous times this happens and seems to be increasing in frequency. This is a serious safety conce... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2025
Purchased a 2025 Ram 1500 Rebel X ($82k MSRP, fully loaded) in May 2025 for family use and towing horse trailers in remote areas (solo female driver). At ~8,000 miles, it has had repeated electrical failures under warranty, creating safety hazards (shift lock, stranding risks, public safety impact). No Stellantis fix; Q4 2025 software promised. Video of Oct 10 incident available. Timeline: • M... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
SLK320
(2001) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 21, 2025
Incident date: Aug 1, 2025
rear lights malfunction and UNKNOWN
Incident date: May 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Audi Q7. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's side marker warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic with a failing driver's side marker. The contact was informed that the driver's side marker needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. In addition, the contact stated that while driving at nigh... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
Headlamps are very weak on low beams.
Incident date: Sep 10, 2025
At night, with headlights set to AUTO, the headlights (right and left) will randomly turn of and on while driving. This could render my vehicle momentarily invisible to other drivers around me. Dealer confirmed the issue is the headlights. 70,000 mile service was just completed prior the the issues fist occurrence. No warnings or messages before the first incident.
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
Passenger side brake light keeps going out and has been replaced twice
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
I bought this car from someone in April of 2024 and the person who i bought it from said everything was perfectly fine, they brought it to the Hyundai dealership and according to the mechanic there the engine was fine….i have taken care of the engine since i bought the car, kept up with oil changes and everything….until a few days ago when the whole thing ceased up on me while driving down the... Read more
Incident date: Oct 4, 2025
I own a 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat (VIN [XXX] ). Around June 6, 2025, I brought my truck to Apple Ford Shakopee for a scheduled appointment because I noticed moisture collecting inside the rear light bar. The service representative told me Ford considers that moisture normal, likely from a car wash, and that it would dry out on its own. At that time the truck had fewer than 36,000 miles and ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 15, 2024
The light bar on the tailgate that is the brake lights and reverse lights is known to get moisture inside and stop working. It is a known problem with Ford as they recalled them 2 years ago and replaced it under warranty. However the replacement part suffers from the same issue. So, my replacement light bar has stopped working, and even though I have Fords Premium Care extended warranty t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
LED daytime running lights have failed and turned blue on one side. This issue appears to affect many vehicles of the same make and model. DRLs are a piece of safety equipment that makes the vehicle more visible to others, and as such, should be in proper working order.
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at various speeds, the engine failed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was repaired under warranty. While at the dealer, the contact asked the dealer to check the rear assembly light because there was water inside the rear light. The vehicle was inspected, and it was diagnosed that the seal behind the ligh... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2014 Yamaha XTZ12 Motorcycle. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V814000 (Exterior Lighting); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while attempting to change gears, the motorcycle independently shut off. No warning light was illuminated. In addition, the contact stated that while attempting to activat... Read more
LAND ROVER
RANGE ROVER
(2017) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 20, 2025
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
The daytime running lights on the Driver's side of my truck went out, which in the case of my vehicle means replacing the whole headlight assembly, which Ford is stating costs $2,000. I did not realize how much of a problem this is until I started reading online forums where it seems to be a problem with many Ford F-150 owners. Having to replace an entire headlight assembly for the running lights ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2023) — EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 20, 2025
Incident date: Jun 6, 2025
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that water was accumulating inside the driver's side taillight assembly. The contact stated that the water caused a short circuit in the taillight, and the passenger’s side turn signal became inoperable. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed, and determined that the wiring harness for the dri... Read more
Incident date: Oct 15, 2025
The third brake light, located on the tailgate of the 2021 Jeep Gladiator, has ceased to function due to a failure within the printed circuit board (PCB) inside the light housing. This issue has been confirmed by a third-party repair shop, which has noted that the PCB appears to be broken or damaged, rendering the brake light inoperable. Notably, the vehicle's instrument panel does not provide any... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
Headlights shut off entirely multiple times when switching to high beams on dark road, almost causing an accident. Multi-function switch failing the exact way the Sorento switches are failing, confirmed by mechanic. This is a severe hazard when driving at night. There was no warning whatsoever.
Incident date: Sep 27, 2025
My car has the same lcm control module issues as cars from the same years ad models, but when I enter my VIN it is not showing. +4 PO#3 1998-2000 Lincoln Town Car Lighting Control Module YW1T ... Yes, a recall exists for a 2003-2005 model year Ford/Lincoln Town Car lighting control module (LCM) failure that can cause a loss of headlights. The recall, #15S39, involves dealers installing a bypa... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2025
Gradually the low beam headlights on my 2015 Acura RDX became ineffective despite replacing the bulbs many times and cleaning the housings. I've taken the car to three different mechanics and none have been able to fix the problem. I can no longer drive at night with these headlights and will have replace the housings at significant cost. This seems like a manufacturer defect that should be recall... Read more
Incident date: Sep 3, 2025
I am the original owner of this vehicle and have used this vehicle as my primary vehicle that has been well maintained in excellent mechanical condition with no accidents. The issue is the continuous flexing of the wire harness routed from the truck to body opening which continues to wiring shorts and breakage resulting in failure of the rear back up lamps, rear taillamp lighting and back up ca... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2025
I had storm damage to my vehicle and needed the front headlight replaced. This was a insurance claim and it went to a local body shop as well as a GM Dealership trying to fix the problem. My vehicle is equipped with Adaptive Forwarding Headlights that turn with my steering wheel. Once my headlight was replaced this feature cannot work again. This feature is what holds my headlights in alignmen... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 18, 2025
Low beam headlights became very dim, making it unsafe to drive at night. Only solution was to replace entire headlight housings, costing $2,285 (would have been $4,000 if purchased original vs aftermarket housings)
Incident date: Apr 21, 2025
The front light led bulbs died. First it was the driver side at 53k miles, now the passenger side. The car has less than 55k miles. The price for the repair is outrageous. $2,000 for just ONE led bulb change. I’ve seen forums and many, many WV Atlas have the same problem. WV should be responsible for this. $4,000 total for two light bulb replacements! It’s insane!
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
I have a 2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback and the headlight went out. Instead of replacing the bulb Toyota has made it so you had to purchase the entire unit which is called a headlight assembly unit and that’s in the thousands of dollars the LED lights are supposed to last the lifetime of the car so it makes it really unsafe to drive at night Currently my passenger side light has gone out and like... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
All warning lights triggered on by faulty rear view camera sensor making one unable to discern if there is a true issue with one of the systems