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 137,132 complaints - component: POWER TRAIN
Incident date: May 4, 2023
At about 60,000 miles my 2019 does edge started to shutter at 25mph and it progressively got worse now it’s doing it and 25,35,45,55,65 mph down the road(rpm is always bouncing around never consistent ). no check engine lights or the repair symbol are on the dash I’ve been doing a lot more research and I do believe it’s the torque converter failing.
CADILLAC
ESCALADE ESV
(2019) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 11, 2026
Incident date: Mar 30, 2026
COMPONENT; likely the transmission SAFETY revs went to almost zero on highway. Transmission seemed to stop the truck. Then intermittent on and off transmission. Seriously struggled to get the truck off the highway momentarily no ability to control speed: then on and off with the acceleration. Very scary! sudden drop in speed on the highway could have caused an accident with no brake lights on P... Read more
Incident date: Feb 25, 2026
My vehicle while driving, it is jerking and shaking. When I come to a stop, the cars rpms go up and down while the car is shaking. When I pressed the gas pedal to accelerate the car will not accelerate as normal and the car jerks as I’m driving it. The RPMs rev up and down without any pressure placed on the gas pedal. The check engine light came on.The miles per hour only allows me to put one di... Read more
Incident date: Jul 9, 2026
When trying to pass a vehicle on a two lane road I accelerated about 50-60% when I it clunked hard and dropped from 8th gear to neutral and left me coasting down the interstate for 30 seconds until the car reengaged. I had to get back behind the car I was pasing as there was no longer a safe distance with oncoming traffic. My kids were in the car with me. This has happened on more then one occur... Read more
Incident date: May 4, 2026
The vehicle is in limp mode and is displaying a flashing check engine light with a P1326 powertrain code. The vehicle in question is a 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport equipped with a Theta II 2.4L GDI engine at 118,000 miles. Per the service campaign T3G, listed on the NHTSA website, this vehicle is covered under warranty repair since it is a Theta II engine vehicle that is displaying an active P1326 ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
You have this. Additional research about the cause of the crashes. None of this was published by Toyota as a potential disastrous problem.
Crash
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered intermittently and had occurred on several occasions. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact researched and was made aware of an unknown recall; however, the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failur... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2026
The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. The contact stated that after restarting the vehicle, the transmission was shifted to drive (D), but the vehicle failed to move while the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the engine was revving. The messages "Park Brake Malfunction Service", "System Braking Issue", "Service Advancetrac", "Park Malfunction Service Now", and "Check Brake System" were disp... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
Crank bolt snapped causing me to loose power steering, a part failed that shouldn't have .I have the bolt looks like in was cracked when they put it together, it was only on by about three threads, my mechanic and the one from nissan said they'd never seen one come apart before,lucky I wasn't on the highway or in traffic
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
Complete transmission failure under normal driving at about 50,000 miles. Cost about $7500 to completely rebuild the transmission since Ford has none available within the next 6 months, probably because so many of them are failing early.
Incident date: Apr 10, 2026
Check engine light came on XXX. Engine coolant level was extremely low, shuddering "start" several times the previous week. My 2017 Ford Escape 2.0L EcoBoost Turbo engine, with only 38,245 original miles has the well known and documented issue with the 2.0L EcoBoost block with the P0302 misfire code. Numerous TSB's have been issued about this (some are TSP 19-2346 and TSB 22-2229). The engine cool... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2026
The engine cylinder head developed an internal coolant leak, allowing coolant to enter the combustion chamber. This caused engine overheating and smoke coming from the tailpipe while driving. A dealer performed a coolant pressure test confirming coolant leaking into the combustion chamber, and wet/dry compression testing on all 4 cylinders showed low and inconsistent readings consistent with cylin... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2018) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
The engine, power steering, stabilitrak, and reduced engine power (vehicle would essentially die while driving at random times). My safety AND others were put at risk when I am traveling down the road/interstate and the engine just cuts out and am no longer able to accelerate to any speeds, causing me to have to pull over to the shoulder WITHOUT ANY ENGINE POWER. Yes, the problem has reproduced an... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2018) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
1) CVT transmission bearing failed. Currently available for inspection. 2) Loud humming noise while driving, louder with higher rpms. If continue driving would lose complete power of vehicle causing extreme safety risk at high speeds. 3) CVT transmission has been inspected by Toyota dealership. 4) There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. Failure ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
Flywheel cracked. There is a service bulletin on how to fix when there is an issue which to me indicates a known issue.
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
Transmission P0731 code. Vehicle will not shift into 1st gear when idle but will stay in 3 or 4 gear. Speedometer would indicate high speed when pressing on accelerator. At traffic light when light turn green car rev but would not shift into gear. Has only 130K miles. Car was towed to dealer and required a new transmission.
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
My wife was driving her 2019 Ford Edge Titanium when the transmission started to shudder and clunk. Then the car completely shutdown in the middle of a busy intersection. This transmission failure at such a low mileage (less than 70,000 miles) is unacceptable and the risk of losing control of the car poses a safety concern.
LAND ROVER
DEFENDER
(2022) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jul 4, 2026
The vehicle started rolling on its own and there was a clicking sound. I have a video of it and audio. Your uploading limit cannot handle a video of 28 seconds. The Google Drive link below has the video. If you are unable to open Google Drive please reach out to me. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Jul 2, 2026
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while attempting to park the vehicle, the gear shifter was shifted into park, and the vehicle rolled backwards about an inch. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the parking brake was enabled to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with possible transmission ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 24, 2026
Returning from [XXX] to [XXX] area Wed. XXX, traveling at ~75 mph on [XXX], I experienced a loss of power on a mild incline and an associated “Stop Safely - Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon” instrument cluster message. I had to move hazardously in traffic while coasting to a stop on the right shoulder. This occurred with ~24,810 total miles on the vehicle since I purchased it new. I turned off the v... Read more
Incident date: May 30, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Audi A5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power with an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, and the parking brake actuator was replaced; however, the failure persisted. Additionally, the brake pedal was loose while depressed. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer, where the parking ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 5, 2026
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Expedition. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 25V197000 (Seat Belts), 26V344000 (Seat Belts), 26V368000 (Structure), and 26V402000 (Power Train); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2026
Recently, the car started shuddering at 25-45 mph. We took it to the Ford dealer for an evaluation and were told that the torque converter and transmission are very damaged. They both need to be replaced at a cost of $10,000. We have only 61500 miles on the car. Further research has indicated that if we were to keep driving it, it could result in sudden failure, loss of driving power and possib... Read more
Incident date: Jun 30, 2026
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions and making a turn, there was an abnormal clicking sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The contact added that her husband did donuts continuously and observed the sound. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was determined that the sound in the rear axle was coming from the left ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 3, 2026
Transmission torque converter attempts to lockup when vehicle is in gear, at idle and brakes applied. This causes the engine rpm to drop or stall. This causes an unexpected delay and hesitation when accelerating from a stop followed by an unexpected acceleration surge. This issue has been confirmed by an independent service center. No computer codes or warning signals on the dash are present.
Incident date: Feb 20, 2026
Unknown Shifter locks and won't start. Driving on interstate and the engine started to rev up. The tac showed excessive pressure. Esc and traction lights appear. This car has only 110,000 miles on it.
Incident date: Jul 9, 2026
While driving in Electric Mode this morning, my Jeep experienced a loss of motive power in traffic. When the power loss occurred, I pressed the accelerator, and nothing happened. Moments later, I got a warning telling me Electric Mode Unavailable. Then, a couple moments later again, the gasoline engine started and the vehicle surged ahead nearly causing a collision. Since the 68C Recall was perfor... Read more
Incident date: Jul 9, 2026
Starter engine failure. Car failed to start multiple times. Major safety hazard that can cause a short circuit, melt wiring harnesses, and spark an engine bay fire posing an immediate threat to life. Problem was inspected and confirmed by a dealer. Multiple waring lamps and messages appeared. Dealer report stated: STARTER MOTOR FAULTY. ENGINE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM CONCERN: C/S: REPEAT START ATTEMPT IN... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
The contact owns a 2019 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the message "Service 4WD" displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the power take-off unit experienced internal damage and the PTU needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V290000 (Power Train); how... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
On XXX I was unable to turn off my vehicle and could not shift it into any gear. The vehicle had to be towed to Sames Bastrop Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram ([XXX]) for repair, RO #XXX. The dealer's diagnosis noted the high-voltage battery at 3 percent charge and referenced TSB 08-128-25. The correction involved disconnecting the 12V battery and reprogramming multiple control modules (BPCM, MCPA, MCPB, E... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2026
The vehicle has experienced repeated failures of the variable geometry turbocharger (VGT) electronic actuator. The actuator intermittently fails to move the turbo vanes to their commanded position, resulting in fault codes related to turbocharger performance and actuator position. The failed actuator is currently installed on the vehicle and is available for inspection upon request. This failure ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 28, 2026
Our Transmission is failing on our 2021 Highlander. It has a little over 76,000 miles on the vehicle. 2021 and 2022 seem to have many issues with the transmission failing. The dealership's estimate is almost $11,000! We only buy Toyotas and never had this issue with our Sequoia, sienna, avalon, Rav 4 with lots of miles and never needed a new transmission!
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
I own a 2024 Toyota Tundra 1794 Edition with approximately 37,000 miles. On or about XXX, while driving, the vehicle displayed a “Check Engine” warning, “Reduced Engine Power” message, and the Pre-Collision System became disabled. The vehicle immediately became sluggish and lost power during acceleration. The loss of power created a safety concern because the truck was unable to accelerat... Read more
KUMHO
CRUGEN PREMIUM
(9999) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jun 29, 2026
I am reporting a front differential/front drive axle failure and a separate steering wheel/steering column adjustment issue. The vehicle was brought to an independent BMW/German repair shop for a routine oil change/inspection. The shop advised me that the front differential/front drive axle assembly had failed or was severely damaged and needed repair/replacement. The vehicle/component is current... Read more
Incident date: Jul 3, 2026
I am writing to formally log a safety concern regarding my vehicle’s 6.2L L87 engine, specifically in relation to the known defects under NHTSA’s ongoing Engineering Analysis EA25007 (previously Preliminary Evaluation PE24004).While my vehicle is currently running and has 52,000 miles on the odometer, it falls squarely within the manufacturing window being investigated for premature engine fai... Read more
Incident date: Jun 10, 2026
The contact owns a 2020 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle jerked and the transmission malfunctioned, causing the wheels to lock up and the check engine warning light to illuminate. The vehicle was driven to a local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission clutch and pressure control solenoid had failed. The contact was advised that the transmission n... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2021) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jun 13, 2026
belt tensioner failed while on highway without warning, leading to complete shutdown of the engine. Car had to be towed for repair. Complete disintegration of the timing belt, the car only had 51,000 miles. Expensive repair
Incident date: May 12, 2026
Shift to park switch failed.
Incident date: Jan 20, 2002
I've had many issue's with this vehicle's transmission: Harsh and erratic shifting. Shuddering when accelerating. Slippage. On several occasions not able to go in reverse. Issue's started at 45k miles. Had it in the shop on several occasions to address problem. I've had to replace faulty transmission at 70k miles. This is a faulty transmission due to incompetent CDF Clutch drum. This is NOT a sa... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
The car has randomly on multiple occasions failed to accelerate then jump forward hitting the rev limiter. This has happened while merging back into traffic including 55 mph roads creating concern for being rear ended and also concerns for hitting vehicles in front when the car jumps forward as there is no control over it. It has been to 2 separate dealerships totaling almost a year with no resolu... Read more
POLESTAR
POLESTAR 2
(2024) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: May 7, 2026
I purchased My 2019 ford edge Titanium in April 2021 with 12k miles on it. June 2023, I had to replace the torque converter at 52k miles. In March 2024, I replaced the purge valve. January 2026, I started having shuddering at takeoff and a jerk when shifting from park to reverse. I had a tune up completed and fuel Injector replacement. July 2026, I started having shuddering at takeoff again. Rapid... Read more
Incident date: Jul 9, 2026
On June 15, 2026, my check engine light came on. On June 17, 2026, I took it to Auto Zone, they checked the code for the check engine light, and it indicated P0016 and P0017–crankshaft issues. On June 19, 2026, while driving down the highway, my vehicle failed to accelerate. I exited the highway, and my vehicle completely decelerated and ultimately shut down. I was unable to get my engine runnin... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
Transmission slips, cdf drum must likely the culprit, clunks to the point that the adaptive learning isn’t able to compensate for the cdf failure. Recently while driving at freeway speed there was a failure in the cdf drum That caused the transmission to go into limp mode almost causing an accident. Luckily I didn’t and after shutting down the truck and restarted it I was able to make it home ... Read more
SUBARU
TRAILSEEKER
(2026) - POWER TRAIN
Jul 10, 2026
Incident date: Jun 10, 2026
I purchased this 2021 Lincoln Navigator L Black Label used on March 22, 2024 with approximately 42,726mi. Beginning around Sept. 2025 (approximately 70,000-75,000 miles), the vehicle developed intermittent transmission failures that have progressively worsened. This is our primary family vehicle and routinely transports our three young children. The transmission hesitates, slips, skips gears, ban... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2025
While attempting to enter a high-speed expressway, the transmission malfunctioned, preventing normal acceleration. The vehicle could only accelerate very slowly but managed to maintain a limited speed, creating a hazardous situation while trying to merge into fast-moving traffic. I was able to navigate the vehicle off the expressway, at which point the transmission completely failed and the vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Jun 25, 2026
On 7/8/2026, the vehicle became undriveable. Placing the vehicle in reverse on the shidfter dial using registered a conflicting direction on the dashboard indicator. The vehicle was towed to a dealership and the repair consisted of replacing the shift cable bushing. This was the same fix required in recalls 18S20 & 22V413. On 7/9/2026 the issue was verified by a Ford dealership tech. I was advise... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
During a family road trip, my 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 (~9,000 miles, less than one year old) suddenly showed red "Check Electric Vehicle System" and 12V battery warning lights and then completely lost power. The 12V system failed entirely - the vehicle could not be driven or shifted, and the doors and the rear hatch could not be locked or unlocked. It had to be flat-bedded to a Hyundai dealer because... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2026
Transmission began to jerk at about 40 mph. Dealership said I needed a new transmission. There was a warning light came on teice and disappeared after I shut the cat down and restarted it.
Incident date: Jun 30, 2026
The vehicle has a severe, life-threatening safety defect where it randomly drops into neutral while driving at speed, physically locks the shifter, and actively engages the electronic braking system on its own, stranding me in active traffic. I brought the vehicle to a certified Jeep dealership to resolve this exact symptom. They misdiagnosed the vehicle and charged me nearly $3,000 to replace the... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2026
Hundreds of thousands of 2017–2022 gas-powered Toyota Highlanders (equipped with UA80E/UA80F 8-speed transmissions) are experiencing high-pitched whining noises, hard or erratic shifting, and sudden hesitation. This is caused by a factory defect where a retaining nut and locking tab in the counter drive gear sub-assembly were improperly installed, causing premature internal wear and gear movemen... Read more