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 49,040 complaints — component: STRUCTURE:BODY
Incident date: Sep 15, 2025
Front wheel well liners keep falling out of place like they are melting. happens when towing and engine gets hotter than normal. Trailer is well below limit for vehicle. Liners fall onto the tire while in motion. This is the 4th time this issue has happened to my vehicle. Dealer replaces them and says it happens all the time.
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2018) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 15, 2025
Incident date: Sep 9, 2025
The 2018 Jeep Grand Cheeroke Uconnect/Radio screen delaminates and causes the unit to make all kinds of error calls, GPS location changes and disabling events, without being touched. This is a serious safety concern and that Jeep or Stellantis should voluntarily recall these units for replacement. The driver's attention gets constantly divided to take care of these extra things while driving.
Incident date: Jul 31, 2025
Passenger got out of front passenger side door and the door bounced back and gashed his right calf, resulting in significant bleeding and requiring 9 stitches. The door can be inspected if needed, but this is a design issue, not an issue specific to my vehicle. I have looked at the other front door and another Honda of this model type and it has the same issue, a metal edge. This issue appears ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
White paint on roof and around door is flaking off in large sections. No accident. Not covered under warranty. Appears to be a known issue with Snow White Pearl paint on Kia vehicle - widespread paint failure can affect visibility, resale value, and long-term corrosion.
Incident date: Sep 15, 2025
The vehicle inspection to see if our vehicle qualified for the recall to replace the A-Pillar trim was done well over a year ago. The inventory has been on backorder for over a year as well. The windshield desperately needs replaced for safety reasons and the windshield cannot be replaced without replacing these recalled pieces. We are having to pay $200 extra out of pocket to replace these defect... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2022) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 15, 2025
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
I was driving on the highway when I heard a whistle. When I arrived at my destination, I was surprised to see that the front driver’s side windshield trim panel was missing and flew off when I was driving. Earlier, I had a similar issue with the front passenger side trim panel. I reported these safety concerns to Kia on 9/2. I received a standard form letter on 9/4 (copied below). I was surpris... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2020
Safety Concern and Costly Repair – 2022 Chevy Silverado Rear Window Leak. I am writing to raise a serious concern regarding a known defect in the 2022 Chevy Silverado involving the sliding rear window. The window is prone to leaking, and in my case, every time it rained or I went through a car wash, the headliner above the rear seats became saturated. Upon consulting with the dealership, I wa... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2025
The front trunk latch mechanism repeatedly fails. When this occurs, the vehicle believes the trunk is open and will not let you drive in normal mode. It forces you to proceed in limp mode which is dangerous. The 12v battery has to be reset to have the sensor redetect the close latch. Reports from multiple forum sources show this to be a widespread problem and currently dealer are replacing with th... Read more
Incident date: Mar 3, 2022
Passenger side sliding door can't be unlocked manually or by the fob, will not open by the handle inside or out. Passengers are unable to exit vehicle through passenger sliding door.
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2022) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 14, 2025
Incident date: Sep 14, 2025
Driver side mirror vibrates at highway speeds causing blurred image. The housing is secure but the mirror itself begins to vibrate at 50mph making it difficult to see the approaching traffic. The vibration and blurred vision gets worse as speed increases. I've had it up to 75mph and the mirror looks quite blurry and additionally unclear if the road is bumpy. It is difficult to see what is behi... Read more
Incident date: Jun 4, 2025
This recall has been 1.5 years and still does t have a remedy by Ford? Part was checked by Ford dealership, they advised yep it qualifies but we don't have parts then left. That was 1 year ago.
Incident date: Sep 4, 2025
The paint on the roof of my Honda HR-V is chipping and peeling. The problem appeared suddenly and has continued to spread. The rest of the vehicle’s paint remains intact, so this seems to be a defect in the roof paint or clear coat. While it does not trigger warning lights, the exposed areas put the vehicle at risk of rust and corrosion, which may affect safety and durability over time. The dama... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2018) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 12, 2025
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
While driving on a surface street the sunroof glass shattered all on its own. The glass was in the closed position. No rock or debris was located in the sunshade portion. No one else was around us on the road when it happened. There are numerous complaints about this happening within other forums. The dealer claimed the warranty will not cover broken glass and I was told to file an insurance clai... Read more
Incident date: Sep 12, 2025
I am reporting a significant paint delamination issue on my 2013 Hyundai Elantra in Sparkling White. The paint has been peeling, bubbling, and chipping particularly on the roof, trunk, and hood, exposing the primer and bare metal underneath. This is not due to wear, environmental exposure, or physical damage. It appears to be a factory defect related to improper paint or primer application. This ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 29, 2025
The chrome trim strip above the windshield flew off while driving. This poses a safety hazard for anyone driving behind a GV60 and unfortunately this issue seems to be very widespread (examples: [XXX] ). Genesis refused to fix the issue for me despite being under warranty, so I suspect they are doing the same for other owners despite the safety risk. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
Fuel access door does not open correctly. Fuel door does not have a lock or a require pressing of a button to open; you would normally just 'push' on closed door to make it pop open. Over the past (3) months, this has not always been working. Sometimes it requires multiple high-pressure pushes (or a light bump) for door to open. On other occasions, unlocking the vehicle (all doors) and not jus... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2024
The door handle broke off on the driver side the passenger side door handle will not open the door the outside handles are loose and the rear back driver and passenger side will not open their doors.
Incident date: Aug 1, 2022
The frame under the car rusted so much that the gas tank literally fell through the frame to the ground. This put my son at risk and fortunately he was able to pull over in a residential area and exit the vehicle. A mechanic and welding company both assessed the vehicle and acknowledged the u unusual and excessive rusting. In researching online and speaking to car experts, this seems and is co... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2025
The B pillar trim pieces from the recall have not been fixed. They are, in fact, detached and do make noise while driving. I have called fords in the area multiple times and they do not know when they will have parts.
Incident date: Jun 20, 2025
[XXX] [XXX] Email: [XXX] Subject: CarMax auto and CarMax auto finance RE: CarMax auto finance [XXX] Phone: 18009253612 Website: carmax auto finance Transaction Date: 10/23/2023 Amount Paid: 29976 Payment Method: Credit Card I bought a car with Carmax Finance and from the beginning of the car was lemon so I request change. It was denied then I’ll be sending a letter from then I’ll be h... Read more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2025
While driving down a highway at 70mph, the keypad on the driver's door detached from the body and was hanging by wires. We had to pull over. We couldn't get it back in so we put the window down and had to zip tie it to the door frame, leaving the window down for our entire long trip. We were afraid it was going to fly off and hit the car behind us, causing damage and a safety hazard. We took t... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2025
The hazard warning switch on my 2011 Acura MDX Technology & Entertainment Package VIN [XXX] sticks. It is due to a manufacturing defect and not because of normal wear and tear. That is a safety concern because when it is pressed and sticks, such as when giving the right of way to an emergency vehicle, or in bad weather, it not possible to make it unstuck while driving, and requires a screwdriver ... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2025
The front doors come open while driving down the road in cold weather. Multiple dealerships have to me to just deal with it. My children have to hold the doors shut while we are going down the road or I have to hold the driver's door shut while driving. There was a recall issued for certain 2023 F-350's regarding a door latch mechanism malfunction but apparently it doesn't apply to my pickup ev... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
Regarding SIB 65 12 22, NHTSA ID Number 10227571, Manufacturer Communication Number B651222. Summary: The seal of the roof-mounted antenna housing is separating from the vehicle. Affected Products: (20) Vehicle BMW X3 2018-2022 - BMW X4 2019-2022 - BMW X5 2019-2022 - BMW X6 2020-2022 - BMW X7 2019-2022 I would like to mention that, this issue was known by BMW and acknowledge as Painting Process ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2025
The sunroof does not seal properly. Randomly it starts to make a clicking sound when driving. It goes away once we open and close the sunroof. The sound is only generated when moving forward at speeds 35 and above. Appears to be a loose seal.
Incident date: Jun 22, 2025
The back passenger door will not open from inside or outside. The front passenger door will not open from outside or inside. The warranty will not cover this as they are saying it it wear and tear. Hyundai has confirmed they know there is an issue with the doors but refuse a recall to fix this.
Incident date: Aug 14, 2025
The exhaust and muffler completely detached from the catalytic converter/exhaust manifold while driving down the road. If we were driving at a higher rate of speed, the exhaust pipe could've caught on any imperfection on the roadway and shot the rear end of the vehicle up and then potentially caused an accident/death. This has happened to many I have discovered upon further research and is a commo... Read more
Incident date: Sep 9, 2025
A car dealership sold me a brand new vehicle that had an open recall.
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
The upper part of the grill detached on my 2023 GMC Sierra 1500 while going 65mph on the higway. The part is about 4 inches wide by 6 ft long. People behind me in traffic were swerving and dodging to avoid hitting it. GM knows about this problem (see safety recall #N242490120), but the scope of the affected vehicles is incorrect, so my truck is not included. There were no signs that the part... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2025
Subject: Report of Spontaneous Sunroof Explosion - Mercedes S580 2022 Model Dear National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, I am writing to report a concerning incident that occurred on [XXX] at approximately [XXX] while I was driving my 2022 Mercedes S580 to work on [XXX] N. During my drive, I experienced a sudden, loud explosion within the vehicle. Initially, I believed it was either a g... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
ML350
(2009) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 10, 2025
Incident date: Sep 9, 2025
There is a defect in the stainless-steel exterior trim panel called the “cant rail,” which detached from the vehicle while driving, posing a safety risk as road debris and hazard to other motorists. There was a recall issued for this exact same thing for previous models earlier this year but it still happened with the new 2025 model. This August 2025 model was not included as a recalled vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
Subject: Request for Investigation - Fraudulent and Falsified Vehicle Records (Crest Ford & Roy O'Brien Ford, Possible Involvement of Bell Ford) Dear Attorney General, I am submitting this complaint to formally request an investigation into fraud committed by Roy O'Brien, an automobile dealership located in Michigan. On [XXX], 1 purchased a 2024 dark horse mustang #R8911 from Roy O'Brien under the... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Sep 9, 2025
The antenna cover (shark fin) on the roof of the vehicle detached while driving and flew off. Looking at the piece that flew off, the clips that are made to clip in and keep it attached to the roof broke off somehow and seemed to be very weak where some were still attached. The safety of other vehicles are put at risk by it being unexpected flying debris and could potentially hit a vehicle/motorcy... Read more
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
The frame had rust a lot,had one spot was repaired,still have some need fix
Incident date: Jan 2, 2025
I need a recall on the paint for the 2017 Sportage Burnished Copper KIA. I've seen many others this color with the same paint fading issue. I contacted KIA and was basically told warranty expired.
Incident date: Aug 14, 2025
On [XXX], I was driving my recently purchased 2018 Tesla Model S (VIN: [XXX], mileage approx. [30,536]). The vehicle was purchased directly through Tesla’s app in late August 2025 and delivered to me the same day of the incident. Approximately 4.5 hours after delivery, while driving with my son, white smoke began to come out of the cabin air vents. Within minutes, the smoke turned black and rap... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Sep 9, 2025
After completion of a recall fix by the dealer for the grill while driving the front grill deflector detached striking the front hood and top of the cab before flying behind my vehicle barely missing a following vehicle and settling alongside the road. I pulled over, inspected the front of my vehicle to assure it was safely drivable. Once I removed loose pieces I returned and retrieved the top ... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2021) — STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 8, 2025
Incident date: Jul 11, 2022
Vehicle has a water leak inside the cabin. We tried pouring water down the sunroof drains and can hear a gurgling sound inside the cabin and observed water entering the cabin next to the dead pedal. Took vehicle to dealership and they replaced a different part and did not solve the issue. Musty mold smell present in vehicle causing allergic reaction and reducing driver's vision posing an accident ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
Rear doors opening while driving without notice. Child almost fell out of the car on main road. 2nd incident is less than 6 months. Same car
Incident date: May 30, 2025
Sunroof exploded while driving at a normal rate of speed with no cars surrounding us. Upon inspection, there was no debris within the roof hold that would denote a rock or something causing incident. We jumped a lane but no cars were around. All occupants were safe.
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
Structure body: roof and pillars affected Recall ID: 450977 year 2014- 2020 NHTSA campaign # 23v854000 Vehicle affected 2,976 A detached roof panel can become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash. The vehicle is making a loud noise from the panoramic soon roof.
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
Rear subframe damaged with no reason. Vehicle has been garaged and in moderate climate since it was purchased. Confirmed by dealer and insurance adjustor.
Incident date: Sep 7, 2025
Pearl white paint peeling prematurely
Incident date: Aug 19, 2025
We were just driving when the truck started smoking and the brakes wouldn’t work. After a few minutes the truck completely caught on fire.
Fire
Incident date: Aug 30, 2025
paint is falling off in large sheets could be a safety issue, been reported to the dealership, and no warning. I feel this is a real safety issue because it comes off in large sheets could cause and issue on the highways for flying debris
Incident date: Sep 6, 2025
Top of the driver side door handle broke free from the door. The car has previously been cleared of any recall defects - but a loose door handle may absolutely have something to do with the inner workings of the door/latch and may be a safety issue.
Incident date: Sep 3, 2025
Remedy is not yet available as of September 2025. Received letter February 2024. Regarding A pillar trim
Incident date: Sep 4, 2025
The A-Pillar trim pieces on both sides of the windshield began coming apart while driving on the highway, luckily, a piece did not impact other vehicles behind me. I went to the dealer and they removed both trim pieces several months ago and they have not followed up to install the new parts. They say they are not available. The first notification I received from Ford by mail is dated February 202... Read more