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 49,687 complaints - component: STRUCTURE:BODY
Incident date: Jan 8, 2025
On [XXX] I took the truck to Ford dealer after noticing the front floor passenger side carpet was wet and door locks and electronic tire pressure indicator failed to operate correctly. Ford service dept found a/c drain was letting water back into passenger compartment and caused body control module (bcm) failure. Bcm was replaced after 2 1/2 months in the service dept. Returned on 8/26/24, 9/18/24... Read more
Incident date: Dec 21, 2024
Leaking sunroom. I cleaned tube's couple times and it is still happening. Ever time it's been raining my floor mat is soaking wet
Incident date: Dec 20, 2024
The vehicle is painted in Blizzard Pearl, which has a known peeling issue. Toyota never sent us any notification of an issue with the paint. A patch of the paint has peeled off of the top of the vehicle and has continued to grow larger. When we contacted Toyota, we were informed the period to fix this issue has closed and we would have to repair out of pocket. Our vehicle was mostly garage kept a... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2024
All of the car's cameras have gone dead since November 2024. The car has been collecting water in the truck area and inside panel of the car by the door frame.
Incident date: Dec 20, 2024
Doors will not latch in temps below 30degrees F.
Incident date: Jan 8, 2025
The dashboard melted and everything sticks to it. also the visor to block sun unhinged on driver side and passenger side won’t go back up it just stays hanging down
Incident date: Jan 7, 2025
The back doors will no longer open when unlocked. This poses a safety risk. I was unable to get my child out of his car seat when the locks or locking mechanism went out. I had to climb into the back seat from the front. The door do not open either from the interior or exterior of the vehicle. A mechanic stated that this could be from faulty solenoids. I was unable to get a print out of a quote ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
I was driving down [XXX] and heard what sounded like an explosion/loud bang sound and shattered glass. I was unsure what happened and where the sound was coming since I was driving alone on the highway and was panicked. I knew glass had broken because I heard the glass shatter and felt the air from the outside coming into the car. I found a safe place to pull over on the shoulder of the highway a... Read more
Incident date: Dec 14, 2024
Any time I get into the car and immediately start driving before the car has time to catch up with what I am doing, the NHTSA mandated safety sounds played when the car is in reverse or drive does not play until the cars computer can catch up and begin playing the sounds. Most times this can take 3 seconds or so but today I had an incident where it took over 30 seconds before it would start playin... Read more
Incident date: Jan 6, 2025
I was involved in a front end collision [XXX] that caused my vehicle to be totaled and me to be transported to the hospital via an ambulance. I purchased the vehicle with the understanding that it had numerous safety features including airbags throughout. During this accident my impact completely crumpled my engine compartment and left portions of my engine were left lying around. The only air... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 16, 2024
Tailgate warning beeps. Tailgare Will NOT open or Close. Dashboard lites flash. Vehicle will NOT START ! CANNOT START or move Vehicle!
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
On [XXX] I was driving in the City of Tampa. Stopped the vehicle to make a left turn, waiting for oncoming traffic to clear. Without any warning the vehicle sped off at a high speed at crashed. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash
Incident date: Jan 7, 2025
The latch system on the back hatch has a defect that allows water intrusion which shorts out the electrical board, and renders it unusable. It has randomly opened while driving. Now, the hatch will not manually open even when you take off the handle from the inside. It is a safety issue, and while searching for answers, you can see that this is a universal issue. The Honda dealership confirmed tha... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2024
I have been waiting 12 months for Ford to provide my local dealer with the parts required to fix the window pillars that can come loose, as referenced in the open recall (24V031000). Several months ago, one of the recalled pillars flew off on the freeway, causing the car behind me to swerve at 70mph. Fortunately, nobody got hurt. My local dealer has tried & tried to get the parts from Ford Moto... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2024
2020 Land Rover Defender with air intake snorkel was detached from the vehicle driving down the highway during a windy day. I see that Land Rover has recalled the snorkel for 2023 and 2024 models for that very reason. The recall should include 2020 models as well! I've noticed that there are many Land Rover Defender owners talking about this same issue online.
Incident date: Jan 7, 2025
My car has less than 65,000 and is just 10 years old but the transmission cross member is shot .I have had cars with nearly 300,000 and this never happened the part is on backorder.
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
Vehicles top is cracked and delaminating witch could come off in large sheets and cause harm to other vehicles and pedestrians The dealership got a rejection letter from ford and is resubmitting the claim again I was told they had another one in not too long ago with the same issue and they warranted it I need to drive the truck and am concerned about causing harm or damage to other vehicles or... Read more
Incident date: Jan 19, 2024
On 08/17/17 I purchased a new Outback off a Subaru dealers' lot. The fall of 2023 I noticed rust starting on the column portion of the driver's side door. It is on the CAR INTERIOR, ABOVE THE WINDOW. This is a highly unusual area for rust to start. Typically rust starts on the bottom of a car, not 2/3 of the way up from the bottom. I was told by the dealership that it was not covered under war... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2023
Went to open the drivers side left front door and heard a loud clunk, now door isn't opening or shutting properly and we can't use the drivers window either. I've heard of peoples doors falling off while driving because of this and we just bought the car at the end of October. We have yet to get it looked at, but it's not a cheap fix. There were no warnings or signs. I opened it normal like every ... Read more
GENESIS SUPREME
VORTEX
(2023) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Jan 6, 2025
Incident date: Dec 29, 2024
A-pillar trim recall. I took my car to dealer in July 2024. Ford has yet to produce parts for my vehicle. One trim piece detached after the recall inspection and flew off. Both sides should be replaced now. I have contacted Ford dealer and Ford customer service multiple times, they do not know when parts are going to be made. This is now January 2025 parts should have already been made and receive... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 2500
(2020) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Jan 6, 2025
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
right rear hinge for hatchback failed and making my hatchback unusable. I have been on several websites and this common issue it seems for Rav 4. Toyota will not fix it.
Incident date: Jan 4, 2025
Rear passenger door won’t open from inside or outside. Safety concern
Incident date: Nov 12, 2024
Driving down the road several large pieces of pain flaked off on the driver side door. This is a 2014 Kia Optima with 61,000 miles on it. None of the other questions apply. I am filing this because I see on other forums that both KIA and Hyundai cars with the Snow White Pearl paint have this problem, so it seems to be a failure by the manufacturer.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
Back passenger door fails to latch when closed.
Incident date: Jun 2, 2024
Referencing Recall 24V031: A and B Pillar trim clips fail and cause cover to fly off while driving. * Puts driver and others at risk by part releasing from clips and flying off while driving. * I just lost my 4th one and have been waiting for parts at Corning Ford (530-824-5434) to fix this issue since August of 2024 when we originally took the vehicle in for repair. * After viewing my other cover... Read more
Incident date: Dec 25, 2024
All is sudden I hear clicking noice from doors that make scary to drive the car with Kids. Couple of times it unlocked the rear passenger door. I had to to pull over to close and move. It’s been 2 years there are no software updates and center console struck, not responsive , some times reboot automatically, some times we need to force restart and rear camera doesn’t appear.
Incident date: May 12, 2023
In November 2024, the sunroof mechanism failed in a crooked, partially open position and would no longer move. The motor operated, but there was a grinding noise and no movement of the sunroof. I had to return from North Carolina to Alabama in the rain with a partially open sunroof. The service department at Bramlett Kia in Decatur, Alabama, confirmed the sunroof mechanism has to be replaced. The ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 12, 2023
Upon reaching about 60 MPH on the freeway, the vehicle suddenly began to shake violently, severely reducing my ability to steer and control the vehicle. After quickly (and dangerously) reducing my speed, it stopped, but it occurred again two more times. I pulled over and turned the car off, did a quick inspection and found nothing out of order. When I resumed my trip, the problem did not occur a... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2024
I was involved in a traffic collision on December 15, 2023. The California DMV requires a brake and light inspection for a salvage retention reregistration of my car. After going to two brake and light shops they will not perform a brake and light inspection due to a recall P30 04V-176. I went to a Honda dealer to get the recall fixed and they said they cannot or will not perform the recall as it ... Read more
FREIGHTLINER
SPRINTER 4500
(2019) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Jan 4, 2025
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
Rear doors get frozen and will not latch to stay shut. My daughter almost flew out of the vehicle when we went around a corner. I literally had to turn the heat on high hood the door closed for 30 minutes to get it warm enough to latch and stay shut. This is usually following a car wash within a 7 day span. I am not sure how there cannot be a recall for this. Everyone that I know with an F150 ha... Read more
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
Liftgate failure in freezing weather causing liftgate arms to separate
Incident date: Dec 29, 2024
Tesla Model 3 vehicles, including mine, manufactured before the 2024 "highland" vehicle refresh, do not have a mechanical latch mechanism for opening the rear doors, in the event vehicle power is lost.
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
On [XXX] Clay Subaru in Norwood, MA told me that my 2011 Subaru Outback has front subframe rot. Supposedly they do a 100 point inspection every oil change, which is performed every 6 or so months, yet this problem was first report last October! The car had only 81,616 miles on it. (Now it has 82,000ish) The dealer claims it will cost $5368.96 to fix the car and that the subframe needs fixing with... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2024
While driving on a highway, with little traffic around, our sunroof exploded, sending shards of glass down. It produced a sound of a gunshot and quite possibly could have resulted in such a distraction to cause a wreck. The vehicle has not been inspected but insurance agents has been contacted. There were no warnings at all.
Incident date: Jan 2, 2025
2015 Subaru Outback Premium. Took in to a very helpful local Subaru Dealer and they discovered that the front subframe has rusted out seemingly prematurely. The vehicle just turned 10 years old with and upon doing research it seems to be a widely known commonly occurring problem. Would be handy if Subaru of America could do a recall on the front subframe as it is a very high cost repair to have it... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2024
Pearl paint has been peeling more and more especially when washing my vehicle. This shouldn't be happening and i see similar paint issues with other Kia and Hyundai models. I need Kia to take accountable and responsibly for their defect.
Incident date: Dec 23, 2024
Paint peel, only happening on shiny white pearl coat.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
We are showing many signs of excessive frame flex/failure in our 2023 Grand Design Momentum 397THS. Our baggage/storage doors do not properly fit nor lock. The RV was in the shop from Jan-May 2023 to address this. Had the doors replaced and resealed. They still are not flush with the RV, still barely latch, and have popped open while driving. While in the shop, they addressed but "could not dupl... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
We have signs of excessive frame flex in a Grand Design Reflection RV. We have allowed them 2x to inspect and they have botched both inspections. We keep being told there is no TSB or frame flex in reflections, which is not accurate as there are owners who have had cracked welds and major frame failure in reflections units. Grand Design needs to step up and support all customers not just momentum ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
The outside body of the vehicle is leaking, which is causing the Park break module to short circuit. This is causing my vehicle to suddenly stop and lock up.This has happened three times so far.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
When its cold (below 30 degrees) the back 2 doors when opened will not re-close. I have taken the vehicle to Dodge and they haven't fixed the issue as the can't "replicate" the problem. I have multiple videos of this happening Today, I had to strap the back doors together to make it work on time And, when I research this on RAM forums... tons of other people having this same issue I have a vid... Read more
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
Unexpected vehicle movement from power Train. I was changing my tire and the jack caused my vehicle body side to deform causing the vehicle to fall and nearly broke my leg.
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
Driver door will not latch Door could swing open while driving
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
Every once in a while I go around a left handed curve, the right side passenger door it comes out, it will unlatch and then latch back.
Incident date: Dec 18, 2024
The steel Frame of the 5th wheel trailer developed broken welds and cracked metal tubing. This information should be included in the following current investigation. ODI PE24029
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
There is a metallic rattle in the driver's side b-pillar (similar to the issue in the 2018 Tiguan LWB). Every component in the pillar has been replaced and the rattle persists. The first time I complained about it to the dealership the car only had 1,500 miles on it. 3 years and several months of the car sitting in the shop they have not been able to fix it nor have they bothered working with VW o... Read more
HYUNDAI
SANTA FE HYBRID
(2023) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Jan 2, 2025
Incident date: Sep 19, 2024
I saw on the internet while I was looking for new mats this year my Lexus RX 350, 2007, vin [XXX] was recalled for the dashboard until May 2017. During 2013 through 2018; my husband left me for my friend; both my sons were shot in different cities; one in Nashville, and one in Denver Colorado. The one in Nashville, was shot 10 times by his roommate who forgot he had a roommate. Fortunately, he tu... Read more
Incident date: Aug 15, 2024
Driver door cable sticking open when low temps occur. Driver door does not latch until vehicle is locked or key is inserted into door and manually positioned or key fob is used to lock the vehicle.
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
Frame broken which has caused other damage to the RV. Not safe to be on the road