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 49,170 complaints - component: SUSPENSION
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2015) - SUSPENSION
Dec 13, 2023
Incident date: Dec 9, 2023
Extreme wobble in front suspension and steering wheel when driving at freeway speeds. Also conventionally known as the "Death Wobble". Occurred on 3/8/23 - repair of steering stabilizer by dealer did not remedy the issue Returned to dealer on 3/13/23 - replaced inner and outer tie rod ends and drag link Recurred on 12/7/23 -again replaced tie rod ends for excessive play in ball and socket joint... Read more
Incident date: Dec 2, 2023
Frame is rotted from rust. Not drivable as drive train connection to wheels in rear end ready to fail at any moment. Rust is so bad it will require towing to be repaired. Repair estimate exceeds blue book value. $4800. 110,000 current mileage. Recall for this problem existed on this make/model for years 2004 to 2009. This vehicle is 2011 with no recall as yet.
Incident date: Dec 12, 2023
Turning onto a road, heard a loud thud from the front passenger corner. Car steering became highly erratic. Parked the car, noticed the front passenger wheel was crooked. Took it to the nearest shop and they said the crossmember was rusted completely through and snapped, causing the control arm to lose control. Found out there is a recall for the car model and year for this exact issue, but my car... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2023
While driving at approximately 55mph on the highway, I was required to brake for a merging vehicle who decided to make a lane change at the last second. I used my breaks, and my car did not break correctly. Instead, the car pulled the the right and locked up, it felt as though I had lost control of the car. When I went to my mechanic, I thought it was a break issue. Instead, it turns out the wh... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2023
Death wobble on my 2021 jeep wrangler after getting over a certain speed and hitting a bump it shakes violently
Incident date: Dec 13, 2023
I have a 2017 RAV4 Hybrid XLE that I bought brand New. I have done all schedule maintenance on it. I was driving to an appointment on 15 November 2023 and the vehicle all the sudden jerked violently side to side throwing me off the road. I brought the car to the shop thinking an alignment or something. My whole rear subframe was cracked, and by the driver side rear wheel bolt it was broke straigh... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 6, 2023
Car feels like it is going to take off at a red light. Then it rumbles and cuts off at the light. I purchased car from US Auto Sales. DOWC paid PepBoys for multiple repairs for breaks rotors and the light that keeps coming on is service stabile track they got the light to cut off but the issue still persisted. They even changed all things dealing with the gas line. This car is still idling high at... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
The truck shakes violently after hitting a bump in the road. I have had new Michelin tires installed (by Discount Tires) and balanced twice, and the front end and alignment checked (by Leonard's Truck & Frame Service), both located in Lake City, FL. I think the problem is what is commonly referred to as F250 "Death Wobble".
Incident date: Dec 12, 2023
The contact owns a 2003 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle hesitated and lost motive power. Additionally, while attempting to complete a turn, the contact heard an abnormal clicking sound coming from the front driver’s side of the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 12, 2023
Frame failure due to rust. Suspension is detached with springs hitting frame. NOTE: fuel tank partially detached previously due to rusted brackets 3-4 years ago and all components were replaced. Filed NHTSA report at that time however had technical issues completing… Still have photos.
Incident date: Oct 23, 2023
I went to get the vehicle inspected today and was told it failed due to the chassis frame in the rear being rusted thru. This could cause the suspension to collapse any time. I see on the internet that multiple others have and are experiencing the same with the Sierra and Silverado. My vehicle has unlimited washes and has been washed 40 times a year and looks new from the outside.
Incident date: Oct 15, 2021
Abs brake light is on and cruise won’t work with brake light on told by dealer ABS MODULE HAS FAILED manufacturer has no idea when parts will be available This needs to be a recall don’t know if abs brakes will ever work
Incident date: Dec 11, 2023
- On 3/6/2023 upon exiting my garage I noticed the rear right spring had broken off and was on the ground. - On 3/7/2023 I took my vehicle to Pops Exhaust (CT Licensed repairer R6579) located at 53 Slater Street, Manchester, CT 06042, which repaired my vehicle, which consisted of replacement of the rear struts, for $200 labor and $480 parts and $43.18 CT Sales tax - total $723.18. Vehicle was br... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2023
The frame on this truck broke. The frame tore in a manner that the lower control arm became disconnected from the vehicle. I recognize that l live in an area where rust issues are real, however l am also very experienced with metal working and fabrication and can reliably assure that corrosion is not the cause of this failure in the frame of this vehicle. I have attached 4 photos, those are of t... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2021
Start/Stop malfunctioning. If activated engine stops and have to physically restart. This is dangerous because can happen in redlight, stop sign, or random. Rear suspension is rough, bumpy and unstable. Yesterday almost lost control going over rough spot in the freeway. Complained numerous times to dealer and opened case with Honda of America. They simply ignore the issue. Many people havin... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2023
La guagua a tenido problemas con el tren delantero. Comenzó con un sonido en el Guía. La Hyundai le reparo esa pieza y luego continuó con el mismo ruido. Ahora tienen que cambiarle el Rack and Piñogn. Mi guagua tiene solo 19,750 millas creo que vino mala de fábrica.
Incident date: Mar 17, 2023
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima Hybrid. The contact stated that the front-end of the vehicle was making an abnormal knocking sound while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the cause of the failure could not be determined. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic, where the contact was informed that the failure could be related to the front struts. The front driver'... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2017) - SUSPENSION
Dec 11, 2023
Incident date: Dec 11, 2023
I purchased this vehicle from Galles Chevrolet in Albuquerque New Mexico as a certified pre owned vehicle. Couple of days after I noticed a vibration coming from the front steering and drivetrain I immediately took it back to Galles and they told me nothing was wrong with it and that the aggressive tires was what I was feeling. So I took it back and drove it for a couple of weeks and the vibration... Read more
Incident date: Sep 16, 2021
I brought my 2009 Mazda 6 to the dealership to inspect the suspension after the car began pulling to the right when braking. I was informed the front and rear subframes have failed on this car due to corrosion—even though the front subframe was serviced previously for the recall campaign with the addition of a support bracket. The front subframe will be replaced by Mazda due to the failed reca... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2014) - SUSPENSION
Dec 10, 2023
Incident date: Apr 1, 2021
Driver side leaf spring rebound clips are broken
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2014) - SUSPENSION
Dec 10, 2023
Incident date: Apr 1, 2021
Driver side leaf spring rebound clips are broken
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2022) - SUSPENSION
Dec 10, 2023
Incident date: Oct 1, 2023
Driver side leaf spring rebound clips are broken.
Incident date: Dec 7, 2023
After hearing loud noise from under the truck and a very rough ride coming from the rear of the truck, I found that the cross member which holds the shocks are completely rotted away and the shock is up into the bottom side of the truck bed.
MICHELIN
PREMIER LTX
(9999) - SUSPENSION
Dec 9, 2023
Incident date: Dec 5, 2023
Noticed the left rear tire suddenly had a lot of negative camber and there were now clunking sounds while driving. Inspection showed that the rear crossmember is severely rusted with holes, cracks, and delamination. The left toe link mount is completely separated, the coil spring stoppers are detached and loose inside the springs, and the right coil spring has the top coil broken off. The front... Read more
Incident date: Feb 5, 2021
The vehicle as of 12/9/2023 at 3:39pm CST is at a mileage of 79,542. The week of December 4th, 2023, we brought the truck to a repair shop because there were heavy vibrations that would occur in the front of the truck when driving on the interstate. The repair shop diagnosed it as needing to have the front left wheel hub assembly replaced, and they explained that normally when one side is replace... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
ML500
(2002) - SUSPENSION
Dec 8, 2023
Incident date: Oct 22, 2023
My family took a trip from Colorado to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. I began feeling a strange sway in the trailer about half-way through Grand Tetons National Park. When we arrived at our campground in Yellowstone, I noticed that I was unable to level the camper properly and began looking at potential causes. The I-Beam type frame broke at and around where the rear axle mount shackle is w... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2023
I was told the problem is the rear shock insulators. Both have been replaced & the noise continues.
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2007 Honda CR-V. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the rear passenger's side of the vehicle collapsed inadvertently. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The contact noticed that the rear passenger's side wheel had detached and rotated 90 degrees into the wheel well. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who determined that the failure was rel... Read more
Incident date: Dec 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2003 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the contact heard an abnormal sound coming from the front of the vehicle and the contact became aware that the power steering was not functioning properly. After a visual inspection of the exterior of the vehicle, the contact observed that the passenger’s side wheel appeared to have detached from the v... Read more
Incident date: May 11, 2021
The contact owns a 2023 Grand Design Reflection RV. The contact stated that the RV was designed with an electric leveling system. The contact stated the two rear levelers failed to elevate beyond 4.5 inches from the ground. The contact stated that the levelers would strike the ground while driving over a speed bump or on a bumpy road surface. The contact stated that the issue was a safety concern ... Read more
TOYOTA
REDUNDANT SIENNA
(2022) - SUSPENSION
Dec 7, 2023
Incident date: Dec 5, 2023
I have a 2015 Mercedes-Benz C300 4Matic got a letter from the company car had few recalls to address. Dropped the at Mercedes-Benz Hampton VA dealership on 12/06/2023 at 8:30 AM EST. After few hours got a call from the dealership that rear subframe of the has bad corrosion and because of the rust it got holes in it which is a bad safety risk. Risk is so great that it cant pass Virginia state inspe... Read more
Incident date: Nov 17, 2023
Death Wobble. When traveling over 45 mph and Jeep hits a bump or even mild uneven area in asphalt it can occur. It is unpredictable as it will not always happen. Vehicle has varying degrees of severity in shaking, threatening to become out of control and cause accident. It will force you to try and slow which is not easy and pull off highway until it stops. Dealership (in Manassas) sold this ve... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2023
Starting in 2023, around 80,000 miles, my 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid has started pulling to either side under braking. I replaced the pads & rotors at my local Toyota dealer in September and it actually made the problem worse. November 22 of this year, the master technician at my dealership found multiple lower suspension bolts loose. They re-torqued everything to spec and the issue has not been ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2023
Vehicle at highway speeds shakes uncontrollably and makes you slow down to maintain control also causes you to vear into other lanes when trying regain control. It happens all the time at those speeds and have to park the vehicle and not drive. Jeep is having hard time finding parts. My vehicle is all factory stock and no modifications have been made to it. Very scary and very very dangerous to dr... Read more
Incident date: Dec 6, 2023
My car started shaking out of control. I was on highway. Could not get over or stop for a bit. Could have been an accident. There was a car behind me and on the side of me. I have taken it to the Jeep Dealership. It has happened 3x without warning. Online this is called the "death wobble"
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
My Jeep dealership has confirmed that a Steering Damper replacement is necessary to keep the vehicle from experiencing what is called the "Death Wobble". After going over a few bumps the entire front end shakes as if there is a flat tire. Slowing down and pulling over remedies the problem. A driver who witnessed this pulled me over to say he thought I was going to lose my driver's wheel and sugges... Read more
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
I had exhaust work done, 2010 Ford Escape, and shop pointed out huge rust hole in ''subframe'' (engine cradle) This has been hundred thousand recalls but NOT all model years, yet they ALL have the same fault. Ford recall only puts a cheap ''brace'' on it but it is NOT a repair!! What kind of country allows these maggots to threaten the driver with complete !! loss of steering control and yet not r... Read more
Incident date: Dec 2, 2023
Severe "death wobble" at speeds over 40MPH occurs at random times, usually at highway speeds. Have replaced steering damper, shocks, upper and lower control arms, front u-joints, etc....and these repairs have only masked the problem. The OEM suspension is completely unmolested...no lifts, etc. Tires were replaced around 55-60K miles with a slightly wider tire. Wobble started around 95-100K miles. ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 6, 2023
The door side suspension hanger bent as a result of the bolt falling out or broken. Part of the MorRyde CRE3000 suspension system.
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
All driver assist functions failing
Incident date: Dec 5, 2023
I own a 2023 Grand Cherokee Trailhawk 4xe, and after 4 months and roughly 5000 miles, a bolt in the rear suspension broke, causing significant damage to other parts. On the highway this was very disconcerting and there was a huge amount of lateral shifting over any bump. Definitely not safe. Thankfully, the first incident was covered under warranty, despite the repair team being clueless about the... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2014) - SUSPENSION
Dec 6, 2023
Incident date: Sep 29, 2023
During yearly inspection the mechanic noted excessive rust on frame components and warned that something should be done…. I am on my third Silverado and frame coating, brake lines and transmission coolant lines have had issues with excessive rust. I bought this new in 2014 and hoped they had addressed these issues… over the previous Silverados I have owned. What recourse do I have towards GM.... Read more
HYUNDAI
SANTA FE SPORT
(2018) - SUSPENSION
Dec 6, 2023
Incident date: Nov 11, 2023
At a rest stop we noticed that the rear most axle of the 3 axles on the trailer was almost completely disconnected. The rear bolts holding the leaf spring are missing and one of the driver side U bolts is missing. The other u bolt was hanging from the axle and disconnected completely from the leaf spring. Nobody was injured and minimal damage was done to the rv.
Incident date: Dec 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Trax. The contact stated that upon entering the vehicle, the vehicle failed to emit an audible chime, indicating that the seat belts had not been fastened. While driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact heard an abnormal clicking sound coming from the front end of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer,... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
The vehicle part involved is the right rear suspension adjust toe link. I did not ask the GM dealer to save the old part. The old part is not available for inspection. The replacement GM part number placed on the vehicle is 84606181. On December 4, 2023 during the annual State inspection of my vehicle the GM dealer advised me that the right rear suspension part listed above showed wear in the bus... Read more
Incident date: Aug 21, 2023
This car has a recall which put my child and others at risk. It also has a recall for excessive corrosion, which has made the suspension unrepairable. It only has 124K miles. I would like Hyundai to take the car from me and give me the remaining value so I can reimburse my child, who had to buy a car that was safe to drive.
Incident date: Oct 4, 2023
THE FRAME HAS RUSTED OUT AND IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. LEFT TIRE IS ALMOST SNAPPED AND YOU CAN PUT YOUR HAND THROUGH THE RUST IN FRAME. HAS BEEN INSPECTED BY 2 MECHANICS. I AM THE SECOND OWNER AND HAVE BABIED THIS TRUCK SINCE THE FIRST DAY I GOT IT IN 2014. ADDITIONAL DEFECT IS THE TAILGATE WONT STATE SHUT, MUST CLOSE 3-4 TIMES FOR IT TO REMAIN CLOSED.
Incident date: Nov 29, 2023
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Element. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at approximately 25 MPH, the rear driver’s side tire detached from the vehicle. Despite the failure, the contact's daughter managed to drive the vehicle to the residence. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that the rear trailing arm had detached from the vehicle. Neither the dealer nor the manufact... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2008) - SUSPENSION
Dec 4, 2023
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
AIR SUSPENSION FAILURE
Incident date: Nov 24, 2023
Rusted out subframe, less than 95k miles. No “salt belt” treatment offered to this vehicle. Vehicle in Ohio since bought. Took to dealer for engine recall, found $1200 subframe replacement bill. Car was garage stored all of the time.