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
Incident date: Oct 4, 2022
The contact owns a 2010 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, there was a scraping sound coming from the rear driver’s side of the vehicle. While driving approximately 40 MPH, there was a loud banging sound with smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to stop while depressing the brake pedal. After coasting to a stop, the c... Read more
Incident date: Oct 5, 2022
Death Wobble: 2019 F250 with 42,450 miles. After hitting a small bump while driving on the highway at normal speed, the front end starts violently shaking and the steering wheel oscillates from side to side. Steering control is completely lost and I have to hang on for dear life until I can ease to a shoulder to slow down and get out of the wobble. This is completely unacceptable and puts everyone... Read more
Incident date: Oct 13, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle suddenly experienced a death wobble causing the vehicle to violently shake and vibrate. The contact indicated that the failure occurred while driving on a smooth and level roadway. Additionally, the vehicle had not driven over any bumps in the roadway prior to the failure. The cause of the f... Read more
Incident date: Aug 15, 2022
Rear adjustable lataral arm and ball joint (RH) on rear wheel broke, while driving spun car in the road. Had to replace part and take vehicle to Ford dealership to get car allined and have car inspected for other damage. Purchased from Oreilly Auto Parts. Part number 2CB40582 $103.99. Precision Lateral Arm and Joint. Took vehicle to Vallery Ford Waverly Ohio. for allinment $90.04 on 08/18/2022. ... Read more
Crash
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2013) - SUSPENSION
Oct 14, 2022
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
The rear suspension frame was rusted, and the suspension rusted off the frame through normal wear and tear (no potholes, incidents, etc). Left side rusted off, Right side is on its way. Brake distance was increased and suddenly braking on the highway resulted in back of car swerving slightly, almost hit a truck that suddenly merged into my lane. This was discovered during an MD state inspection... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2022
after hitting grooves or holes in the road the vehicle vibrates violently, known in the industry as the Ford Death Wobble. It's getting progressively worse. It makes lane control very difficult and often times requires immediate braking which causes a hazard on the highway to those following behind in addition to sudden lane departures caused by pulling forces.
Incident date: Feb 19, 2022
At interstate speeds, my vehicle can go into a mode where in the steering wheel jerks violently, along with the front end shaking violently. This has happened twice in 2022, and rough pavement appears to initiate the event and pulling over to the shoulder, coming to a complete stop is the only way to stop the shaking.
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle suddenly experienced a death wobble causing the vehicle to violently shake and vibrate. During the failure, the steering column failed as a result the driver lost control of the steering and drove off the road, and crash into a ditch. During the crash, the vehicle sustained damage to the su... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Sep 13, 2022
Car passed inspection in May of 2022 and just last month (September) the passenger side control arm completely rotted out. I had to make emergency repairs but then discovered there is a recall.
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
On 4 separate occasions while driving my truck under 60 mph, the truck started shaking violently. The steering froze and the complete chassis, frame and body shook and felt like it was falling apart. It only subsided when I decelerated below 30 mph.
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2013) - SUSPENSION
Oct 13, 2022
Incident date: Sep 22, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle started shuddering inadvertently, almost causing the contact to lose control of the steering wheel. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to a certified independent mechanic who diagnosed that the driver's side rear subframe was severely corroded and... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) - SUSPENSION
Oct 13, 2022
Incident date: Jun 1, 2022
Loud clunking nosies from front of vehicles, loud grinding/creaking. Truck keeps getting misaligned.
Incident date: Sep 12, 2022
The 2015 Tahoe LZ is experiencing harsh ride due to the failure of the factory Air Ride system. This may have been a good idea, but it will not stand up under normal road conditions. There is no recall for this problem. Shocks leak or are bound up (frozen in place) causing bumps to be transmitted to the vehicle body. I have changed tires and the problem is still there. I have driven GM vehic... Read more
HOLIDAY HOUSE
24TB
(2021) - SUSPENSION
Oct 13, 2022
Incident date: Oct 6, 2021
I purchased a holiday house Inc camper over a year ago. The floor failed due to the floor not actually being one piece as advertised. It was actually pieced together with three pieces of plywood which altered the weight. This resulted in the trailer weighing more than what was titled. Mind you this is a 2021 travel trailer that was actually made in 2018 but sold as a 2021. Not to mention I had a b... Read more
Incident date: Sep 28, 2022
I have had multiple repairs done and several components replaced and im still fighting a death wobble issue. It occurs at normal opersting speeds above 40mph when you travel across bumpy surfaces.
Incident date: Sep 15, 2022
My daughter was concerned with the car making strange squeaking sounds on turning and braking and so I met her where her car was parked in a lot and drove it for less than 1 minute and could tell something was very wrong and that it didn't seem safe to drive home. My husband came to check as well and zeroed in on the problem being the front driver's side tire/suspension. Fortunately the Subaru dea... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2012) - SUSPENSION
Oct 13, 2022
Incident date: Oct 13, 2022
EXCESSIVE CORROSION TO CHASSIS FRAME. INTERNET LINKS STATE THERE WAS A FRAME RECALL FOR THE 2012 CHEVY SILVERADO PICKUP BECAUSE GM DID NOT TREAT THE CHASSIS FRAME DURING MANUFACTURING.
Incident date: Aug 1, 2022
I purchased a 2007 Nissan Murano the end of June. The first time I drove it on a wet road I almost lost control, and I was driving well BELOW the speed limit. The next week I got different tires put on and took it for an alignment. The first independent service center I took it to showed me where the rear subframe on BOTH the driver and passenger were completely rusted through, and they told me I ... Read more
FOREST RIVER
CHEROKEE
(2018) - SUSPENSION
Oct 12, 2022
Incident date: Jul 1, 2018
After purchasing the travel trailer near Chicago, and returning to Kentucky, I noticed that the tires were rubbing the wheel well above them, on one side. The tires had worn through the cover, and had made burn marks on the wood frame. A local dealer replaced the leaf springs on that side under warranty in the summer of , and replaced the covering material above the tires. Recently, I noticed tha... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2022
Starting mid 2022, the vehicle was having trouble shifting into passing gear upon highway acceleration. It seemed to get stuck at 45 MPH before shifting into a higher speed, putting me at risk. Subsequently, In September 2022, I brought vehicle in for oil change. The mechanic put the car on a lift and found that the passenger front axle boot was torn, and fluid was leaking from the axel joint. I... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2022
Frame deterioration has rendered the rear torque arm incapable resulting in dynamic misalignment of the rear axle. Under acceleration the vehicle veers into oncoming traffic and under deceleration it veers towards the road ditch as the axle shifts about beneath the vehicle.
Incident date: Sep 9, 2022
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 mph in the rain when the vehicle began to fish tale. The contact had to use excessive force in order to control the vehicle until they were unable to safely pull over. The hazards had to be used due to them needing to reduce speed to approximately 40 mph. The contact had taken the vehicle to a certified m... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2019
2018 has Death Wobble which has been reported by many and a recall was issued but we have taken it back 3 times for this recall/death wobble=tie rod, sector shaft, drag link replaced (the first time it wasn't recalled yet so we had to pay for it and still have not been reimbursed) last 2 times they fix the tie rod, shaft or whatever but it keeps happening and it is scary. Lucky not to have caused ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 20, 2022
- "death wobble" in my F250 3 times on our way back from the Outer Banks, NC to Nashville. Ford is stating it is the Steering Dampener. Yes, it is available for inspection. - Safety was poor, it felt like I had little control until we came to a complete stop. I would say it put other at risk as we had to move to the side, across multiple lanes, to the side of the road. - It happened 3 times in one... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2015
I have had broken shocks and struts on my 2011 Hyundai Elantra Liminted, currently 69000 miles 2 times, once replaced by dealership 2nd done by BIG O Tires in Salt Lake, I did not have a breakdown, my tire blew the first time 12/26/2015, currently was caught by general tire mainainance. This must be some kind of a defect due to have them replace them so often. 2 incidents 12/26/2015 and 10/12/2022... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2012) - SUSPENSION
Oct 12, 2022
Incident date: Oct 12, 2022
Rear Subframe Cracking in Mercedes Benz 2012, C- Class, Sports. It can be life threatening for driver and passengers. Cost is $5700 for repairs. This replacement is free in Europe and Canada.
Incident date: Oct 8, 2022
I was driving on the expressway when the engine suddenly slowed the car, I lost all ability to use the gas pedal. The deal found metal shavings in the engine leading to the engine being replaced. Prior to this I had several check engine lights that when the dealer looked at the vehicle, they simply reset them and told me all was ok. I lost all power on the expressway- all passengers in the car fel... Read more
Incident date: Feb 24, 2016
Toyota Tacoma has excessive rust throughout the frame and suspension.
Incident date: Sep 26, 2022
We were traveling on a highway in Arizona (Hwy93 between Wickenburg and I40 JCT), going about 65mph. We hit a rough patch on the road. When we hit some really rough patches, the front end began wobbling and shacking, even after the road smoothed out. This would last an extra 15 to 30 seconds after the last bump. This made it hard to steer, so I had to slow down. This happened many times, even when... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
Ford Escape had a history of transmission issues prior to the 2015 vehicle I purchased used in Feb 2018. I was told the rough shifting and vehicle skipping (which started gradually the winter of 2021/2022) can be a hardware, software, shutter or torque problem. Even though there are class actions suits to resolve the software and hardware problems, Ford has not provided any assistance, instead e... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
DEATH WOBBLE OF FRONT SUSPISION
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
I have a 2017 Malibu and have gotten a message on my MFD (Multi-Function Display) screen on the dash that said Steering Assist Reduce, drive with care. It happens while driving city streets and at a complete stop. Now the doors are unlocking when the message pops up at stops. Also the care is losing power at the stops now and coming back on. It does not allow me to accelerate. This is very dangero... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2018) - SUSPENSION
Oct 11, 2022
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
At approximately 30,000 the vehicle's suspension failed, leading to a very rough ride like a boat hitting waves, and at speed affects the ability to control the vehicle. The Ford dealer advised that all shocks needed replacing. The problem developed gradually over about six months. These or the original shocks on the vehicle, and their early failure is a defect and safety concern.
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) - SUSPENSION
Oct 11, 2022
Incident date: Aug 27, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving 55 mph, the upper control arm and the ball joint detached from the passage side tire. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated he lost control of the vehicle and drove into a ditch. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to an independent mechanic, where it was sta... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
AIR CONDITIONING DRAIN DRIPS ONTO FRONT SUB FRAME, WHICH HOLDS THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION. IT ALSO HOLDS THE SUSPENSION BOLTS. DRIPPING FROM AIR CONDITIONING DRAIN IS CAUSING SUB FRAME TO RUST, ROT OUT AND WEAKEN PREMATURELY. THIS WILL CAUSE THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION TO DROP OUT OF THE VEHICLE WHEN THE SUB FRAME COLLAPSES.
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
Vehicle steering is very sloppy and vague. Vehicle wanders on road, wind blows car out of lane, steering wheel has 5 inches of free play before tires are turned. At 55 mph vehicle went over road imperfection and I lost control of steering for a second - the car seemed to jump in the air.
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLK350
(2010) - SUSPENSION
Oct 11, 2022
Incident date: Oct 11, 2022
The cross beam-in the rear are completely rusted out as are the brake lines. I had this vehicle from brand new and there isn’t any rust except for there.This problem has happened in Canada and other countries. Mercedes’ Benz has recalled it there and not in the United States. I stope to a representative at Mercedes Benz and she said they were aware of the problem and said it would be the next ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 28, 2022
My right rear control was completely broken when I was driving 70MPH on the expressway and I was nearly in a major accident. The car swerved to right severely. The other rear control arm was cracked.
Incident date: Sep 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 Buick Lacrosse. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made rattling noises and was shaking. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the struts needed to be replaced; however, the replacement part was no longer being manufactured. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The fai... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2022
My 2019 F250 has only 17328 miles today. This month I experienced two dangerous situations. When driving at high speed on the freeway, approx. 60 miles per hour, the steering wheel and the whole front end start an uncontrollable shake and wobble. It feels like the truck is going to be broken into pieces. I was driving at freeway speed in the carpool lane, this sudden wobbling scared me and all my ... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 GMC Acadia. The contact stated while driving 35 mph, she heard an abnormal noise from the rear passenger side tire. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer but was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approxim... Read more
Incident date: Sep 30, 2022
The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-59 Motor Home Chassis. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V202000 (Suspension, Power Train) however, the parts to do the repair was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs as the recall notice was received several months ago. The vehicle was taken to the dealer ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
After traversing across a bridge the truck started shaking violently. I could not keep the truck under control and it started to ver off the interstate to the shoulder. Once the truck slowed down to about 30 mph the truck stopped shaking. I was towing a 39’ camper. Once the shaking started I had absolutely no control of the truck. This truck only has 35,000 miles on it and should not be experien... Read more
Incident date: Aug 29, 2022
front end violently shakes and the entire truck shakes
Incident date: Oct 6, 2022
I got a VSS fault code (C0063) that sent my Ryker into a limp home mode which greatly reduced the speed at which I could travel. This code indicates a problem reported from the yaw sensor. Had I been on an Interstate highway, this could have possibly been a serious situation. I was about 10 miles from home but made it home safely. This fault code seems to be a recurring problem to many Ryker owner... Read more
Incident date: Oct 7, 2022
Traveling with fifth wheel out of home state and the steering wheel and front end starts shaking violently. Was on the interstate when this happened. This has happened now three times and I’m concerned I may loose control and crash.
Incident date: Oct 1, 2022
In 2017 had my front control arms replaced after the driver side CV arm came off of the axle due to a recall. 5 years later (about 30k miles) the same exact situation happened now with the passenger side making a left turn. Thankfully both times I didn’t cause an accident but came close due to the wheel coming off of the axle. Brought to dealership, they had to get approval from corporate for... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
E350
(2014) - SUSPENSION
Oct 10, 2022
Incident date: Aug 23, 2022
2014 E350 with 41,000 miles. Rusted subframe and was informed that it represented unsafe and risky driving conditions. Reported this to manufacturer as, apparently, it is a very common problem with certain Mercedes classes. No recall and very expensive fix ($4500)! Not my idea of a safe and reliable car, as Mercedes likes to advertise. Consumers should not be responsible for manufacturing defects... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2022
The rear suspension crossmember fractured allowing the lower suspension arm to move causing the wheel to move out at the bottom by a considerable amount. I noticed it after a short local trip. I think if I had continued driving the lower arm may have completely disconnected resulting in potential loss of control. The crossmember has significant corrosion in this area but the component should be th... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2022
The vehicle has severe rust and corrosion underneath affecting the suspension. The brakes and power steering needed repairs but the service would cause even more damage to the vehicle. The vehicle was confirmed by sterling mcall lexus of clear lake. 18160 Gulf Fwy, Houston, TX 77546. and also Firestone Center Pearland 2908 Broadway St, Pearland, TX 77581. This vehicle is unsafe to operate due to t... Read more