Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,192,899 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA — including 137,559 crashes, 55,854 fires, and 8,555 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 2,192,899 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 48,099 complaints — component: SUSPENSION
Incident date: Dec 1, 2021
DRIVING IN A HIGHWAY STATE 81 TOWARDS HARRISONBURG VIRGINIA WHEN MY 2002 TOYOTA TACOMA , PARTS OR EQUIPMENT UNDERNEATH THE TRUCK COLLAPSE CAUSE OF OUT OF CONTROL OF THE TRUCK , THE WHOLE SHOCK AND THE BALL JOINT IN THE FRONT ALL THE WAY TO THE BACK, THE PASSENGER SIDE AND DRIVER SIDE FALL TO THE GROUND, WHILE DRIVING DID NOT HIT ANY ONE BUT IT WILL CAUSE MY LIFE AT RISK . I DONT KNOW WHAT HAPPEN... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2021
After going over a bump in the road at 70 mph, vehicle began to shake violently. Unable to control the vehicle. Had to come to a complete stop. Checked tires, all tires were good and had good air pressure. Took the vehicle to repair shop. Repair shop referred to the 'Death Wobble' . They checked for any loose parts in the front suspension/steering and did not find any. They replaced the ste... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2021
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Windstar. The contact stated that while driving at 20 MPH, there was an abnormal sound, and the vehicle felt as if it had a flat tire. Upon inspection, the contact noticed that the rear driver's side tire was tilted inward and the rear axle was fractured. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The mechanic related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V608... Read more
THOR MOTOR COACH
OMNI
(2021) — SUSPENSION
Dec 26, 2021
Incident date: Mar 17, 2021
The front cap above the drivers and passenger compartment come loose from the body. Mine has been to a few dealers and back to Thor's plant. They supposedly fixed it at Thor. But it is coming apart again. After Thor's head management came out and looked at it this last time they told me their is no internal support for the hole front cap. It's held on by self tapping screws where it meets the body... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2021
While accelerating on the entrance ramp to the freeway, which is free of potholes, or bumps, the front end of the truck began bouncing up and down violently. I was traveling approximately 50 mph. I immediately braked and the bouncing ceased. Luckily there were no cars behind me at that moment. I bought this truck used about 2 years ago with about 34000 miles on it. I do not know if the previous ow... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2021
Upper rear control arm is connected to the subframe of the car and it’s rotted/ rusted out where the bushing goes to hold the control arm in place. Where am I supposed to mount the bushing now since it’s no longer there.
Incident date: Dec 15, 2021
I get a death wobble to where I have to come to almost a complete stop. Even on the interstate
Incident date: Dec 4, 2021
Death wobble, any change in the road such as a bridge, older road, bump, ect.... The truck starts to shake uncontrollably, and have to come to a complete stop and start over.
Incident date: Dec 1, 2016
This is an issue of the car regularly pulling hard to the left without warning. My mechanic stated Honda ran out of a regular front-end part and began using an inferior part on some models over several model years. He also stated that neither attempted alignment or repairs other than a suitable replacement for the affected part(s) (currently does not exist) will remedy the issue. I now have a s... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2021
Traveling at highway speeds(above 55 mph) I’ve hit a small bumps in the road on multiple occasions. The problem has occurred several times where the vehicle shakes violently until I slow down to about 40 mph. Googling the problem informed me this is a problem with Ford superdutys and the phenomen is referred to as “death wobble”. The article provided a link to nhtsa.
Incident date: Nov 28, 2021
I purchased the vehicle in 07/2021 through the Drive time Dealership. The first concern is that as you go over the agreement the cost of the vehicle is well over the actual blue book value which $24,000 plus. But then there is the blinded words which cover the interest rate and the false mathematics that is used to confuse you. I realized that in the end of that process it is stated that I would ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 23, 2021
The truck vibrates uncontrollably when driving on the freeway at speeds between 65-75mph. This typically occurs when the truck hits a bump when driving in this speed range. Doing a google search and reviewing videos of this issue reveals a pheonomea referred to as 'death wobble'. This has happened to me at least 8 times over the past 8-10 months. I had the shocks changed recently hoping that t... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2021
Air suspension failed while going 78mph, causing the vehicle to lower. With the vehicle lowered, the slightest bump can cause loss of control. I hit a small rise (present after a bridge) and the vehicle slid sideways. Luckily there were no other vehicles nearby and I was able to pull over to the side of the road (mainly due to the fact that I am a very experienced driver). This issue is known ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 21, 2021
Without any warning after hitting a small bump on a newly paved highway I had extreme violent shaking in the front suspension after hitting small bump on hwy going approx 60mph, truck shook violently, steering almost unresponsive, had to emergency slow to 25mph in very heavy accident almost rear ended in last incident.. This has happened 2x in the past 6 months 12/21/2021, 8/22/2021. Truck has 12,... Read more
Incident date: Dec 19, 2021
The following has happened twice with the truck. While driving down the highway at @55 -65 mph the truck started shaking violently and the steering wheel starting shaking back and forth after driving over an uneven section of the highway. I was able to slow down and pull over until the shaking stopped. The dealership looked at it and decided that the damper was bad. The first time it happened was ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2021
The contact owns a 2010 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that while her son was driving 60 MPH, he experienced what was commonly known as the "death wobble"; where the vehicle would shake uncontrollably without warning until the vehicle slowed down and resumed normal operation. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer where they were initially unable to diagnose the failu... Read more
Incident date: Jan 23, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH, the subframe underneath the driver’s side felt loose and not properly aligned. The contact merged to the right lane and continued to drive the vehicle. The contact stated that her son and daughter drove the vehicle and noticed the failure as well. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to a local Pep Boys wh... Read more
Incident date: Jul 14, 2020
Every time I hit any sort of bump on the road (I.e the the lip on a highway overpass approach, or any standard road lip or bump) I lose complete control of my truck, it violently shakes and I have to come to a complete stop to get rid of it, which is dangerous when in traffic, I’ve owned the truck for a year and a half and have never been able to fix the problem, the local ford dealership I purc... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2021
At highway speeds if you hit a bump the front end goes into a wobble that translates to the steering wheel. If you slow down the problem stops .This has happened to me twice in the last 3 weeks. Incredibly dangerous especially in a 10,000 lb truck at 70 mph, and if you were towing something it could be catastrophic. I went online and found hundreds of people complaing about the exact same problem ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2021
My truck has ~31k miles. On 12/15/2021 I was driving on the interstate at highway speed. A few hours into my trip the front end of my vehicle, suddenly and without warning, began to bounce violently. My ability to steer the vehicle was severely compromised. I almost hit the median wall. I was finally able to get the vehicle to the shoulder and out of the roadway. My first thought was that bot... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 Cadillac SRX. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was swaying. The vehicle then stalled with the service traction control and stability warning lights illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V473000 (Suspension) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact called the local de... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2021
The contact owned a 2012 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph when they came to a small unevenness in the road due to a merging of roads. The contact stated that when they passed that point the vehicle suddenly displayed the death wobble despite there being no significant bumping of the vehicle. The contact had to come to a complete stop then pull over to the side... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2021
Suspension front end items became loose at 33k miles.Front Tire was at risk and did rub against drivers side front fender liner
Incident date: Nov 23, 2021
The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Durango. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, she heard an abnormal noise coming from the front driver’s side tire. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact exited the vehicle and stated that the front driver’s side wheel was detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to an independent mechanic... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2021
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving her vehicle at approximately 35 MPH, the ball joint snapped on the vehicle's passengers side. The contact stated there were no warning lights illuminated nor any indication of a failure prior to the ball joint snapping. The contact stated that when the failure happened to her vehicle it caused her to crash into a ditch. The ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 1, 2021
The rear driver's side upper shock mount was found broken during an inspection. The part showed signs of possible metal fatigue, and not a corrosion induced failure, resulting in the metal stem (retaining the upper shock) to "snap" off the welded shock mount bracket.
Incident date: Dec 21, 2021
The 2018 Dodge Durango has a blown rear shock. I have wore shocks out but never seen blown seals. The car barely has 50k and is not covered under warranty, or my extended warranty. They are on backorder and apparently this is not a new problem. The soonest I can get a shock is the 23rd of next month. It is not safe to drive.
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2009) — SUSPENSION
Dec 21, 2021
Incident date: Nov 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2009Chevrolet Silverado LD. The contact stated that he purchased his vehicle 2 months ago and when driving his vehicle at approximately 10 MPH, pulling off from a red traffic light, his vehicle's tailpipe had fallen off. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated at the time, nor an indication that something was wrong with his vehicle. The contact stated th... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2021
With less than 30,000 miles, this car developed a "death wobble." At unpredictable moments, the whole car will start shaking and it is nearly impossible to control the steering wheel. Until you slow down to almost a stop, the shaking continues indefinitely. I've since discovered that this a known problem with Jeeps, but Jeep refuses to contribute a penny to fixing it.
Incident date: Dec 20, 2021
The malfunction was receiving "Death Wobble" on three occurrences in less than a 24 hour period driving less than 50 miles in total. This is a safety issue to all passengers and other drivers on the road due to inability to steer and control the vehicle safely. The problem has been confirmed by the Manufacturer as "death wobble" or "vehicle shimmying". The vehicle has been inspected by the manu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2021
“Death wobble” at 60mph while on the highway after hitting a small pothole. Controllable when slowed to 35mph on the shoulder
Incident date: Nov 29, 2021
I was driving at 55 mph when all of a sudden I felt like if i had both of my front tires blown out, it started shaking uncontrollable and I almost flipped my truck from the shaking. while ding some research i guess this is called the death wobble and i am not the only one being affected. luckily i was able to control my truck but this could have caused a huge accident. Dealership told me that the... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2021
While traveling down the road at hit small bump.Steering wheel starting shaking violently felt as if whole front end was bouncing up and down. No warning lights or anything Had to let off accelerator and slow to 35 mph before it stopped. Happened to wife before after going over bridge. Took it to dealership they won't be able to look at til next week.
Incident date: Dec 19, 2021
Reversing from my driveway it appears links or bolts on the steering and wheel suspension system failed. The wheels came into contact with the wheel cavity liner causing the steering to lock, the frame to protrude through the wheel cavity casing and the car to shut off or lock. The car is no longer safe to drive. The car is in my driveway, is available for inspection before I bring it back into Te... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2021
I saw a warning light briefly about the suspension then the car started making very large squeals is sounds like metal on metal in the steering underneath me as the driver and the front end - looked at the suspension pictures and not seeing anything with the ride on the computer screen. I have 62,000 mikes on my car - owned it for a little more than 14 months - drive a lot as a real estate broker
Incident date: Sep 22, 2021
Car keeps going out of line when steering wheel gets lose after bumbs. Fixed rack n pinon and steering wheel pump 2x already!
2 injured
Incident date: Dec 17, 2021
While driving at 75 mph my truck started to vibrate violently causing me to lose control of the steering. I backed it down to 40 mph to get it to stop. I continue to drive 200 more miles and it happened again while driving 65 mph. My research shows that this is happened to many Ford F350 and F250 trucks. I just wanted to make sure that I document that this is happened to me.
Incident date: Dec 8, 2021
I lost control of my F350 when I was at 50 MPH. It started to shake uncontrollably when I hit a bump in the road… I tried to break and it got worse.. so I took my foot off the gas, ended up of the side of the road. I called back to our mechanic and he said it was safe to drive under 40 MPH. (He looked up the problem and found all the related incidents with the f series trucks…) Since then t... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 9, 2021
I have a 2013 Nissan Altima. I have always had my car serviced by a Nissan dealership. I recently had my serpentine belt replaced and when the multi point inspection was conducted the tech found discovered the rear control arm is rusted, cracked and close to breaking apart. I was told by another Nissan dealership that an service campaign was out in reference to that same part, he put my VIN and sa... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2021
The service air suspension display comes on and instantly goes out with no stored codes according to dealership. While driving the rear air bags dump (deflate) completely empty. There has been times where this has happened at 70 MPH other times it has happened at 35-55 MPH. This causes the truck to bounce violently and have sway side to side when going over bridges and bumps. When I took it to dea... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2021
The driver side rear suspension trailing arm assembly to the chassis frame rail. Yes, it is available for inspection. Loss of control of the vehicle. A Pennsylvania licensed inspection technician informed us of the severe corrosion of the chassis frame rail on Sept. 23, 2021. No inspections have been made after the failure. We contacted Honda Customer Service regarding the corrosion before any f... Read more
Incident date: Nov 30, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-350. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle experienced the death wobble. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the passenger’s side track bar roller joint, passenger’s side tie rod, steering damper, and link boot to be replaced. The vehicle was repa... Read more
TOYOTA
FJ CRUISER
(2007) — SUSPENSION
Dec 17, 2021
Incident date: Dec 2, 2021
I purchased the vehicle with a clean carfax on 12/2/2021 Flew from Phoenix to Dallas to pick it up. Drove the vehicle from Dallas to Phoenix. The Brakes malfunctioned on the drive home. Fortunately it was late at night and not many vehicles on the road. Took car to mechanic on 12/4/2021. The frame, brakes, suspension, exhaust and engine mounts had been sprayed over to cover severe rust and rot of ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 13, 2021
The front frame is rusted out to the point it is unsafe. This is the same issue for the 2009 2010 models.
Incident date: Oct 20, 2021
Right rear axle seal leak causing oil to go onto brake pads Oil leak from shock absorber reservoir
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 2500
(2014) — SUSPENSION
Dec 17, 2021
Incident date: Dec 11, 2021
the Silverado 2500hd and I think 3500 work duty pickups some don't come with a stabilizer damper for steering my 2014 work truck with only 19k miles has a shake so bad you can't drive on the highway, I first noticed the shimmer at 2 yrs the deal did alignments and said they could not find what caused it, now I took the truck in for check engine on an o2 sensor they said catalytic converter went ba... Read more
Incident date: Dec 12, 2021
I performed a visual inspection of my front and rear sway bar brackets since I had heard that bolts are coming loose within 1,5k - 3k miles on the 2021 F53 chassis. I found that the rear sway bar bushing bracket on the driver's side was broken, and the bushing was missing. It appears that the lower bolt on the bracket had fallen out or was never installed and consequently created undo force on the... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2021
Ongoing Problem as mentioned in Volvo's Technical Journal "Speed Dependent Vibrations at Highway Speeds" Ref No: TJ 20803.20.0 . At any speed of 75 mph and above the front continuously vibrates. The tires have been replaced two times in less than 2 weeks and road forced balanced by the dealership twice. The vibration does not go away. The dealership does not want to address the issue. The car is N... Read more
DODGE
CHALLENGER
(2017) — SUSPENSION
Dec 16, 2021
Incident date: Dec 11, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Dodge Challenger. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH the upper ball joint and the wheel detached without warning. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The contact called the local dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure however, no additional assistance was provided. The approximate... Read more
Incident date: Dec 16, 2021
The contact owns a 2002 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated that while reversing, the vehicle felt as if there was a flat tire on the vehicle. Upon inspection, the contact noticed that the front driver's side tire was about to detach. Additionally, the driver’s side front lower control arm was fractured. Prior to the failure, the contact had driven over a railroad track and lost control of the ve... Read more