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 44,841 complaints - component: TIRES
Incident date: Oct 10, 2022
I currently have Kumho Ecsta PS91 tires on my 2021 Acura TLX that was purchased brand new and 3 out of 4 tires have cracks/splits all the way around the inside and outside sidewall. My vehicle currently has 30k miles and still has plenty of tread left on them as they are rated for 45k miles. Car has always had its routine maintenance done at Acura and tires are always checked and rotation is done ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 14, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Toyota Tacoma equipped with Goodyear Tires, Tire Line: Wrangler, Tire Size: P235/75/R15, DOT Number: 1PJHLFNWR. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the passenger’s side rear tire exploded. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the tire had dry rotted and were outdated. The tires were replacement tires. The manufacturer was no... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Toyota Tacoma equipped with Goodyear Tires, Tire Line: Wrangler, Tire Size: P235/75/R15, DOT Number: 1PJHLFNWR. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the passenger’s side rear tire exploded. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the tire had dry rotted and were outdated. The tires were replacement tires. The manufacturer was no... Read more
Incident date: Mar 14, 2023
Tire size 285/45r22 got into freeway this morning and the outer sidewall just separated on the lr tire no warning, tires looked good 7/32 tread left even wear and tire pressure was correct. The other tires look good on the outside but so did the one that came apart the car has tpms and the tires were never run low or had any repairs. The outside tread block at the sidewall peeled off the tire
Incident date: Jan 18, 2023
Tire size 285/45r22 got into freeway this morning and the outer sidewall just separated on the lr tire no warning, tires looked good 7/32 tread left even wear and tire pressure was correct. The other tires look good on the outside but so did the one that came apart the car has tpms and the tires were never run low or had any repairs. The outside tread block at the sidewall peeled off the tire
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model 3 equipped with Pirelli Tires, Tire line: P Zero, Tire Size: 235/35/R20, DOT Number: (Not available). The contact stated while driving 65 MPH an hour after purchasing the vehicle brand new, the rear passenger's side tire experienced a blowout, and the rim was severely damaged. The vehicle was towed to a Tesla Service Center, where the rear passenger's side wheel... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2020) - TIRES
Mar 13, 2023
Incident date: Nov 13, 2021
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model 3 equipped with Pirelli Tires, Tire line: P Zero, Tire Size: 235/35/R20, DOT Number: (Not available). The contact stated while driving 65 MPH an hour after purchasing the vehicle brand new, the rear passenger's side tire experienced a blowout, and the rim was severely damaged. The vehicle was towed to a Tesla Service Center, where the rear passenger's side wheel... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
C300
(2013) - TIRES
Mar 12, 2023
Incident date: Mar 11, 2023
PIRELLI Scorpion Zero AllSeason Elect 255/40 R20. Rear passenger tire developed a bulge in the sidewall due to manufacturer defect that led to a blowout while driving at highway speeds. Tire was less than two months old (as was the vehicle) with just over 2,000 miles on it. Never had any curb rash, never caught a corner of a pothole, or any other damage. In doing some research perusing Volv... Read more
Incident date: Mar 12, 2023
PIRELLI Scorpion Zero AllSeason Elect 255/40 R20. Rear passenger tire developed a bulge in the sidewall due to manufacturer defect that led to a blowout while driving at highway speeds. Tire was less than two months old (as was the vehicle) with just over 2,000 miles on it. Never had any curb rash, never caught a corner of a pothole, or any other damage. In doing some research perusing Volv... Read more
Incident date: Mar 10, 2023
The polyurethane foam inside the tire came unstuck, resulting in severe shaking in the car above 40 miles an hour. The tire came on a new 2019 Volvo XC 60 that’s a dealer would not replace the cost of the tire
Incident date: Mar 10, 2023
The polyurethane foam inside the tire came unstuck, resulting in severe shaking in the car above 40 miles an hour. The tire came on a new 2019 Volvo XC 60 that’s a dealer would not replace the cost of the tire
Incident date: Mar 7, 2023
The contact called on behalf of her daughter who owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe equipped with Kumho Tires, Tire Line: Crugen Premium, Tire Size: 235/60/R18, DOT Number: 000CMYANH. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the rear passenger’s side tire became deflated. The tire was replaced with the spare and the vehicle was taken to a tire retailer and the contact was informed that th... Read more
Incident date: Mar 8, 2023
The contact called on behalf of her daughter who owns a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe equipped with Kumho Tires, Tire Line: Crugen Premium, Tire Size: 235/60/R18, DOT Number: 000CMYANH. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the rear passenger’s side tire became deflated. The tire was replaced with the spare and the vehicle was taken to a tire retailer and the contact was informed that th... Read more
Incident date: Feb 22, 2023
The Primewell 215/45R17 Valera Sport, will not hold air, I've went back over and over to Tires Plus, I'm concerned that the tire / tires will blow out, please help..
Incident date: Mar 9, 2022
The Primewell 215/45R17 Valera Sport, will not hold air, I've went back over and over to Tires Plus, I'm concerned that the tire / tires will blow out, please help..
Incident date: Feb 18, 2023
I was scared for my life. I was driving on the freeway and went to change lanes then all of a sudden i lost control and slid sideways and luckily didn’t hit anything. These tires only have 3000 miles on them and are COMPLETELY BALD!! This is not safe and horrible. Falken needs to make this right
Incident date: Feb 25, 2023
I was scared for my life. I was driving on the freeway and went to change lanes then all of a sudden i lost control and slid sideways and luckily didn’t hit anything. These tires only have 3000 miles on them and are COMPLETELY BALD!! This is not safe and horrible. Falken needs to make this right
Incident date: Sep 11, 2021
Tire Size - P235/40R19 03/03/2022 TPMS light came on and Right Rear Tire inner sidewall blew out while on the freeway. I felt and heard a lot of read noise while this occurred and was able to safely pull off freeway and have spare tire put on. Went to Just Tires, 5155 Bryant Irvin Rd, Fort Worth, TX 76132 and left Right Rear tire with them for inspection. Previously closed location of Just Tires... Read more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2021
Tire Size - P235/40R19 03/03/2022 TPMS light came on and Right Rear Tire inner sidewall blew out while on the freeway. I felt and heard a lot of read noise while this occurred and was able to safely pull off freeway and have spare tire put on. Went to Just Tires, 5155 Bryant Irvin Rd, Fort Worth, TX 76132 and left Right Rear tire with them for inspection. Previously closed location of Just Tires... Read more
HYUNDAI
IONIQ HYBRID
(2022) - TIRES
Feb 25, 2023
Incident date: Oct 7, 2022
The Outback Wilderness comes stock with Yokohama Geolandar A/T 225/65R17. There was 13,300 miles on it from factory new tires. At interstate speed of about 75mph, the tread appears to have fully separated from the sidewalls. The tread was closely inspected for any debris by myself, my dealer, and others and no tire punctures are present. We believe this tire has a manufacturers defect and would li... Read more
HYUNDAI
IONIQ HYBRID
(2022) - TIRES
Feb 25, 2023
Incident date: Oct 7, 2022
The Outback Wilderness comes stock with Yokohama Geolandar A/T 225/65R17. There was 13,300 miles on it from factory new tires. At interstate speed of about 75mph, the tread appears to have fully separated from the sidewalls. The tread was closely inspected for any debris by myself, my dealer, and others and no tire punctures are present. We believe this tire has a manufacturers defect and would li... Read more
Incident date: Dec 16, 2022
225/45zr1794w purchased at discount tire. TPMS system failed after tire installation. I told the technician and he reset the system. Five miles later TPMS indicator came on. Malfunction TPMS. I monitor the tire pressure periodically and the tires seemed fine. While driving on Florida 528 to the airport i heard a rumbling and pulled over immediately. The tire sidewall was cut almost all the way ar... Read more
CADILLAC
ESCALADE NA
(2021) - TIRES
Feb 25, 2023
Incident date: Dec 2, 2022
225/45zr1794w purchased at discount tire. TPMS system failed after tire installation. I told the technician and he reset the system. Five miles later TPMS indicator came on. Malfunction TPMS. I monitor the tire pressure periodically and the tires seemed fine. While driving on Florida 528 to the airport i heard a rumbling and pulled over immediately. The tire sidewall was cut almost all the way ar... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2022
Pirelli Scorpion All season tires 275/45 R21. Tire completely "blew out" while driving 30 mph on a main road. There was no obvious hissing sound commonly when running over an object. There was an explosive sound and within seconds had a complete flat. The vehicle did get damaged on the inside tire well along with bumper damage/Crack.
Incident date: Dec 9, 2022
Pirelli Scorpion All season tires 275/45 R21. Tire completely "blew out" while driving 30 mph on a main road. There was no obvious hissing sound commonly when running over an object. There was an explosive sound and within seconds had a complete flat. The vehicle did get damaged on the inside tire well along with bumper damage/Crack.
Incident date: Jun 12, 2021
The contact owns a 1977 Ford F-250 equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Turanza, Tire Size: LT235/85/R16, DOT Number: 70 MR 2I. The contact stated the tires were not installed on the vehicle; however, while inflating the tires, the tire exploded. The contact sustained injuries to his face, right arm, and right hand, and received medical attention. The contact was unaware if a police report ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Jun 12, 2021
The contact owns a 1977 Ford F-250 equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Turanza, Tire Size: LT235/85/R16, DOT Number: 70 MR 2I. The contact stated the tires were not installed on the vehicle; however, while inflating the tires, the tire exploded. The contact sustained injuries to his face, right arm, and right hand, and received medical attention. The contact was unaware if a police report ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Feb 18, 2023
I purchased (2) Scorpion Pirelli Verde run flat 255/50R19 107H MS All Season tires from Orr BMW, Shreveport Louisiana on 02/10/2023. On 02/20/2023 in less than 15 miles from home I got a low pressure notice and proceeded to the stop and put air in the tire so that I could return the car home. Upon exiting my vehicle I could hear the air leaking from the tire but a visual inspection did not show an... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2023
I purchased (2) Scorpion Pirelli Verde run flat 255/50R19 107H MS All Season tires from Orr BMW, Shreveport Louisiana on 02/10/2023. On 02/20/2023 in less than 15 miles from home I got a low pressure notice and proceeded to the stop and put air in the tire so that I could return the car home. Upon exiting my vehicle I could hear the air leaking from the tire but a visual inspection did not show an... Read more
CASTLE ROCK
RADIAL ST235
(9999) - TIRES
Feb 21, 2023
Incident date: Feb 19, 2023
Brand new trailer. Picked up in October and put it in storage. Visited trailer for spring prep and noticed sidewall of tire split from rim to the treads. Only highway miles from dealer to storage lot. No deformations on any tire when we parked the trailer for the winter. Castle Rock st235/80/16r Manufacture date 1622 All 4 tires have dates of 1622 & 1722
Incident date: Feb 20, 2023
Brand new trailer. Picked up in October and put it in storage. Visited trailer for spring prep and noticed sidewall of tire split from rim to the treads. Only highway miles from dealer to storage lot. No deformations on any tire when we parked the trailer for the winter. Castle Rock st235/80/16r Manufacture date 1622 All 4 tires have dates of 1622 & 1722
Incident date: Jul 28, 2022
Was driving 55mph and the tire just blew apart
PIRELLI
SCORPION VERDE
(9999) - TIRES
Feb 19, 2023
Incident date: Jul 28, 2022
Was driving 55mph and the tire just blew apart
Incident date: Feb 6, 2023
LT275/65/R18 Tire developed a massive approximately 18in x 3in bubble on the inner section of tread causing significant vibration and excessive wear in that area in less than 50 miles
Incident date: Mar 1, 2021
LT275/65/R18 Tire developed a massive approximately 18in x 3in bubble on the inner section of tread causing significant vibration and excessive wear in that area in less than 50 miles
Incident date: Nov 1, 2021
Falken ZIEX ZE001 A/S rear right tire. We were driving on the 14 freeway when suddenly the car began shaking and warning lights started going off. My husband kept the wheel steady and I saw our tire come off in a solid piece onto the freeway! We had not hit anything. We made it four lanes over to the right shoulder safely to see that we had no tire left! We waited for assistance and got the spare ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 16, 2023
Falken ZIEX ZE001 A/S rear right tire. We were driving on the 14 freeway when suddenly the car began shaking and warning lights started going off. My husband kept the wheel steady and I saw our tire come off in a solid piece onto the freeway! We had not hit anything. We made it four lanes over to the right shoulder safely to see that we had no tire left! We waited for assistance and got the spare ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ram 2500, equipped with Firestone Tires, Tire Line: TransForce HT, Tire Size: 245/70/R17, DOT Number: (NA). The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he noticed that the front and rear passenger’s side tires were flat and had bubbles along the sidewall. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the tires needed to be replaced. The ti... Read more
Incident date: Feb 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ram 2500, equipped with Firestone Tires, Tire Line: TransForce HT, Tire Size: 245/70/R17, DOT Number: (NA). The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he noticed that the front and rear passenger’s side tires were flat and had bubbles along the sidewall. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the tires needed to be replaced. The ti... Read more
Incident date: Feb 14, 2023
I purchased a pair of Treadwright warden tires for the rear of my wife’s truck. In less than 100 miles the tread separated from the casing on one of the tires. I caught it before it completely blew out and have pictures. The replacement they sent has a blown sidewall. I mounted it and a bubble started to form that was 1/2” high and 3” around with just 20psi, operating PSI for the tire is 80P... Read more
Incident date: Feb 14, 2023
I purchased a pair of Treadwright warden tires for the rear of my wife’s truck. In less than 100 miles the tread separated from the casing on one of the tires. I caught it before it completely blew out and have pictures. The replacement they sent has a blown sidewall. I mounted it and a bubble started to form that was 1/2” high and 3” around with just 20psi, operating PSI for the tire is 80P... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2018
This warning and complaint pertains to recreational vehicle tires, Castle Rock/Lionshead ST 225/75R15. Three tires blew up, exploded, causing damage to the side and underside of the RV. The 4th shows signs of delamination. The tires have a DOT number JUL T. The tires were on an RV purchased new in 2020, less than 3 years old, with less than 5000 miles on them. They were properly inflated at 80 PSI... Read more
Incident date: Feb 13, 2023
This warning and complaint pertains to recreational vehicle tires, Castle Rock/Lionshead ST 225/75R15. Three tires blew up, exploded, causing damage to the side and underside of the RV. The 4th shows signs of delamination. The tires have a DOT number JUL T. The tires were on an RV purchased new in 2020, less than 3 years old, with less than 5000 miles on them. They were properly inflated at 80 PSI... Read more
Incident date: Jan 17, 2023
The contact owns two 2021 Chevrolet Blazer equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: Crosscontact LX Sport, Tire Size: 235/65/R18, DOT Number: A3LMWD30. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost traction. The contact stated that the rear driver’s side tire low air warning light was illuminated. The contact stated he also experienced the same failure with h... Read more
Incident date: Feb 8, 2023
The contact owns two 2021 Chevrolet Blazer equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: Crosscontact LX Sport, Tire Size: 235/65/R18, DOT Number: A3LMWD30. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost traction. The contact stated that the rear driver’s side tire low air warning light was illuminated. The contact stated he also experienced the same failure with h... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2022
Our brand new Cruiser RV that we bought in August of 2021, came equipped with Trailer King RST+ 235 / 80 R 16 from factory. Before starting our journey back to New Mexico from Florida, I aired up our trailer tires to the Manufacture recommended spec of 80 PSI. Our RV and tires were less than 1 year old when we had a tire blowout outside of Lubbock, TX on June 7th, 2022. I called the manufacture... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2022
Our brand new Cruiser RV that we bought in August of 2021, came equipped with Trailer King RST+ 235 / 80 R 16 from factory. Before starting our journey back to New Mexico from Florida, I aired up our trailer tires to the Manufacture recommended spec of 80 PSI. Our RV and tires were less than 1 year old when we had a tire blowout outside of Lubbock, TX on June 7th, 2022. I called the manufacture... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2022
Purchased 4 tires for my AWD Subaru from Costco. The driver side rear tire kept losing air a few days after installing them. Pumped air in it a few times at home. Took the car back to Costco. They found a leak that they repaired. Brand new tires leaking was my problem with Michelin 225/55R18 Primacy tour A/S.