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 117,775 complaints - component: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Incident date: Nov 4, 2025
The paint started peeling off in large sections.
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
I am reporting confirmed odometer fraud involving a 2016 Honda Civic. CarMax documented the vehicle as “ROLLBACK / NOT ACTUAL MILES / TRUE MILEAGE UNKNOWN.” Experian verified a mileage discrepancy. A prior Michigan title contains inconsistent mileage. Selling dealer: Car Tec Enterprise Leasing & Sales LLC, Deer Park, NY. I am requesting investigation under the Federal Odometer Act.
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
Something is wrong with the front windshield. Since I bought this SUV the last year, I've noticed that the wipers are very noisy and the windshield gets dirty very frequently. The last week, the windshield cracked for no apparent reason. I called the dealer and their response was that it's not covered by the warranty and I have to claim it from my car insurance. They also have no explanation for t... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2025
The steering wheel locks briefly when the Idle Stop and Go (ISG) system restarts the vehicle. This happens intermittently, about 50% of the time. It has affected the ability to steer the vehicle properly when turning at a traffic light after the ISG system has initiated an engine shutdown and subsequent restart. This issue has been reported to our local dealership, but the technicians were not abl... Read more
Incident date: Nov 10, 2025
Hello. I need to open a formal escalation regarding a serious safety recall on my 2025 Ford F-150 Lariat Hybrid. The recall is - rear axle half-shaft and hub assembly replacement. I contacted two dealerships: Metro Ford and Pines Ford. Both told me to just wait without giving any estimated date for part availability. Both dealerships also refused to provide a loaner vehicle while the recall r... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2025
After a high-voltage junction box repair performed by Tesla, the vehicle shut down 15 miles after leaving the service center. Tesla replaced the high-voltage harness at no cost but provided no explanation. After the HV harness replacement, new proximity/sensor alerts began triggering that were not present before their HV work. Multiple reasonable diagnostic procedures were refused, including bench... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2025
Ford internal engineer emails from Aug 5–6, 2025 show Ford KNEW about this safety defect months earlier. The engineer told the dealer it was “ok and safe to drive with the warning messages” and admitted “engineering is aware of some customers still experiencing driver assist issues and software update is in the works.” The dealer also reported THREE other Escapes with the same failures. ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2019
The rear backup camera in my 2020 GMC Terrain failed. I first noticed and noted that the image was 'cloudy' on 5/3/2023, and it became very bad by 1/22/2024. On 7/1/2024, the image stopped working completely, replaced with a blue screen on the dashboard screen. I ordered a new camera and replaced it myself on 8/1/2024. Because the dealership did not mention any safety effects or recalls, and... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2025
when level 3 charging the cabin will fill with visible smoke every other time roughly. i have woken up from naps coughing and pressure in my head
Incident date: Oct 9, 2025
Back windshield exploded.
Incident date: Nov 9, 2025
Subject: Reimbursement Request for Engine Defect Repairs - VIN [XXX] Dear Kia Consumer Assistance Center, I am requesting full reimbursement for repairs necessitated by the known engine defect in my 2014 Kia Soul with the 2.0L VEHICLE INFORMATION: •Year/Model: 2014 Kia Soul Plus •Current Mileage: 145,861 •Owner: [XXX] EXPENSES INCURRED DUE TO ENGINE DEFECT: 1.Oil Change - $152.34 (November... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2025
While backing up my rear view camera finally went completely out. I have 3 recalls and it's been way over a year or better all I keep getting is notices that they don't have my parts. Over a year really. Can you help me get my car fixed? I have 4 small grandchildren age 1-9 which 2 of them I pick up daily. I want to make sure I do everything I can to keep them safe. If I was a year late on my car ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2025
I purchased the van and noticed that at times it would suddenly de-accelerate and drop from whatever speed im doing and refuse to speed up even if I press the gas peddle to the floor. Id come up to a stop sign and stop, then at times it wouldnt accelerate, even with the peddle to the floor, it would barely move forward. I brought it back to the person I purchased it from tried to describe what ha... Read more
Incident date: Apr 18, 2025
1. Failed/Malfunctioned Component: March 2025 - Air Conditioning (A/C) control valve, May 2025 - A/C line and seals. 2. Safety Risk: I heard an explosion underneath the vehicle shortly after parking the vehicle in a shopping center. Upon quick inspection, I did not initially observe any obvious broken parts, components, nor any warning lamps, messages or symptoms. The following day while charging... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2025
Vehicle experiences intermittent DTC C222908 (Integrated Brake Actuator internal circuit malfunction). Warning lights (Brake, ABS, ESC, Hybrid System) illuminate intermittently, brake pedal feel changes, and regenerative braking fails. Dealer confirmed stored code but refused repair stating "no current issue". This is a known failure in 2015-2019 Hyundai hybrids that can lead to sudden loss of hyd... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2025
On 11/20/25 I rented a 2026 Dodge Ram truck from Thrifty at the Wilmington, NC airport. My 17 year old daughter was with me. As I was sitting at a red light, I tapped the “comfort” button on the center screen to try to adjust the air conditioner. When I did, the audio system, which had been off, suddenly blasted a radio station to the maximum volume of the speakers. No warning. It was horribly... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2025
Exterior paint (Snow White Pearl) has delaminated resulting in chipping in several places on the hood. This has been previously identified in 5 other NHTSA complaints (11663682, 11636915, 11630983, 11521467, 11498038). The root cause of the issue seems to be a known (but unconfirmed) manufacturer paint defect by Kia. Problems as far back as 2012 involving the paint (Snow White Pearl) have been rep... Read more
Incident date: Nov 16, 2023
So i purchased this van Oct 7.2025. From the day i took it. The doors and trunk going crazy openning on its own. Placing my kids and pets in danger. Alarm going off going crazy and locking our family in the van. Took up to 30 mins to get in and out. I had safe 2019 van soors werent electric never had this issue. Van just stopped in the middle of highway. I was almost hit by semi truck? I was so sc... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2020
When using Apple Car Play and Sirius radio through Apple Car Play, the radio station controls on the steering wheel do not function properly and actually function differently than when using the native Nautilus radio. When using Apple Car Play, in order to change radio stations, you must use the display screen to change stations. This forces the driver, if driving alone, to take their eyes off... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
Driving down the freeway and heard a loud explosion and sunroof shattered with glass falling into the car. It was very discontenting and if there were more cars on the freeway overpass at the time it could have caused an accident as I was stunned by what had happened and lowered my speed. This could have easily led to a collision Went to Kia and mechanic inspected roof and said it appeared to h... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2025
I experienced an incident of spontaneous acceleration of my vehicle on November 21, 2025. I was driving slowly with my foot on the brake as I was about to make a turn and the engine suddenly accelerated. I slammed down on the brake and the car stopped, but this was extremely frightening.
Incident date: Oct 8, 2025
The 2020 Kia Telluride has an issue with the metal window trim pieces. It was purchased as a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle and we have had to have the trim piece replaced at least three times by the Kia Dealer. The piece keep becoming loose and falling off. Some of the pieces on my vehicle have jus fallen off. At interstate speeds of 70 MPH it would be very dangerous. Fortunately, no incident ha... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2025
Electric Horn is not working Horn issue Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) 25-BE-005H published on Hyundai Tech Info under Hyundaidealer.com but it does not include 2019; It includes 2020 -2022 model years
Incident date: Nov 10, 2025
The Panoramic Sunroof Shattered on its Own out of nowhere. It just made loud noise. we thought it was tire, but car did not make move, looking above we saw the panoramic section of sunroof shattered. I went to dealer, they said there is a point of contact (means something has hit the roof) and they told me i have to file with insurance company. Insurance company is asking a million questions. It s... Read more
Incident date: Mar 16, 2024
My car was fine earlier today, but when I drove home and parked, I turned my vehicle off and the fan continued to run. I took my car to Autozone and they ran a diagnostic test with the OEM and no codes came up. They said it’s possibly the motor fan module or some sort of sensor or relay. The car isn’t running hot or anything, but the motor can won’t turn off, so it’s running my battery dow... Read more
Incident date: Nov 18, 2025
Head gasket blown at very low mileage. Roughly a little more than 80,000 miles on them and head gasket was blown. Car went to Limp mode and caused a safety concern while trying to get to a safe location. The problem has been confirmed by a mechanic and all the lights on the dash lit up at once
Incident date: Oct 29, 2025
Earlier this spring, when we started our 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee, the language had changed itself to Italian, the units were metric, the ‘Forward Collision’ off icon was stuck on the dashboard. Also the paddle shifters did not work. In May, 2025, we paid $204.41 to Gary Mathews Motors in Clarksville, TN to ‘diagnose’ and ‘fix’ the issue. Fast forward to this month, and the issue h... Read more
Incident date: Nov 19, 2025
I bought my 2020 Jeep Compass from Moses Factory Outlet in Teays Valley WV 2/1/25. The whole time I have had and operated the vehicle it has had this safety issue. It shuts down unexpectedly with a "high coolant temperature warning" displayed on the dash then resets and turns back on. Sometimes I have to physically turn the vehicle back on. This happens on the interstate randomly when I am going 6... Read more
Incident date: Nov 6, 2025
My knee has accidentally opened the driver door during travel which has caused the door to open unintentionally and brings the car to a stop in traffic.
Incident date: Nov 20, 2025
[XXX] stalling in the middle of the street multiple times with kids in the car on the highway INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Nov 21, 2025
4wd overheating. Owned this Jeep for 8 years and had it in multiple (5x plus) times for service 4wd code. 2 different dealerships cannot fix the issue. Now they are telling me just drive it and not worry about it or trade it in. It smells hot and something burning. I have the life time max care warranty on it. The codes I get are the 4wd is unavailable overheated and service 4wd. They have replac... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2015) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Nov 21, 2025
Incident date: Jun 2, 2025
White pearl paint is chipping off from the vehicle by itself without any outside force. This is outbreaks over all Hyundai white pearl paint vics and they are not account for their defect. This problem eventually cause erosion on the body of the vehicle and treat safety of the drivers and people around it. This seems common issue with my research, please look close into this problem and protect d... Read more
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
MY 2023 Honda CRV sport hybrid has an issue, I guess it’s transmission. When I go for long drives, after driving an hour or hour an half in highway, it seemed like, transmission stuck. Even though I escalated my gas pedal and car is on around 50mph, the car speed doesn’t go up even though rpm is hitting on 75 to 80. It’s dangerous to drive in highway where speed limit is 65 mph and my car is... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2025
As I was parking my car in a parking spot going about 5 miles or less. My car surged forward at a very accelerated speed, and I ended up running into a brushed and a metal fence, which is what stopped me. There were no warnings that went off on my car. No emergency brakes, nothing.
Crash
Incident date: Nov 21, 2025
3 out of 4 of my doors have to be locked and unlocked by hand instead of using my Nissan key button to unlock my car. 3 of the motors are bad or it's some kind of electrical issue that goggle says is common in 2019 to 2020 Nissan Altimas. I feel like I shouldn't have to pay out of pocket myself to get this fixed if it's a noted common issue on goggle.
Incident date: Nov 21, 2025
Vehicle: 2014 BMW X1 xDrive28i Incident Date: 11/21/2025 Location: Interstate highway in Wisconsin Description of the Issue: My husband was driving our 2014 BMW X1 xDrive28i when he was involved in a front-end collision at approximately 40 mph. He struck the rear of another vehicle with the front passenger-side portion of the BMW. Despite the force and angle of the crash, neither the driver airba... Read more
Crash
Fire
Incident date: Nov 19, 2025
I was driving on a very busy road and the vehicle lost power. I consider that my life was in danger because of me the traffic piled up and other drivers were furious with me. No matter what I tried, the car simply would not stop. AAA came and was unable to make the car start. It was towed to a dealership. Prior to this I already had two service visits related to the Start Stop warning light coming... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2025
Transmission failed when mileage was at 88,000 miles and is not opererational to drive. After taking car to a pirate auto shop the mechanic informed me it showed codes P0753 and P073, and informed me the transmission fluid had metal debris inside it. This is a known defect from this specific Kia model. Then took it to the Kia Dealership in Chula Vist, for diagnostic, they informed me P073 code sho... Read more
Incident date: Nov 12, 2025
2 major safety recalls on the vehicle. Manufacturer advised not to drive the vehicle. No solution provided. No loaner vehicle offered. This is my only vehicle, not driving it is not an option, I need transportation to and from work. I have a family. I am terrified to drive the vehicle, let alone put my kids in it. I have reached out to the dealership, Stellantis and OEM in regards to rectif... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2025
VSA Modulator on Honda has failed. This is a defective part but Honda has not recalled. This is a vital safety issue and can cause brakes to lock. Honda refuses to acknowledge defect and will not replace the part free of charge.
Incident date: Nov 3, 2025
I was driving in Chatham, IL at 40 mph when I heard a loud pop, like a balloon burst, then crinkling noises. The panoramic sunroof had exploded & shattered for no known reason. Numerous tiny shards of glass rained down on the backseat, which could have caused injuries if anyone were sitting in the rear seat. I was not traveling under any trees or building, it was not raining at the time, I did no... Read more
PONTIAC
GRAND PRIX
(2004) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Nov 21, 2025
Incident date: Nov 20, 2025
2023 Sprinter van jack was pulled out for the first time to be used last week and found to be unsafe. The jack base is crowned in center, the edges flare upwards and large gouge/groove in metal base, causing the jack to noticeably wobble and rock in manner that it is unsafe to use, fear of jack tilting and dropping van onto user of jack. Jack base has obvious defects and unsafe to use. Have contac... Read more
Incident date: Oct 13, 2025
While slowing down from highway speed during hot weather, the front passenger door suddenly became unlatched and partially opened. A warning alert sounded, and I had to pull the door closed. There were no prior warnings or symptoms, and the dealer has not been able to reproduce the issue.
Incident date: Jul 15, 2025
Part(s) Affected: Engine / Engine Control / Stall / Loss of Power Summary: My 2016 Hyundai Tucson (VIN: [XXX] ) has an active P1326 – Knock Sensor Detection System (KSDS) code, which indicates rod bearing wear and imminent engine failure. The vehicle experiences: •loss of power •inability to accelerate •engine hesitation •risk of stalling while driving These are serious safety risks. ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 21, 2025
The 6F35 transmission in my vehicle is shuddering and it seems like it’s going to possibly mess up my engine or anything else soon. It also jerks a bit forward from 0-25 along with gears slipping. This has almost caused an accident for me.
Incident date: Nov 10, 2025
When I took the car into my ASE mechanic shop for a normal oil change and tire rotation, they performed a general overall car inspection. They noticed that the Driver Side Rear Subframe had rusted through completely, where the coil spring is located. The passenger side was rusted, but has not yet broke through. They stated that the subframe parts should not rust through like this. They also stated... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2025
Without any warning and after about 7 minutes of driving, Jeep turned off while driving at about 40 mph. There were no dash lights or warnings and the Jeep has never had an issue or any other symptom previously. Would not start and had to be towed. 8 hours later it was still in a crank no start condition. Both batteries were fully charged so not a battery issue. I'm a long time Jeep owner, VP of t... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2025
My parked vehicle, with the ignition off, caught fire while I was inside the gym. Within10-15 mins of entering the gym, the gym intercom announced that a car matching the description of my vehicle was on fire on the parking lot. When I went outside, firefighters were actively extinguishing the flams and cutting in the hood of the car. The vehicle was ultimately destroyed and considered a total lo... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Mar 5, 2025
When the car reaches operating temperature slowly a static noise will creep over the speakers and then quickly cut out the audio input and put the speakers to full volume with waves of loud static. Turning off the stereo and turning down the volume does nothing to stop the static. The only way to stop it is to pull the radio fuse. This will also happen on a hot day and not slowly build just sudden... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2025
Driving from Church on Sunday Nov 16,2025 at approximately 10:30 AM, in Pflugerville Texas, the rear window suddenly shattered. No visible signs of objects hitting the window prior to the event. The car had 5700 miles on it, 2025 Nissan Rogue.