Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,215,138 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA — including 138,663 crashes, 56,255 fires, and 8,561 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 2,215,138 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 72,878 complaints — component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Incident date: Jul 26, 2023
I was attempting to park my car at parking spaces inside a garage. The car was about half way into the spot, and I released the accelerator to slow down. Suddenly, while my foot was off the gas, the car accelerated on its own, lurching forward and hitting a barrier, which protected against falling off the side of the garage into the floor below. The car sustained minor damage to the hood, but it c... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Aug 8, 2023
I was pulling out from my street that connects to a two lane highway. From my street you can see if cars are coming from quite a distance away. There was a semi truck in the distance going east bound in the direction I needed to torn into. There was absolutely enough room for me to merge out into the east bound lane without the semi truck even being affected. I was now about a 1/4 mile down the ro... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2023
While driving my 2001 Sequoia SR5 with only 74,750 miles on freeways at speeds between 55 and 65 mph, the SUV's braking system activates unexpectedly and without cause. The VSC check engine lighting and warning sound illuminate. My SUV veered to the right, the steering wheel vibrated, and it went into a skid when the brakes were abruptly engaged, causing it to skid. My SUV abruptly decelerated as ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2023
I have a 2018 Dodge 3500 with 9800 miles on it.. The ABS light has come on reflecting a braking and control problem. This also shuts down the safety system within the brakes, shuts down the 4 wheel drive and cruise controls also. It is my understanding from the dealership, there is a problem with the parts within this system, and they can not get any parts released to them for repair. They also d... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2023
2000 Ford Excursion recall was never done. Allan Vigil Ford in Clayton County GA disconnected my airbag, horn, and cruise control. They stated that a part was on order to complete the recall. We checked up on this over and over and over, the part was always "on order". This part was never installed/replaced on my car and the three things that were disconnected were never re-connected. Yet, they re... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2023
I was driving my 2017 rogué sport on the freeway and suddenly it began to jerk up and down speed and I tried to brake and the brake did not respond suddenly it accelerated and went off I could not brake and I could not control it and the weather did not help me it had rained And as you will understand, the car turns off and the brake doesn't work, we ended up in the retaining wall, we hit the fro... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Aug 7, 2023
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that during acceleration and takeoff, the vehicle shuddered and jumped forward. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that a reset was needed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 80,00... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2023
The contact owns a 2012 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled. The contact parked and restarted the vehicle. The vehicle was slow to accelerate. After refueling, the fuel dissipated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the throttle body and valve needed to be ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2023
Faults for the ABS (anti-lock brake system) and EBS (electronic braking system) have been coming on intermittently for a couple months. Now the faults are permanently on indicating the ABS and EBS needs serviced. The fault code is c0020-01which indicates the known malfunction involving the anti lock brake system module and anti lock brake system control. While these faults are present the cruise c... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2023
I was turning left into a parking spot at work with my foot slightly on the break when my engine revvved and my car accelerated at face pace and my brakes were unresponsive causing me to hit a parked truck in front of me. Upon impact my vehicle kept trying to accelerate causing me to keep pushing the truck until my front right side of my car broke off. My car STILL kept accelerating and went acros... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Aug 3, 2023
When coming to a stop and electric power is depleted, the vehicle will engage the gas engine and accelerate through a brake. I have to fight the vehicle to come to a complete stop because the engine is pulling me forward through the brake. Due to the unpredictability of the braking system, I must leave a greater stopping distance than required and have almost been in accidents. CAUSE UNKNOWN. I be... Read more
Incident date: Feb 7, 2023
On 30th July 2023 while driving on interstate 8 freeway while using the FULL self driving our vehicle applied auto brake without anyone around. This air rake was so strong that it slowed the vehicle from 75 mph to less than 50 mph in seconds. It scared everybody in the car. We took off the autopilot and applied the regular autopilot and it happened again two more times. Each time there was no vehi... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2023
Collision avoidance light on, cruise control unavailable, ESC error active safety features inoperative. Dealer states out of warranty. 37,600 miles and dealer wants $140.00 just to diagnose. Average layman cannot diagnose vehicle because of dealer system lockouts. Was intermittent, now on permanently.
Incident date: Mar 1, 2023
We own a driving school. My husband was giving a road skills test for a student in our 2018 Hyundai Elantra. For unknown reasons the car rapidly accelerated. He told the driver to get off the accelerator. She said she was not on the accelerator. He looked over and her foot was on the brake. We have an instructor's brake and by pressing it my husband was able to overpower the Elantra accelera... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2023
First the brakes went out, then the AC, now the transmission. It has only 60,000 miles.
Incident date: Jul 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle came to a complete stop at the traffic light; however, the contact stated that the vehicle then unintendedly accelerated and rear-ended the vehicle ahead. A Police report was filed. There was no injury sustained. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechan... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Nov 1, 2022
Warning lights go crazy. Power steering goes out for several seconds. Rpms and speedometer go nuts or lay on zero. Sometimes I can’t shift into drive for several minutes. sometimes it sounds and feels like (under the pedal, in acceleration) it’s losing power for a few seconds, almost like a slipping feeling but in power. The clock and profiles have reset overnight before where I had to reset c... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2023
As you are driving the vehicle will randomly down shift into first gear, causing the vehicle to potentially slam into first while in mid drive almost as if you hit a wall, this causes the vehicle to lose any information on the dash including speedometer. There are no warning lamps on prior to incident. Took it to a dealer to have it diagnosed and diagnosis was recorded as Transmission speed sensor... Read more
Incident date: Jul 13, 2022
The dash instrument cluster failed and went dark leaving no information for the driver. Speedometer, fuel gauge, odometer and all warning lights are out. The vehicle went to Walnut Creek Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram on 6/15/23. They confirmed that the cluster was out. They also mentioned that this is a common problem and would take 2 weeks. The vehicle could not be used, because of the fear of no speed... Read more
Incident date: Aug 4, 2023
The rear motor (drive unit) has gone out on this car twice in the last four years. I purchased it after it was last repaired. It most recently went out on 08/04/2023. When it went out two days ago it had less than 30,000 miles on it. This car has a motor on both the front and rear axles, so while the vehichle was still moving forward, if it slowed down at all that would engage the regenerative bra... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2023
Hi, I was on cruise control (not autosteer) on highway and I just applied turn signal and my Model Y suddenly applied brakes and speed was reduced to around 50MPh from 70MPh. We might get into some serious accident if there was a car behind us. Need someone to look into issue please.
HYUNDAI
IONIQ HYBRID
(2021) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 6, 2023
Incident date: Jul 24, 2023
ABS warning light came on, this also shuts down the cruise control system. ABS traction control is inoperable, my understanding the problem is the ABS/HCU pump/Module.. I only have 9087 miles on this truck. It’s a Dodge 3500 Dully. I garage keep and baby this truck, as I paid a lot of money for it. It is my understanding, based on all the internet feedback, that this is a major safety issue a... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2023
I’m driving with cruise control on the highway at 65 and all of a sudden it shuts off. The check cruise system light comes on along with a triangle with an exclamation point in the middle of it in the lower left side of dashboard and the letters EPB lights up on the lower right side of dashboard.
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLE 450
(2021) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 5, 2023
Incident date: Jul 30, 2023
Driving down a multi-lane highway at 70 mph, a 48V battery malfunction warning goes off as well as the yellow check engine light. A few seconds later a ‘coolant’ error alert pops up. SUV loses acceleration with power dropping from 70 mph to 55 mph to 35 mph. Another message displayed on screen warning me to “Pull over and turn the engine off.” Narrowly missing being hit from the back, I ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 4, 2023
Just completed a 2week trip and the car attempted to stop on its own over 37 times (stopped counting) on the highway. 2times I had a semi within a block of my rear of the car. Since this occurrence is not anticipated it worries me that it's going to cause an accident. Reported to Tesla and it's days the feature is beta, I don't believe that for a second . This my 3td car with adaptive cruise ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 19, 2023
On 19 July 2023 at approximately 4am in the morning, while with my wife traveling north on I-95, I was driving approximately 77 mph and my 2022 Tesla Model 3 SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES. I had several cars directly behind me that had to slam on brakes and perform other evasive driving maneuvers as well. Luckily my reaction time was quick enough for me to SLAM ON THE ACCELERTOR to avoid a very serious w... Read more
Incident date: Jul 26, 2023
Purchased a new Hyundai 2023 Sonata from McGovern Hyundai Rt 2 May 22, 2023. After two weeks of driving the vehicle, I noticed it hesitates when I push down on the gas pedal. I had planned to have the dealership take a look but have a very busy schedule, the issue continued each time I drove the car to the point it was hesitating, basically pausing as I cross intersections. On the 26th of July I w... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2023
This RAV4 is having acceleration issues. While driving it randomly has issues at the time of acceleration. It has happened from a stop to a go, and gaining speed. This issue has put me into an incredibly vulnerable situation as I was very close to being hit by a semi while trying to merge onto the high way twice. When I pressed down on the accelerator, the engine hesitated to start gaining speed s... Read more
Incident date: Feb 7, 2022
GPS/ RADIO FAILING,UNDER WARRANTY FORD TRIED TO FIX, NEEDS A NEW RADIO BUT DOESN'T KNOW WHEN THEY CAN GET ONE. ALSO CRUSE CONTROL NOT FUNCTIONING PROPERLY- FORD DEALER REPLACED STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS BUT ON ONE OCCASION WHEN PUSHING THE REDUCE SPEED BUTTON THE TRUCK KEPT ACCELERATING TO 10 MILES ABOVE SPEED LIMIT BEFORE IT DISENGAGED. FORD GARAGE SAID IF THEY CAN'T GET IT TO REPEAT THIS PROBLEM, T... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2020
Since inception of purchasing the vehicle in January 2019, I have experienced a sudden jolt, banging sound/feeling. In the beginning the issue was subtle. In addition, I have felt a sudden loss of speed. It should be noted I did not seek any service at this time. As a side note, sometime in 2020/2021 i received a letter of a recall for fault PTU however this was for another jeep i owned no longer ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 24, 2023
I was driving down the interstate and the entirety of the electronic screens froze up. The data presented on the screens was frozen and all the touch buttons froze. With no access to any controls, in a downpour, I was unable to adjust the climate control, turn on the defrosters or have any idea how fast I was going. I proceeded to stop on the interstate, thinking I could shut the car off and re... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while in park, the vehicle accelerated independently. While driving at unknown speeds, the vehicle accelerated without the accelerator pedal being depressed. The driver was unable to control the vehicle. The check engine warning and power train warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated t... Read more
Incident date: May 5, 2023
I am writing to express serious concerns about the safety and performance of my Kia vehicle. Over the past few months, my car has been exhibiting abnormal behavior, jeopardizing the safety of myself and other road users. One of the most alarming issues is the unpredictable acceleration and deceleration of my vehicle, especially on the highway. There have been numerous instances where it failed to ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 11, 2023
Hyundai filed Recall Campaign 236 for the vehicle entering an unsafe state. On July 10th I took in our 2021 Santa Fe Limited with just over 15,000 miles, which had been operating normally with the serious safety defect and received the Remediation for this recall filed under NHTSA Recall Campaign 236. I took possession back of the vehicle and within a few miles of driving had the exact issues the ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 27, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Tesla Model Y. The contact was driving approximately 3 MPH as she was parking the vehicle, front end first, the vehicle independently accelerated as she removed her foot from the accelerator. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact's vehicle crashed into the vehicle's front end that had already been parked, the vehicle was not occupied. The contact ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Feb 15, 2023
ABS and Tracton control
Incident date: Aug 3, 2023
Drove about 1 hour using cruise control part of the time. Don't usually use it, but used it 2 months ago with no problem. After 1.5 hour visit, drove home. Did not use cruise control, but at last 10 minutes acceleration issue started where car would "rev" even though I was not accelerating. Able to manage it with brake and normal driving. Tried to reset cruise (turn on/off), but car still had epis... Read more
Incident date: Jul 24, 2023
While driving at any speed, vehicle momentarily does not respond to any gas pedal input. Driver presses on gas pedal but no change in speed, no rpm change no warning lights on dash. After a few seconds vehicle responds again randomly. Puts driver at danger due to not being able to same speed as traffic very dangerous!
TOYOTA
RAV4 PRIME
(2023) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 3, 2023
Incident date: Jun 18, 2023
Driver was parking the car in a parking lot at a very slow speed. The car suddenly shot forward at a very high rate of speed, requiring evasive steering from trees and a fence, until the car crashed head-on into another vehicle. The driver is very certain the brakes only were applied during the entire time the car shot forward. Airbags were not deployed. Bystanders were within six feet of the c... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Aug 1, 2023
I have had multiple issues with my forward collision system on my 2022 Escalade. The system randomly fails, alerts of vehicles in front of me without vehicles there, and has even slammed on the brakes while in cruise control on the highway. There was no one in front of me; however, there were people behind me when the brakes slammed. This could easily have caused an accident. I requested the vehic... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that while driving with adaptive cruise control mode engaged and set at approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle accelerated independently as he was approaching a hill. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened; however, no further a... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2023
I have a 2022 Hyundai Tucson with about 15k miles on it. I have had it serviced twice for oil changes and the recommended manufacture recommended maintenance. However, I have noticed a SIGNIFICANT loss in power upon acceleration with this vehicle. My new car drives very rough and this is a safety issue due to the fact when entering the interstate, the car will not increase speed as requested putti... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2023
I was stopped before turning left into a parking space. I was driving slowly. The car stopped but I did not engage the brake as a Tesla will stop once the foot is removed from the accelerator. At that point the car leaped forward at full speed hitting parts of a building and a fence. I did NOT step on the accelerator. No one was injured. The airbags did not deploy even though there was $17,000... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jun 30, 2023
2020 FORD EXPLORER ST-ABOUT 55,000 MILES. DEALER: PREFERRED FORD IN GRAND HAVEN, MI. ISSUE IS SOMETIMES A MULTITUDE OF WARNING LIGHTS WOULD COME ON WHEN TRAVELING. THEY INCLUDE SHUTTING DOWN THE CRUISE CONTROL WHEN IN MOTION, THE FORWARD COLLISION SENSOR WOULD STOP WORKING, ALL WHEEL DRIVE AND HILL ASSIST LIGHTS WOULD COME ON AND STOP WORKING. THIS HAPPENS WHETHER A SHORT TRIP, 10-15 MILE... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2021) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 2, 2023
Incident date: Aug 2, 2023
I have several issues. My main concern is when turning on an incline (hill or mountain), my vehicles rpm's rev up and I am unable to stop it for several seconds. Sometimes, it will clunk and the rpms will go back to normal after sever seconds but most times the vehicle just jerks and the rpms come back down. I drive through a street with a 4 way stop very often and the issue happens every time. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2023
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request?: I got delivery of my new Model Y and odometer was reading 3 miles, i took the delivery and drove 10 miles and it stuck the steering wheel , "rear motor got disabled alert" and vehicle went to slow speed on freeway all of sudden, i had truck behind me it would ended up very bad for me and family, i h... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2023
While driving about 75 mph on an expressway using autopilot or just cruise control, the car decelerated to about 40mph within a few seconds. Thankfully there were no other cars behind me. They likely would have crashed into me if so. I believe Tesla calls this problem “phantom braking.” There were no other cars or objects in front of me when this happened. This happened all within 2-3 hours ... Read more
KUMHO
CRUGEN KL33
(9999) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 2, 2023
Incident date: Aug 2, 2023
The ADAS regularly brakes suddenly for no apparent reason. There does not seem to be a consistent reason. Yesterday, during a 90 mile drive EB on the interstate in the afternoon it braked (scaring us) suddenly so often that it made cruise control more of a hazard than a help. This morning between 9-11 am, westbound on the same interstate it braked suddenly 20-30 times. This sudden braking is dange... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while pulling into a parking spot, she depressed the brake pedal, however, the vehicle accelerated unintendedly and crashed into the windows of a store. There was no warning light illuminated. The air bags failed to deploy. There were no injuries sustained. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard. The vehicle was th... Read more
Crash
GMC
SIERRA 2500
(2012) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 2, 2023
Incident date: Apr 20, 2023
Failed TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE (24256861). While driving in the early morning hours (darkness) taking my child to school, I was navigating through a busy intersection when the vehicle surged and then made a loud metal on metal sound, feeling as if someone had struck me from behind. At that point the power train became inoperable, stranding us and coming very close to being first, struck from ... Read more