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: Feb 15, 2023
the transmission seems to be slipping cs when taking off rpms goes up then vehicle takes off cs when going uphill around 40 vehicle struggles and does not shifts down..need replace transmission...
Incident date: May 17, 2023
Backed out of my driveway yesterday morning on way to work, 5/17/23. Driving down my street approx 15 mph to stop sign. As i approached stop sign I pressed on my brakes to stop and my car would not stop, it immediately accelerated and proceeded toward my neighbors house which was directly in front of me. I kept hitting the brakes and it would not stop. I was able to steer away from the home, went ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: May 15, 2022
When driving and using “autopilot” or just cruise control, the vehicle will randomly brake. Sometimes it brakes lightly, but sometimes it will violently slow the vehicle down, without warning. There is no obstacle in front of the vehicle. If another vehicle is behind the car when the car randomly brakes, this can potentially cause a rear-end event or potentially cause the car that is behind to... Read more
MITSUBISHI
OUTLANDER SPORT
(2012) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 18, 2023
Incident date: May 18, 2023
on cruise control at 70mph starting uphill as speed decreases transmission will shift to a lower gear as it should. almost immediatly speed control shuts throttle down to idle causing drastic loss of speed. In heavy traffic this is a danger to following traffic as it is as if I am coming to an abrupt stop. FMCo manufacturing says so what, take cotrol of your vehicle manually. This is an option but... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2023
At 36,000 miles have been told I need to replace ABS pump control general electrical failure. Also replace ABS module. Parts are not available and are on backorder. I pull a 25 foot camper and this issue is causing concern with vehicle stopping. Apparently is a big problem as parts are not available and dealers that have part will not release parts so my truck can be fixed.
Incident date: May 18, 2023
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Tundra. The contact initially received a recall notice for NHTSA Campaign Number: 09V388000(Vehicle Speed Control); the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the recall was serviced. Recently, the contact stated that as his wife was exiting their driveway, the vehicle independently accelerated without warning. The contact's wife turned the vehicle into her yard where s... Read more
Crash
1 injured
KTM
790 ADVENTURE
(2020) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 18, 2023
Incident date: May 1, 2022
There was a recall on this Camry model 2012 to 2014 that the Charlotte, NC dealership refused to cover. I am having a transmission issue that causes my car to shudder and vibrate at regular speeds. “shudder comes from the transmission, especially during the acceleration of the Camry models. It can be alarming for the driver and be a safety concern when the gears do not properly change during o... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2020) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 18, 2023
Incident date: Aug 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Hyundai Tucson. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at low speeds, pulling into a parking spot on an incline, the vehicle accelerated and failed to stop. Then the vehicle traveled through several 15-gallon pots with trees, a patio, elliptical machines, and a wooden fence. The driver veered to the left, went down a mountain approximately 30 feet, continue... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Mar 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that after slowing down to come to a stop, the vehicle would inadvertently surged forward. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure had since become more frequent. The manufacturer was made aware of t... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2016) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 17, 2023
Incident date: May 14, 2023
I have experienced within 3 months two incidents of unattended, out of control acceleration when pulling into a parking spot. First I drove into some bushes, at the second incident I drove over a sidewalk almost into a building. It was very scary. I found in the internet another person who has experienced the same thing. https://www.vwidtalk.com/threads/sudden-acceleration.6037/ I have not contact... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2023
UNKNOWN; once the car started, it would not accelerate, the EPC and Engine warning lights came on; car still starts up The Tire Pressure sensor light has been going off/on, regardless of the tire pressure being correctly set
Incident date: May 13, 2023
Bought the vehicle beginning of March. Thought it was the battery because it wouldn't hold a charge. Coded battery. Replaced. Twice. Electrical power steering started to code. That wasn't the issue.car started to stall while on the highway or in traffic and cut out. Scary when there's semis behind you and you were just going 65 mph in a 70 and I had just got on the highway from the on ramp and was... Read more
Incident date: Feb 10, 2023
I was parked in a parking lot backing out of a space. I was too close to the right curb so I put the car in drive to go forward to straighten out the tires. The gas accelerated abruptly and would not stop when I pressed the brake. The car jumped the curb/sidewalk and plowed into the parked car in front of me. The gas continued to accelerate pushing the vehicle in front of me about 5 feet back. The... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Feb 18, 2023
The issues with the car happen when attempting to go over 40mph. After maybe 10-15min of driving, if attempting to go over 40mph, the car starts making a clinking sound, a lot of exhaust smoke comes out the back and there is a general inability to accelerate without the engine sputtering which even happened at lower speeds once it has already started to happen. The check engine light come on whe... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2022
drivers seat goes toward dash when key is turned on. have not been able to reset it in any way. cruise control wont activate. front washer pump wont pump. front wiper motor would not shut off. disconnected battery and then wiper motor would not restart. removed the wiper motor and found corosion in printed circuit board. trying to purchase a new front wiper motor. have found that the wai part nu... Read more
NISSAN
PATHFINDER
(2019) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 17, 2023
Incident date: Jan 14, 2023
My wife was pulling into the dentist parking lot, made a slow right hand turn to a parking space when the vehicle suddenly and violently accelerated. Depressing and pumping brake had no effect and the car slammed into a tree destroying the right front of the vehicle. She assured me that she did not depress the accelerator. She is a very safe driver, never received a ticket nor involved in an accid... Read more
Crash
1 injured
FORD
F-150 HYBRID
(2023) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 17, 2023
Incident date: May 16, 2023
Cruise control does not always brake when coming close to object. ABS, traction control and collision warning lights will come on periodically causes cruse control to not operate at all. First time it happened was Dec of 2020, was told by dealer it was faulty sensor and was supposedly fixed yet warning lights continue to come on frequently and cruise control will not work until car if shut of and ... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ID.4
(2023) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 16, 2023
Incident date: May 4, 2023
I was passing on a highway ant high speed and the car shut down. It gave me about twenty seconds to coast to a stop on the shoulder before it completely turned off. This happened twice.
Incident date: May 16, 2023
I was driving my 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe to my morning job, & noticed a slight trembling of the vehicle initially. Upon approaching a stop sign at a 2 way stop, I noticed that my brakes were not fully engaging so I pumped them a couple times. Immediately my car started accelerating on its own faster and faster until my brakes were not stopping the car at all even with my foot pushing the brake pedal... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2023
I was traveling on a neighborhood arterial road, when I heard a load thunk that seemed to come from beneath the rear seat. Moments later, I got a "Check electric vehicle system" warning, followed by "Stop vehicle and check power supply" in the dashboard. After another moment, the power was reduced to a maximum of 25 mph. I turned on the hazard lights because I was no longer able to match the flow ... Read more
Incident date: May 16, 2023
While driving on highway I got below messages “Safety Functions are limited radar block warning message” Warning message went away after 15 minutes but then “Stop Vehicle Check Power Supply” warning message appeared and vehicle slowed on highway and stopped after 2 miles. Dealer replaced ICCU and Fuse that controls high voltage (charges 12v battery from main battery).
Incident date: Mar 15, 2023
The speed sensor on car seems to have failed unexpectedly while driving over a bridge. The car would barely move and could have become a dangerous situation for multiple people had it been typical traffic. The issue seems to be that although the sensors are corrupted, the entire valve body or transmission must be replaced to solve the issue leaving the car inoperable. The car is currently at a re... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 16, 2023
Incident date: May 16, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while entering her garage, the vehicle accelerated. The brake pedal was applied but failed to respond. The contact swerved and crashed into her house. The air bags deployed. The contact sustained injuries to her knee and leg and was transported by ambulance to the hospital for medical attention. There was no reported fire or police r... Read more
Crash
1 injured
CHRYSLER
TOWN AND COUNTRY
(2011) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 16, 2023
Incident date: Dec 24, 2022
The van has a problem accelerating and also seems to stall while driving on the expressway before jumping quickly into acceleration there was a bad storm in Buffalo that I believe contributed to the problems of the Chrysler van
Incident date: Apr 18, 2023
My vehicle has a faulty front camera system that began at around 1800 miles. When driving, multiple lights will illuminate on the dash. The cruise control, blind spot monitoring, lane keep system, and emergency automatic brakes will shut off. It has been in the shop off and on since May 13,2022. Dealership has been replaced multiple parts, but is unable to get camera system to recalibrate and func... Read more
Incident date: May 12, 2023
While crossing the rump and side walk to garage the car, as usual slowly proceed to enter the Garage but immediately the car went into extremely fast speed by itself and hit the side of the Garage, damaged the Garage wall, The garage opener, the cabinet, then hit the water softener and our other car in the front. It also smashed the bike against the wall , damaged the side wall cause a bulge to o... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: May 12, 2023
Automobile suddenly starts trembling while reducing velocity on its own and turn on trac off light, check engine light is on.
Incident date: Apr 29, 2023
I’ve went though 8 wheel bearings in the last 6 months on the drivers side tire alone. I’ve had to replace brake hoses every few weeks and I’ve had to take it to two different dealerships. Also it keep downshift from 6 gear to first with no warning. I’m afraid it’s gonna cause me to wreck.
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2018) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 15, 2023
Incident date: Mar 27, 2023
No Brakes, Engine Racing, & ignition would not turn off, yes available for inspection at Seth Whatley Ford. Car crashed which was the only way it came to a stop, wheels were still turning when I got out of the car, if anyone one had been around they would have been hurt or killed. Towed to dealer, dealer was unable to find any evidence on their side. Insurance adjuster came out and assess the dama... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Apr 8, 2023
ABS module system has been replaced twice .. needs to be replaced again per Dodge tech. No parts available. Unsafe to drive vehicle with no power brakes This is not unique to my truck. various individuals having same problem with same model Electrical Instrument cluster with display has been replaced and currently working.
Incident date: May 11, 2023
My wife was dropping my kid in the school drop off line. The speed was probably about 5 mph. The Tesla suddenly went into a sudden spontaneous acceleration. When my wife tried to brake, the brakes did not work. There was no forward collision warning beeping sound that went off, which is supposed to. It hit the vehicle in front and finally hit a fence. so, both the accelerator and brake malfunction... Read more
Crash
CHEVROLET
TRAILBLAZER
(2022) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 15, 2023
Incident date: Sep 20, 2022
I was backing out of a parking spot when I came in contact with a vehicle going east bound in the parking lot the contact was on the rear right side of my vehicle before I could do anything my vehicle sped up and proceeded to go forward jump a curb I had my foot on the brakes when I realized I wasn’t stopping and heading for a garage I turned right trying to avoid the garage but still hit the co... Read more
Crash
Incident date: May 14, 2023
About every 10 to 15 seconds an alarm sounds and warning sign blinks on dash with message to service anti-braking system and traction control. If cruise control was engaged it disengages and sometimes will not reset until engine is turned off and restarted. Vehicle seems to have braking issues, especially on wet pavement. Brake pads have been checked and are ok. Vehicle odometer has 34102 miles on... Read more
MITSUBISHI
LANCER
(2009) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 15, 2023
Incident date: Mar 3, 2023
The car started to slow down on its own even when my foot was on the gas it wouldn’t pick up speed over 20mph then it started to over heat, then smoke. It sounded like sparks like from a firecracker and smelt like something was burning to the point I had to pull over and turn the car off so my children and I could get out and breathe. When I restarted it turned on but would not drive when put in... Read more
DODGE
CHALLENGER
(2021) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 14, 2023
Incident date: May 14, 2023
We had just provided a jump start from our Truck to a disabled older Honda Passport with a suspected low battery. This wasn't successful as it turns out it was a broken fuel pump causing the issue with the Honda. We had taken off the jumper cables, closed the hood and I pulled over to let my husband get into the vehicle. I was at idle, in drive with my foot on the brake when our Tundra started to ... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
EQS 450
(2022) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 14, 2023
Incident date: Apr 10, 2023
While driving reduced power light came on. On Highway speed reduced to a crawl.
Incident date: May 14, 2023
Recently purchased a used 2017 Toyota Corolla. During the test drive I did not attempt to use the cruise control as it was only driven on city or small highways. Travel with the car at those locations has been good. Yesterday while on a freeway, I used the cruise control. It started out okay, but when I got to a downhill or uphill location, the car engine got very loud. The rpm’s revved to an ex... Read more
Incident date: May 11, 2023
When I put my truck in gear from park it makes a loud banging noise. Also, my transmission makes loud noises when shifting into various gears. When using cruise control the other day the transmission violently jerked my truck as it was downshifting. I thought the transmission was going to break. I've taken it to the dealership multiple times and they say the transmission has "slack" in it. No... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2023
Dtc p0707 transmssion would go into limp mode while driving in the freeway at highway speeds and drop down to 20-30 mph almost got rear ended common issue on ford f150 with the 6r80 transmssion for the module lead frame recall but only for earlier built but this are also having issues sane transmission same concern
Incident date: May 13, 2023
I live in a very rural area with very little traffic on two-lane country roads. When my cruise control is active, my Tesla sometimes brakes for no reason. A couple of days ago it violently braked from 70 mph to 50 mph for absolutely no reason. On that particular trip of 30 miles or so it "phantom braked" four times. I have had this car for almost 4 years and this problem appears to be getting w... Read more
Incident date: Feb 22, 2023
I had 2 accidents in the same week. First one was Monday 2-20-2023. Leaving work heading home, I was at a red light. The light turned green and the car in front proceeded to go. As I hit the accelerator, my car ran into the back of a car full speed. Every attempt to stop car and was unsuccessful. I called to make appt at dealership to have car inspected. Before I could get to said appt at dealersh... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: May 5, 2023
When applying the brakes to stop at a stoplight, I noticed the brake pedal was very hard and was not stopping the vehicle as it normally did. The stop at the light was not a sudden stop. At the time this incident occurred, the brakes were being gradually applied as the vehicle was coasting to a slow stop. As the vehicle came to rest, the engine started to race with tachometer showing 4500 rpm. I p... Read more
Incident date: May 12, 2023
During normal driving conditions going down a state highway, the vehicle lost speed with adaptive cruise control enabled. Noticing the vehicle was losing speed, I depressed the accelerator pedal. The accelerator pedal was unresponsive and unable to accelerate, I had to maneuver off the highway. Luckily, the car behind my vehicle was far enough behind me and my vehicle was going fast enough that... Read more
Incident date: Apr 6, 2023
MY CAR KEEPS SLOWING DOWN ON ME WHILE DRIVING AND THAS DANGEROUS I HAVE TWO KIDS!! MY CAR WILL NOT Accelerate ONCE IT SLOWS DOWN . MY CAR ENGINE LIGHTS KEEPS BLINKING. ALL MY LIGHTS BEEN ON MY CAR FOR A YEAR AND THIS NEEDS TO BE FIXED IT NEEDS TO B W RECALL OM THESE CARS BEFORE HONDA HAVE W LAWSUIT WITH THESE CARS TO MANY PEOPLE HAVING THESE PROBLEMS. I HAVE HAD MY CAR TWO YEARS NO WAY I SHOULD HA... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2015) — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
May 12, 2023
Incident date: May 12, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she heard a rattling sound under the hood of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was then taken to Auto Zone where it was placed on a diagnostic machine and the contact was informed that the vapor canister was faulty. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer where ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: May 8, 2023
The Ioniq 5 offers a multi-level regenerative braking system, which slows the car down to varying degrees when letting off the accelerator pedal. While these systems work well to increase efficiency, the behaviour of the brake lights while in use is concerning. Very often the car is slowing considerably, enough to be akin to light braking, but the brake lights do not activate. This can be full let... Read more
Incident date: Apr 19, 2023
Almost everyday I have to restart the car while I'm driving because the car starts playing songs that are mean, discriminatory, or out right telling me to "Kill yourself on the beach" and "You can't sit here". While I'm driving I'm forced to restart the car to regain control of my instrument cluster which when resetting while driving you basically lose all features of the car minus steering gas an... Read more
Incident date: May 12, 2023
The contact owned a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated while her son was driving approximately 35-40 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated and was flashing; however, he continued driving the vehicle. The contact stated that she later took the vehicle to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the knock sensor and an unknown component needed to be replaced. The vehicle was r... Read more
Crash
1 deaths
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
The PCM shorts out and fails when sparkplug and Coil packs replaced this cause the steering system to fail speedometer to quit and no transmission connection