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 73,546 complaints - component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Incident date: Mar 1, 2023
I was driving southbound on I429 approaching the Vineland Wintergarden (FL)exit. approximately .75 miles from exit, a bit of an uphill. I heard a ticking noise, then suddenly the car went silent. The screen lit up with every sensor flashing. It took me a few seconds to realize I was in potentially deadly trouble. The car began slowing from 70 MPH to maybe 25MPH as I crested the last hill. To add... Read more
FORD
EXPEDITION
(2020) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 2, 2023
Incident date: Apr 1, 2023
Failure of transmission control module Description fits exact diagnosis in recall. Check transmission light on at 45,000 miles. Andy Mohr wants money to inspect it. I an more than willing to if they will inspect it for free but it is not drivable. If they would come pick it up I would be happy to let them drive it all they want. The problem came with no warning on the Highway. car wouldn’t n... Read more
Crash
FORD
F-150 HYBRID
(2022) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 1, 2023
Incident date: Mar 28, 2023
I believe The failure that i'm experiencing is with the vehicle's transmission. The car stalls or refuses to shift gears, has trouble accelerating, and when the car is trying to accelerating the car makes an unfamiliar noise which is quiet loud and noticeable and sometimes shake or full on just pushes forward randomly. I believe the safety for mine and others can be at risk at times because the... Read more
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2016) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 1, 2023
Incident date: Feb 8, 2023
I was driving on the highway in a mountainous area going downhill. The cruise control was on with the speed set at about 80 miles/hour. Then the car was losing speed, the RPM needle started swinging from left and right. I stepped on the accelerator but the car continue losing speed to 40 miles/hour and continue losing speed. I turned on the emergency light to warn the other drivers and was able to... Read more
FORD
ESCAPE PHEV
(2022) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 1, 2023
Incident date: Feb 25, 2023
Abs pump and control module built with defective part’s causing pump and module failure which in turn caused break failure
Incident date: Apr 1, 2023
I am driving on the new FSD beta that Tesla just released to comply with NHTSA's previous recall, version 2022.45.13. Despite the claim that this release has addressed these issues, I experienced these today while driving around my town on city streets and on the open highway: As I approached the stop sign at the end of the exit ramp off the highway to my neighborhood street, the car blew right pa... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE
(2023) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 1, 2023
Incident date: Mar 30, 2023
While driving 75mph transmission down shifted unexpectedly to 1 gear. Once I got it home had codes checked called for they stated my truck wasn't covered under recall that is out there for 2011 ford f150 doing the same thing.
Incident date: Mar 30, 2023
After 10000 miles my transmission is shifting erratically, especially in the morning
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2019) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Apr 1, 2023
Incident date: Apr 1, 2023
I bought this car used one year ago and have had to change the low beam lights twice and now they are out again. At night I drive with the high beams on and they are so weak no one can tell. Last month the engine started surging making the car try to take off wether in neutral, park or drive. I have to hold the brake very strongly to keep the car from taking off. This is extremely dangerous for ob... Read more
Incident date: Mar 17, 2023
On 2/24 I was driving on Ben Hill Griffin Parkway, I was in the middle lane going thru an intersection, when suddenly while attempting to accelerate to go thru the light, all of my dash lights came on and the gas petal stopped working completely. I had cars in front, behind and on sides of me and I was unable to move out of the way. I attempted to restart the car to no avail. This could have be... Read more
Incident date: Mar 31, 2023
Pulling into a parking spot, vehicle had a sudden burst of acceleration, as it was still on the road, resulting in an accident. Vehicle drove over a parking curb, hitting a small tree and a sign. Vehicle felt like there was a lag in response timing of the throttle to acceleration response. No one was injured, including myself the driver. Vehicle at this moment is at the VW dealership getting r... Read more
Crash
TOYOTA
COROLLA CROSS
(2023) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 31, 2023
Incident date: Feb 14, 2023
The contact owns a 2006 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated that while driving in reverse and reversing out of the driveway, the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration and drove in reverse across a parking lot crashing into two parked vehicles, and hitting a tree before driving across a side road and into a ditch. During the incident, the front driver sustained neck stiffness and the fr... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Mar 24, 2023
I was pulling into a parking place and the had a sudden unintended acceleration. I was not applying pressure to the gas pedal and was easing into the parking spot. When I applied pressure to the brakes, they were extremely hard to push like they were locked up. The car jumped the concrete barrier, took out a pole fence and jumped a sidewalk the fence stopped it short of hitting thee building.
Crash
FORD
BRONCO SPORT
(2021) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 31, 2023
Incident date: Jan 15, 2023
The ABS module has to be replaced!
Incident date: Mar 20, 2023
All of the advanced safety features have stopped working in my Mach E The curse control does not work either the adaptive or the standard. The pre-collision system is not working, lane assit is not working. The absence of these working systems is a danger. Ford knows about this software problem with the software, however they refuse to fix the problem at there expense. The Mach E was designed fr... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2015) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 31, 2023
Incident date: Mar 27, 2023
I was driving down the road and heard a grinding noise from engine. I pulled over to check under the hood for fluid leaks or check engine lights which everything checked out good temp gauges and everything giving normal readings. I then proceeded to keep traveling my route and about 5 minutes in I was loosing power and my car wasn't accelerating any more. I contacted the dealership I received my c... Read more
Incident date: Mar 31, 2023
My engine had been using oil at a very fast rate and I was just told that hyundai consume a lot of oil. I have had this car since 77k miles and have issues ever since I bought it. At first I had issues with it not accelerating on the interstate and then it would randomly stop while I was driving, almost like a car hiccup. I took it to the dealership, and other car shops and no one found anythin... Read more
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2008) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 31, 2023
Incident date: Mar 18, 2023
Part 43777-1G100 Pin-Snap is Part Code 43777B does not keep linkage attached to transmission shifter, it broke/snapped off due to wear and tear on a vehicle that only has 65,000 miles on it causing the vehicle to be stuck in drive.
Incident date: Mar 31, 2023
My 2008 toyota highlander gas pedal must be lose.because I barley push the gas and it takes on fast.i was driving home on the highway and the truck just died .the battery dies I couldn't turn my wheel I could not press the break
Incident date: Mar 17, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated to 60 MPH. The vehicle began to shudder and failed to accelerate above 20 MPH. The check engine warning light was illuminated and flashing. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approxi... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
PASSAT
(2006) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 30, 2023
Incident date: Jan 1, 2015
The ABS system got wet and shorted out the electrical system. It seems it may have been a recall earlier that was done but obviously it has failed again. Was driving and all lights and beepers went off. My abscandvtraction control and brake sensor and cruise control and park assist and engine and brake lights are all on and it now won’t start easy. It’s a mess and at the dealer who says they w... Read more
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
Ford Ranger XLT VIN [XXX] Ford File CAS [XXX] opened 02/08/23 Contact: [XXX], [XXX] Ext [XXX] Acceleration Incidents on trips between Mobile and Dallas. 1. Vehicle purchased March, 2021. Current mileage 6400 +/- 2. In July, 2022, after driving 6 hours at interstate speeds using cruise control, we exited interstate and drove secondary streets to hotel. On entering parking lot we idled toward ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 19, 2022
Initially the check engine light came on; took it to service center and the fuel sensor was replaced. Check engine light comes on the next day which revealed an evap code error. Suggestion was take it to dealer for recall check. Safety became an issue when the vehicle sputtered and stalled on the highway. I visually inspected the fuel tank which appeared "sunken" which suggested a vacuum pressure ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 15, 2022
The driver seatbelt doesn’t lock to where it unlocks while driving. Also brakes have to be replaced often then the power control sensor made the car go limp out of no where. The engine light didn’t come on til way later after the car wouldn’t work properly. This is all a hazard to the person driving bc of the car goes limp out of no where it can cause an accident bc it stops working like if ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 16, 2023
Hi! My vehicle went under a recall repair last month. Once completed, the acceleration significantly decreased in the ECO drive train mode. The other modes are working as before. I have been advised that this recall service was required by the NTSB. There are reports of this occurring on credible websites as well. I did report it to Hyundai, they didn't believe me. So, I am reporting this... Read more
Incident date: Feb 20, 2023
My truck has been shifting hard..or taking a very long time to shift into gear. When I put the truck into reverse it doesn't indicate/light up the R-reverse light on dashboard which is dangerous not knowing what gear the truck is actually in..after quite some time it will slam or thud hard into reverse but still doesn't illuminate on the dash...then when switching into drive it slams very hard int... Read more
Incident date: Mar 12, 2023
Originally I had gottem my oil changed at the Hyundai dealership 2 months before . The car was turning off on me while driving making slow turns or slowing down to 5mph or less. Then my car broke down on me and wouldnt turn on. Mechanic was saying there was no oil in and it created a sludge in the engine basically ruining the car. My check oil light never came on, and the oil was just recently cha... Read more
Incident date: Mar 27, 2023
Moved car 30’ from gas pumps to air pump. Slowed to almost complete stop to move closer to air tank. Car accelerated at extremely high speed over curb, knocking over air pump. Car proceeded to smash through landscaping shrubs and hit a tree and nearby pole which stopped the car dead. Felt like a fighter plane pushed me. Entire incident probably lasted a minute. Air bags failed to deploy. Car was... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 1, 2022
Service lights for ABS and traction control systems constantly going on and off during vehicle use, these system failures disable cruise control systems. Truck is at dealer and they have said it needs new hydraulic control unit and ABS parts totaling over $2000 in parts alone, without an idea of when the parts will be available. This seems to be a common failure as I have read many posts of other ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2022
I was trying to park my car on March 11, 2023 at noon, and I noticed a sudden uncontrolled acceleration even when my foot was off the accelerator pedal. Parking collision front sensors failed to provide an early warning, and automatic emergency brake did not engage leading to a minor collision with the vehicle parked in front. The situation occurred so rapidly that I did not have enough time to re... Read more
Crash
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2017) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 28, 2023
Incident date: Dec 16, 2022
Ihad something happen 3 times with the car on my drive to work. It was raining and vehicles ahead of me were kicking up a significant amount of mist in front of my Solterra. I was using the adaptive cruise control feature and it is supposed to follow cars in front of you and slow down or speed up (to your max set rate) to keep with traffic. THREE (3) times it did not see the car in front of me and... Read more
Incident date: Mar 27, 2023
On Saturday, 3/4/2023, I stopped at a supercharger lot to charge my car during a trip. As I entered the lot, I noticed that the road conditions were poor, almost like a gravel road. To be cautious, I drove slowly towards the three empty parking spaces in the middle of the lot, intending to park in the middle spot. I noticed that the road conditions were even worse in front of the parking spot, but... Read more
Crash
VOLKSWAGEN
TIGUAN
(2019) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 27, 2023
Incident date: Mar 23, 2023
Repeated random breaking when in cruise control or auto steer. It is available for inspection upon request. Car abruptly stopped on busy road at 60 miles per hour more than once. Slows on expressway repeatedly, which can potentially cause loss of control or being hit from behind. Vehicle has not been inspected for this issue. There have been no warnings of the problem prior to the failure. This... Read more
Incident date: Mar 27, 2023
Car unexpectedly accelerated when turning into a parking space. Gradually braking going in to the space and then car suddenly accelerated across the curb and hit a building. Car can be available for inspection. No one was hurt but only because of being lucky that no one was on the sidewalk by the building. Emergency services were called and police made a report and all is reported to the insur... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
The vehicle stability control system randomly engages and activates the brakes without cause. This can happen on a gentle curve going under the speed limit. It is very scary and I am afraid it is going to cause an accident. Internet research shows many owners with this issue and no information on the cause or a fix
Incident date: Mar 13, 2023
I have been contacting Hyundai since before November 2022 on an issue with the engine. At this point, the engine was spuddering, hard to acclerate, lags, shuts off yet no warning lights were on. I was told about the engine recall which is why I went there. Set an appt and when I got in, he said it does not SOUND like a rod knock and sent me home even though there is an active recall on the car ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 19, 2022
The component that failed was the transmission and transmission pump. We have receipts and digital verification of this situation as a common problem with this Ford model. Our safety was put at risk as the vehicle suddenly lost power on the highway in a rural area and we had to drift with what speed we had left to the right lane shoulder and hope there was a shoulder as we could not back up or g... Read more
Incident date: Feb 28, 2023
On February 25, 2023, while slowing down as I approached an intersection controlled by a red signal light and applied my brakes which was slowing me down. My foot never moved off the brake pedal as I slowed down. Suddenly, the Jeep Gladiator "accelerated/surged" forward and stated gaining speed. Although I was applying constant pressure on the brake pedal, the vehicle never slowed down or stoppe... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Mar 1, 2023
When running on a highway and you press down on the accelerator hard to merge onto a highway or go around a vehicle to move out of the way of vehicles quickly coming up behind you, the engine takes over and speeds up on its own. It has occurred three times on a newly purchased used car and it will increase speed up to 100mph. You have to press intermittently on the brakes to pull over to the shou... Read more
Incident date: Sep 19, 2022
While driving on the highway at 60 mph, the vehicle Started To feel like it was trying to go forward (thrusting) on its own. It then accelerated on its own to over 80 mph. I slammed on the brakes and pulled over and put it in park.the engine was revving in park. After Kia roads on assistance couldn't send a tow truck,I thought I would be okay driving on the emergency lane The 2 miles home from th... Read more
Incident date: Feb 22, 2023
When using my Cruise Control the speed jumps up to 75-85 mph without my input. For example, when I set the cruise control to 55 it suddenly jumps up to 75 or 85 mph on its own. This happens when the speed signs on the road change. This past week I used my cruise control for a long trip. I was on a highway that changed the posted speed from 55 to 65 mph. The cruise control suddenly went from the p... Read more
Incident date: Mar 11, 2023
Just financed this car on the 18th of February the engine light is constantly coming on and staying on now also the stable light keeps popping on the car is sputtering and shaking and can barely get up speed when driving it's making a funny noise
Incident date: Mar 24, 2023
Vehicle will repeatably go incorrect speed limit while on Autopilot or Fsd(beta), internal mapping data has incorrect speed limits, sometimes 65 in a 30, other times 25 in an unmarked 55. Speed limit may change multiple times within a short distance making it hard to correct without slowing or speeding up This is on software 2022.45.12. ( fsd 11.3.3), has been a constant issue on previous version... Read more
Incident date: Mar 24, 2023
On a two lane road with no traffic approaching and no traffic behind us on us95 in the Nv desert, the model 3 slammed on the brakes and slowed from 60mph to 30 or less. This is with the adaptive cruise control engaged, not auto steering. This happens several times. There were several times when large semi trucks were approaching in the opposing Lane and the model 3 slammed on the brakes also when... Read more
Incident date: Feb 27, 2023
Vehicle will delay acceleration when I have stopped at a stop sign or stop light. When I press the gas pedal it will delay acceleration for a couple of seconds and then final take off. It doesn't happen often and I find that if I turn the engine off and wait a few minutes and start it again, it goes away for several days but does return.
Incident date: Jun 1, 2021
My name is [XXX] DL #[XXX], I live in Detroit Michigan 48219, About August 2022 I purchased a used 2018 Jeep Compass. About late November 2022 I was driving on the drive free way and the I got a quick dashboard reading High coolant Temperature and the vehicle started slowing down, I push the gas pedal and the car, accelerate it. I truly thought I did not have any radiator fluid in the radiator so ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2020
My model 3 on crusing speeds on high ways, automatically applies brakes and makes sudden,abrupt, jolted slowing down which causes extreme pressure on persons body
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2014) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 26, 2023
Incident date: Mar 25, 2023
Same issue I've been reporting several months. This morning I downloaded yet another software update, got in my car, drove to Chick-fil-a on a Sunday because Tesla has not fixed this fatal braking bug on the highway for a non-existent round-a-bout so I use that for the car to navigate to. The car tries to get on the state road instead of the highway so I cancel and take over and drive onto the hig... Read more
Incident date: Mar 25, 2023
Nearly Every Single day on my drive home north on AZ hwy 90 my 2020 Tesla Model Y abruptly disengages and breaks from cruise control. it is especially startling when I pass a vehicle and then return to my lane only to have the car dramatically slow. I could be ok if it just disengaged cruise but daily multiple times it breaks on a fast moving highway
HYUNDAI
SANTA FE SPORT
(2018) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Mar 25, 2023
Incident date: Jan 1, 2021
All vehicle safety sensors going off at once. Speedometer indicated car is going 0mph while car is clearly being driven