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.

2,215,138 Total Complaints

138,663 Reported Crashes

56,255 Reported Fires

8,561 Reported 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

How to Read NHTSA Consumer Complaints › How NHTSA Investigations Work › Used Car: 7 Recall Checks to Run First › The Takata Airbag Recall: Full Story › OBD-II Codes Explained › All Articles ›

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Showing 72,878 complaints — component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

Incident date: May 22, 2026

On XXX, my vehicle unexpectedly activated its automatic braking system while driving, resulting in a rear-end collision. My infant daughter was in the vehicle at the time. While we were fortunate to avoid catastrophic injuries, the incident placed both of us in significant danger and could easily have resulted in a much more serious outcome. The other driver may also have sustained injuries as a r... Read more

Crash 1 injured

Incident date: Jan 5, 2023

CHRONOLOGY OF CASCADING VEHICLE SAFETY FAILURES VIN [XXX] Vehicle 2015 Honda CR-V. 1 STRUCTURAL BODY FRAME DEFECT. Vehicle has a chronic upper body structural alignment defect allowing massive water intrusion to bypass factory headliner and moonroof seals. Multiple consecutive factory OEM headliners have been destroyed by water logging, proving the upper tracking architecture is permanently warpe... Read more

Incident date: May 29, 2026

While driving a brand new Kia Carnival Hybrid (purchased yesterday), I experienced a severe, life-threatening powertrain acceleration lag from a rolling start. My children were in the car and this was very scary. When attempting to accelerate into oncoming traffic on a wet road surface, the vehicle completely hesitated and dropped power for approximately 1.5 to 2 seconds, leaving the vehicle stran... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

My 2025 Cadillac Escalade ESV lost power and shut down while I was driving on the highway. The gas pedal stopped responding, and the vehicle would not restart afterward. This created a serious safety risk because the vehicle suddenly lost propulsion while driving in traffic. The vehicle is less than one year old and is already going to be on its third engine. The original engine was already repla... Read more

Incident date: May 4, 2026

Vehicle Information: • Year/Make/Model: 2021 Toyota Camry • VIN: [XXX] Incident Date: May 4, [2025] Incident Time: Approximately 9:45 AM Incident Location: [XXX] toward [XXX] Description of Incident: While driving at approximately 25 MPH, multiple dashboard warning lights suddenly illuminated simultaneously. Immediately after, the vehicle began to accelerate on its own without any input f... Read more

Incident date: Jun 26, 2024

NHTSA Recall 24V276000 covers an accelerator pedal pad that can dislodge and become trapped under the pedal, causing unintended acceleration. This recall was identified as active and unperformed on my vehicle by Tesla Council Bluffs, IA. Tesla Pensacola told me the vehicle had "nothing wrong" and performed no recall work despite multiple service visits. Safety risk: Unintended acceleration is an ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact stated that the anchor in the third row detached. The vehicle rolled while in the drive position. The vehicle failed to accelerate. While reversing, the vehicle jerked. No warning lights The vehicle was taken to the local dealer on five occasions and was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was appr... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

While traveling along a high-speed highway, our 2026 Palisade unexpectedly suffered a severe loss of acceleration. Despite fully depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle struggled to exceed approximately 20 miles per hour. This alarming malfunction placed us in a precarious and potentially dangerous situation, as the drastic reduction in speed exposed us to the risk of being rear-ended by fas... Read more

Incident date: May 29, 2026

The vehicle goes into limp mode without warning no matter the speed. cylinder head temp sensor is not applicable on this 1.6 engine model. The coolant over temp light illuminates with or without the car running. coolant temperature sensor was replaced and indicates no faults to the obd. the coolant level and temperature is within spec.

Incident date: Jan 6, 2026

The speedometer registers speed up to 7mph over actual speed for the first 15 miles then returns to matching GPS speed. Reported to Toyota, dealer said they have seen this before but not identified a fix as of today

Incident date: Jan 27, 2025

Intermittently, when coming from a stop (stop sign, red light, etc) or recent start of the vehicle, the Sorento will not accelerate past approximately 30 miles per hour and the auto-stop light will flash orange in the panel. Once the vehicle is stopped, turned off, and restarted, it goes back to operating as it should and accelerates like normal. This has happened when driving on small, low spe... Read more

Incident date: May 29, 2026

The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while using the cruise control at 60 MPH, the vehicle began to accelerate. The contact was able to depress the brake pedal to avoid a crash. The cruise control was restarted and set to 50 MPH, and the vehicle accelerated again without warning. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manuf... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2026

Car developed a sudden loss of power. Would start, although roughly (took a couple of times to start), then once shifted into Drive, the engine was very sluggish, like it was stuck in a lower gear. Upon stopping and restarting the engine, the problem would sometimes resolve and the car could be driven normally, however it felt unsafe to drive at normal speeds. No warning signs appeared. After c... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

Loss of propulsion while driving Yes it is available for inspection upon request Complete and total loss of propulsion/acceleration when pressing on gas pedal while driving and going into a left turn across oncoming traffic; driver and five year old passenger in the vehicle at the time of incident. Safely maneuvered the vehicle to the side of the roadway. Dealership has not been able to recreate t... Read more

Incident date: Apr 30, 2026

Our 2024 Rivian came to a stop at a light with three cars in front of it. We have the video from a home on the street. ABout 12-15 feet behind the next car. Rivian comes to a complete stop. Sits about 5 seconds. Then car surges forward to rear end the car in front. that car hits another car and another car. THe rivian only makes direct contact to the car in front then hits aa parked car nex... Read more

Incident date: Dec 2, 2025

COMPONENT FAILURE: The engine, power train, and speed control systems failed due to the known Nu 2.0L GDI connecting rod bearing defect. SAFETY RISK: My [XXX] daughter was driving in heavy rush-hour traffic when the vehicle suddenly lost motive power and entered a 20 MPH "limp mode." This sudden deceleration created an immediate and severe risk of a rear-end collision, endangering my daughter a... Read more

Incident date: May 19, 2026

2016 Ford F-150 experiencing intermittent and dangerous transmission behavior consistent with the current Ford safety recall involving unexpected transmission downshifts on vehicles equipped with the 6R80 transmission. Vehicle previously required a full transmission replacement/rebuild in September 2025 after repeated violent downshifting and drivability problems. Diagnostic codes at that time in... Read more

Incident date: Feb 6, 2026

Vehicle exhibits repeated brake pulsation and vibration under normal braking conditions, affecting braking performance consistency. The issue began at approximately 10,000 miles and has progressively worsened. The vehicle currently has approximately 30,000 miles. The pulsation is felt through the steering wheel and brake pedal during moderate braking from highway speeds and occurs consistently acr... Read more

Incident date: Apr 26, 2026

We have been having persistent safety issues with this vehicle. The issues have ranged from unsecured gas cap to loss of power. We’ve also had severe transmission issues where the car will not shift out of first gear. This happened on the Garden State Parkway and nearly caused an accident as the car wasn’t able to go above 27 mph safely.

Incident date: Feb 2, 2026

When driving, the car would go into limp mode and wouldn’t get out of 2nd gear. it was super jerky as well. when taken to a mechanic, it was diagnosed with malfunctioning transmission among some other things such as brakes and tires. we take fairly great care of our vehicles and get them seen for regular maintenance. once the car started acting up, the check engine light came on. it is now unsaf... Read more

Incident date: May 7, 2026

The dash lights constantly indicate that the ABS and traction control systems are activated. The vehicle is also producing code c1073, indicating that the ABS control module must be replaced, however MOPAR does not have any replacements, new or rebuilt, available.

Incident date: May 16, 2026

After driving my vehicle for a short period of time I stopped to go shopping. When I returned to my vehicle I started it as usual and the check engine light illuminated. I began driving and within 0.25 miles I received an info enter message that stated my vehicle would have reduced acceleration and to please drive safely. My engine fans became noticeably louder and ran the entire trip home (about... Read more

Incident date: May 25, 2026

While driving my 2023 Nissan Rogue on Interstate xxx from [XXX] to [XXX] with my xxx daughter in the vehicle, the vehicle suddenly displayed multiple warnings including collision assist/sensor malfunction warnings, start/stop system failure warnings, and “check owner’s manual” messages. Immediately afterward, the vehicle experienced a sudden loss of power and refusal to accelerate. At the... Read more

Incident date: May 22, 2026

This issue has happened three times. I am on the highway going 70mph, the RPMs fluctuate, the headlights go out and then I lose propulsion/unable to maintain or increase speed. This is a safety concern as it has happened 3 times on the highway with no warning and limited time to pull over to safety. The dealership is unable to replicate the problem or diagnose an issue.

Incident date: May 27, 2026

While driving my 2025 Chevrolet Equinox, the vehicle experienced a sudden power and drivability issue. The vehicle began to decelerate on its own while in motion, even though I was actively driving. A warning notification appeared on the driver dashboard, and shortly after, the vehicle power shut off. This creates a serious safety concern because the vehicle can unexpectedly lose speed and/or pow... Read more

Incident date: May 27, 2026

My driver airbags have been deactivated for quite some time. My radio touchscreen doesn't work, and the electrical issue has drifted all the way into my steering wheel where I can't control any type of cruise control properly.

Incident date: Feb 13, 2026

Clear day and dry conditions. Pulling into a parking space going 4-5mph with foot hovering brake. Car then accelerated on its own into a building.

Incident date: May 26, 2026

For the third time the 2025 KIA Carnival Prestige I own lost power while driving on the interstate! Without warning, the vehicle would no longer respond to the accelerator pedal. No matter what I did I could not get the vehicle to accelerate past 35 mph. The minimum speed limit on the interstate is 45 mph. I had to immediately engage my hazard lights and make my way over to the shoulder of the r... Read more

Incident date: May 15, 2026

I was driving on the freeway and my check engine light started to flicker and I felt my car shake and going to limp mode. I made an appointment with the Kia dealership and they told me the engine is failing. They submitted a request for a Goodwill case to Kia corporation and it was denied since there’s no open recalls and is not covered by the extended warranty. the dealership recommended me to ... Read more

Incident date: May 10, 2026

on 5 different occasions over the last month, I have had the car go into an engine shut off and said put it into P or N and restart while I am driving on the road!! 05/10-was going to a stop sign and going 5-20 mph. 05/17-happened twice that day, both driving around town 10-30 mph. 05/26- happened driving around town going around a curve 5-20 mph. 05/27 getting off the interstate and getting ready... Read more

Incident date: Apr 18, 2025

Doesn't slow down properly when I step off from gas pedal and try to stop at traffic light/stop signs and before making turns. It barely reduces average 2 mph for whole block. Lets say when I step off from the gas pedal at 25 mph, the car reduce the speed to about 23 mph when it's so close to light/stop signs and right before making turns. It seems like there is no 1st gear, just 2nd gear is the l... Read more

Incident date: May 24, 2025

Low idol sputters then dies down shifts clunks and stays stuck in 3rd gear cruse control fails different modes stop working wrench light on dash truck is lurching on takeoff basically just destroying itself while in operation rendering it undriveable

Incident date: Jan 10, 2025

Car drives sluggish then takes off rides fine for awhile then problem repeats

Incident date: May 19, 2026

First incident, vehicle completely lost power and turned off while driving down highway, fortunately I was able to coast in to shoulder and request a tow. Second event the vehicle flashed all warning lights while traveling down interstate and had a quick shudder. This was similar to first incident. However, lights eventually cleared themselves and power wasn’t lost. Third incident vehicle warnin... Read more

Incident date: May 25, 2026

My throttle got stuck and i hit a fence.

Crash

Incident date: Mar 19, 2026

THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED, NO DEALER ADVICE TO REPLACE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD ALL OF A SUDDEN MY VEHICLE WENT FROM HIGHWAY SPEEDS TO LIMP MODE ON THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY AND A WHOLE BUNCH OF WARNINGS CAME ON SECONDARY BRAKE SYSTEM FAILURE, HYBRID CONTROL FAILURE , STOPED ON THE SIDE OF ROAD TRUCK STALLED THEN RESTARTED NORMAL THEN ALL WARNINGS CAME BACK AND BACK TO LIMP MODE, PROBLEM COMFIRMED ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 5, 2024

The car does not accelerate when the gas is pressed. It will delay, jerk or accelerate slower than it's supposed to.

Incident date: Mar 5, 2026

I started to pull forward from a pharmacy drive-through at an intended low speed (approximately10/15 mph) for a right turn onto a driveway. The car was on auto-hold and in drive gear. When I turned right, the vehicle went into a full throttle acceleration and continued until impact. Brakes were totally ineffective. A TWO-LINE BRIGHT YELLOW MESSAGE FLASHED IN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL, "TRANS... Read more

Crash

Incident date: May 26, 2026

This morning, around 9 AM, I was stopped on [XXX] in traffic, just south of [XXX] . [XXX] ) Foot on break, waiting for traffic to start moving. Engine suddenly revved to about 4k RPM. Car started to lurch a bit, I had to put increased pressure on the brake to hold it. I wasn’t sure the brake would hold, so I shifted to neutral, engine revved up over 4k. It settled back down and I wa... Read more

Incident date: Oct 26, 2025

I was driving the vehicle on the highway the cruise control was on. All of a sudden I got a warning on vehicle info panel that stated vehicle power is reduced. The vehicle decelerated on its own and I could not accelerate past 55. The check engine light came on. I pulled off the road and turned the vehicle off. After about 10 minutes, I started the car back up and proceeded down the highway at nor... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2025

The contact owns a 2022 FORD EXPLORER. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V455000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. Local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact state that while his daughter was at a stop sign and depr... Read more

Incident date: Oct 25, 2024

My car is experiencing a harsh down shift from 3rd to 4th gear with lack of power on acceleration on my vehicle since 10/25/2024. I have taken it in to three service departments including Karl Flammer Ford in Tarpon Springs, FL. Each service department has said the only remedy is a New Transmission estimated to be $7,000-$8,000 (receipts of diagnostics can be provided). We have already spent $52... Read more

Incident date: May 14, 2026

About 30 mins prior to the incident,the accelaration was vey slow getting upto only 30/35MPH Message appeared in Dash Board instructing to SCHEDULE MAITANANCE SERVICE SOON. My last service was done only 2 months ago. anyhow i decided to drive the nearest Ford Dealer. On exiting the Freeway,the ramp was downhill and the Braking System completely failed and I crashed into the pavement. All the AirB... Read more

Crash

Incident date: May 16, 2026

UPDATE to previous complaint – Reference Number: [11738920] VIN: [XXX] Case: Tesla [XXX] UPDATE to my previous NHTSA complaint regarding sudden unintended acceleration in my Tesla Model Y (VIN: [XXX] ) I previously reported a sudden acceleration incident on [XXX], at [XXX] 4 parking garage ramp. Tesla has now provided the Vehicle Data Report and EDR data (Case # [XXX]). The data shows accelera... Read more

Crash 3 injured

Incident date: May 24, 2026

Adaptive cruise control slams on the brakes at highway speed alleging “curvature assist” on flat, straight roads. Dealer replaced firmware and problem persists. Defect appears to be inherent to adaptive cruise control

Incident date: Apr 1, 2025

I own a 2019 BMW X5 xDrive40i with the B58 3.0L turbocharged inline-six engine. While driving in Minnesota, the vehicle suddenly displayed an urgent warning stating “oil pressure too low” and instructed me to stop the engine. This occurred while the vehicle was being operated on the road, requiring me to stop driving immediately. The vehicle was later inspected by an authorized BMW dealer. Th... Read more

Incident date: Nov 13, 2025

driving vehicle down the highway with the cruise control on and it will suddenly slam on the brakes. decreasing the speed rapidly almost causing a rear end accident. Has been brought to drealer for repairs 5 times with no results still does it . to;d repair coming in 3rd quater of 2026 vehicle is dangerous to drive appears to be a problem with these cars do not believe ours is a isolated condition... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

While driving the car immediately downshifted and I could not accelerate. The Hill assist came on and service advance trac came on. This happened 3 times. The first time we towed it to the dealership April 17th, and they changed the oil and tested the battery secured wires and verified after the repair on April 26th. After we picked the truck up on April 26th it stalled on the highway on the home ... Read more

Incident date: Jun 16, 2025

Intermittent abs brake light on return trip in June 2025 diagnosed as a bad abs module. Dealer did not have any stated on back order, now almost a year later as of 5/20/26 Jim Browne Chrysler still states module on back order. And as you know there are no aftermarket parts for replacement. With this issue it keeps other functions of the truck from working. This has been way too long for the gover... Read more

Incident date: May 23, 2026

Toyota is putting people who purchased their new vehicles at risk. They have my car sitting here with an extraordinarily dangerous recall which they promised to fix by march but they haven't & it is already nearly June. It literally says the car can blow up. The recall says there's a belt problem & it can blow up at certain speeds & it can be fatal. That is crazy. if they cant fix it then they sho... Read more

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Vehicle Safety

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Consumer Safety Complaints

What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?

How to interpret what you read

If you've experienced a defect

Read more from our blog