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 16,985 complaints for ACURA
Incident date: Nov 24, 2024
97CB (NHTSA campaign ID 16V642000. This recall address this issue on the 2018 Audi Q7. Side marker light malfunction. Does my vehicle qualify?
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
I purchased the above-referenced car in July 2020 almost immediately after purchase the indicator light came on with Chasis failure and the car lowered to a safe distance to the ground. Unbeknownst to me the car had been declared unsafe to drive previously. The airbags had been deployed and placed backward the front sensors were painted over and not operable. I had to take legal action against fou... Read more
Incident date: Dec 12, 2024
The component that is malfunctioning is my engine. I took it into the dealership and they said I had cylinder scoring on my engine from excessive oil consumption. My safety was put as risk as my car threw itself into limp mode in the middle of the high way while going over 70 mph. I had to immediately pull over on the side of the highway and somehow get it back home while not being able to accel... Read more
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal sound emanating from the rear end suspension. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that fuel leak from the fuel delivery system resulted corrosion of the left side leaf spring grummet. The vehicle was repaired. The manu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the RPM's rapidly increased but the vehicle lost motive power, after which, the contact became aware that the vehicle had downshifted on its own. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The vehicle was not re... Read more
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
Head Gasket failure. This causes the car to begin misfiring/stalling while accelerating. This is seriously dangerous. It happens when you are accelerating. Then, since it's an emission/misfire issue, the car goes into limp mode and forces the car to no longer exceed the limp mode speed, which is usually like 30 or 35 mph.The stark difference from highway speed resulted in me almost getting rear-... Read more
ACURA
MDX SPORT HYBRID
(2020) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Dec 12, 2024
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
There is a recall on my 2020 Acura MDX and I have been going to the local Acura dealer to get the part for the last 6 months and every time I go they tell me they are still waiting for the part. Periodically, the vehicle lurches while I am driving causing a major back and forth tugging and jerking. This is very unsafe. I am demanding that Acura prioritizes my need to get this fixed. I do not know... Read more
ACURA
MDX SPORT HYBRID
(2020) — SERVICE BRAKES
Dec 12, 2024
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
Brake warning lamp is on for low fluid but fluid is okay. Electronic stability control not functioning.
ACURA
MDX SPORT HYBRID
(2020) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Dec 12, 2024
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
Brake warning lamp is on for low fluid but fluid is okay. Electronic stability control not functioning.
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
I am filing a complaint regarding an unresolved safety recall (NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V720000) for my 2022 Jeep Wrangler 4xe. The vehicle has experienced stalling and a significant loss of engine power while driving, creating a serious safety hazard. These issues were first noticed in October 2024 and the vehicle has become unsafe to drive as a result. I previously submitted a complaint to the ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2023
Vehicle LOST PROPULSION while driving on the road. The motor (traction inverter) abruptly started to vibrate very aggressively, then the error warning "ENGINE CONTROL ERROR" flashed on the cluster display. The car immediately stopped responding to the gas/drive pedal and quickly coasted to a stop. After a full power-off then back on, the car woke back up like normal - as if nothing had happened.... Read more
Incident date: Nov 2, 2024
Today my 19 year old daughter was driving and her car just died in the middle of the road. And it wouldn’t start back up. It finally did start and she was able to pull over out of traffic. This is a huge safety issue and about the 20th time this has happened to my daughter. It is maybe even happen more. I fill out one of these reports every time and I don’t feel like my voice is heard or th... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2024
Lost power steering while turning into driveway causing impact with light pole.
Crash
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
Loss of power when driving with no warning. Jeep power cut out driving with D flashing. Safety risk was a car on the road driving with traffic then no power. Pulled over to the side to get off the road as far as I could. “Service Hybrid System” message appeared with blinking D. Started back up 20 minutes later. Dealer could not replicate.
Incident date: Jan 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where an unknown diagnosis was provided. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact about an extended warranty. The failure mileage was approxima... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the front windshield cracked without impact during colder temperatures. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 116,000.
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the front headlights shutoff independently while turned on. No warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact who is an independent mechanic determined that the lighting control module (LCM) needed to be replaced. U... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ford F-350 SD. The contact stated while pulling into the driveway approximately 5-10 MPH, the steering wheel separated and fell into the contact's lap. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering column needed to be replaced; however, the part was on a national backorder. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not... Read more
Incident date: Mar 30, 2019
Power steering lost. Difficult to steer. No warning signs displayed prior to incident. Vehicle has been inspected at repair service center, but was unable to get diagnosis. Told it needed to go to dealer. Brake light is also on
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH, the contact looking in the rearview mirror and became aware that the tailgate had opened. The contact pulled over and closed the tailgate. The contact stated that while entering the garage, the tailgate opened unintendedly. The vehicle was not taken to an independent mechanic or dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufac... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
The brake system ABS module/sensor malfunctions- yes it is available for further inspection. Safety is an issue due to the ABS indicator light on. Yes, the problem/issue has been confirmed by a dealership. No inspections have occurred other than the dealership. The only warning is the light indicator for the brakes, parking ABS.
Incident date: Dec 8, 2024
When I start driving, there’s a lot of hesitation like it’s going to stall and it also does this going up hills or mountains? I was on the interstate and there was a line of cars behind me and my car started to hesitate and almost stall, causing all cars behind me to break to not cause a domino effect accident I have reported this to the Kia dealer and knowing that there’s a lot of DCT probl... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, there was an engine misfire. Additionally, the contact stated while driving approximately 70 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where the DTC code was cleared. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to another deale... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle jerked abnormally while downshifting while depressing the brake pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on several occasions and the failure was acknowledged; however, the dealer was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle remained with th... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 MPH and making a right turn, the tailgate erroneously opened causing a metal toy to fall out of the truck bed onto the highway. The toy was run over by a second vehicle causing damages to the front-end of the vehicle and destroying the toy. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local deal... Read more
Incident date: Oct 9, 2024
The sunroof glass blasted and shattered during a drive on an interstate highway. I was driving normally when I heard a loud sound like a tire burst or gunshot. Initially, I thought that my tire had busted. I took an exit and stopped to inspect the tires. I found them to be okay, but I was puzzled where the sound came from. I started driving again and observed that a lot of outside noise was comin... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the parking brake engaged independently, and the vehicle came to a stop on the highway. The contact shifted into park(P), turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the vehicle failed to respond. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and deter... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the parking brake engaged independently, and the vehicle came to a stop on the highway. The contact shifted into park(P), turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the vehicle failed to respond. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and deter... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that on several occasions the vehicle failed to start. The contact stated that the vehicle occasionally stalled while driving. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle unintendedly decelerated to 30 MPH. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and attempted to restart the vehicle however, the vehicle failed ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed in rainy weather, the brake pedal was firmly depressed to stop at a traffic light, but the rear brakes seized, causing the vehicle to hydroplane into the middle of an intersection. The contact made a U-turn and continued driving. The ABS, traction control, and brake system warning lights were illuminated. Th... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
There are five warning indicator on the dashboard complaining about Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Lane Departure Warning, and Lane Keeping Assistance. I took the car to the Honda dealership, and they acknowledged that they were due toan internal failure of the multipurpose camera.
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
Rattles on every cold start related to cam phasers going bad
Incident date: Dec 8, 2024
This is a 7 day old vehicle. Twice in the past two days the steering wheel locked up when steering into a turn, forcing me to slam on the brakes to avoid crashing. It also happened once when in reverse, backing out of a parking lot. Error/failure codes pop up for a few seconds when this happens and then they go away. It was fast but I think they said, brake maneuver failure, steering failure, hil... Read more
Incident date: Dec 8, 2024
Just purchased the vehicle one week ago. I bought it used from a Hyundai dealer. Just discovered that the horns don't work, either the high tone or the low tone. I discovered it when I went to use the horn to alert a driver who was coming into my lane, pushed the horn on the steering wheel and nothing! I've checked the fuse and it is fine. Internet research shows this to be a prolific problem with... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2024
The driver's seat belt is locked and the retractor is not working without any reason. The front adaptive cruise control radar is also not working, along with the crucial blind spot sensor. Because of this, the vehicle cruise control (even without adaptive mode) is not working at all. This is a big safety issue and it is illegal to even drive this car without the seat belt working.
Incident date: Dec 18, 2023
All Cameras not working with latest Software update - told need new AP4 computer on 2024 model Y which is 2 months old. Tesla service advisor states - car is totally safe to drive with just mirrors till appointment in few weeks. No backup camera, navigation, battery life dying faster. It seems like a liability to me to drive this way and very negligent to me.
Incident date: Dec 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Acura MDX. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, there was a loud vibrating noise coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact had received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V85800 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE); and the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the recall repair was performed; however, the failure persisted. The ve... Read more
Incident date: Dec 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while stopped on several occasions, the vehicle was idling rough. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that there was a misfire in cylinder #1. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that an undisclosed DTC code was reset however, approximately a... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated and was flashing off and on. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that there was no coolant in the coolant reservoir. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving 55 MPH on three occasions, the vehicle experienced independent braking. The contact went forward in the vehicle. The contact stated that on another occasion while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled but restarted independently. There was an unknown warning light that flashing on the instrument panel. The c... Read more
Incident date: Mar 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the rear window fractured. The contact stated that there was a large crack on both sides of the rear window. The contact stated that there was no impact to have caused the window to crack. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the fa... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Odyssey. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distrib... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
Hyundai issued TSB 22-01-094H for my vehicle which is an update to the battery management system,, but after 4 attempts Hyundai dealerships have still not been able to complete the TSB. Hyundai corporate has also not helped after multiple cases. After many hours of research, I have determined that my vehicle's BMS software was updated to an intermittent version (version 700x) that does not su... Read more
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 BMW X5. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the Automatic Emergency Braking system failed to engage as needed while there were other vehicles nearby. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. Additionally, the manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was provided a 2025 BMW X5 loaner vehicle; however... Read more
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The car updated itself and now my front collision warning light is on, I have tried to reset everything but still on. The update caused the warning light.
Incident date: Dec 5, 2024
I bought this vehicle and turns out the license plate reads as a Tahoe and now the electricial system u plugged speedometer don't work and everything is going out I need help I'm low on money but need help or resources email me [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Oct 30, 2024
My engine coolant level keeps going down but no leaks evident also heavy white smoke coming out from the exhaust. Finally engine overheated.
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
The electric controlled coupling failed and as a result, the AWD failed. There is vibration when turning and driving 25 mph. The grinding noise remained after I got new brakes and I was told it’s from the coupling trying to power the AWD. I took my 2016 QX60 to the dealer and also to a foreign car auto shop and they both confirmed it needs to be replaced. When the coupling is unplugged, the nois... Read more
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
Vehicle engine died in the middle of the road. Would turn over but not start. Seemed like fuel system stopped working