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 17,413 complaints for ACURA
Incident date: Dec 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that after several attempts, the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the battery had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
Check engine light came on, poor idling and start up. Infiniti replaced pvc hose that was cracked, electical seat warmer issue was fixed, dvd electrical issue was denied under the claim warranty, and some sensors were replaced due to codes of lean fuel, and the technician noticed a ticking noise. The dealership told us to pick the car up, drive it and put more miles on it and bring it back in to f... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
DTC codr P219E is is a known issue for this Vehicle. Cylinder issue. This is a world wide known issue and Mercedes benz in Canada has sent out email giving out warranty extension for M260 cylinder head but here in the US, there is no recall or warrant for this issue making customers spend over 7k for repairs. Kindly look into this
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
I turned my car on and the screens were on, I put it in drive and both screens went black, I pulled over and I restarted the car multiple times, nothing would come on. I had to drive one hour to work without being able to see how fast I was going, or how many miles. It was completely dark and this is a serious safety issue.
Incident date: Dec 30, 2024
I received a notice from Acura that the defective fuel pump replacement parts are now available and I should schedule the free repair with my dealership. When I called my Acura dealer (Chapman Acura) in Tucson, AZ I was told they did not have any parts. When I asked if they could let me know when they would be available, I was informed they did not know when any replacement parts would be availa... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2024
Vehicle fails to restart after automatic ignition shut off when pressure is removed from brake pedal causing vehicle to shift into neutral without engine power. Vehicle also fails to start showing "starter system fault" error.
Incident date: Nov 8, 2024
Subject: Formal Complaint: Safety Issues with Winnebago Vehicle Dear [NTSB Representative], I am submitting a formal complaint regarding multiple safety-related defects with my Winnebago vehicle that have caused significant risk and inconvenience: 1.Electrical Fire: The galley caught fire due to rigid residential wiring rubbing against a plumbing clamp. The wire shorted, grounded out, and caused... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Nov 8, 2024
Subject: Formal Complaint: Safety Issues with Winnebago Vehicle Dear [NTSB Representative], I am submitting a formal complaint regarding multiple safety-related defects with my Winnebago vehicle that have caused significant risk and inconvenience: 1.Electrical Fire: The galley caught fire due to rigid residential wiring rubbing against a plumbing clamp. The wire shorted, grounded out, and caused... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Dec 30, 2024
Subject: Formal Complaint: Safety Issues with Winnebago Vehicle Dear [NTSB Representative], I am submitting a formal complaint regarding multiple safety-related defects with my Winnebago vehicle that have caused significant risk and inconvenience: 1.Electrical Fire: The galley caught fire due to rigid residential wiring rubbing against a plumbing clamp. The wire shorted, grounded out, and caused... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
[XXX] my car i just bought and financed was damaged. Carfax shows incident in Waco Tx. I financed my car 07/2024. Went and had my oil and tire rotation and found out my front Sub Frame is cracked and bent. This was never reported to carfax Jenkin Nissan found the problem.. I attached the last owner on carfax where the incident happened INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION AC... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2024
The vehicle will throw a warning saying the cross trafic collision is in operable. A ford tech looked at it and said a wiring harness is chaffed causing blind spot monitioring and cross traffic collision systems to not work. Cost of the part only is $700, not including labor. this is a very serious fault, which could result in injury and fatalitys
Incident date: Nov 28, 2024
Several malfunctions: all cameras including rear cameras were disabled, high beams would flash on and off continuously when in auto mode. Front Passenger safety restraint failure alert message that eventually turned off. The car continuously has a humming noise even after turned off. Navigation system was not operable.
Incident date: Dec 29, 2024
Heavy rain leaked into the cabin of my SUV,and damaged the module, no controls worked through the key fob, no start . I keep my SUV under cover 90% of the time. A recent wind storm damaged my car port that I usually keep it under, so lately it’s been outside more often, especially if wind is in the forecast. I still use it if no wind is forecasted, because of the damage I don’t trust the carpo... Read more
Incident date: Dec 29, 2024
The air bag system has a fault and it makes it so the passenger air bag light is always reading as off, as if there isn’t a passenger there. It also has the passenger seatbelt light flashing all the time.
Incident date: Dec 29, 2024
The air bag system has a fault and it makes it so the passenger air bag light is always reading as off, as if there isn’t a passenger there. It also has the passenger seatbelt light flashing all the time.
Incident date: Dec 13, 2024
Hello, I am writing to bring attention to a vital public safety issue regarding the Lexus recall policy eligibility of 21LE01, concerning brake system issues. The current policy deems vehicles eligible for recall based on a set criterion: the vehicle must be under 10 years of age or under 150,000 miles, whichever comes first. The term “whichever comes first” disregards the importance of “m... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2023
While our vehicle hasnt been in an accident yet, the issue could possibly lead into one. Our vehicle is having transmission problems. Ford knows there is an issue with the trans. I have called them an spoke to someone but i forget his name. The issue is the computer needs flashed and updated with new shifting points. At low speeds or if your barely on the gas, the trans bucks,sputters and has issu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 28, 2024
Vehicle was parked at a parking spot and all of a sudden there was a loud “POP” and the rear glass started cracking!
Incident date: Dec 21, 2022
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V031000 (Structure) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The vehilce was taken to the local dealer where the exterior A-pillar trim was removed. The vehilce was not repaired due to parts being backordered. The contact stated that the manuf... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V031000(Structure); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 70-72 MPH, the contact heard an abnormal popping sound, and the driver's side windshield exterior A-Pillar trim separated and flew off. Additionally, the contact stated that the pa... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at Meineke Auto for an oil change, the contact was informed that there was a significant amount of oil in the engine bay and the engine was smoking. Additionally, the contact was informed that there was no coolant in the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure. The veh... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while at a stop light, "The engine was overheating" warning message illuminated. The vehicle was taking an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 84,100.
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
In my 2017 dodge ram 1500 big horn, the rack and pinioning computer system failed while driving it. Dealer ship stated it was a pretty common failure and the parts are normally in high demand. After doing research it appears that the years around 2017 have had recalls on the same part but the 2017 does not. If the system failed while someone unfamiliar with driving a car with no power steering it ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
Felt a large shudder/vibration go through the whole car while on the highway and lost some power. The check engine light came on immediately after so we took it to a mechanic. Diagnostics came back as Hall sensor and cam shaft timing errors. It was found that the timing chain had slipped a tooth. Additionally, one of the pistons was found to have significantly lower PSI than the rest (105 vs 140) ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
Excessively cracked dashboard. The entire dash in my 2009 Hyundai Sonata is cracked and a replacement has been denied by Hyundai USA. A cracked dashboard could cause reduced structural integrity. The dashboard is a structural component designed to help absorb and distribute some of the forces in a collision. Cracks can compromise this ability to perform this function potentially increasing the fo... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V444000 (Power Train). The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH exiting the highway, the vehicle lost power and stalled. The oil pressure warning light illuminated. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and inspected. The vehicle was restarted and the failure persisted.... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2024
All of the following lights came while driving on and have stay on. LANE KEEP ASSIST ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL COLLISION MITIGATION. After some research, this looks to be a know problem for Honda.
Incident date: Mar 8, 2024
Under-torqued Lateral link bolt These bolts are known to fall out or cause damage to bushings from being installed improperly Failure of the suspension would result in the suspension collapsing and the car becoming uncontrollable, with serious risks at higher speeds Out of pocket repair has been made by Tesla Component has been inspected and tightened to spec No warning sings, other than loud, clu... Read more
Incident date: Dec 21, 2024
The morning of Tuesday 12/24/24 while driving the car at 30-40 mph, in the dark, all systems suddenly shut off - by all systems I'm mean the engine, all interior and exterior lights, the "computer" screen. Everything went black in an instant. After a second of two the car lurched back to life. I was able to pull over at that point. The only "idiot light" that came on was a yellow engine sy... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
Coolant leaked into engine and the vehicle now needs a new engine.
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 GMC Sierra Denali. The contact stated that while driving at 30 mph, a "Turn off engine, No oil pressure" message appeared and was accompanied by a warning chime alert. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and turned off. The contact then observed condensation leaking under the front of the vehicle and condensation in the street leading to the vehicle. The vehicle... Read more
Incident date: Jan 10, 2023
My tire pressure sensor keeps coming on even after I had it worked on. 3 of them shows the pressure level but one shows 2 lines but no pressure level but there’s air in the tire. The other problem I’m having is the check engine light is on. Please advise if any issues are recalls or do I need to take my car to a service center. Thank you
Incident date: Dec 25, 2024
Often brakes abruptly. the first time the car was set at 60mph adaptive cruise control when the car abruptly braked to almost a stop on a divided four lane hwy. I reported incidents to Audi Cary & put my car in for service. they did not find diagnostic conclusion. after picking up my car the problem continues.While on Adaptive cruise control set at 62 mph abruptly decelerates to 17, forcing driv... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 BMW X3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate, there would be a vibrating sensati... Read more
Incident date: Dec 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 BMW X3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate, there would be a vibrating sensati... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2024
Vehicle experienced transmission shifting issue after having driven for a period of 15 - 20 minutes, with engine oil temp reaching above 103/105 degrees C, transmission won't shift into Drive. Automatically pops into Neutral. Other times engine will stall, required complete restart. This creates hazard for operator and cars following behind as driver needed to steer vehicle out of the way of tra... Read more
Incident date: Dec 24, 2024
2 incidents of loss of power with the electric motor at high speed. The hybrid electric motor unexpectedly lost power at 75 mph on the highway, alongside other vehicles moving at the same speed. This sudden loss of power caused the vehicle to drop to 55 mph, and not go above that speed, risking a potential collision from behind. Driving at 55 mph on Texas highways with a speed limit of 75 mph is ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 24, 2024
My wife was driving my kids to school and the jeep went into limp mode. This jeep relies too much on the battery to run everything and the batteries failed, at 39k and 2 years of ownership. It was showing steering, sos, brake, airbag, anti collision system failures with no prior warnings.
Incident date: Dec 24, 2024
My wife was driving my kids to school and the jeep went into limp mode. This jeep relies too much on the battery to run everything and the batteries failed, at 39k and 2 years of ownership. It was showing steering, sos, brake, airbag, anti collision system failures with no prior warnings.
Incident date: Dec 1, 2024
I took ownership of this vehicle on December 11, 2024. Here are some of the problems I've encountered with this 2025 Nissan Rogue SL model: (1)Blind Spot, lane departure has been malfunctioning as of 12-11-2024. (2)The seat belt symbol started malfunctioning a few days later. The red seat belt sign on the dashboard remains on for an extended period. (3)The AM/ FM radio was working for a short t... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
The check engine light indicated a "gas cap" code, and the "side airbag off" light was illuminated. Upon diagnosis, the technician identified significant rust and cracked transmission components, resulting in fluid leakage. The service department assessed the vehicle as unsafe for operation, waived the diagnostic fees, and replenished the transmission fluid to prevent the risk of being stranded du... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
The check engine light indicated a "gas cap" code, and the "side airbag off" light was illuminated. Upon diagnosis, the technician identified significant rust and cracked transmission components, resulting in fluid leakage. The service department assessed the vehicle as unsafe for operation, waived the diagnostic fees, and replenished the transmission fluid to prevent the risk of being stranded du... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2022
I was driving at about 40 mph and the car lost all power and stopped in the middle of the road. Most all of the warning lights were on like low air pressure, reduced brakes and a brake problem light etc. Turned the car off and restarted and drove another 5 miles with the brake problem light still on. Stopped and restarted car and the brake light went off and all seems normal now. From my reading o... Read more
Incident date: Nov 3, 2024
I’m not sure if anyone has reported Dodge ( Challengers ) windshields unexpectedly without impact cracking. I’m seeing it a lot on the 2023 years my windshield cracked without impact, my brother also has a 2023 scatpack and his windshield cracked not even a week after purchasing the car. My cousin and uncle both have a 2016 and both windshields are cracked. I’m seeing a lot of videos on soc... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2024
While driving down US-69, while attempting to pass a vehicle at about 80 mph, the vehicle shut off and proceeded to stop accelerating, as well as started to slow itself down. The instrument cluster flashed quickly before shutting off, and the radio also shut off. The cabin lights came on, and I had to switch to the right lane to quickly get onto the side of the road where it gradually slowed itsel... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2024
While driving down US-69, while attempting to pass a vehicle at about 80 mph, the vehicle shut off and proceeded to stop accelerating, as well as started to slow itself down. The instrument cluster flashed quickly before shutting off, and the radio also shut off. The cabin lights came on, and I had to switch to the right lane to quickly get onto the side of the road where it gradually slowed itsel... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V116000 (Power Train). The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that after retrieving the vehicle, the vehicle intermittently failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed back to the local dealer and the conta... Read more
Incident date: Dec 22, 2024
Approximately five weeks ago, my 2015 Hyundai Sonata showed a check engine light. I took it into the dealer and paid a diagnostic fee which revealed the third cylinder misfire in the engine. I paid to have the engine cleaned yet the light continues to stay on and the car has been Running low on oil every time it gets checked the dealer states that the engine needs to be replaced
Incident date: Dec 16, 2024
The locking mechanism inside the driver’s side door was not always working…it would sometimes lock and Not Unlock and other times just Not Lock. We could sometimes hear the mechanism trying to work, but not. Seemed to happen more on cold weather days. My husband has had to “crawl out” of the passenger side door when he could not get the lock to unlock, nor able to pull it up. He’s a big ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 23, 2024
Straps, yes The straps do not stay tight and do not keep my child restrained Yes After checking the straps on the car seat they become loose no longer restraining my child in her seat