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
ACURA
RDX
(2015) — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM:MANIFOLD/HEADER/MUFFLER/TAIL PIPE
Aug 16, 2024
Incident date: Aug 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, there was an abnormal chattering sound coming from the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the exhaust manifold bolts, and exhaust manifold were warped. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred to the NHT... Read more
Incident date: Aug 14, 2024
While traveling on a highway at speeds in excess of 50mph the 2015 Ram 5500 lost the rear set of dual tires on the passenger side. The wheels came off after all 10-wheel studs failed and broke off. This is the second incident on this same truck despite going through the warranty process and procedures through Stellantis/Ram. No incident or injuries resulted from the failure.
Incident date: Aug 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Mini Cooper Countryman. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle stalled. The fuel tank was a third of the way full. The trunk was locking and unlocking continuously while driving or while the vehicle was parked. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V337000 (Elec... Read more
Incident date: Apr 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-150. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, there was a loud rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. Additionally, the contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the transmission failed to operate properly. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the cam phasers needed to be replaced. The ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to respond as intended. In addition, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The contact received notification of NHT... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Cadillac XT6. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 14, 2024
I am writing this letter about a vehicle I purchased in November 2023. The vehicle purchased was a 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 Diesel from Rick Chevrolet in Virginia Beach VA. The truck has many defects. The first month I took it back for a leaking tire, broken windshield, oil leak and because it drove funny and I did not know what was wrong with it, but I knew something was wrong. They kept the truck fo... Read more
Incident date: Aug 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact became aware of a failure with the transmission. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled and was jerking with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with t... Read more
Incident date: Aug 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Civic. 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 contact stated that there was a fuel odor coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2024
The contact's son owns a 2018 Honda Accord. The contact stated that the vehicle was stalling while driving. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the head gasket was replaced; however, the warning light illuminated again. The contact's son received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and the vehicle wa... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2021
When driving at night or anytime for that matter, and the low beams are engaged, the whole light housing will momentarily shut off and turn back on. This can cause safety issues, especially since it looks like you are flashing people. It happens randomly and affects both the driver side headlight and passenger side headlight. It will only stop if you turn the entire headlight housing off, or only ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2024
Key gets stuck in ignition when attempting to turn off vehicle. This leaves people stranded with their vehicles in hot/cold weather, dangerous areas, etc... Many people have been bypassing this problem by removing steering column and disconnecting a wire that allows the key to be released. But disconnection of said wire allows the key to be removed and shut off at any time, including driving down ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 18, 2024
While driving on a major highway, several warning lights, including the brake warning, appeared on the dashboard. Simultaneously, the vehicle lost power steering, making it extremely difficult to steer and creating a hazardous situation for the driver and others on the road. The driver managed to pull over and turn off the vehicle. Upon restarting, the warning lights were gone, and the steering re... Read more
Incident date: Jul 18, 2024
Keep getting 4WD is disabled indication and service 4WD indicator. The error code starts after starting the car and stays on continually Took it to the dealer and got Diagnostic Trouble Code C14A7-97. The transmission has been not shifting as usual and some time the wheels squeel when making a turn from the stop position.
Incident date: Jul 18, 2024
Car was purchased on [XXX] for our daughter for a little over $6500.00 for a 2013 Hyundai Sonata Limited addition. On around July the 2nd the car started running weirdly and by [XXX] it had stopped running all together and the men from work had to help her push it onto her jobsite, which she wasn't far from. I had the car towed from her job to a mechanic who stated the engine was frozen. I immedi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2024
Tire 235/55 R-17 99 T. the steering wheel started to shimmy while driving. I took the vehicle into the service shop found that the a section of the tire was indented and the inside of the tire had a bubble. The repair shop stated this was caused by the tread separating. The tire had to be replaced. The tire is 2.5 years old and the tread on the inside was heavily worn while the outside tread w... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
My 2018 Subaru Forester has a faulty passenger air bag sensor, which has been diagnosed by my local Subaru dealer, with a repair cost of $1,500+ for labor and parts. It has intermittently turned on and off again, but after getting a separate issue fixed by my dealer, they diagnosed this problem, and every time the car is turned on, the warning light is constantly displayed, and the passenger seat ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
My 2018 Subaru Forester has a faulty passenger air bag sensor, which has been diagnosed by my local Subaru dealer, with a repair cost of $1,500+ for labor and parts. It has intermittently turned on and off again, but after getting a separate issue fixed by my dealer, they diagnosed this problem, and every time the car is turned on, the warning light is constantly displayed, and the passenger seat ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2018 Buick Encore. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power, power steering, and brake functionality. The vehicle began to shake, and the brakes and steering wheel became inoperable. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. T... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2024
See attached document for complaint
Incident date: Aug 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer for NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V077000 (Hybrid Propulsion System) however, the contact stated the advanced collision warning light had illuminated after the recall repair. The local dealer was contacted; however, denied further assistance because the recall repair was completed. The contact was referred to the... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
See attached document for complaint
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
Approximately 20% of the time this vehicle is driven, the backup camera displays BLANK. A short term remedy has been to put the vehicle back in Park, exit the vehicle and apply a firm "smack" near the backup camera located on the rear hatch using a closed fist. This tends to temporarily solve the symptom of a BLANK backup camera output until inevitably the same thing happens again several days l... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
Operating vehicle on Interstate. After pulling onto off ramp engine shut off completely during application of brakes. This has happened twice in hot (above 90 degrees) conditions. Car restarted after multiple attempts. I was in danger of being rear ended. No warning lights, no I dictations there was a problem. Dealer cannot reproduce the problem, no solution offered.
Incident date: Jun 3, 2024
I want to relate an incident that thankfully did not result in a serious mishap or injury. It Occurred on Canada’s most busy highway. On Saturday [XXX] We were just coming off [XXX] and traffic started to backup. It was heavy. It is then that I lost all control of the Vehicle’s speed. The transmission gave way and left us unable to accelerate as the traffic began to speed up dramatically. I qu... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2024
While coming home from a restaurant, all kinds of warnings were displayed on the screen. Then as I got in front of my house, my brakes and transmission locked up preventing the car from moving. I had it towed to the Honda dealer and after inspection I was told the wires in the harness leading to the rear view mirror were loose and caused the electrical system in my vehicle to malfunction. I had... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
ABS light and traction control lights are on and off with the service light on dash on and off.When the abs light and traction light comes on it also disables the cruse control to the off position. Performance is totally reduced ! Vehicle shows active code C0020 for ABS pump motor control general electric failure..Diagnostic issued said to replace the hydraulic control unit. The problem was inspec... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shuddered and there was white smoke coming from the exhaust pipes. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was a coolant leak into the engine and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; howeve... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shuddered and there was white smoke coming from the exhaust pipes. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was a coolant leak into the engine and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; howeve... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2024
See attached document for complaint
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Honda Accord. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the TPMS, VSA (Vehicle Stability Assist), and the electric power steering warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the VSA modulator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2024
I was getting a message on my display saying: Steering assist reduced Steering may require increased effort. But in reality, it requires all my strength, to turn the wheel. Very dangerous. Tesla charge to fix $4,100. I’ll have to pay it.
Incident date: Aug 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that the brake pedal stopper was fractured, causing the brake lights to remain illuminated. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where an unknown diagnosis and an unknown repair were completed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 4, 2024
The Hyundai service department indicated a OCS Mat in the front passenger seat needs to be repaired. Currently the "seat belt" light remains on when there is no one in the front passenger seat. The "air bag" light on the dash remains on while the Sonata is in use. Based on what I have read, the safety concern is that the air bags may not deploy or certain air bags may deploy at unexpected times.
Incident date: Aug 5, 2024
Large driver's touchscreen in the Cybertruck gets really, really hot. Brought it to Tesla for a service today (August 5th, 2024) and they said the screen is working as expected. They showed me another vehicle and it also had the 110 to 125 degree screen. This can burn skin if you're older and lacking nerves or a child (which Tesla encourages to use the screen with their video games). As this i... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Jan 14, 2024
Nothing has happened yet but it's been on recall for over a year and says my air bag could have metal pieces in air back that can hurt or kill someone. There is no solution to this and it's been on recall since may of 2023
Incident date: Aug 3, 2024
Bought the vehicle in 2022 with 90k miles on it. Started experience engine issues shortly after. Engine light and ALL the dash lights came on. Changed spark plugs 4x and coils replaced fuel injectors over the years. Still the lights and engine light comes on. Turns out I have a blown head gasket at just 130k miles. Did routine maintenance on it and changed water pump . I’ve never had this many i... Read more
Incident date: Aug 4, 2024
I was in a store parking lot, putting purchases into the trunk of my 2014 Subaru Outback. The rear gate had been opened for about five minutes. As I was leaning into the trunk, as I'd just done 2 or 3 times, with no warning I suffered, a sudden forceful blunt impact on the back of my head. I was so startled, I didn't know for a second what had happened, then realized, I couldn't move, as the rear... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2024
The car has just over 91,000 miles on it and the push button start is working only intermittently. I know I’m not the only one because the online forums are full of started problems with these. It’s my only car and Honda has known for years it is a problem with these.
Incident date: Jul 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Volkswagen ID.4. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V344000 (Back Over Prevention, Equipment, Electrical System) 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 contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the cente... Read more
Incident date: Feb 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed, and the contact lost control of the vehicle with the ABS warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed, and the vehicle was not repaired. The manufact... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2022 Ram Promaster City. The contact stated that occasionally while shifting into drive or reverse, the RPM increased to 4,000. On several occasions, the failure occurred while the brake pedal was depressed. The contact stated when the vehicle was shifted into neutral, the RPM decreased to normal between 750-800 RPM. No warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was not con... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle was slow to respond. The contact stated that the gears were lagging while shifting. While driving at unknown speeds, the vehicle shut down. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact noticed that the coolant reservoir was empty. The... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2023
The chrome trim around the center console where cup holders, gearbox are located has peeled. When driving and going to pickup something off the console, the chrome that is peeling is very sharp and has cut myself and my husband. This is a known issue with people with the same vehicle. It’s distracting while driving as you get a shock and do not expect that which can cause a motor vehicle acci... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Honda Accord. The contact stated while his daughter was driving at 10 MPH and distracted, she crashed into a lamppost on the front driver's side of the vehicle. The air bags deployed. During the impact, the driver's seat belt failed to retract and secure the driver. No warning lights were illuminated. There was cosmetic damage but it was not severe due to the collision bein... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jul 31, 2024
In June of 2023 at around 79,000 miles. I was driving on the highway and had a sudden loss in acceleration and would not go above 65 mph. During the inspection, the dealership ran the vehicle through 3 tests of oil consumption and it failed 2 out of 3 which did not result in a replacement of the oil pan system. My car continues to burn through oil at an increased rate (every 3000 miles). I know be... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2024
FUEL INJECTORS are malfunctioning. Engine light has come on multiple times flashing and goes off. Took it to Ernie Lee's Service Center & told fuel injectors are not functioning properly. I will be glad to allow it to be inspected upon request because they all need to be replaced & told there's a bulletin out but Universal Chevrolet told me it EXCLUDES 2017 SUBURBANS.. It started around 100,000 mi... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2024
I purchased my car used in 2022. It had a metal clanking noise in the engine. I took it to KIA they said there was no recall open for them to check it. The sound is getting worse and the engine is now burning oil but KIA won’t do anything unless I pay them $1,200 to clean the heads and another $187 an hour to scope the engine. This has been a problem since I purchased the car and I am sure it ha... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2024
My vehicle continues to accelerate when I press the gas pedal, and it sometimes makes clicking noises from underneath during acceleration. Occasionally, it veers to one side even when I keep the steering wheel straight. At times, it gives a warning and vibrates as if I'm merging into another lane. When I press the gas, the engine revs, but the car doesn't accelerate. Issues have been ongoing but d... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2024
My front collision alert system has stopped working, I have taken it to multiple dealerships within my certified vehicle company. Next, my automatic High beams do not function at all, which is difficult to navigate at night without them. I have tried to update my vehicle and sent it to other dealerships and they cannot figure out what is wrong. And lastly, my lane assistance system is not working ... Read more