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 755 complaints for ALFA ROMEO

Incident date: Feb 16, 2024

Positive Crankcase ventilation Code P052E Mercedes has redesigned the part to prevent recurrent failure issues. Apparently, a very common fail due to poor design that allows condensation in the line causing the valve to fail. Mercedes charges $1500 to $2300 to repair.

Incident date: Feb 16, 2024

My steering feels as though it suddenly loses power steering for some portions of wheel turn. It was really dangerous when my wife was driving, since she had a really hard time turning the steering wheel. She called me and I drove it home and eventually determined the issue. The U Joint that is part of the steering mechanism open to the elements and has collected gunk and rusted. Tesla has re-e... Read more

Incident date: Feb 26, 2024

The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Spark. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle began to shake uncontrollably and veered off the road. The contact was able to take control of the vehicle and placed the vehicle in park. The contact stated that there was no audio or visual warning at the time of the failure. The contact alerted OnStar who was unable to diagnose the failure. The ve... Read more

Incident date: Mar 4, 2024

Service Engine" and "Service Electronic Throttle" lights came on. The car/engine started shaking/stuttering pretty violently, so I quickly turned off the car. I waited about 2 minutes and started the car again, and same thing. I waited another 10-15 minutes to start the car again. This time, the car started fine without "Service Electronic Throttle" light, but "Service Engine" light was still on a... Read more

Incident date: Mar 4, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the contact became aware of a coolant odor inside the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the coil pack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of t... Read more

Incident date: Mar 4, 2024

This vehicle was purchased new, (03/03/2023). At 5,460 miles (10/23/2023) returned to the dealership with steering complaint. Steering is sticky and seems to lock up at highway speeds. In order to turn the steering wheel when this happens you must apply additional pressure left or right to move the steering wheel pasted this condition which could cause an oversteer situation at higher speeds. D... Read more

Incident date: Feb 19, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Niro. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V534000 (Power Train) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was mad... Read more

Incident date: Feb 27, 2024

Oil consumption is exaggerated with to obvious observed signs, I.e, no visible leaks, no blue smoke from tailpipe, no smell behind vehicle. Oil needs to be added every ~70 miles as per the dipstick. Engine light will illuminate when oil too low. Car running fine otherwise. Is this happening to others? Respectfully, Careful Driver

Incident date: Feb 18, 2024

I have now learned the hard way that there is a design defect with this car. It appears that water runs down the front cowl into an area near the fresh air intake. Particularly bad if you have the car running as it goes through a car wash, or if snow accumulates on the windshield and melts. Water is then sucked into the air intake and leaks into the passenger side footwell and gets into the ele... Read more

Incident date: Feb 18, 2024

Auto stop/start will shut the vehicle off when still in motion. If the vehicle is coming to a stop and is rolling the stop/start will activate and shut the truck off

Incident date: Feb 18, 2024

1)A diagnostic inspection performed by Terry Labonte Chevrolet in Greensboro, N.C., during the week of Feb. 5-9 found that the car’s propulsion system suffered “catastrophic failure” and was a “total loss.” 2)My wife and I were in convoy when we drove off the used-car lot in Pittsboro, N.C., on [XXX], heading for my sister’s home in Greensboro. By the time we reached [XXX], the Volt ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 3, 2024

Rodent chewed on fuel line and gas sprayed all over engine bay and under car on start-up.

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

Leased a brand new 2024 Alfa Romeo Tonale (first year new model production) on 12-23-23. This is a hybrid. On [XXX] at 1347 miles the car would not start. Entire electrical system shut down. Towed to dealership were purchased - Stateline Alfa Romeo in Fort Mill SC. Car was released to me on [XXX] and dealer charged battery but had no idea what caused failure. On [XXX] again at 1681 miles electric... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

Car was coasting into a resteraunt chain drive-thru lane, coming to a slow when the car very quickly excellerated. A quick application of the brakes stopped the rapid acceleration. Neither foot was on the gas, one was resting over the brake pedal in order to stop the car before reaching the car ahead of us. I have OEM floor mats that do not sit on the pedals. I was not using the Paddle shifters. ... Read more

Incident date: Feb 9, 2024

Incident date: Feb 1, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated while cleaning the vehicle, he noticed that the front passenger's side carpet was soaking wet. The contact stated that there was a significant presence of mold under the carpet and under the dashboard on the front passenger's side of the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure occurred due to the A/C system leak. The dealer was not notifi... Read more

Incident date: Oct 2, 2023

Moon roof spontaneously shattered while driving. No impact from any object caused this, no other vehicles around and vehicle was only at 5 MPH at time of shattering. It’s as if the glass just shattered outwards from inside the cabin of the vehicle. Showered driver with glass and could have caused injury especially if glass fell into eyes.

Incident date: Jan 30, 2024

The NHTSA has issued a recall due to a safety concern with the airbag since the airbag inflator may rupture causing metal fragments to explode into the vehicle interior causing death or harm to passengers. As a result these vehicles have been designated as not safe to drive. While it appears through the Working Capital Assistance Program some type of compensation or assistance is being provided f... Read more

Incident date: Jan 27, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the low oil warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. After which, the vehicle lost significant motive power and was unable to accelerate above 30 MPH, prompting the contact to pull to the shoulder of the roadway to have the vehicle towed. The low-oil warning light was illuminated. The vehicle wa... Read more

Incident date: Jan 29, 2023

The contact owns a 2017 Ford C-MAX Hybrid. The contact stated while starting the vehicle in cold temperatures, the steering wheel was locked. The contact stated that the steering wheel operated as needed after the vehicle had warmed up. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The message "Power Steering Assist Fault" was displayed. The ... Read more

Incident date: Jan 29, 2023

The Accessory power interface module has failed. It receives inputs from a variety of sensors, some hardwired directly to it, while most are sent over the bus communications system from the Powertrain Control Module (PCM). These inputs allow the module to communicate with the steering wheel controls, the radio, navigation system and the consumer's personal cell phone via Bluetooth. When I contacte... Read more

Incident date: Dec 22, 2023

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the shifter selector assembly had sharp edges. There were sharp edges on the side of the dial. The contact sustained injuries to her fingers, but medical attention was not provided. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the shifter selector assembly knob needed to... Read more

1 injured

Incident date: Dec 22, 2023

1 injured

Incident date: Dec 29, 2023

I was getting my car serviced, I was getting a State inspection the mechanic told me they could not inspect the vehicle due to the fact that a headlight was not working.. they tried replacing the headlight it still did not work.. I had to leave without getting my vehicle inspected!! I was going to try to take it to the dealer to try and get it fixed.. I checked on line and found several other Jeep... Read more

Incident date: Dec 29, 2023

Incident date: Jan 15, 2024

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the low-beam headlights became inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the USB port was inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with corrosion and a fractured pin. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mi... Read more

Incident date: Jan 15, 2024

Campaign 251 safety recall - Hyundai has failed to remedy this issue in a reasonable time frame.

Incident date: Jan 16, 2024

Please be advised that Alfa Romeo vehicles are experiencing a very large number of gear shift selecting buttons that "POP OFF" during driving and while parked and can't be driven or moved!!! This is a know reported and COMMON ISSUE according to the ALFA ROMEO SERVICE MANAGER but not a reported recall issue!!! This is unsafe and very dangerous and should be considered a recall safety issue by the m... Read more

Incident date: Jan 16, 2024

THE DEFECT MAY CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER DUE TO OVERHEATING, RESULTING IN ABNORMAL ENGINE COMBUSTION AND DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE PISTONS. PISTON DAMAGE CAN RESULT IN A STALL, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH. IF A PISTON ROD BREAKS AND PUNCTURES THE ENGINE BLOCK, OIL CAN ESCAPE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A FIRE. The engine caught on fire while I was driving on the highway. I was sold this ca... Read more

Fire

Incident date: Jan 16, 2024

The contact owns a 2012 Hyundai Accent. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V651000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue. 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. ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2023

When driving on a road, with speeds around 30mph, the car was failing to accelerate. The car had a warning "service electric throttle control". The car proceeded to have engine failure and stall at lower speeds when coming to a stop sign & when coming to a red light. This was a safety hazard, car turned off and was put in neutral when it should have stayed in drive. Other cars present on the road ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 31, 2023

Power steering was intermittently working for a period of time. One day while driving the power steering failed entirely. Was able to get the vehicle to a RAM dealership where it was confirmed that the entire electric power steering rack had failed and needs to be replaced. Parts are on back order with no anticipated delivery date. Part order was placed a month ago and still no updates.

Incident date: Aug 31, 2023

TWO PIECE LUG NUTS. DEALER WILL NOT ROTATE TIRES BECAUSE THEY SAY THE LUG NUTS ARE SWELLED AND ARE AFRAID THAT THEY WILL DAMAGE THE LUGS NUTS AND I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO CHANGE THE TIRE IF I HAD A FLAT SINCE MY LUG WRENCH WOULD NOT FIT. I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO BUY REPLACEMENT NUTS AT $100.00+. FORD SHOULD HAVE TO REPLACE THESE AT NO COST TO ME OR ANYONE ELSE.

Incident date: Aug 21, 2023

TCM has failed to communicate in engine. Car doesn’t not shift properly or has hard shifts if it is able to get back into gear. Car may experience AT engagement making it hard to steer and control vehicle. Can happen in the middle of driving. Independent service Auto mechanic shop Vehicle has no warning lights indicating failure until hard shift when driving 50miles per hour and engine would n... Read more

Incident date: Jun 11, 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while his granddaughter was driving approximately 20 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. Additionally, the Parking Brake and Lane Tracing Assist malfunction indicators were illuminated before the vehicle stalled. The vehicle failed to restart and was later towed to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that... Read more

Incident date: Jun 11, 2023

******* DELETE VOQ ******* THIS COMPLAINT IS BEING MARKED FOR DELETION BECAUSE IT IS REQUESTED BY THE CONSUMER THAT THEY WISH TO HAVE IT REMOVED. DJR ******* DELETE VOQ *******

Incident date: Aug 9, 2023

The Electronic Throttle control and check engine lights came on suddenly, and then the car lost power. It would not turn off or turn on. The gear shifter did not work. It just stalled. Could not engage or disengage emergency brake. Steering wheel locked. I got it towed to Alfa Romeo of Glendale and they told me the fault was with a faulty fuel pressure sensor, which they replaced, telling me if ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 9, 2023

We have a 2016 Hyundai Genesis 3.8L Sedan w/90,000 miles and the Oil Pressure Sensor light came on. It seems, based on our research, that this is a common issue with this engine. The repair is quite expensive and seems to be a design flaw.

Incident date: Aug 9, 2023

When I pulled into a parking spot in a parking lot, the car seemed to go faster than I intended. I swiped a car next to me, which to me as it was not a tight space. I immediately, turned off the engine and dealt with the passenger of the other vehicle, exchanging information. After sometime, I got back in my car to move it to another location. As soon as the motor was running in reverse, in bega... Read more

Crash

Incident date: Jan 11, 2024

I was driving for an hour when the truck was dinging and it told me to turn off engine no pressure with oil coolant I pulled into a customer’s driveway and all the oil in the truck was all over the customer’s blacktop called Chevy they knew nothing about problem and said no recall and was not covered with 42000 miles on truck had it towed and repaired by my local mechanic who also questioned ... Read more

Incident date: Aug 16, 2023

Vibrating vigorously while accelerating around 50mph.

Incident date: Aug 16, 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the vehicle started shuddering. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred while driving at various speeds. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was an internal transmission failure caused by the torque converter shudder. The vehicl... Read more

Incident date: Oct 19, 2023

Report from diagnostic service 1-9-2023 cylinder head - has premature failure of valve guides and cylinder head replacement is required for repair. Yes, Jeep extended the warranty but if your vehicle did not show problems they would not fix it, but they did learn and knew at the point the seriousness of the problem and put an end date on the fix. Our vehicle outlasted their warranty by 30,000... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

Fuel pump seems to go out intermittently. I get the electronic throttle control warning light and auto start not available warning light and then the car cannot be turned back on. After towing it home and letting it sit for a couple of days it will start again. It shut down once on a highway entrance ramp and I had to quickly pull over to avoid getting hit. Has occured 3 times since I bought it th... Read more

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

Catalytic converter failed, 3rd time in 2 years. Vehicle began losing power while on interstate. Issue has been confirmed by dealership inspection. Issue has been claimed by many other owners of this make and model but no recalls issued or warranty coverage for known issue. Check engine light came on just as issue began while driving with my family.

Incident date: Jan 1, 2023

Traveling home from working nightshift. I fueled up my truck with diesel and started my commute home which is 85 miles to my residence from work. 60 miles into my commute without warning and no alerts my truck suddenly lost power to everything… engine, steering, acceleration, and electrical. Final able to pull off the road with difficulty steering. Came to a stop and everything shuts off. All th... Read more

Incident date: Jan 8, 2024

Head lights not working.

Incident date: Jan 2, 2024

The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the rear tow link fractured. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V633000 (Suspension) and the contact was informed that the lug nuts were swollen. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mile... Read more

Incident date: Jun 2, 2023

Driving on highway lost full power of engine. Throttle body control message came on . Then steering wheel started to stiffen up . Terrible experience and scary lucky was able to gain control on vehicle and pullover . Reading reviews after getting this vehicle 2 years later that it’s common in most car of this make and very unsafe . Dealer doesn’t help and warranty is crap leaving you going to ... Read more

Incident date: Jun 2, 2023

Tesla drivers discussing how to circumvent the new autopilot safety measures you induced Tesla to implement: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

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