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 16,369 complaints for AUDI
Incident date: Sep 27, 2025
I had tuned up my sprinter van around 64000 miles. I put new ngk spark plugs and ignition coils on it. Ran for a day then. The codes said the number one ignition coil was bad. Change that out and it ran for about 8000 miles. Then stated to go in lymph mode again. I decided to replace them with original Mercedes spark plugs and Ignition coils. But when I put them in the van had no power and was jer... Read more
Incident date: Sep 26, 2025
Engine Failure for a 2015 Hyundai Sonata SE 2.4L In-Line4 (144CI) VIN(F) Odometer 141477. Engine starts then runs hot starts clunking and sputtering and then shuts off. Burns oil and has caused a complete exhaust failure. Vehicle cannot past emissions text. The vehicle was a safety risk as the engine may catch fire and the vehicle was use for transportation to work and children to school. The E... Read more
Incident date: Sep 26, 2025
While under warranty the passenger side headlamp unit was replaced. This was about one year ago- now the drive side has gone out on a car that is less than 3 years old. The dealership quoted me $1792.33 for this repair. There is no reason why these should be going out when they are LED. I am part of a facebook group for ATLAS owners and this a known issue. I see the daylight running light on multi... Read more
Incident date: Sep 26, 2025
Check engine light was on and off intermittently for a few months starting in march of 2025. No immediate problem then, vehicle had 89 90k miles. In August. The vehicles coolant was leaking into the engine . Rendering a misfire in the cylinder and blowing the head gasket after mechanical diagnosis but not checked immediately due to symptoms not occurring till after a few weeks in August.Car not o... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2025
The contact owned a 2007 Toyota Tacoma. The contact's lawyer stated that another vehicle lost control due to a dropped water bottle and collided with his client's vehicle on its front driver's side at 50 MPH. The contact's lawyer stated that no air bags deployed. The contact's lawyer stated that the contact sustained injuries to the pelvis, which was fractured, a concussion, and contusions to the ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Sep 30, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 Ford Mustang Mach-E. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, several unknown warning lights illuminated. The messages "Stop Safely Now", "Service Advancetrac", "Overdrive Off", and "Pre-Collision Indicator Off" were displayed. The contact pulled over and parked the vehicle. The vehicle failed to restart, and the 12-volt battery was drained. The vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while the vehicle was started and running, there was a hollow clunking sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and was diagnosed with crankshaft bearing failure. The contact was informed that the crankshaft bearings needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact believed that the failur... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Edge. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V544000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contac... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light luminated and remained illuminated. The vehicle failed to properly accelerate and became difficult to drive. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the fuel pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not... Read more
Incident date: Sep 26, 2025
At 12,018 miles on my 2024 gmc sierra 1500 I experienced a rear wheel lock up. I have 4wheel drive capability but I had the truck in rear wheel drive only. Thankfully I was not going fast at the time. I was going between 35-45 mph when experiencing the lock up. As I was going down a straight away, I experienced a rear wheel lock up of my 10L80 transmission. My tires were squealing like crazy. I pu... Read more
Incident date: Sep 28, 2025
Having great difficulty releasing the seat belt. At times, have to repeat pressing red release button. I’ve been using seat belts in more than 50-75 cars on my life experience and never had trouble releasing my seat belt. This problem is consistent with all family members who drive this car. I’m concerned if an emergency situation occurs, my family will not be able to get out of car quickly.
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
At least 5 times now when no car was breaking extremely close to me or when I gently touched the breaks the automatic emergency breaking kicked in and slammed the car to a stop. Twice the car behind me had to swerve out of the way and hit another car causing 2 accidents without my car being involved. Once it caused me to hit my head on the steering wheel. This function is more destructive and dang... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
The Air bag light came on on the dashboard of my 2013 Hyundai and wouldn’t go off. When I took it to the local Hyundai dealership, they diagnosed the problem as the airbag clock spring. I asked if there was a recall for the clock spring, and was told no. They install a new OM Clock to fix the problem, and it cost me $805.77. When I returned home, I did my own research and found there was a recal... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
The vehicle suddenly started showing parking brake, traction, ABS, and check engine lights after being started. Earlier in the day, I had also started the vehicle but cancelled the errands and returned to start it later when the dashboard and warning lights came on. Putting it in reverse, the steering was stiff as if in neutral. Never left the driveway as I wasn't taking a chance in steering or br... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
I had bought the 08 Tahoe hybrid. The day it was delivered, it stalled I called the dealership out of Minnesota and was told oh it could be this it could be that went to two local shops and a private shop all had different specifications as to what was wrong with the car due to so many codes being thrown out. You would try to take off from a stop sign or a red light car would completely lose all ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2025
Subject: Safety Concern – Mercedes-Benz E350 4MATIC (2011) Subframe and Brake Line Rust Dear [Mercedes-Benz Customer Care / NHTSA], I am writing to report a serious safety concern regarding my 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350 4MATIC. Recently, I brought my vehicle in for recall service, and during the inspection, it was discovered that: The rear subframe is broken due to rust. The brake lines are ext... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2025
Multiple components and/or system failures/malfunctions, exact cause is unknown. Vehicle is available for inspection upon request. Safety risks include engine power reduction issues that result in unexpected deceleration, and/or sudden/dangerous loss of power/acceleration. Problem has not been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center. Vehicle component has not been inspect... Read more
Incident date: Sep 24, 2025
I had an issue with the Transmission lead frame where my vehicle downshifted from 5th to 1st gear which to me is a safety issue. Notified Ford and they said this was a customer satisfaction program that expires after 10 years. How is this not a safety recall?? This could be very dangerous if you were on the interstate and you’re going 70 mph, please help.
Incident date: Sep 24, 2025
The contact owned a 2023 Genesis G80. The contact stated that a 2001 Ford F-350, pulling a tow trailer, ran a red light while traveling at approximately 50 MPH and crashed into her vehicle. The air bags did not deploy. The contact sustained injuries to her left side, arm, neck, and back, and medical attention was provided. A police report was filed. There was no reported fire. The vehicle was towe... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
I have been waiting an entire year for Nissan to resolve the battery issue. I have purchased another house 240 miles away and I need to charge my leaf at least once to move it to my new home. If I fast charge the car it may catch fire and if it does this without the recall being resolved my insurance won't pay for the loss since Nissan has warned the car can not be fast charged. Waiting an enti... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V957000 (FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 12, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Volkswagen Taos. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle hesitated for an extended period before suddenly accelerating rapidly, almost causing a crash. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, w... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2025
I tried to shift the car from drive to park but a message appeared saying I needed to put the car in park. The lights and radio were still on and I could not get the message to disappear even after several attempts to start/restart the car and moving through the gear shift. I will be taking the car to a dealership asap. There wasn’t any prior error or problem before this message started appearin... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2025
The steering has started sticking. The sticking makes it difficult to control the vehicle in turns. According to mechanic, it's the steering gearbox. There have been recalls on the 2018 crv for this very issue and somehow this vehicle does not fit into the recall.
Incident date: Aug 21, 2025
Occasionally while driving my IONIQ 9 in sunny conditions with glasses on while utilizing Lane Keep Assist and the Adaptive Cruise Control system the car flashes a Warning about keeping your attention on the road, and then continues on beeping and chiming before ultimately completely stopping in the middle of the road unless you disengage the Lane Keeping Assist and Adaptive Cruise Control. I beli... Read more
Incident date: Aug 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Volkswagen Beetle. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V834000 (AIR BAGS); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact parked the vehicle, and the vehicle was no longer driven due... Read more
Incident date: Aug 21, 2025
On highway was accelerating to pass another vehicle the transition froze , engine revved with no acceleration ( transmission skipped) this has happened several times over the 5 years. The lasted event we documented the date and mileage it happened date 7/13/25 mileage is 34990. These skips have put us in extremely dangerous situations. Transmission has been making growling noise now under normal ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 18, 2025
This vehicle has driver-assist functions and warning lamps in the electronic instrument cluster located in the driver's display area. Randomly and unpredictably a group of warning lights -- "check blind spot" collision alarm, lane safety indicator light, triangle-shaped general alert icon -- all activate simultaneously for no apparent reason. The unpredictability creates a serious distraction to t... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2025
When it rains and or I wash my car, going down the road after at about 35-50 with my sunroof vented or window cracked about an inch, the car makes an awful sound like im gurgling out of a straw. Just completed a buyback with a 24 trax 2rs and got a 25 2rs with the same sunroof issue. Engineers say its the drain lines being pinched in the pillars but still have yet to get a solution and have to sta... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2024
On August 15, 2025, I was driving my Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4MATIC on the freeway under normal conditions. Without any warning lights, error messages, or prior signs of mechanical issues, the vehicle suddenly and completely lost power. The accelerator pedal became unresponsive and felt locked, and the vehicle came to an abrupt stop in the middle of an active freeway, in the second lane from the lef... Read more
Crash
3 injured
Incident date: Sep 1, 2024
Windshield wiper motor damaged. Yes available for inspection. Preventable damage to wipers causing visibility issues. The damage was inspected by a Volkswagen service center. No one else has inspected it. The service center gave me an estimate to repair the windshield wiper motor for an estimate of $1100. When asked how to shut it off , they didn't know and had to go back to their colleagues, th... Read more
AUDI
A4 ALLROAD
(2020) - SUSPENSION
Sep 23, 2025
Incident date: Sep 22, 2025
Accident On [XXX] at [XXX], I headed out of the Timberlane Estates neighborhood to go to volunteer at the NWR in Crystal River and was behind 3 other cars going out of the same neighborhood. As I started to turn from [XXX] (25 mph) to [XXX] (decelerating to about 10), I had to fight the steering wheel trying to straighten it out but instead the car continued left and hit a car at the stop sign. ... Read more
Crash
AUDI
A4 ALLROAD
(2020) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Sep 23, 2025
Incident date: Sep 22, 2025
Accident On [XXX] at [XXX], I headed out of the Timberlane Estates neighborhood to go to volunteer at the NWR in Crystal River and was behind 3 other cars going out of the same neighborhood. As I started to turn from [XXX] (25 mph) to [XXX] (decelerating to about 10), I had to fight the steering wheel trying to straighten it out but instead the car continued left and hit a car at the stop sign. ... Read more
Crash
AUDI
A4 ALLROAD
(2020) - VISIBILITY/WIPER
Sep 23, 2025
Incident date: Sep 22, 2025
Vehicle was in driveway for 3 days. When I got into vehicle to drive I saw the windshield had a large crack on driver’s side approximately 16” long. No vandalism or rock damage caused this problem. Has to be a stress fracture.
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
Just pick up son from day care on afternoon of [XXX]. We were heading out of pea ridge and it was raining that day so speed was approximately 52-55 mph when all the light for the traction system starting flashing followed by a metal squealing sound. pulled over and noticed the brake was hot. so limped it home at 25 mph and scheduled it to be in the shop. come to find out the rear axle had broke i... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2025
2019 Honda Touring: driving down the highway the windshield would crackle ( Electricity) then we started experiencing transmission delays in shifting and the transmission sounded rough and it was delayed. when the car was put in park the whole dashboard lit up with emissions system problem, Stop driving when safe. transmission problem, Blind spot info system problem. after this showed up the ca... Read more
Incident date: Sep 22, 2025
Receive "Has Entered Deep Sleep Mode" daily notification through the Ford APP. The dealership keeps telling me there isn't anything wrong with the battery, as it's test good. Even though the can see (an I've shown them) the notifications. It's being driven as it's my daily driver. It hasn't put me at risk at this time.
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
Car was stopped, battery died
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
Just pick up son from day care on afternoon of [XXX]. We were heading out of pea ridge and it was raining that day so speed was approximately 52-55 mph when all the light for the traction system starting flashing followed by a metal squealing sound. pulled over and noticed the brake was hot. so limped it home at 25 mph and scheduled it to be in the shop. come to find out the rear axle had broke i... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
I recently purchased a 2019 Nissan Leaf that is currently affected by NHTSA Recall Number 24V-700. This recall was initially issued on September 19, 2024, "instructing customers not to use Level 3 quick charging until the remedy is completed". The initial expectation of a corrective remedy was November 2024, which was later changed "Due to an unexpected delay in the final remedy software developme... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2025
From what it sounds like, it’s the transmission, it goes on limp mode, now it doesn’t want to move anymore, the gears move out of place. All the mechanics I have been to have been telling me 6k to place it and charge me 200 out of pocket just to tell me that with a computer to find the codes. My car hasn’t moved in 2 months
Incident date: Sep 19, 2025
Every time I pull the truck into my garage or a parking stall at low speeds while using the front park sensor it will shut off with the automatic start stop while still in motion. Then you have to let off the brake pedal for it to start and sometimes the vehicle will search forward.
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
Chinese made EV that does not comply with US standards of having a functioning backup camera. Every day my backup camera has been failing with the same error 'Camera is temporary unavailable'. This is even after the latest software update that was supposed to fix the issue.
Incident date: Aug 13, 2025
The console screen that control many vehicle functions will often not boot up when the vehicle is started. Screen crashes have also happened while underway. The screen will be unresponsive to both touch and physical controls. Systems unable to be controlled include safety cameras and sensors, climate control, navigation, gauges, infotainment and others. I have attached a diary of specific issues a... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2023
I purchased a brand-new 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross LE on [XXX], in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, selling price, $31, 500.00 Early July 2025, I started the vehicle, and unexpectedly, multiple lights emerged on the dashboard screen per below, Exhibit 1 - Check Engine - Visit your dealer Exhibit 2 -Drive Start Control Malfunction - Visit your dealer Exhibit 3 - Parking Brake Malfunction Exhibit 4... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2025
The console screen that control many vehicle functions will often not boot up when the vehicle is started. Screen crashes have also happened while underway. The screen will be unresponsive to both touch and physical controls. Systems unable to be controlled include safety cameras and sensors, climate control, navigation, gauges, infotainment and others. I have attached a diary of specific issues a... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2025
ABS light, parking break light, tire pressure light, ESC light, and outdoor temperature and climate control all flicker and the speedometer stops working. Multiple cars with same make and model have same issue and are constantly in and out of the dealer with the issue unresolved.
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
For the last few days I turn on my car and get alert lights that I have problems with: the ACC, LKAS, collision mitigation, road departure mitigation systems and auto high beams. From online Honda forums I can see that many people have had these problems and it’s likely due to needing to have the windshield camera replaced. This is a 2020 model but I bought it new in 2021, so it is less than 5 y... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2024
The rear camera has been inoperable since June 2025. VW have not issued a fix. This is a safety issue.
Incident date: Jun 27, 2025
For the last few days I turn on my car and get alert lights that I have problems with: the ACC, LKAS, collision mitigation, road departure mitigation systems and auto high beams. From online Honda forums I can see that many people have had these problems and it’s likely due to needing to have the windshield camera replaced. This is a 2020 model but I bought it new in 2021, so it is less than 5 y... Read more