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 41,082 complaints for BMW
Incident date: Oct 15, 2023
My RAV4 does not hold a full tank of gas. It only allows half a tank get full of gasoline. Toyota says they don't know how to fix, as well as two other shops I have brought it to. There are no engine messages or any other signs of issues. Gas will gush out of the tank when filling up if I do not stop at half way.
Incident date: Jun 20, 2024
I'm having issues with my car and I don't feel safe riding in it. While driving it start to coast. If I make a turn it shuts down. I am having some of the same issues some elantra having but because the VIN# doesn't show a recall I'm penalize for having this car.
Incident date: Jun 25, 2024
These two failure types for 4 incidents may involve 3 components or 1 or 2 of the ADAS; Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking (Certainly,) and Forward Collision Warning: The first incident was at town speed when a vehicle to the immediate front right slowed to depart the turn land into a driveway, and my vehicle slowed abruptly, although the other was not in my path. A subsequent ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 25, 2024
After a recent service call, the driver door that automatically opens when I approach the car with my phone app opens really quickly and big. It used to only opens a small gap. I asked the service center and the said it is due to software updates and it is not adjustable. The problem is that it doesn’t detect ongoing traffic when car parked on the street. The door also hit me twice so it was not... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving at approximately 25 MPH with the Snow Mode activated, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that the accelerator pedal failure only occurred while driving with the Snow Mode feature activated. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where i... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while attempting to reverse, the back-over prevention camera failed to operate as needed. The contact stated that she had a brain tumor, and it was difficult to use the side-view mirrors while reversing. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the contact was informed that she would have to pay for a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not repa... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
This vehicle is owned by the City of Fort Lauderdale Police Department. We are submitting complaints for multiple Tahoe's that have stopped during operation causing extreme danger to our staff and other drivers in the city. The cause is always bad fuel pumps and our units have had to have the pumps replaced in some cases multiple times. 7-30-23 Stalled & Died twice replaced Fuel Pump 3-08-24... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
I purchased the car, July 2022. It was a used certified vehicle with 3289 miles on it. This is a commercial vehicle as I own my own business. I reported two days after purchasing it that The front passenger tire shakes. For two years now, I have been trying to get Wagoneer and my dealership to fix the issue. Last Thursday, I was instructed to replace all the tires and see what happens. I did so An... Read more
Incident date: Jun 25, 2024
You can be driving and it will down shift into low gear just like the other trucks your recalling it shifts so hard it feels like someone rear ended you when it down shifts
Incident date: Jun 26, 2024
Unknown clicking noise that occurs randomly while driving from steering column.
Incident date: Jun 26, 2024
12/30/23 our home burned down, and our children were almost killed by a fire. It started from my KIA Sorento, starting on fire at random. Several hours after it was parked in our garage. Looking at security camera it started in rear of vehicle. Upon further investigation finding out that we were was supposed to have been sent a notice warning us of the recall for the trailer hitch. Never received ... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jun 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated when the vehicle was started, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for a tune-up and to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the axle was loosened, and the bushing was damaged, and the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
Front and rear brakes premature wear, would have failed safety inspection under 30,000 miles but brakes were inspected just outside of warranty with metal on metal. RIGHT rear coil spring snapped lower middle of coil while driving on flat even ground. Just outside of warranty.
Incident date: Jun 23, 2024
2007 Toyota Sequoia frame completely deteriorated and rusted through. I discovered this when brining my vehicle in for the Toyota Airbag Recall when the technician brought this safety issue to my attention. Previous driving had been extremely unstable and buckled when I was on the highway. Since discovering the frame issue, I stopped driving the vehicle. I believe this is a safety issue caused by ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
Hard transmission shifting and hesitation. It puts the driver and others in danger from the hard shifting and unexpected shifting and hesitation when shifting.
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Optima Hybrid. The contact stated while driving 50-60 MPH, there was smoke coming out from underneath the hood of the vehicle. The check engine warning light and other unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the engine was cleaned and the spark plugs were replaced; however, the failure recurred while driving. The ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2023
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius Prime. The contact stated while depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated multiple unknown warning lights had been temporarily illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer however, the cause of the failure could not be determined. Upon further investigation, the contact related the failure to NHTS... Read more
Incident date: May 11, 2024
My car has two warning lights on my dashboard. First one is Check Foward Safety system. Second one is Check Smart Cruise Control System. Both of them turned on when I was driving in the middle of a highway. These warning lights activated out of the blue, without any unusual circumstances.I cannot use my smart cruise control system and the car is not able to alert me about forward collision. This i... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2023
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the brake pedal became stiff. The brake pedal was depressed to the floorboard. The brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle was slow to respond. There was an abnormal whistling sound detected. The ABS and traction control warning lights were illuminated. The wrench symbol was displayed. The con... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2024
The frame has broke on this camper, Keystone knows it has an issue with the welding not being correct, they sent out a TSB for this because of the large number of incidences. This then causes many other items to break when frame is broke, including slide outs, roofs and doors and interior walls. Rain gets into doors and mold develops too. ****Also the fuse box for the camper is located behind a s... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was firm while depressed, and the brake pedal made a hissing sound. The brake pedal was depressed several times before responding to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact related the failure to Customer Satisfactio... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Elantra. 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 contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the dealer was unable to address the re... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
Purchased Vehicle brand new- Beck & Masten Buick GM - Houston, TX [XXX] Performed rout maint regularly. Last oil change 1-5-2024 before catastrophic failure and complete engine seizure. Towed to Wiesner GMC [XXX] 1-12-2024: Mileage on car roughly 99K- had no issues no check engine light, no mechanical failure or indication that anything was running other than normal. No Start on [XXX] PM afte... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2024
I purchased my vehicle less than three years ago for a large sum of money. It is a 2011 BMW X3 and shouldn’t have any engine problems especially at 130,000 miles. My engine is currently stalling and is a safety hazard to drive as it will stall while driving in high volume traffic. It has put me at risk for accidents and I have spent thousands trying to fix it. My mechanic found metal pieces that... Read more
Incident date: Feb 6, 2024
Bulletin No.: 21-NA-275 Please refer to the posted bulletin. This known issue is absolutely dangerous and needs to be recalled. My truck will lock up going 50 to 60 mph to a complete stop and there's no warning. Gm needs to get all these vehicles fixed it's going to hurt someone or even worse. There's no warming lamps. I'm getting my vehicle into the shop as soon as possible. This issue again ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 21, 2024
*This car was parked in the driveway 2 days without being driven before the following incident* ALSO- there are recalls for this make and model. Honda always said that the recalls do not include my car. Recalls should be expanded to include mine since the car is un drivable at the Honda service center. WHAT HAPPENED: Alarm went off on car in driveway. Horn constantly going off. Smoke came out arou... Read more
Incident date: Feb 21, 2024
*This car was parked in the driveway 2 days without being driven before the following incident* ALSO- there are recalls for this make and model. Honda always said that the recalls do not include my car. Recalls should be expanded to include mine since the car is un drivable at the Honda service center. WHAT HAPPENED: Alarm went off on car in driveway. Horn constantly going off. Smoke came out arou... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2024
Truck has an issue where certain safety systems are disabled when a trailer is detected. This is normal. However, the truck is failing to notice once a trailer has been disconnected and this keeps the safety features disabled during normal driving. Toyota has yet to address the issue. There are many people complaining online. Not safe and very disappointing.
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
I was notified of the recall in January 2024, have scheduled appointments at Coggin HONDA of Orlando twice brought the vehicle in and after waiting they did not have the part and I was told to come back and or they would call me when the part came in and or save a part for me and contact me to come in, none of that has happened. Coggin HONDA has failed to fix the issue twice but is still sending m... Read more
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
The infotainment system randomly changes screens, places calls, alters routes while vehicle is in use. It makes for a dangerous distraction while driving.
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
The infotainment system randomly changes screens, places calls, alters routes while vehicle is in use. It makes for a dangerous distraction while driving.
Incident date: Jun 16, 2024
The fuel gage or DTE(Distance to Empty) started to malfunction after the last time the tank was filled up. It did not correct itself and now I can't get an appointment with the Service Department to have it look at.
Incident date: May 29, 2024
We just keep having endless safety issues. We would be on freeway and all of a sudden it would stop while driving on Freeway!and car going really fast,and almost hitting us my whole family terrified..once in a heavey under pass where supper busy of big rigs almost hitting us one of the most terrifying things you can feel of almost being hit,and this vehicle is super heavey,and cannot push by my se... Read more
Incident date: Jun 16, 2024
I was on the freeway and I needed to accelerate to get over and I pushed on the gas and the car would not accelerate at all I could not get the vehicle to speed up it was stuck at 40 I had gotten the gas pedal to the ground and no acceleration the RPM were jumping up but the miles per hour were not so I I tried to let it drop down in speed and then tried to accelerate again and at that point I cou... Read more
Incident date: Jun 16, 2024
When putting vehicle in park the vehicle will say “Switch to park” even though vehicle is registering it’s in Park position. There are many other people online claiming this is a recall on 2022 Chevy traverses. It says this may be a faulty switch on the transmission.
Incident date: Jun 16, 2024
This vehicle is designed for two 245/35r21 (HLC/99Y) tires on the front wheels, and two 265/35r21 (HLC/103Y) tires in the rear wheels. When I took delivery of the car from the manufacturer, it was incorrectly outfitted with three 245s and one 265; one of the rear wheels had an incorrect tire installed. Attempts to resolve the issue with Lucid have been fruitless, and I am concerned that it may be ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
There are mutiple errors shown and the features disabled. Looks like the front camera is defective and is being reported by many people
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
The driveshaft failed at only 32,000 miles and the engine is failing. The dealership confirmed this is happening for other vehicles of my make and model.
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
Driving down an interstate at 70 mph, suddenly the car hesitated a couple of times and the engine stopped. I coasted to the side of the road. No warning lights. I am now sitting on the side of an interstate with 18 wheelers flying by and I am miles away from a town. Two and a half hours later we were towed to a jeep dealer. They performed a diagnostic with results being failure of fuel pump a... Read more
Incident date: Jun 21, 2024
Auxiliary power will not turn off when vehicle is turned off. Radio , lights interior power , etc….. car turns off when button is pressed but interior power does not .
Incident date: Jun 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Buick Enclave. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags); 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 ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2024
Coolant Flow Valve failure at 89,000 miles. It was replaced at Toyota dealership so the faulty valve is not available. My safety was compromised by an impossible to delete dashboard message which obscured the speedometer. The only way to delete the message was to have Toyota dealership fix part and clear code. Other safety concerns would be further engine damage if this part, which is known to be ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 20, 2024
There is an overhead controls console for the interior light, emergency phone and sunroof. This console is above the interior rearview mirror. This console broke away on its own and is dangling by three wires. It blocks the rearview mirror. I can see that the bracket which you bolt to secure it in place is very flimsy plastic and has broken. The console is rather heavy and I was surprised that it ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 20, 2024
Brakes stopped functioning fully when i was driving and car started throwing ABS and Brake warning signs. I could not brake my car properly and had to stop the car and get it towed. The dealer said its a brake actuator failure. The error code is C1391.Its costing me around 2000 to get it fixed
Incident date: May 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Audi Q7. The contact stated that there was an occasional fuel odor from the exterior of the vehicle and the driver’s side rear seat. The contact was advised by the manufacturer, that the vehicle was previously repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V298000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The contact who is an independent mechanic discovered he could access the fuel tank through... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2024
Passenger rear seat belt not locking. Cannot install car seat with that seat belt nor is it safe to ride in that seat.
Incident date: May 31, 2024
Brake failure - after inspecting vehicle 6/20/2024 noted brake fluid leaking from underneath the vehicles right hand side. Removed splash guard and noticed the brake lines had extensive corrosion in a small section with no protective coating. Brake fluid noted leaking from the unprotected area. The rest of the brake lines were fully intact.
Incident date: Jun 20, 2024
The contact's significant other owns a 2020 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated while his significant other was driving from a complete stop, several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times. The dealer replaced the battery, the fuel cap, and cleared the warning lights; however, the failure persis... Read more
Incident date: Apr 25, 2024
I have a honda passport 2023 that I bought 6 months ago. I was parking into my driveway when suddenly heard a strong noise coming from the back. I looked through my rear mirror and saw all my back windshield shattered without any object hitting it, I'm glad I wasn't driving on the fwy or my son wasn't in the back seat. I reported to honda dealer and even do they agree to do a one time no cost rep... Read more
Incident date: Jun 19, 2024
It started in September 2022 when my Kia soul started spuddering and slowing down quickly while driving on the interstate. Drove it on limp to the closest mechanic shop. They recommended a complete engine replacement, which would cost more than the vehicle was worth. Had it towed to a Kia dealership for their diagnosis. They came back and said it was a clogged catalytic converter. Replacing it fix... Read more