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 40,555 complaints for BMW
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ford E-450. The contact received notification of Customer Satisfaction Program: 24N03 (Hydro boost or Hydro max Power Steering Pressure and Jumper Line Replacement). The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to stop immediately. The contact downshifted the transmission from fifth to first gear to stop the vehicle. Add... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ford E-450. The contact received notification of Customer Satisfaction Program: 24N03 (Hydro boost or Hydro max Power Steering Pressure and Jumper Line Replacement). The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to stop immediately. The contact downshifted the transmission from fifth to first gear to stop the vehicle. Add... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V444000 (Power Train), and the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the recall repair was performed. The contact stated while at 60-65 MPH, the transmission downshifted unexpectedly. The contact stated that upon depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond while the engine was rev... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V444000 (Power Train), and the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the recall repair was performed. The contact stated while at 60-65 MPH, the transmission downshifted unexpectedly. The contact stated that upon depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond while the engine was rev... Read more
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
My instrument cluster went blank while I was driving on several occasions and I felt very unsafe and had to pull over to safety. Once I shut the vehicle off and restarted it the cluster returned to normal condition but then it happened again. I took it to the Jeep service center and they told me there was no recall 30B on my vehicle. Now what should I do?
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda CR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not e... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2024
The contact owned a 2016 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would lose automotive power. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the negative battery was replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at approximately 45 MPH, a deer ran into the middle of the roadway and impacted the front grill and bumpe... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 18, 2024
The contact owned a 2016 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would lose automotive power. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the negative battery was replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at approximately 45 MPH, a deer ran into the middle of the roadway and impacted the front grill and bumpe... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Sep 1, 2024
2017 F150 - V8 - 6Sp/Automatic Transmission; Original Owner; 91.5k miles; lead frame issue.. Vehicle downshifted on it's own and check engine light came on.. additional issues with vehicle not starting and transmission not showing in gear.. Dealership finally diagnosed with lead frame issue.. Research shows recall on 2011>2016 F150's for identical issues and lead frame replacement but tells me tha... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
The low-beam headlamps on thousands of 2011 Toyota Priuses were burning out very prematurely (a matter of weeks, not months). Toyota Corporate said they created a customer support program to replace the headlight wiring harness free of charge, but this program ended in 2019. I believe that Toyota should be compelled to issue a recall to replace the wiring harnesses on all 2011 Toyota Priuses, beca... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 BMW X5. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V104000 (Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Service Brakes, Hydraulic); 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 manufacturer was made aware... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 BMW X5. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V104000 (Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Service Brakes, Hydraulic); 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 manufacturer was made aware... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
As I was driving, the infotainment screen went black and Apple CarPlay stopped playing. As this happened, the driver’s information screen still worked but changed to grey scale colors. After about 4 minutes of the infotainment screen being black, the driver’s info screen also went black. This continued for about one more minute when both screens rebooted on their own.
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
As I was driving, the infotainment screen went black and Apple CarPlay stopped playing. As this happened, the driver’s information screen still worked but changed to grey scale colors. After about 4 minutes of the infotainment screen being black, the driver’s info screen also went black. This continued for about one more minute when both screens rebooted on their own.
Incident date: Aug 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked on the driveway during nighttime, the contact's wife noticed a light underneath the front end of the vehicle. The contact discovered that the vehicle had caught on fire. The contact extinguished the fire using a water hose avoiding opening the hood to not expose the fire to oxygen. The contact's wife then also as... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Aug 13, 2024
I have a vista panoramic sun roof. There is a plastic decorative piece that covers the area between the normal sunroof and the expanded sunroof... That is only held in place with dbl sided tape. that piece came undone and I tried to open the shade and it apparently got caught on this decorative piece. and broke the hade mechanism. This is a completely stupid way of attching the decorative piece an... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's rear window power switch was enabled to lower window; however, the driver's side rear door opened instead. The contact stated that the failure occurred several times. The contact was concerned because there were small children seated in the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was not dia... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's rear window power switch was enabled to lower window; however, the driver's side rear door opened instead. The contact stated that the failure occurred several times. The contact was concerned because there were small children seated in the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was not dia... Read more
Incident date: Jan 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Accord. 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 manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the check en... Read more
Incident date: Jan 8, 2024
UNKNOWN Over the past year, my vehicle has unexpectedly stalled on the highway while traveling at high speeds. This alarming situation has occurred multiple times, leaving me and my passengers in precarious circumstances. Luckily I have been able to avoid hitting other vehicles while moving to the roadside. I believe these incidents are linked to a manufacturing defect within the transmission sys... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
when i bought my car on [XXX] I drove it home from Hooksett NH from Alfa Car dealership tire pressure light came on battery light and the check engine light all came on and when I stopped and turned the car off all lights went off. I owned the car for two days and all of a sudden my car would not start it was fine went to drop my dog off and the car wouldn't start for a few hours this happened. W... Read more
Incident date: Jul 28, 2024
when i bought my car on [XXX] I drove it home from Hooksett NH from Alfa Car dealership tire pressure light came on battery light and the check engine light all came on and when I stopped and turned the car off all lights went off. I owned the car for two days and all of a sudden my car would not start it was fine went to drop my dog off and the car wouldn't start for a few hours this happened. W... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
I lost my speedometer, mileage reading go out along with losing 1st 2nd and 6th gear. I got home turned it off and turned it back on and everything started working again. From what I read this is the same problem that ford had and did a recall on 1.2 million of the same year of truck. But my truck doesn’t show it was recalled
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
As I was driving. I had complete engine failure. 60 days after a new engine . I had battery failure, bad battery wire, bad alternator & a bad serpentine belt
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
As I was driving. I had complete engine failure. 60 days after a new engine . I had battery failure, bad battery wire, bad alternator & a bad serpentine belt
BMW
Z4
(2011) — EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE/TRAILER:120/240 VAC ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:CHARGER LOW VOLTAGE BATTERY
Oct 23, 2024
Incident date: Aug 2, 2024
At around 9pm, while charging my vehicle, I heard a loud boom and the power went out. It appears there was some sort of malfunction with the charger that has tripped/blown the circuit. I have not had an electrician come out yet, but after a quick google search it became apparent that others have experienced the same issue and I thought it was important to report. My charger is outside, not in a ga... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); 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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact ha... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
my dodge Hornet is involved in this recall. The area that the bolt is to be place to satisfy the recall looks like a bolt should have been placed there and it was left out!!! According to the service bulletin there is NO drilling required to add this solution. I feel that this situation should looked into further.
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
- Passenger side rear tire failed - Tire is at dealer and available for inspection - Extremely dangerous situation, tire failed on a section of interstate highway under construction. Only 2 lanes available and they were narrower than normal width. Part of the shoulder was converted to driving lane so almost no shoulder to pull off on. The incident happened on a Sunday afternoon and interstate was ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
- Passenger side rear tire failed - Tire is at dealer and available for inspection - Extremely dangerous situation, tire failed on a section of interstate highway under construction. Only 2 lanes available and they were narrower than normal width. Part of the shoulder was converted to driving lane so almost no shoulder to pull off on. The incident happened on a Sunday afternoon and interstate was ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
car has 63000 miles and engine needs replaced because there is antifreeze getting into cylinders. had checked at a service station. safety concern is gasket may fail allowing antifreeze to shoot onto block causing fire. there's a recall for the 2.0 ecoboost from 2015 to 2018 for this same problem but vehicle isn't under a recall. also engine light has come on 2 times. if reset the computer light t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The glare is horrible during the daytime. The glare makes it so it can be difficult to see clearly.
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Passport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The contact stated that while stopped at a red light, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted. Additionally, when the vehicle was started on several occasions, there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer how... Read more
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
2023 MERCEDES GT 43 AMG, approximately one year old caught fire in the garage of our home. The car was off and sitting in the garage for approximately 10 hours prior to fire damaging the garage and parts of the house. This occurred at approximately [XXX] on [XXX]. There were 3 people in the house including [XXX]. One adult was awake at the time and alerted to the smell of smoke coming from the gar... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Oct 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle failed to properly accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that oil from the turbo booster had leaked onto the catalytic converter and both the turbo booster and catalytic con... Read more
Incident date: Oct 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle failed to properly accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that oil from the turbo booster had leaked onto the catalytic converter and both the turbo booster and catalytic con... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
Hurricane Helene inundated our parking lot on September 27 with approximately 3-4 feet of storm surge. Many vehicles (20-25) were trapped and flooded. This vehicle caught fire and was totally consumed over the course of a 5-6 hour burn. Although all vehicles in our lot were flooded, this was the only vehicle to catch fire. By reports of eyewitnesses, the fire started underwater at the front of t... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Nov 23, 2023
The contact owns a 2025 Honda CR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V763000 (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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirm... Read more
Incident date: Jul 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 BMW. 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 had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 BMW. 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 had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
Today I started my 2017 Mini Clubman and received a message about a transmission problem. The message showed a car icon and arrows at either end of the car pointed out. The message advised me to secure the car to prevent rolling. I confirmed that the parking brake was not inadvertently triggered and also confirmed that the parking brake is still functioning properly. The same message has appeared... Read more
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
The car is kept at a dealership in Savannah. The recall 251 caused the damage of the ABS. The dealership says it is not possible to fix, the manufacturer does not assume any responsiility
Incident date: Oct 23, 2023
The contact owns a 2023 Kenworth T680 with the camper attached. The contact stated that the ABS warning light was illuminated before the failure. The contact stated that while standing behind the passenger side seat in between the sleeper portion and the cab, there was an abnormally loud popping sound detected. The vehicle began to move and crashed into the door of an unknown tractor-trailer cab. ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 23, 2023
The contact owns a 2023 Kenworth T680 with the camper attached. The contact stated that the ABS warning light was illuminated before the failure. The contact stated that while standing behind the passenger side seat in between the sleeper portion and the cab, there was an abnormally loud popping sound detected. The vehicle began to move and crashed into the door of an unknown tractor-trailer cab. ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ram 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V653000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic, Electronic Stability Control (ESC); 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 part... Read more
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
I am encountering persistent issues with my 2005 BMW 525i. Despite having replaced several critical components, including the ignition coils, spark plugs, mass air flow sensor, and throttle body sensors, the vehicle continues to experience performance problems, specifically failing to advance beyond the fourth cylinder when driving uphill. After conducting numerous diagnostic tests, I have concl... Read more
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 30 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact pulled over and stopped, turned off and restarted the vehicle several times, and the steering functionality returned. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was an intermittent failure and the veh... Read more
Incident date: Feb 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Expedition. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the transmission downshifted to first gear unexpectedly, causing the rear tires to lock-up. The vehicle drove off the road into a ditch. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact had not sustained any injury and was able to drive to the nearby residence. The contact is an independent mechanic. The c... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
My steering wheel is making.a clunking noise and I called Hyundai and informed them and they told me the extended warranty has expired since last year. Lots of Hyundai 2013 consumers complained about this issue and it’s an expensive fix. Please advice [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power with no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 168,854.