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 21,483 complaints for CADILLAC
Incident date: Jul 11, 2024
While driving on city streets the check engine light came on and I was unable to accelerate or maintain speeds above 30mph. Because the car couldn’t operate at posted speed limits, other vehicles were stuck behind me or had to go around. It was also slow to start at traffic signals. I will be taking the vehicle to the dealer shortly for further diagnosis.
Incident date: Apr 1, 2024
Fuel line heat shield rusted and is leaking gas. I noticed gas outside before getting into car few days before gas leak was noticeable. I could not tell if it was my car or not as it was always in a parking lot that I noticed smelling gas. Yesterday, I noticed I had to pump the gas a couple times in order to start car. Went to the grocery store, and when leaving store, gas oder was strong. On... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated while attempting to accelerate, the vehicle hesitated before accelerating. Additionally, while shifting the gear shifter, there was a delay before the shifter would move to the desired position. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the clutch had failed. The clutch was replaced. After having the vehicle repaired, the... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2024
1st issue was the a/c unit which mechanic said was a factory defective part. Replaced under warranty & now is not working again. 2nd issue is coolant & flushing system. replaced las year & mechanic said it was a factory defective part. This was 2 different mechanics. I just had my car overheat on me again nearly a year later with sludge in the tank AGAIN. I AM PAYONG WAYYYYY TOO MUCH MONEY f... Read more
Incident date: Jun 25, 2024
UNKNOWN Excessive oil burning, Engine stalling, car shaking loss of power, misfiring,
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
The driver side and center seat belts in the back seat don’t secure. The buckle just slides back out. They’ve apparently been like that since I bought the car in 2020 and just recently had a passenger in one of those seats.
Incident date: Jun 10, 2024
225 55/R19. New 2024 Toyota Venza (purchased XXX) with under 4k miles when tire blew out. Was driving the speed of traffic eastbound on [XXX] near [XXX] merge just east of Des Moines in heavy, heavy semi traffic when tire went flat. I had been driving for several hours since my previous stop and was in the far left lane when noise a loss of control made me pull off the road. I have pictures & a vi... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2016
The contact owns a 2015 Chrysler 200. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the parking brake message was displayed. The driver checked the brakes and continued driving. There was an abnormal beeping sound detected. The vehicle began to slow down and failed to accelerate. The vehicle was placed in park(P) and restarted. The gear shifter failed to shift to drive(D). The service transmission and ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2016
Media screen failure. Is available for inspection. Safety of pedestrians or other accident at risk because the screen is useless in bright sunlight. Planning to complain to dealer. No warning signal or alert when backing up when screen is unreadable. This has caused accidents x 3 for my family. Backed into another car with no warning.
Crash
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
On 7/2/24, I went to Robinson Brothers Ford in Baton Rouge, LA to address an unrepaired Recall item on a 1994 F350. The service advisor refused to perform the recall work. They stated that the vehicle was too old. This recall is concerning an issue with a switch that can leak break fluid and cause an engine fire.
Incident date: Jul 2, 2024
Engine is running rough, Engine is idling very high went first start.,I am concerned about the temporary fuel line repair. I don’t believe it is sufficient because we are dealing with fuel. Fuel line should be replaced along with the engine having debris in it, I am concerned with even driving it. A brand new truck shouldn’t have all these recalls! This is like the 5th one. I pay to much money... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2023
Since I’ve owned the car. When we go above 70 on highways with cruise control and a/c on the car will randomly turn off and the speedometer will say I am going 0 miles an hour. This has happened 5 times, everytime we go on vacation. And everytime the dealership states they can not mimic the symptoms. So it never gets fixed. Read about a power trans chip that’s faulty. Should be my vehicle incl... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
While transitioning to day to night, the instrument panel dims prematurely making the content very hard to see. This includes all indicators such as speed, turn signals, and other gauges and possible fault indications. This happens prior to dusk, when there is still plenty of daylight remaining. The headlights come on (this is fine), but the display dims to full night mode at the same time also... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving on six occasions at various speeds, an "acceleration warning" message appeared and the transmission and check engine warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle lost motive power and failed to accelerate as intended. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and restarted. The vehicle was taken to a dealer wh... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2024
Car abruptly stopped for no reason on June 2. Thankfully I was pulling into a driveway, so only decelerated from 10mph, but still scared my kids. Blind spot detection and door open assist stopped working in January. Automatic wipers have never worked, ADAS Warning light has been on since January. GPS will stay on a single location for weeks at a time and not move. All of those have some level of s... Read more
Incident date: Jun 24, 2024
It looks like the fuel tank has expanded. My back seats are now lifted & will not push down.
Incident date: Jun 10, 2024
Key continuously gets stuck in the ignition and will not come out until approximately 30 minutes. Safety of person and vehicle was at risk due to extreme heat condition and potential for theft. Local dealership says it is a wiring issue. After researching it is a common, persistent complaint with 2015 vehicle owners. Also, there are numerous videos in which to resolve the issue by detaching the w... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while having a routine oil change performed, the independent mechanic stated that the head gasket was leaking. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer where it was confirmed that the head gasket was leaking due to two detached head gaskets. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made ... Read more
Incident date: May 29, 2024
My drivers side door will not latch closed due to cracking from extreme heat. When I try and shut my door it doesn't latch and pops open.
Incident date: May 29, 2024
June 23. 2024 went to drive to Lows engine light came on, after returning home ran code reader and got U11E9 Lost communication with active grill shutter. This is a new vehicle with only 29000 miles this should not be happening. Scheduled for dealership on 6/27/2024.
CADILLAC
ESCALADE ESV
(2022) - FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
Jun 24, 2024
Incident date: May 16, 2024
The contact owned a 2019 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that after accelerating at 10 MPH from a stop sign, another oncoming vehicle ran the stop sign causing a T-bone collision. The contact's vehicle had front cosmetic damages. The air bags did not deploy. The Forward Collison Warning failed to activate and the display failed to indicate there was a vehicle too close. A police report was file... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Mar 7, 2024
Steering is popping and clicking most of the time when I turn the steering wheel, mainly when I turn left but definitely seems to be a safety hazard. Not sure if it’s the steering coupler or what but I believe it should be under a recall. Thank you.
Incident date: Jun 22, 2024
My check engine lights come on and then the front collision lights come on which reduces speed while on highway and then the engine turns off making it very unsafe driving on the highway. I have tried to schedule appts with dealerships to have it checked telling them how unsafe it is and I need my car to get to work. But they never have any openings except months down the road. I am afraid it will... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2024
My check engine lights come on and then the front collision lights come on which reduces speed while on highway and then the engine turns off making it very unsafe driving on the highway. I have tried to schedule appts with dealerships to have it checked telling them how unsafe it is and I need my car to get to work. But they never have any openings except months down the road. I am afraid it will... Read more
Incident date: Jun 22, 2024
"off" remains illuminated on my passenger airbag light whether or not someone is sitting in the passenger seat. It's actually somewhat rare to see "on" illuminated. There was a recall on this model for airbag issues but my vehicle specifically was not recalled. My vehicle was recalled for catalytic converter but I'm still getting codes. Most of the problems the Sonic has been recalled for, my veh... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2024
Coolant leaks into the coils and this is a known design flaw with no recall issued
Incident date: Sep 29, 2023
My instrument cluster has gone black twice. Meaning I have no speedometer, gas gauge, etc. My blind spot monitoring, front parking, and other safety features do not work when this happens. It stays this way for several hours and then displays again, usually overnight. Mercedes has denied the issue, despite me providing a video of the malfunction while driving. They have had my car for 25 days and... Read more
Incident date: Sep 29, 2023
The forward camera malfunctions and causes the Cruise Control, Lane Assist, and Emergency Breaking to be inoperative. After looking online, this is a frequent issue for this van. I believe it is related to the recent recall because it was functioning perfectly until right after we had the recall repaired.
Incident date: May 4, 2024
I am unsure of what to say about my car. I saw a check oil light flicker and it went away. The car had oil when I checked on it so it didn't seem to be a problem. There was no sign of leakage and no sign of burning oil or fuel. Several days later, the check oil light came on permanently. Before I could get the car anywhere, the car started making a strange sound. I took it to my usual shop. They ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 15, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated to shift between gear. The contact also stated that the vehicle automatically shifted into neutral and rolled backwards. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who determined that the transmission shift cable bushing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manuf... Read more
Incident date: Jun 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Fisker Ocean. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle was hesitating before the vehicle started slowing as needed. The contact stated that the ABS warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the key fob was not recognized by the vehicle and the contact was unable to open the doors. The contac... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2024
The 2021 Buick Encore was listed by the NHTSA as having a parts recall with the Evaporative Emission Purge Pump, yet when I look up my VIN and talk to the dealer, I’m told the vehicle is not recalled, even though I’m having the exact same issue that was described in the recall. I’ve been delaying servicing because I was told the part was on back order but now they have it in stock and I’m ... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford F-150 The contact stated while attempting to park the vehicle, she became a failure with the parking brake. The contact stated that the parking brake failed to function properly, and the vehicle stalled with the brake warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed as a failure with the front brake calipers and the two... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
Front and back sensors are not working on brand new 2025 Ram 1500 bighorn. Dealership unable to fix it because it’s too new and parts are not available
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
Front and back sensors are not working on brand new 2025 Ram 1500 bighorn. Dealership unable to fix it because it’s too new and parts are not available
Incident date: Jun 8, 2024
The car’s driver side mirror shakes (glass in mirror) and causing distraction while driving, which seem to be the widespread case. Other 2 CX-90 driven in dealership had the similar issues. The shaking is more prominent at highway speed and while going over bumps.
Incident date: Jun 8, 2024
2018 Ram 2500 diesel truck, ABS braking system was intermittent and now has stopped working all together affecting the cruise control and the ability to stop without locking up the brakes all together. This has started a couple of years ago and the dealer said everyone is having the problem and parts are hard to get.
Incident date: Jun 8, 2024
2018 Ram 2500 diesel truck, ABS braking system was intermittent and now has stopped working all together affecting the cruise control and the ability to stop without locking up the brakes all together. This has started a couple of years ago and the dealer said everyone is having the problem and parts are hard to get.
Incident date: Jun 7, 2024
My cars ABS, traction control, emergency break lights came on and I went to look up what was wrong and other 2012 dodge journeys have a recall on the problem that is wrong with my car (R61). I only have 1 recall on my specific car. So now I have to pay to replace the part.
Incident date: May 29, 2024
Steering wheel is sticky and notchy at freeway speeds in a straight line It takes addition effort to turn wheel from the current position then it breaks free
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The 360 camara does not always come on for several minutes after starting up. This prevents me from using the bachup canera and therefore I ciuld run over something or somebody when backing out of my garage or out if a parking spot. I have taken the truck in to to different dealers and all they say is they can't duplicate the problem. I even show them a viseo of it happening to me but say they hav... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2024
The 360 camara does not always come on for several minutes after starting up. This prevents me from using the bachup canera and therefore I ciuld run over something or somebody when backing out of my garage or out if a parking spot. I have taken the truck in to to different dealers and all they say is they can't duplicate the problem. I even show them a viseo of it happening to me but say they hav... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
Steering gets very stiff sometimes and you have to yank it to control the vehicle's direction. This has been happening over the past year and is now happening more frequently. The warning light comes on sometimes. The problem has not yet been reported to the dealer but from reports on the web this seems to be a common problem in 2013 and 2014 models.
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Accord. The contact stated while driving approximately 60 MPH with the cruise control activated, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the cruise control deactivated independently. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent for several months. The contact diagnosed the vehicle and related the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V314000 (Fuel Syst... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering was difficult to steer. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence. The contact stated that when the vehicle was parked, the vehicle lost motive power and would not restart. The contact The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic and was diagnosed with a failed wat... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering was difficult to steer. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence. The contact stated that when the vehicle was parked, the vehicle lost motive power and would not restart. The contact The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic and was diagnosed with a failed wat... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 GMC Yukon XL. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V053000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The dealer informed the contact that should the dashboard get cracked, replacing the dashboard would be at his expens... Read more
Incident date: Feb 20, 2024
I was easing slowly into a parking space, with plenty of room on both sides (no cars); there was a shopping cart at the front of the spot to my left. I was probably straightening the steering wheel back to the center. The car took over, accelerated suddenly to a very fast speed, jumped a high curb, and stopped hard in the lot's main drive. The front right wheel clipped a tree through the mulch. No... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jun 11, 2024
I was stopped at a red light in the left-hand turn lane, waiting to turn left. Light turned green and I accelerated turning left. The car suddenly braked with no car or obstruction in my path. No collision mitigation light warnings came on. The car just slammed on the breaks!! Dealer service manager told me over the phone that unless a code comes up, they really can’t diagnose the issue. I belie... Read more
Incident date: May 24, 2024
took my 2020 Camry to Toyota they told me the catalytic converter had issues and the engine cooling bypass valve as well. They also stated that they have a ton of Camrys and rav 4 coming in with the same issue