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.

2,245,377 Total Complaints
140,173 Reported Crashes
56,794 Reported Fires
8,580 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 2,245,377 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

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 384,293 complaints for FORD

FORD F-150 (2016) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
The contact owns a 2018 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shut off and failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where the alternator was replaced 4 times before the dealer diagnosed that the failure was due to oil leaking onto the alternator and the battery. The contact stated that the alternator had been replaced 6 times in total. A... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2022) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ADAS:AUTONOMOUS/SELF DRIVING May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 15, 2025
The Zoox was parked in the bike lane with its 4way flasher blinking. It was completely obstructing the bike lane (there was no way around it) and because it wasn’t trying to get in or out of an adjacent parking space, this was straightforwardly illegal behavior. This illegal behavior harms safety by forcing bicyclists on this very popular bike route out into mixed traffic with cars at unsafe spe... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2018) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 23, 2026
I have always kept my Impala in my garage until recently I started keeping my grandson a few days a week. When I am at that home my car is parked in a driveway open to the elements. About a month after starting I notice that my car started having what I would describe as an electronic issue. The seat belt alarm would go off without me ever touching my seat belt. I have also had to replace my tail... Read more
FORD EXPEDITION (2019) - LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
We purchased our 2024 jeep Compass on 12-10-2024 with about 3,000 miles on it. Our problems started on the vehicle on or about Nov. 2025. First the lane assist would go out and we were unable to turn it back on, when we tried the light in the button would blink 2 times then stay on. We reached home and shut car off and when we started it we pressed lane assist and it worked. We drove it for ab... Read more
FORD EXPEDITION (2019) - FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
We purchased our 2024 jeep Compass on 12-10-2024 with about 3,000 miles on it. Our problems started on the vehicle on or about Nov. 2025. First the lane assist would go out and we were unable to turn it back on, when we tried the light in the button would blink 2 times then stay on. We reached home and shut car off and when we started it we pressed lane assist and it worked. We drove it for ab... Read more
FORD EXPEDITION (2019) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
NHTSA Complaint Description What Happened & Safety Risk: While driving a 2024 Jeep Wrangler 4xe at highway speeds on Interstate 84, the vehicle suffered a catastrophic, unrecoverable loss of motive power. Without any warning, the vehicle completely seized up, shut down, and turned off entirely while moving in active traffic. This exact life-threatening failure has now occurred twice. Operating a v... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2015) - STRUCTURE:BODY May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 1, 2025
On May 25, 2026, at approximately 3:30 p.m. Central Time, after the vehicle had been operated under normal conditions and subsequently parked, a fire originated within the vehicle’s engine compartment and/or under-hood area. Personnel from the Milwaukee Fire Department responded to the scene and extinguished the fire. An official fire investigation report is pending and is expected to be availa... Read more
Fire
FORD EXPEDITION (2023) - ENGINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 16, 2026
The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle unexpectedly entered limp mode with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the turbocharger had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle wa... Read more
FORD MUSTANG (2022) - POWER TRAIN May 26, 2026
Incident date: Mar 26, 2026
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH the vehicle shifted down on its own and slid, she hit the breaks, while going on a curve and could not control the vehicle, causing to run into a dirt pile. The front of the vehicle collided into a dirt pile on the side of a road. The vehicle came to a full stop after the collision. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle... Read more
Crash 1 injured
FORD ESCAPE (2020) - AIR BAGS May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jul 7, 2025
While driving, the drivers side head rest exploded and pushed my body/neck forward. There was no accident that prompted this and was slowing down to a stop light.
FORD ESCAPE (2020) - STRUCTURE:BODY May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jul 7, 2025
The "my sky" sunroof on this vehicle will open but not close. It has been a problem since the vehicle was purchased in 2018. It has been in and out of Central Avenue Chrysler Jeep for repairs. There are two cases with Jeep customer care. The sunroof was supposedly repaired in Octover 2024 but it still never operates properly. Now the sunroof is frozen in the open position. Even the dealershi... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2020) - STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jul 7, 2025
While driving our BMW 2019 X3 on the highway, other drivers honked to get my attention that our vehicle's rear hatch was partially open. When we came to a stop light, I had my son riding in the passenger seat press the hatch button on the key fob to close the hatch. Instead this fully opened the back hatch. We continued pressing the fob button in an attempt to get the hatch to close without hav... Read more
FORD F-150 (2016) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 1, 2026
The sunroof wind deflector broke and as a result the sunroof was jammed open. In order to close the top I had to break the mechanism and now the sunroof, while mostly shut, still shifts free occasionally when driving.
FORD EDGE (2019) - TIRES May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 5, 2024
TIRE SIZE 235 / 55 R 19. Vehicle is a 2024 IONIQ 5. Issue began at/around 10k miles of use. Sound dampening foam inside of the tires comes loose and bunches up in the tire, creating varying degrees of car shaking and vibration. At its worst, the steering wheel and tires violently shake, especially between 50 - 75 mph. On the highway this causes a very dangerous situation of the driver fighting t... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2023) - ENGINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 22, 2026
The vehicles Auto-Start-Stop (ESS) works intermittently. Multiple occasions where the system was turned off and the engine quit and would not restart without putting the vehicle in park. Recently the ESS has gone months without shutoff of the engine. However, occasionally it will shut off the engine. Multiple times the engine has shut off while the vehicle is moving, which was very dangerous. ... Read more
FORD EDGE (2020) - ENGINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
This morning, around 9 AM, I was stopped on [XXX] in traffic, just south of [XXX] . [XXX] ) Foot on break, waiting for traffic to start moving. Engine suddenly revved to about 4k RPM. Car started to lurch a bit, I had to put increased pressure on the brake to hold it. I wasn’t sure the brake would hold, so I shifted to neutral, engine revved up over 4k. It settled back down and I wa... Read more
FORD BRONCO (2022) - SERVICE BRAKES May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
While driving, the vehicle experienced an almost total loss of braking capability. The pedal was very hard to press, and when pressing with all my weight, I could slow the vehicle to a stop, but it took a great distance. There was no warning or malfunction indicator until I pulled into a parking lot a few minutes later. At that point, a "Service Brake Assist" message appeared. Had I been in traf... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2022) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
No accident, malfunction, warning lights, or safety-related issues occurred. Vehicle is operating normally at this time.
FORD EXPLORER (2022) - BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Lexus LX 600. The contact stated that the rearview back up camera image displayed a distorted image. Another issue, the vehicle intermittently stalled when at a complete stop and going to accelerate. The vehicle was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 41,000.
FORD EXPLORER (2022) - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jan 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Lexus LX 600. The contact stated that the rearview back up camera image displayed a distorted image. Another issue, the vehicle intermittently stalled when at a complete stop and going to accelerate. The vehicle was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 41,000.
FORD EXPEDITION (2024) - LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
My thermostat failed in my car, my temp goes out and reads at 0° then my steering assist says it’s reduced. There are many forums online regarding this issue.
FORD BRONCO SPORT (2024) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 14, 2026
My car is experiencing a harsh down shift from 3rd to 4th gear with lack of power on acceleration on my vehicle since 10/25/2024. I have taken it in to three service departments including Karl Flammer Ford in Tarpon Springs, FL. Each service department has said the only remedy is a New Transmission estimated to be $7,000-$8,000 (receipts of diagnostics can be provided). We have already spent $52... Read more
FORD BRONCO SPORT (2024) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 14, 2026
The vehicle looses the display screen and or the camera screen while driving forward and reverse at times. It also freezes up and glitches which then makes the reverse camera not in real-time causing a minor accident. The screen sometimes turns black and sometimes blue. Secondly the trailer towing lights don't work properly and say that the trailer disconnected or not working properly. We tow or m... Read more
Crash
FORD F-150 (2016) - POWER TRAIN May 26, 2026
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The vehicle has intermittent hesitation/delayed acceleration from a stop and during low-speed stop-and-go driving. At times, engine RPM increases before the vehicle responds or accelerates normally. This creates a safety concern when entering traffic, turning, merging, or accelerating from a stopped position because the vehicle does not always respond predictably to throttle input. The concern wa... Read more
FORD F-250 SD (2024) - ENGINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
The vehicle has intermittent hesitation/delayed acceleration from a stop and during low-speed stop-and-go driving. At times, engine RPM increases before the vehicle responds or accelerates normally. This creates a safety concern when entering traffic, turning, merging, or accelerating from a stopped position because the vehicle does not always respond predictably to throttle input. The concern wa... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2018) - SUSPENSION May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 23, 2026
At 30,000 miles, the dealership replaced the right rear shock absorber because I noticed it was clunking when an adult sat in the third row. I just had it serviced at 40,000 miles and I mentioned to the tech that there was a slight clunking sound when making a right-hand turn and accelerating from a stop. The dealership did not notice any issues so did not make any repairs. Now, at 41,500 miles, t... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2021) - LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
Telematic Modular Control is not working properly and part is on backorder. Dealership and GMC have refused to put into writing that my vehicle is safe to drive; however, they are refusing rental vehicle while awaiting arrival of part. Several of my safety features are not working correctly, my left turn signal went out randomly and my auto breaking has activated when there has been nothing near m... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2018) - POWER TRAIN May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jan 15, 2026
CVT transmission failed and vehicle lost power while on Interstate I-88 65 MPH speed zone. f Momentum allowed me to reach an exit at which point I needed to push the vehicle by myself off the roadway. Vehicle mileage was slighlty over 60,000 miles and the $10,000 dollar repair was not covered by warranty. Dangerous and costly to consumers! Same CVT was recalled or warranty extended in earlier m... Read more
FORD F-150 (2022) - POWER TRAIN May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
2022 GMC Canyon AT4 Crew Cab. After the vehicle is shifted into Park and the engine is shut off, the ignition key cannot be removed from the cylinder. The key is physically locked, the steering wheel will not lock, and the vehicle cannot be reliably secured. The only workaround is to restart the engine and cycle the shifter repeatedly until the interlock releases the key. Recurring. Safety implic... Read more
FORD F-150 (2016) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 13, 2026
2022 GMC Canyon AT4 Crew Cab. After the vehicle is shifted into Park and the engine is shut off, the ignition key cannot be removed from the cylinder. The key is physically locked, the steering wheel will not lock, and the vehicle cannot be reliably secured. The only workaround is to restart the engine and cycle the shifter repeatedly until the interlock releases the key. Recurring. Safety implic... Read more
FORD EDGE (2017) - STEERING May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
When driving at least 55 mph the steering wheel becomes stiff and auto correct on it own. This consistently happen during the duration of the ride.
FORD MUSTANG (2022) - AIR BAGS May 26, 2026
Incident date: Feb 15, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while driving into an intersection the vehicle crashed into a second vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed. During the crash the frontend of the vehicle was severely damage but no air bags deployed. The contact sustained a sore neck and head ace and was treated at the hospital the following day. No injuries were reported in the seco... Read more
Crash 1 injured
FORD EDGE (2016) - SERVICE BRAKES May 26, 2026
Incident date: Feb 15, 2024
Was in a front driver side T-bone @ 35 miles and hour accident and no Airbags deployed
1 injured
FORD EXPEDITION (2020) - FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V117000(VISIBILITY); 25V467000(FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE); 26V123000(BACK OVER PREVENTION); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount... Read more
FORD EXPEDITION (2020) - VISIBILITY May 26, 2026
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V117000(VISIBILITY); 25V467000(FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE); 26V123000(BACK OVER PREVENTION); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount... Read more
FORD ESCAPE (2021) - FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
failed Brake Actuator
FORD ESCAPE (2021) - SERVICE BRAKES May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
failed Brake Actuator
FORD ESCAPE (2021) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
I am filing a vehicle safety complaint regarding a 2024 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy due to repeated safety-related mechanical failures and ongoing defects that create dangerous and unpredictable driving conditions. Since purchase in August 2024, the vehicle has experienced multiple serious issues, including steering rack problems causing sticking, resistance, abnormal noises, and inconsistent st... Read more
FORD MUSTANG (2017) - ENGINE May 26, 2026
Incident date: Mar 26, 2026
I am filing a vehicle safety complaint regarding a 2024 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy due to repeated safety-related mechanical failures and ongoing defects that create dangerous and unpredictable driving conditions. Since purchase in August 2024, the vehicle has experienced multiple serious issues, including steering rack problems causing sticking, resistance, abnormal noises, and inconsistent st... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2014) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 26, 2026
We were backing up and leaving a parking space when the emergency braking system overrode our driving and forced a stop. This has happened many times, once while turning at a red light (which we had the right-of-way) and our car stopped on the middle of the intersection. Another time was during a turn in a non-traffic light turn lane where timing is important. Our car was again completely stopped ... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2015) - UNKNOWN OR OTHER May 26, 2026
Incident date: Feb 4, 2026
While applying the brake at the stop light. (25 to30 mile speed limit zone) The Toyota hybrid sienna start to accelerate for split 5 or more seconds. I have to apply the brake harder even though I was already applying the brake to slow down because the light was red and the are several cars in front of me. For the first time I was scared thinking about rear ending some one in front of me or the... Read more
FORD EXPLORER (2015) - SUSPENSION May 26, 2026
Incident date: Feb 4, 2026
Several issues since purchasing vehicle. The front collision sensor malfunction. Came to an abrupt stop several times while on the freeway due to failed sensor. Narrowly avoided major collisions. Also, have had to replace batter every year along with brakes and tires. My suspension is awful. The brakes are crap and have consistently had to address worn tires in one side. Electric panel shit off an... Read more
FORD F-150 (2013) - POWER TRAIN May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 24, 2026
The exact failed component is unknown to me at this time, but the issue appears related to the vehicle’s electrical system. Prior to the incident, I received a charging error notification while the vehicle was plugged in. I unplugged the charger from the wall outlet, waited briefly, and plugged it back in. Later that same day, the vehicle entered a no-start condition and would not start despite... Read more
FORD F-150 (2005) - SEAT BELTS May 26, 2026
Incident date: Apr 13, 2026
My Tesla repeatedly displayed a “Passenger Safety Restraint” warning related to the front passenger restraint/airbag system. Tesla Service Center in Los Gatos, California attempted multiple repairs over several visits. The first repair identified a pinched and improperly routed passenger seat harness associated with the restraint system. Tesla stated the issue was repaired and tested. The warn... Read more
FORD MUSTANG MACH E (2024) - SEATS May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 22, 2026
My Tesla repeatedly displayed a “Passenger Safety Restraint” warning related to the front passenger restraint/airbag system. Tesla Service Center in Los Gatos, California attempted multiple repairs over several visits. The first repair identified a pinched and improperly routed passenger seat harness associated with the restraint system. Tesla stated the issue was repaired and tested. The warn... Read more
FORD MUSTANG MACH E (2024) - AIR BAGS May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 22, 2026
While operating my truck i have a air bag warning indicator come up on my cluster gage. With the light still one and engine running I immediately drove the vehicle to my local Ram dealer to seek assistance. I had spoken to a service advisor who checked my vehicle in for service. The service advisor did confirm the SRS light was on. After the tech did a diagnostic they found no stored service codes... Read more
FORD MUSTANG MACH E (2024) - SERVICE BRAKES May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 22, 2026
I am filing a safety complaint regarding a persistent soft brake pedal condition affecting my truck. Under normal driving conditions and especially during low-speed braking with no trailer or payload attached, the brake pedal feels excessively soft and requires additional pedal travel before adequate braking response occurs. The authorized dealer inspected the vehicle and replaced the brake pads ... Read more
FORD FOCUS (2016) - VISIBILITY/WIPER May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 25, 2026
This here is the continuation of complain # 11736595 and Ford case # 01747943. The aim is to inform NHTSA and Ford that this issue at hand is already a recall from other years on the same car model, materialized by NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V192 and Ford Recall Number: 22S20. There is no need to identify if this issue can be recalled, it was already identified as necessary in the past. Yet, this o... Read more
FORD FOCUS (2016) - WHEELS May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 25, 2026
1. Loss of left rear wheel while driving. The vehicle is with the insurance and may be available for inspection. 2. Loss of control on a tollway with speed limit 75 mph as the wheel came off while driving, involving the vehicle collapsing on the rear left side and air bags on the left side being deployed. It could have lead to a fatal incident involving many vehicles. 3. Not yet. 4. It was inspec... Read more
FORD FOCUS (2016) - TIRES:TEMPORARY/EMERGENCY SPARE TIRE May 26, 2026
Incident date: May 25, 2026
The component that failed was the tire/wheel system on a rental vehicle from Enterprise. While driving on a dry highway in New Mexico, a tire pressure warning light appeared. Because we were in a remote area, we stopped at the nearest gas station and added air to the tire. After adding air, the warning light temporarily turned off, so I believed the issue was low tire pressure. However, while cont... Read more
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