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 1,421 complaints for GENESIS
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
My vehicle doesn’t alert me of incoming vehicles and the reverse camera stays on. When I turn on my vehicle the dash stays on with ford sign so when I put on reverse my back up camera doesn’t turn on at all. I have to use all my mirrors to back out of parking. This feature hasn’t been working properly for a year. They keep telling me ford is working to fix this issue.
Incident date: Sep 18, 2024
My vehicle doesn’t alert me of incoming vehicles and the reverse camera stays on. When I turn on my vehicle the dash stays on with ford sign so when I put on reverse my back up camera doesn’t turn on at all. I have to use all my mirrors to back out of parking. This feature hasn’t been working properly for a year. They keep telling me ford is working to fix this issue.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
Paint bubbling on roof. When turning on key, the radio makes a loud buzzing sound. On 11/16/2024, when leaving a traffic light, the truck began surging and shuddering. Tachometer was revving up and down like the transmission was slipping with loss of power while trying to take off and accelerate. While attempting to return home, loud booming noise was coming in from under floorboard. I was un... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Civic. 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 dealer informed the contact that parts were back ordered for the recall and that the contact would be put on a waitlist. The contact stated that the manufacturer had ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
I had taken the truck to the mechanic no sooner than a month ago who changed the oil and did an inspection of the vehicle performing routine maintenance. Few weeks ago I had been driving when my engine started breaking down, the car would turn on drive for a moment then lose complete power to the wheels forcing myself and a friend to hitchhike home through the pitch dark. When we took the car into... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
As of this date: Started about a year ago, when Jeep was over 150,000 miles. When accelerating to turn or from a stop sign or light, vehicle would stall, mimicking the feeling the vehicle ran out of gas. This occurred about once a month. Working at home and not driving my vehicle as much its hard to say if it would have occurred more often. Checked for any codes, none appeared. As I have recently ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
As of this date: Started about a year ago, when Jeep was over 150,000 miles. When accelerating to turn or from a stop sign or light, vehicle would stall, mimicking the feeling the vehicle ran out of gas. This occurred about once a month. Working at home and not driving my vehicle as much its hard to say if it would have occurred more often. Checked for any codes, none appeared. As I have recently ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
Engine stall out while driving in highway was able to cruse to safety. Check engine light on and was unable to restart. Was told by local mechanic that the engine jump timing and damage the valves. Vehicle is not operational.No warning lights just happened. VIN was not in range with Hondas engine recall.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2006 Jaguar XJ. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the vehicle abruptly decelerated, after which the contact became aware that the parking brake had been applied. The parking brake warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the electronic parking brake control module. The vehicle was not repaired. After investi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that a warning light indicating that there was a steering failure had been illuminated on the instrument panel. When turning the steering wheel it failed to automatically re-center. The contact would have to use manual strength to re-center the steering wheel. The vehicle was taken to the who diagnosed that the steering module failed and the st... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH exiting a residential area. The front wheel axle came apart. The contact's husband removed the shocks. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to her residence. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 17E048000 (Wheels, Suspension). Th... Read more
Incident date: Oct 15, 2024
I purchased a brand new 2023 Mazda CX – 30 from Cooley Mazda on September 27, 2023. I was excited to upgrade from my 2011 Mazda 3, however I have had issues early on. On June 7, 2024, I brought my 2023 Mazda CX – 30 in for diagnostic testing for front end noise and a shifting issue. I went out for a drive with the Technician and was told the noise I was hearing was from the weight of the car ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 15, 2024
I purchased a brand new 2023 Mazda CX – 30 from Cooley Mazda on September 27, 2023. I was excited to upgrade from my 2011 Mazda 3, however I have had issues early on. On June 7, 2024, I brought my 2023 Mazda CX – 30 in for diagnostic testing for front end noise and a shifting issue. I went out for a drive with the Technician and was told the noise I was hearing was from the weight of the car ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2024
Beginning at ~30K miles, I am hearing a "rod-knock" from the bottom of engine. Especially noticeable when starting out from a stop. Easily reproduced by putting foot on brake, truck in drive, and slowly depressing accelerator pedal. All maintenance since day 1 on truck (now has 65k miles) has been done at dealer. Reported issue to dealer and they responded, "cannot duplicate". I fall within t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 3500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the ABS and traction control warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the ABS control module. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V140000 (Service Brakes, ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
I am pouring a QT of oil in this jeep every other week. THIS IS NOT NORMAL! I have had the oil consumption test done 3 times. Each time the dealer tells me that losing this much oil is within guidlines. THIS IS NOT NORMAL. THIS IS THE WORST EXPERIENCE I HAVE EVER HAD WITH A VEHICLE. RECALL THIS!!! Ongoing for 2 years now.
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
My sunroof exploded due to weather conditions while i was driving with my family on highway during heavy rain storm
GENESIS
GV70 ELECTRIFIED
(2023) - POWER TRAIN
Nov 3, 2024
Incident date: Nov 1, 2024
WHILE DRIVING AND ATTEMPING TO MERGE ON HIGHWAY HEARD A LOUD POP AND BANG SOUND FROM CAR CAR STARTED ROLLING LIKE VEHICLE WAS IN NEUTRAL. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE DUE TO THIS INVOLVING THE TRANSMISSION AND COULDVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT IF VEHICLE WAS ON HIGHWAY. WARNING LIGHTS SUCH AS THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, TRACTION, ABS, AND MULTIPLE OTHER MESSAGES ON DASH.
Incident date: Jan 1, 2023
Back up camera stopped working
Incident date: Jan 1, 2023
Panaramic sunroof drains failed allowing water to egress into wheel well trunk side containers and spare tire areas. Water encompassed the comfort control module and left the electronics cycling through electronic error codes leaving the car unable to drive. The car was unable to recognize the key fob and the warning codes were flashing and cycling. Failure of the panaramic sunroof drains.
Incident date: Jan 1, 2023
My 2024 Hyundai Elantra limited horn stopped working, almost causing someone to hit me. The car only has 4,000 miles on it. I am extremely lucky I did not get in an accident because of this. Extremely dangerous issue and soon further research its a very common problem with some newer Hyundais. There needs to be a recall before some actually gets hurt!
GENESIS
GV80 COUPE
(2025) - SUSPENSION
Oct 30, 2024
Incident date: Sep 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Harley-Davidson FLHTCU Electra Glide Ultra. The contact stated while riding at various speeds, there was an abnormal grinding sound coming from the motorcycle. In addition, the contact stated that an abnormal vibration was coming from the handlebars while riding. The contact used a trailer to tow the motorcycle to the dealer where it was discovered that the front and rear w... Read more
GENESIS
GV80 COUPE
(2025) - POWER TRAIN
Oct 30, 2024
Incident date: Sep 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the contact depressed the accelerator pedal and the vehicle independently shifted to a lower gear. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent but recurring. The contact stated that the vehicle switched to “LIMP Mode" with several instrume... Read more
Incident date: Oct 30, 2024
The check engine light has been on my vehicle since April 1, 2024. I have taken it in twice to a Volvo dealership and they cannot give me an answer as to why this is happening. They reset it and it comes right back on after a few miles. They tell me when they get an answer they will call me back in to have it fixed. It still has not been fixed.
Incident date: Oct 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Tundra. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly shuddered and lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer nor an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was noti... Read more
Incident date: Oct 29, 2024
GMC issued a service bulletin #16019 stating that the HVAC temperature control valve (No. 15-51369) was prone to break causing the defrost to become inoperable. This is clearly a safety concern. However, GMC did not issue a recall. In addition, GMC had a limited time window for customers to address the problem. The dealerships were instructed to examine the part and if faulty, replace it. My GMC C... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
Brake pads loose / moving inside the shims of overall Brake system for the vehicle . Making audio noise while driving and parking and stopping vehicle. Safety risk of brake Failure Minor Odor of fire/fumes
Incident date: Oct 1, 2023
Center console with touch screen delaminating screen cover causing random and continuous malfunctions to navigation, heating/cooling climate controls, media (radio, hands-free telephone, and numerous uconnect software applications), and rear backup camera function. Potential for serious distraction and loss of multiple safety components like change lane warning systems, anti swerve technology, etc... Read more
Incident date: Oct 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 BMW X7. 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 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... Read more
Incident date: Jul 21, 2023
Request for Immediate Resolution of Vehicle Issue I am writing to file a complaint regarding my vehicle, which has less than 40,000 miles and is under 7 years old. Recently, it displayed the error codes PO303-00 and PO316. I took the vehicle to the dealership, and they recommended replacing the entire engine, quoting a cost of $11,500. To seek a second opinion, I consulted a machine shop, and th... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2024
The steering wheel makes clicking and grinding noise. Steering wheel coupling may be broken. And sometimes head and interior lights turn on and off when I make turns
Incident date: Oct 4, 2024
Car exploded. I was driving fine with ac running when all of a sudden gray smoke came out the hood of the car. I stoped in a side street. I turned off the car and the gray smoke became black. I took my phone and ran out. As I ran the car exploded like a bomb on the street and started throwing flames. Car is completely loss. Car has been to it’s maintainer and everything and nothing found.
Fire
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 4, 2024
Car exploded. I was driving fine with ac running when all of a sudden gray smoke came out the hood of the car. I stoped in a side street. I turned off the car and the gray smoke became black. I took my phone and ran out. As I ran the car exploded like a bomb on the street and started throwing flames. Car is completely loss. Car has been to it’s maintainer and everything and nothing found.
Fire
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 4, 2024
I was driving on a highway. All of a sudden the transmission fail light came on and my vehicle almost came to a complete stop. I NO warning. I was scared to death!!!! I see I am not the only one. I see several similar reports online.
Incident date: Sep 9, 2024
Connecting rod bearing failure on 2018 Kia Sportage two months after having been to the Kia dealership for a knock sensor software update. (sensor update completed on 7/26/24 at Palm Springs Kia, RO# 6160694/1, engine failure occurred 9/23/24.) Upon doing research, I discovered that connecting rod bearing failure has been a recurrent issue over the years with Kia engines. I believe that my ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
There is a constant issue with the fuel level gauges (Ducati 59210242B) in this model of bike which causes the sensor to burn out randomly and unexpectedly thus possibly leaving someone stranded due to improper information from the bike. This could leave the potential for an accident as well if the fuel cuts out completely while highway driving and the unexpected deceleration causes someone to re... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Kia Telluride. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle and attempting to shift the vehicle into drive(D), the gear lever failed to move. The contact stated the yellow wrench symbol warning light was illuminated. The contact called for Roadside assistance, and the tow truck arrived at the residence. The tow truck driver informed the contact that a damaged shifter ca... Read more
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
My back doors do not lock with the FOB or the interior door lock/unlock button. I have to manually unlock and lock my rear doors. This is a defect that Nissan is well aware of and seems to not care. My car only has 63,000 miles on it.
Incident date: Sep 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing a water leak. The contact noticed that the front driver's side seat, door arm rest and floor were significantly wet after rainfall. The contact stated that the failure later occurred on the front passenger's side of the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing electrical fa... Read more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2024
Getting engine maintenance required, coolant valve failed for no reason.
Incident date: Sep 11, 2024
The steering started to ‘jump’ upon making a turn. Upon inspection it has been determined that the steering column needs to be replaced for safety and vehicle function. We have less than 82,000 miles on the vehicle. It has been inspected by our mechanic and replacement part has been ordered (takes up to 5 days to receive).
Incident date: Aug 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, smoke and an abnormal odor was coming from the rear of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the dealer. The dealer determined that the failure was caused by a purge control valve failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine misfired and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a misfire in cylinder #5. The contact was informed that the cylinder #5 coil needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 23, 2022
On 9/5/2024 I brought the vehicle into the dealer for the 30000 mile service. Upon inspection the dealer found the rear brake pads were badly worn and needed replacement and that they were not under warranty and that I would be responsible for the cost. In February 2024 Volkswagen sent me a notice that they were extending the warranty on the rear pads to 24000 mi / 2 years from 12000 mi / 1year b... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact discovered that the front driver side curtain air bag cover panel was loose and unsecured. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the front driver’s side curtain air bag had partially deployed and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle had not been involved in a crash to cause the partial deployment... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact discovered that the front driver side curtain air bag cover panel was loose and unsecured. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the front driver’s side curtain air bag had partially deployed and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle had not been involved in a crash to cause the partial deployment... Read more
Incident date: Sep 20, 2024
My car currently has 93000 miles. Since I’ve had 76000 miles, I cannot make it to an oil change without my engine almost running out of oil. My maintenance is always done on time, especially considering I can’t even drive 3000 miles (out of my 5000 mile synthetic oil change life) without my oil light coming on and oil below dipstick. I have taken the car in multiple times, performed multiple e... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2024
Reduced propulsion power and check engine light. EGR valve failure per mechanic. Part has been on a global back order for 1.5 years. The car will not pass emissions testing and can blow a fuse that will make the car inoperable. The part is also costly at 2400.00 without labor costs. My car has 83,000 miles, is well-maintained and only 7 years old and now I can’t drive it or sell it.
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
On my 2018 RAM 3500 Duel rear wheel truck the ABS Pump Motor Control Unit is throwing a common code and warning lights intermittently that other year models have (C0020-01). This code has been confirmed by my dealer several times and this truck does not fall under any recalls for the ABS systems. I pull a 40 camper with this truck and with out the ABS and Traction control it could be very dange... Read more