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 125,830 complaints for HONDA
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
While driving my 2026 Honda Odyssey, I stopped at a red light and the engine shut off through the Auto Idle Stop system. I pressed the Auto Idle Stop OFF button because I wanted the engine running again before proceeding. Instead of restarting the engine, the vehicle completely shut down and became inoperable in traffic. I repeatedly attempted to restart the vehicle, but it remained unresponsiv... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
While driving my 2026 Honda Odyssey, I stopped at a red light and the engine shut off through the Auto Idle Stop system. I pressed the Auto Idle Stop OFF button because I wanted the engine running again before proceeding. Instead of restarting the engine, the vehicle completely shut down and became inoperable in traffic. I repeatedly attempted to restart the vehicle, but it remained unresponsiv... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
While driving my 2026 Honda Odyssey, I stopped at a red light and the engine shut off through the Auto Idle Stop system. I pressed the Auto Idle Stop OFF button because I wanted the engine running again before proceeding. Instead of restarting the engine, the vehicle completely shut down and became inoperable in traffic. I repeatedly attempted to restart the vehicle, but it remained unresponsiv... Read more
Incident date: Jun 30, 2026
After previously reporting that a connecting rod bearing noise developed after the timing belt maintenance package was performed near 100,000 miles, the connecting rod bearings failed around 3,000 miles later while going down the interstate with children in the car. Thankfully the Pilot, which was shaking and making noise, was able to be pulled over to side of the interstate and later towed to th... Read more
Incident date: Apr 26, 2024
VTC actuator malfunction causing timing chain failure leading to engine failure dangerous if driving causing engine to fail on highway leading to dangerous situation paid to fix 10,000 miles later same issue with updated part installed. Problem confirmed by Honda
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
The contact owns a 2019 HONDA Passport. The contact stated while driving the vehicle at an undisclosed speed, he noticed that the vehicle had reduced power and could not accelerate very well, accompanied by an odd noise coming from the engine bay. The contact stated that he had an independent mechanic confirm that the noise was a possible engine issue leading to the destruction of the camshaft and... Read more
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
Vehicle started flashing all lights on dashboard. I drove it for awhile and then it eventually went off. A few days later same lights came back on a car started misfiring. Was told by Honda that is was the Turbo that's going bad. Today is just cut off on me. Luckily there wasn't anyone behind me. I see a lot of people are having these same issues and a recall should be put out immediately.
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
Vehicle started flashing all lights on dashboard. I drove it for awhile and then it eventually went off. A few days later same lights came back on a car started misfiring. Was told by Honda that is was the Turbo that's going bad. Today is just cut off on me. Luckily there wasn't anyone behind me. I see a lot of people are having these same issues and a recall should be put out immediately.
Incident date: Sep 10, 2026
Vehicle started flashing all lights on dashboard. I drove it for awhile and then it eventually went off. A few days later same lights came back on a car started misfiring. Was told by Honda that is was the Turbo that's going bad. Today is just cut off on me. Luckily there wasn't anyone behind me. I see a lot of people are having these same issues and a recall should be put out immediately.
Incident date: Aug 31, 2026
The evaporator core failure (leaking). It affects defrosting windshield causing visibility and safety issues. Diagnosed at dealership after condenser and compressor shaft seal extended warranty work completed. Evaporator core diagnosed 3 months after same dealership did warranty work.
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
I am writing to file a complaint regarding the air conditioning system failure in my 2020 Honda Civic Sport. The air conditioner in my vehicle began blowing hot air instead of cold air starting in January 2024. I took the vehicle to a mechanic for inspection, I was informed that the evaporator has failed and needs to be replaced. While researching this issue, I discovered that many other Honda Civ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Sep 28, 2020
My air conditioning failed producing cool air in late 2020. I took it to Honda Penske in Ontario. The said at that time the Evaporator core is leaking but it not covered by warranty. I had pay out of pocket to install freon and that would like me for 5-6 months however the same problem would return. The following year I took it to El Monte Honda dealership where I purchased the car. They reviewed ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 17, 2026
The AD Steering Rack as noted on their service invoice. It started to get sloppy with a lot of give about 4 weeks ago. I asked my husband to drive it to verify my concerns which he did. During that time it had a mind of its own and seemed to want to steer itself. It was not on steering assistance mode nor could you activate that. At 34,000 miles, we immediately went to the nearest dealership and t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
Recurring, intermittent fuel smell inside the vehicle, even with the air on recirculate. Seems to occur when on very hot days when the vehicle has been running a lot. The dealership found a soaked evap canister, replaced the fuel tank and evap canister, and the symptoms returned after about one week with a fuel smell entering the cabin. The fumes cause migraines and are unacceptable for a new ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
Recurring, intermittent fuel smell inside the vehicle, even with the air on recirculate. Seems to occur when on very hot days when the vehicle has been running a lot. The dealership found a soaked evap canister, replaced the fuel tank and evap canister, and the symptoms returned after about one week with a fuel smell entering the cabin. The fumes cause migraines and are unacceptable for a new ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
Recurring, intermittent fuel smell inside the vehicle, even with the air on recirculate. Seems to occur when on very hot days when the vehicle has been running a lot. The dealership found a soaked evap canister, replaced the fuel tank and evap canister, and the symptoms returned after about one week with a fuel smell entering the cabin. The fumes cause migraines and are unacceptable for a new ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 9, 2026
The car stalled in an intersection. The auto idle function had engaged when the car came to a full stop, but when i took my foot off the break it did not restart. It took a couple of tries to get it to restart, leaving my car in the intersection. This problem has been happening on and off since I bought it used in 2022. In May 2025, a Honda dealership near me made a valve adjustment and replaced t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2026
When the Honda Civic has been driven long enough for the steering to get warm, at highway speeds, the steering wheel will stick in position instead of centering itself. Manual adjustment has to be done to straighten the car.
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
I randomly received a series of 6 warning messages when starting the car on 9/3/26. They were all warnings related to the automatic safety features such as lane departure, collision detection, auto bright lights, etc.I took it to the dealer on 9/4/26 & they diagnosed an internal failure with a multi-purpose camera embedded in the rearview mirror. The dealer ordered a new part, installed and reprog... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
I randomly received a series of 6 warning messages when starting the car on 9/3/26. They were all warnings related to the automatic safety features such as lane departure, collision detection, auto bright lights, etc.I took it to the dealer on 9/4/26 & they diagnosed an internal failure with a multi-purpose camera embedded in the rearview mirror. The dealer ordered a new part, installed and reprog... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2026
I randomly received a series of 6 warning messages when starting the car on 9/3/26. They were all warnings related to the automatic safety features such as lane departure, collision detection, auto bright lights, etc.I took it to the dealer on 9/4/26 & they diagnosed an internal failure with a multi-purpose camera embedded in the rearview mirror. The dealer ordered a new part, installed and reprog... Read more
HONDA
CIVIC TYPE R
(2021) - ENGINE
Sep 10, 2026
Incident date: Mar 20, 2026
Head Gasket failure, coolant was found while inspecting a spark plug at my local Honda dealership. Noticed spark plug in cylinder 2 was damaged. Stuck a camera down to find coolant mixed with oil.
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
The engine continues to overheat and shut down while driving. The engine often goes into "limp" mode while driving. The entire set of gauges and lights on the dashboard light up like a Christmas tree, alerting me that all systems in the car are malfunctioning. I fear that I may have a malfunctioning head gasket. I've replace injectors, radar sensors, new turbo, gas pedal, etc and I have spent near... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2026
The idle restart function causes the van to shut off completely when at stop lights in heavy traffic. It does not immediately restart and we have to sit in traffic while folk are honking at us to go. It doesn’t do this every time, but has happened 3 times in the last 3 months.
Incident date: Sep 1, 2026
The idle restart function causes the van to shut off completely when at stop lights in heavy traffic. It does not immediately restart and we have to sit in traffic while folk are honking at us to go. It doesn’t do this every time, but has happened 3 times in the last 3 months.
Incident date: Aug 30, 2026
Driver hit curb going 7 mph. No one was in the passenger seat. Both passenger airbags deployed.
Crash
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
On Tuesday, September 8, 2026 while sitting idle at a red light I had my foot on the brake and when the light turned green, I went to push on the gas and the van would not go, nearly causing the car behind me to rear end me because they figured I was going since it was a green light. I turned my hazard lights on, and there was a warning that appeared on the dash but I did not catch what it said in... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
On Tuesday, September 8, 2026 while sitting idle at a red light I had my foot on the brake and when the light turned green, I went to push on the gas and the van would not go, nearly causing the car behind me to rear end me because they figured I was going since it was a green light. I turned my hazard lights on, and there was a warning that appeared on the dash but I did not catch what it said in... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
I am filing this complaint regarding a recurring “Network Communication Lost” issue with my Honda Pilot. I am aware that Honda has issued a recall related to network communication issues; however, when I checked my vehicle’s VIN, it is not included in the recall. My vehicle is experiencing the same network communication problem described in the recall. I am concerned that my vehicle may hav... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
I am filing this complaint regarding a recurring “Network Communication Lost” issue with my Honda Pilot. I am aware that Honda has issued a recall related to network communication issues; however, when I checked my vehicle’s VIN, it is not included in the recall. My vehicle is experiencing the same network communication problem described in the recall. I am concerned that my vehicle may hav... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
After going over a railroad track, at 15mph, several warning sensors appeared. Including brakes, power steering and several more flashed quickly. Power steering failed and I could not turn my wheel. It told me to not drive and see a dealer. Luckily I was in traffic and it was moving slow. I was able to turn my car off and back on and all the senor systems cleared. I took my car to the dealer, whic... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
After going over a railroad track, at 15mph, several warning sensors appeared. Including brakes, power steering and several more flashed quickly. Power steering failed and I could not turn my wheel. It told me to not drive and see a dealer. Luckily I was in traffic and it was moving slow. I was able to turn my car off and back on and all the senor systems cleared. I took my car to the dealer, whic... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
After going over a railroad track, at 15mph, several warning sensors appeared. Including brakes, power steering and several more flashed quickly. Power steering failed and I could not turn my wheel. It told me to not drive and see a dealer. Luckily I was in traffic and it was moving slow. I was able to turn my car off and back on and all the senor systems cleared. I took my car to the dealer, whic... Read more
Incident date: Jun 20, 2025
When in traffic at a stop, my car goes into idle mode, and when I take my foot off the brake to switch to the accelerator the car shuts down. It takes a few tries to get the car started back up again. This has been happening intermittently for over a year.
Incident date: Jun 20, 2026
Unknown of actual issue. Experiencing persistent hard excessive jerking when accelerating. Extended warranty was placed for most Hondas due to head gasket issue but not for 2.0T
Incident date: Sep 9, 2026
Engine has oil consumption, Honda has a recall for this defect told us in August 2026 should have a remedy and is September 2026 and no remedy available yet in their recall can be dangerously drive this motorcycle they supposed repair or replace the whole engine component it’s dangerous can be fatality to drive it
Incident date: Sep 6, 2026
The auto idle system shuts off the vehicle completely at a stoplight or intersection and fails to restart when you release the brake. The vehicle is stuck in traffic and doesn’t restart for a few minutes mine had to be jumped started this THIRD time it happened. This created a hazardous safety condition for my family in which kids are always traveling. The dealer has not provided solution. Conce... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2026
The auto idle system shuts off the vehicle completely at a stoplight or intersection and fails to restart when you release the brake. The vehicle is stuck in traffic and doesn’t restart for a few minutes mine had to be jumped started this THIRD time it happened. This created a hazardous safety condition for my family in which kids are always traveling. The dealer has not provided solution. Conce... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2026
The auto idle system shuts off the vehicle completely at a stoplight or intersection and fails to restart when you release the brake. The vehicle is stuck in traffic and doesn’t restart for a few minutes mine had to be jumped started this THIRD time it happened. This created a hazardous safety condition for my family in which kids are always traveling. The dealer has not provided solution. Conce... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
Failed engine rod bearing, And a full engine replacement is needed. As I was driving it completely lost acceleration power and became difficult to manage. The dealer verified the issue. All the warning lights including engine flashed on and off as the vehicle lost acceleration power.
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2006 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was approximately 87,300; however, the Carfax report obtained during an oil change service listed the mileage at 356,382 in February 2026.
Incident date: Sep 9, 2026
My vehicle intermittently shifts from normal automatic Drive (D) into S mode without any intentional driver input. I do not touch or activate the steering-wheel paddle shifter when this occurs. Searching on reddit and other forums I see many other drivers have the same issue. The problem appears to happen primarily after coming to a complete stop, such as at a traffic light or stop sign. When I t... Read more
Incident date: Aug 28, 2026
The Auto Idle Stop feature failed to restart the car after sitting at a stoplight twice this past week. The dealer (Frank Leta Hoda) diagnosed the problem as a "bad starter". I believe this falls under the active investigation EA22005 - No Start After Auto Start/Stop Engages. The vehicle is two years old with 40,378 miles at the time of reporting the problem to the dealer. I reported this to H... Read more
Incident date: Aug 28, 2026
The Auto Idle Stop feature failed to restart the car after sitting at a stoplight twice this past week. The dealer (Frank Leta Hoda) diagnosed the problem as a "bad starter". I believe this falls under the active investigation EA22005 - No Start After Auto Start/Stop Engages. The vehicle is two years old with 40,378 miles at the time of reporting the problem to the dealer. I reported this to H... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2019) - POWER TRAIN
Sep 9, 2026
Incident date: Sep 9, 2026
The vehicle has a documented, severe manufacturing defect involving a cylinder head gasket leak under Honda Service Bulletin 26-006. A certified technician at Honda East Cincinnati confirmed the head gasket leak in writing on September 9, 2026. Prior to this, an independent facility pulled code P0302 (Cylinder 2 Misfire) and used a digital borescope to capture video proof of liquid coolant pooling... Read more
HONDA
ACCORD HYBRID
(2019) - ENGINE
Sep 9, 2026
Incident date: Sep 9, 2026
The vehicle has a documented, severe manufacturing defect involving a cylinder head gasket leak under Honda Service Bulletin 26-006. A certified technician at Honda East Cincinnati confirmed the head gasket leak in writing on September 9, 2026. Prior to this, an independent facility pulled code P0302 (Cylinder 2 Misfire) and used a digital borescope to capture video proof of liquid coolant pooling... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2026
New, 2026 Honda CRV purchased on 07/02/2026. The washer system doesn't adequately clean the windshield because the washer nozzles are mounted on on the wiper arms and are timed poorly. During our 1st highway trip on 08/13/2026, visibility was impaired due to an obvious, unsafe windshield wiper design. My spouse and I were on a 60 mile return trip to our home during darkness and realized the wipe... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
2019 Honda CR-V, VIN [XXX], approximately 82,000 miles. Since new, the vehicle has intermittently displayed a "Christmas tree" warning — most or all dashboard warning lights illuminate simultaneously — with no consistent trigger (not tied to weather, cold starts, road type, or time of day). Over approximately the last two months this has escalated from occasional to daily, sometimes twice dail... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
2019 Honda CR-V, VIN [XXX], approximately 82,000 miles. Since new, the vehicle has intermittently displayed a "Christmas tree" warning — most or all dashboard warning lights illuminate simultaneously — with no consistent trigger (not tied to weather, cold starts, road type, or time of day). Over approximately the last two months this has escalated from occasional to daily, sometimes twice dail... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2026
2019 Honda CR-V, VIN [XXX], approximately 82,000 miles. Since new, the vehicle has intermittently displayed a "Christmas tree" warning — most or all dashboard warning lights illuminate simultaneously — with no consistent trigger (not tied to weather, cold starts, road type, or time of day). Over approximately the last two months this has escalated from occasional to daily, sometimes twice dail... Read more