Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,215,138 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA — including 138,663 crashes, 56,255 fires, and 8,561 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim — NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,215,138 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports — when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report — that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints — specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened — feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 60,583 complaints for KIA
Incident date: Feb 11, 2025
The contact owns 2012 Nissan Versa. The contact stated that while the vehicle was idling or while driving at various speeds, the driver's side floor was significantly hot, and the contact could feel the heat on her feet. The contact stated that the front driver's side floor carpet was burned, and the metal was visible. Additionally, the contact stated that the front brake pads were wearing prematu... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2025
I have owned my jeep since 2019. Since having my jeep MULTIPLE times I have had the Service shifter light come on. Previously shutting the vehicle off and turning it back on seemed to solve the issue for a little bit until it would come on again. Later down the road my battery died. Upon replacing the battery I didn't seem to notice the issue ever. Now I have another new battery and the light has ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 6, 2025
My cam phasers are failing for the third time. I purchased this vehicle used last year at 89,000 miles and now I have 101,000 miles on it. Before I got to 100,000 miles I started hearing a rattle on start up and didn’t know what it was. After researching it by the time, I figured it out I had over 100,000 miles And Ford says they will not do anything about it, although it is a known issue and th... Read more
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
Safety Complaint Summary: I am filing a safety complaint regarding my 2020 Hyundai Palisade SEL AWD, ~96,000 miles). This vehicle has suffered three major powertrain failures under 100,000 miles: - Full engine replacement (due to excessive oil consumption, unresolved for months) - AWD system repairs - Now requires a full transmission replacement When my engine began burning oil, Hyundai’s servi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 25, 2025
Safety Complaint Summary: I am filing a safety complaint regarding my 2020 Hyundai Palisade SEL AWD, ~96,000 miles). This vehicle has suffered three major powertrain failures under 100,000 miles: - Full engine replacement (due to excessive oil consumption, unresolved for months) - AWD system repairs - Now requires a full transmission replacement When my engine began burning oil, Hyundai’s servi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 18, 2025
Electric parking brake problem , and emissions system problem. Apparently its a common issue many are affected.
Incident date: Jul 17, 2025
CAR CONTINUES TO HAVE SHIFTING GEAR ISSUE. WENT TO A MECHANIC WHO DID A DIAGNOSTIC TEST ON IT AND THE RESULTS ARE: Transmission Error Messages U0415 and P1CB1 and OBDII Codes ($03) shows the same error message as Transmission P1CB1 Manufacturer Specific. the closest Chrysler Dealership is unable to perform anything on this vehicle as they no longer are licensed for the Fiat Software. Hence, they ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2025
Brakes make loud noise when I come to stop when leaving highway. Rear pads are at 2mm as of 8/28/2025 when they were replaced in on 5/14/2025. Repairs were performed by dealership on 5/14/2025 but they did not replace the rotors, they only replaced the rear pads.
Incident date: Sep 3, 2025
1. while driving slow or making a right hand turn the vehicle turns itself off 2. periodically the car does not start/no power and does not respond to keyless car lock 3. periodically the dashboard panel lights will not turn off, flash or some will go off but not all All of the above have been a twice repaired GMC recall 17276 and has been occurring since 2020.
Incident date: Feb 1, 2025
My car just randomly started having issues. It will start one day then take forever to start the next day. I’ve experienced bad odor to the vehicle and also the vehicle jumps into gears instead of smoothly shifting into gear. Also the engine is making noise and also the engine malfunction light has came on and my vehicle reduced power making it impossible to drive out of nowhere. I don’t feel ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 13, 2025
I think there is a problem with the Auto Idle Stop system that has resulted in the starter needing to be replaced. But, the dealership says nothing is wrong. The Auto Idle Stop malfunction lights up when I let off the brake. I have gotten in the habit of turning off the AIS every time I started the car. However, it still is hesitating to start, which leads me to believe the AIS has killed the star... Read more
Incident date: Aug 19, 2025
I purchased a 2010 Buick Enclave from a dealer who did not disclose any major issues with the vehicle. After purchase, I began experiencing significant problems while driving, including difficulty shifting, loss of power, and unstable handling. Concerned for my safety, I took the Buick to a mechanic for inspection. The mechanic verified that: •The wrong transmission had been installed in the ve... Read more
Incident date: Jun 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Genesis. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the driver's side rear door failed to open. The contact entered the vehicle and attempted to open the driver's side rear door; however the door failed to open. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the vehicle was diagnosed with a failed rear driver's side door handle. The contact was informed that ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was pushed to the side of the road on several occasions. The vehicle was able to restart after 10 minutes; however, the failure recurred upon resuming driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed.... Read more
Incident date: Sep 3, 2025
Car experienced intermittent check-engine light accompanied by "lugging" and inability to accelerate quickly, especially when driving uphill. I felt this was safety related because highway driving in heavy traffic often calls for the ability to accelerate suddenly to merge or to avoid other cars. Dealer finally diagnosed the problem as caused by all four ignition coils being defective.
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
Truck does not want to stay in the road. It hops to the right with the steering not being turned. Cannot tell when it is going to do it.
Incident date: Dec 16, 2024
door mechanisms do not disengage if something becomes trapped between the handle and the door when auto-locking. Hands and fingers can become pinched or trapped, posing a risk of injury, particularly to children.
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 16, 2024
A-PILLAR APPLIQUE TRIM on both sides of windshield have blown off in traffic. Water is getting vehicle.
Incident date: Jun 10, 2025
vehicle was delivered without the driver door cable properly installed, resulting no manual way to exit the vehicle in the event of an emergency/ power failure.
Incident date: Jun 10, 2025
vehicle failed to signal on left hand turn
Incident date: Jun 9, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). The contact stated that the dealer was contacted; however, the contact was informed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about parts availability. The contact had not experienced a failure.
Incident date: Jun 9, 2025
While driving at varying speeds the service brake warning light would come on and the vehicle would shudder while decelerating before coming to a full stop as the brakes were engaged resulting in a longer distance required for breaking. After initial occurrence the vehicle was inspected by the local dealership where they determined that "The brake lines passed inspection and there were no other ob... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2025
While driving at random times, no specific speed limit, the screen behind the wheel which shows speed and tachometer, will go into a system check mode. This is similar to when you start up the vehicle. The screen will come back after 5 to 10 seconds but during that time no information is displayed. If you have the vehicle in cruise control, it will disconnect cruise control, and you must catch it... Read more
Incident date: Jul 25, 2025
Purchased a 2025 RAM 1500 TUNGSTEN on [XXX]. Within a week of purchase, the blind spot monitors, forward collision monitors, and the emergency braking all quick working. The first attempt to fix was replacing wiring. This stopped it for a week before they were back on. Goes back into shop and replace and fully charge batteries and again it lasted about a week. Two more trips to shop (3rd and ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2025
The contact owns a 2008 Mercury Mountaineer. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated the vehicle stalled while driving at an undisclosed speed. The contact stated that several attempts were needed to restart the vehicle to continue driving. The contact stated that the gear shifter intermittently failed to move to the intended position. The contact... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2025
The contact owns a 2008 Mercury Mountaineer. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated the vehicle stalled while driving at an undisclosed speed. The contact stated that several attempts were needed to restart the vehicle to continue driving. The contact stated that the gear shifter intermittently failed to move to the intended position. The contact... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 1969
The car is in the shop for defective rear diferential. Once replaced the car now throws a code for the TPU being defective. Jeep issued a recall in jan 2025 for the TPU components on jeep cherokee 2017-2019. The VIN for my jeep is not showing as part of the recall. I want to report my car so it can be added to the recall.
Incident date: Aug 14, 2025
for the past year, I have been constantly replacing the spark plugs and ignition coil in my 2017 Kia optima. Recently I have had the valve cover gasket replaced. It is a constant oil consumption issue. I have received the P1326 diagnostic code. My dealership told me that the engine cannot be replaced unless it’s knocking. This is my only mode of transportation, and I would hate for me to be stra... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2024
“Service 4WD” message on the dashboard, vibration, grinding metal sound came from SUV.
Incident date: Mar 6, 2025
Air bag display is on and apparently there is a leak in the accelerant on the passenger side of the car.
Incident date: Aug 18, 2025
Reverse lights stay on. Causing the battery to drain. The fuse box under the hood is prone to go bad. Even with no corrosion. GM knows this and has not fixed the issue. Its a common problem going back many years. The need to upgrade the fuse box under the hood & the wiring harnesses. My taillight harnesses were completely burned up. The truck could of caught fire. This should be a recall. Instead ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 21, 2025
This is the 4th time I am having issues with this car. Major safety issues. Yesterday during during on the 405 freeway. It suddenly started to rain, the wiper malfunction while in traffic and pouring rain. A week before this incident, the steering of the car kept moving suddenly out of my line. This time my son was in the car. These dealerships do not really care to even look at it, they drive the... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
Was driving home and vehicle started to sputter shut off. There were no warning lights or messages. Took to the dealership, who was aware that there is history of this with Kia, but my VIN was not included in recalls.
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
I bought this vehicle march of 2024 it had 59880 mile or so on it.it now has 65220 miles in it and it started blowing white smoke and is running rough took it to my mechanic and they said it needs a new engine.i had the water pump replaced because it was loosing antifreeze.well I had no idea that this has been a ongoing issue with these vehicles.its high time ford steps up and takes blame for the... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
At 20,000 miles I was doing 70 which was the speed limit the engine light came on and flashed and put itself into limp mode it acted fine once the car was turned off and back on the dealer hooked a scanner up and said nothing but the electronic port was wrong which the charging port wouldn’t work half the time. At 149000 miles the water pump went out as soon as I paid it off due to Chevy dealer ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 7, 2024
My wife was driving on the parkway when her Mustang Mach-E started flashing multiple warning messages on the HUD. The vehicle suddenly died with no power. She was in a center lane of traffic in a 6-lane section. The vehicle did not let her put the car into neutral to push it out of the way. When they tried to get back into the car they found that it would not open and after she and the police o... Read more
Incident date: May 2, 2025
I was driving and all of a sudden I received a low oil pressure alert on my care and within a min my car lost all power and was completely unable to accelerate. It is currently in the shop and they said it will be months before it is repaired.
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
Car rolls freely when placed in park
Incident date: Aug 26, 2025
Merging onto highway, the transmission stayed in-between gears and did not allow me to accelerate forcing me to ride the break down lane momentarily. I had to shift to N and then back to D to regain acceleration. As continued to the next exit the transmission shifted from 7 to 1 and then back to 7 causing a hard shift and a violent jolt of the vehicle. This happened in 9th gear as well before reac... Read more
Incident date: Sep 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2020 Honda CR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags). The contact stated that the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amoun... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
I am reporting a severe and hazardous failure involving my 2019 Hyundai Accent. On August 8, 2025, between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., while driving on Mopac (Loop 1), a heavily traveled highway in Austin, Texas, the vehicle abruptly experienced an overheating issue without any prior warning. The engine rapidly lost power, causing the vehicle to become unstable in traffic. I managed to maneuver the ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
The vehicle had the original OEM battery fail at 15 months. It dropped to 7v under light load. It's a bad battery. Upon being jump started, the power steering went in and out while driving and the dashboard blinked on and off...throwing a lot of errors that are unrelated to the battery problem. The failure state of the vehicle with a bad battery is unlike any vehicle I have ever seen and it is ext... Read more
Incident date: Aug 28, 2025
The rearview camera display threw up a blue screen then proceeded to throw up a back screen and told me “Camera is unavailable. Please contact dealership.” From my knowledge, there is a current recall out for this particular issue. I was attempting to back into a parking spot when this happened and I was surrounded by vehicles when this happened. There were no warnings on the vehicle dash or i... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who determined that there was coolant intrusion in cylinder #3, res... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2025
Was on [XXX] traveling 40 mph. Traffic came to a sudden stop, when I hit brakes the ABS never kicked in and I slid into car in front of me. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash
Incident date: Aug 27, 2025
On multiple occasions, my 2020 Chevrolet Blazer RS has failed to recognize when it is shifted into the "Park" gear. When this occurs, a "Shift to Park" message appears on the dashboard, and the vehicle's electronics will not shut down, preventing me from turning off and locking the vehicle. This defect presents several critical safety hazards: Inability to Secure Vehicle: The engine/electronics ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Cadillac Escalade ESV. The contact stated that while driving with the cruise control activated, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V274000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the pa... Read more
Incident date: Aug 27, 2025
I was driving over to walk my friends dog and I was pulling into the overflow parking area and my car just speed up and it would not stop. I went up a curb and I hit a small tree went down another curb crossed the street and then up another curb and the break would not stop the car. I finally just cut the car off
Incident date: Aug 29, 2025
Radio will constantly reset as well as the in-dash clock, and the Tire Pressure light will illuminate and flash. I found this appears to be a consistent issue with 2014, 2015, and 2016 Toyota Corolla's on YouTube.