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 62,191 complaints for KIA
Incident date: Jul 27, 2026
Subject: Request for Safety Defect Investigation and Recall – 2018 INFINITI QX80 Infotainment/Navigation Screen To Whom It May Concern: I am writing to formally request an investigation into a serious and recurring problem with the infotainment/navigation screen in my 2018 INFINITI QX80 and to request that INFINITI consider a safety recall or other appropriate remedy. The screen is malfunctionin... Read more
Incident date: Jul 27, 2026
On Aug. 9, 2026, my 2022 Tesla Model Y experienced a sudden low-voltage electrical failure that completely immobilized the vehicle. Earlier that morning, the Tesla app sent a push notification indicating low-voltage battery service was needed. I tapped it, but it provided no actionable warning. I immediately checked Maintenance. At 9:06 AM, the app displayed “0 Recommended” and “No maintenan... Read more
Incident date: Apr 4, 2026
Vehicle is repeatedly losing functionality of features controlled by what is referred to as the infotainment system, included lane departure warning, sound associated with turn signals, sound associated with GPS, use of hands-free calling system, etc. Upon reset, functionality resumes but the reset takes a few minutes and must be performed again and again as the issue is recurring. The main proble... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Honda Civic SI. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH with the cruise control activated, a semi-truck abruptly entered the lane the vehicle was driving in, and the brake pedal became firm. The contact stated that the cruise control failed to disengage while depressing the brake pedal. Due to the firmness of the brake pedal, the contact was forced to abruptly switch l... Read more
2 injured
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
The contact owns a 2024 Honda Civic SI. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH with the cruise control activated, a semi-truck abruptly entered the lane the vehicle was driving in, and the brake pedal became firm. The contact stated that the cruise control failed to disengage while depressing the brake pedal. Due to the firmness of the brake pedal, the contact was forced to abruptly switch l... Read more
2 injured
Incident date: Aug 3, 2026
The contact owns a 2022 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55-65 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The check engine and battery warning lights were illuminated. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V455000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, and the failure was associated with the recall and a diagnostic troubl... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
My 2024 Outlander locked all the doors while the engine was running and the FAST key was inside the vehicle. I exited normally through the driver’s door and did not intentionally lock the vehicle. I want this documented on the repair order and I’d like the keyless-operation system checked, including the interior key antenna and any BCM/keyless-system faults or available software updates. I am ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2023
Child safety at risk I saw a child (estimate 3-5 y/o) sitting in front seat of Waymo vehicle at 2:08pm at Bedford Dr. and Peck Dr. in Beverly Hills, CA. There did not appear to be an adult in the vehicle.
Incident date: Jul 26, 2026
On Thursday [XXX] I left San Marcos, CA and drove north to meet with my future father-in-law who lives in Shady Canyon, located in Irvine, CA. My car, a 2018 Honda Civic Type R, performed normally on the way to his house, without any warning lamps, messages, etc shown. The tires had regular pressure and all maintenance on the vehicle was current. Upon leaving my friend's house, I drove 1/4 mile do... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jul 26, 2026
On Thursday [XXX] I left San Marcos, CA and drove north to meet with my future father-in-law who lives in Shady Canyon, located in Irvine, CA. My car, a 2018 Honda Civic Type R, performed normally on the way to his house, without any warning lamps, messages, etc shown. The tires had regular pressure and all maintenance on the vehicle was current. Upon leaving my friend's house, I drove 1/4 mile do... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jul 26, 2026
Hello. I purchased my car in 2018. 2-3 years later, the power steering would randomly go out while driving - on the highway and city roads. This could happen once and then not again for 6+ months. When this happened a message would display about a "steering assist fault, service now". I found that if I pulled over, turned the car off and then on, it would generally work again. We had the ve... Read more
KIA
SORENTO HYBRID
(2025) - SEAT BELTS
Aug 9, 2026
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
Two defects are present simultaneously on the front passenger seating position of my 2024 Nissan Z. The passenger seat belt does not reliably latch. On several occasions the belt has released on its own while the vehicle was in motion, most frequently under hard cornering. On other occasions the belt appears fully latched but the seat belt warning light remains illuminated, indicating the buckle ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 9, 2026
Wife was going to the store engine lost power and died prior to that steering got loose like trying to turn itself, towed to dealer inspected dealer cleaned throttle returned vehicle after cost of 807.00 and drove van to church tailgate would not open without vehicle running, got home turned off windshield washers operated brittle with key off, remote key system problem displayed also hill hold, b... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
RECALL REMEDY FAILURE-DEALER DENIED SAFETY REPAIR On 7/31 vehicle would shut off after cranking up. Eventually got a check engine light. I was out of town at the time and it was 630pm. I was able to take vehicle to a Advanced Auto so they could do a quick diagnostic check. Codes P0505--Idle Air Control System DTC Severity 2 of 3 and P0507--Idle Control System RPM Higher than expected also showed. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2026
While driving my Audi Q6 e-tron on the highway, the vehicle experienced a sudden and complete loss of propulsion and nearly all vehicle electrical/display functions. The instrument cluster and dashboard went completely black, and the vehicle would no longer respond to accelerator input. I was able to get the vehicle to the side of the highway. After the failure, the vehicle could not be restarted... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2026
While driving my Audi Q6 e-tron on the highway, the vehicle experienced a sudden and complete loss of propulsion and nearly all vehicle electrical/display functions. The instrument cluster and dashboard went completely black, and the vehicle would no longer respond to accelerator input. I was able to get the vehicle to the side of the highway. After the failure, the vehicle could not be restarted... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
I took my 2003 Saturn ion to my local Chevrolet dealership in Lincoln Illinois and they refused to complete the recall issues (2) both are to do with the ignition and keys.thwy told me it was not fixable it needed a whole steering column that would cost me they said around $800.so it has now been 2 weeks my car has been there at Graue Chevrolet Dealership unfixed and they refused to fix please hel... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
electrical, drivetrain, powertrain. While driving the vehicle a message popped up on the speedometer saying service battery chargeing system and battery saver mode. the is the second time that those messages have come up in the four years of ownership with the first time being in 2024. The second issue we have had with this vehicle was injectors going bad and causing a bad misfire making driveabi... Read more
Incident date: Jul 10, 2026
electrical, drivetrain, powertrain. While driving the vehicle a message popped up on the speedometer saying service battery chargeing system and battery saver mode. the is the second time that those messages have come up in the four years of ownership with the first time being in 2024. The second issue we have had with this vehicle was injectors going bad and causing a bad misfire making driveabi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
Driving on the highway near Rockport, WA, when vehicle suddenly loss propulsion, engine light appeared, and vehicle went into transport mode enabled. Without causing an accident, I was able to pull to the side of the road. Once I put vehicle in park, it shut off and displayed, “Tranport Mode On. Vehicle would not start and was towed home. My son-in-law was able to disable transport mode, but... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2026
I was in an automatic car wash, approaching the end of the tunnel. The car was running but in neutral. I put my foot on the brake pedal and shifted into drive. As I moved the shifter, I heard a scraping sound followed by a clink sound, then the car surged forward and accelerated toward a stone wall directly ahead. I turned hard right as I hit and held the brakes. I missed the wall but hit a p... Read more
Crash
KIA
SORENTO PHEV
(2025) - SERVICE BRAKES
Aug 8, 2026
Incident date: Aug 1, 2026
Automated emergency braking triggering unsafely! Two separate occasions: 1) As I was driving about 40 MPH on a 4 lane street in Wyomissing, PA, the car slammed on the brakes. In the median to the left of the car ahead about 20-30 ft was a "your car is going XX MPH" sign. It was NOT in the road. If a car had been following me closely, this could have caused a serious accident. The road had a s... Read more
KIA
SORENTO PHEV
(2025) - SERVICE BRAKES
Aug 8, 2026
Incident date: Aug 1, 2026
The brakes failed due to a leak in the brake lines (pedal to the floor). Location of the leak is just after a union on the passenger side rear (just in front of the rear tire). Location is not well protected from corrosion similar to other recalls for the wrx and sti version of the impreza. Image shows the corroded area, and is taken after the protective coating was cut bqck to expose well main... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2026
My transmission is surging at low speeds all the way from takeoff to about 60mph. No engine or transmission codes.
Incident date: Jul 1, 2026
Vehicle: 2015 Hyundai Sonata VIN: [XXX] Mileage: ~85,000 Description of the Problem: While driving, the vehicle suddenly began producing thick smoke from under the hood without warning. I safely maneuvered to the shoulder to avoid an accident. The engine subsequently seized completely and became inoperable. My mechanic diagnosed this as a known internal manufacturing defect in the Theta II engine ... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jul 14, 2026
Vehicle experienced a complete electrical failure while driving. The vehicle is a 2012 Range Rover Sport. At approximately 25 mph, the engine shut off, all exterior and interior lights went out, and the steering wheel locked in the straight‑ahead position. I temporarily lost control of the vehicle and was only able to stop safely because I was traveling at low speed. This incident created an ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 25, 2026
I was driving on the highway to work. All of a sudden my car lost control and started spinning in circles. I attempted to steer and break but it would not stop. All the lights came on on the dash with an engine warning. I lost total control and slammed into a guardrail. I did call 911 because I was in part of the road facing the wrong direction. They sent the fire department. I was able to event... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Mar 15, 2024
The radio has a ghost touch, dealer does not see it as a problem. I hope government do.
KIA
SORENTO PHEV
(2025) - SERVICE BRAKES
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: Jul 7, 2026
While riding my 2024 Royal Enfield INT650 with only 200.7 miles on it the rear hydraulic brakes suffered sudden catastrophic failure with no warning. the brake pedal went completely soft and fell to the floor causing a total loss of rear stopping power and creating an immediate collision hazarded. the bike was towed to an authorized dealer which confirmed the brake fluid was boiled but blamed user... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
The driver's memory seat has a serious malfunction. Whenever I enter the vehicle or switch between memory presets, the driver's seat unexpectedly reclines completely backward. This also crushes anyone sitting in the rear driver's-side seat, making it essentially unusable until we can return the driver's seat to its upright position. Even more concerning, the seat can begin reclining while I am dri... Read more
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
Vehicle: 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 I was the driver and sole occupant of my 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 and was wearing my seat belt. I was traveling westbound on [XXX], shortly after passing [XXX], when I was involved in a three-vehicle collision. The first vehicle stopped abruptly, resulting in the collision. I was traveling approximately 50–55 mph before the collision, and my truck sustained a significan... Read more
Crash
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: May 30, 2026
Manufacturer Dealer Diagnostic confirmed that Head Gasket is leaking on cylinder 1 and that this is a known issue. Vehicle just 3 months and barely 2000 miles out of new car warranty. Manufacturer fails to cover repair at 100% Power Loss while driving on the freeway on 2 separate occasions. Engine did not provide power in response to accelerator pedal, car slows down w/o control. Incident 1 travel... Read more
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - ENGINE
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: May 30, 2026
Manufacturer Dealer Diagnostic confirmed that Head Gasket is leaking on cylinder 1 and that this is a known issue. Vehicle just 3 months and barely 2000 miles out of new car warranty. Manufacturer fails to cover repair at 100% Power Loss while driving on the freeway on 2 separate occasions. Engine did not provide power in response to accelerator pedal, car slows down w/o control. Incident 1 travel... Read more
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - POWER TRAIN
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: May 30, 2026
Manufacturer Dealer Diagnostic confirmed that Head Gasket is leaking on cylinder 1 and that this is a known issue. Vehicle just 3 months and barely 2000 miles out of new car warranty. Manufacturer fails to cover repair at 100% Power Loss while driving on the freeway on 2 separate occasions. Engine did not provide power in response to accelerator pedal, car slows down w/o control. Incident 1 travel... Read more
Incident date: Aug 6, 2026
While backing out of driveway, with parked vehicle along side and one moving vehicle in the road, I was applying the break and the Emergency Stop feature activated. My speed was 2-3 MPH and slowing.
Incident date: Aug 7, 2026
While engaging my brakes at a traffic light, suddenly the brake pedal went to the floor. Once I was able to safely park the vehicle (because there was no brake function), I inspected around the tires, brake fluid, and brake calipers. I noticed a puddling of brake fluid around the front passenger tire. Upon removing the tire, and inspecting this brake hose, I noticed the brake hose was visibly rupt... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2026
Car started shaking roughly when started, check engine light came on for cylinder misfire. Known engine problem where coolant leaks in to the engine block due to a known defect from Ford for these 2.0L engines. There is a TSB 22-2229 ([XXX]) already issued for this. Dealer inspected and confirmed the problem. Now the entire engine long block needs to be replaced resulting in $10,000 repair. INFO... Read more
Incident date: Jul 27, 2026
While I was driving on a highway the ADAS (IPMA) suddenly stopped working creating a dangerous situation as I was using adaptive cruise control at the time. It has never worked since. Ford has told me that there is no software fix and the hardware needs to be replaced at a cost of $1500. Unless I pay that amount I will lack key safety features like forward collision warning and automatic emergency... Read more
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: Jun 3, 2026
low‑beam headlights/headlight assembly issues. Moisture getting in, corrosion of prongs that connect to the headlight assembly. Dimming lights once assembly was replaced. Condensation in the headlights. Some bulbs work while others don't.
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - POWER TRAIN
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: Jun 3, 2026
After the "9C9" emissions recall update the vehicle randomly fails to respond to appropriately throttle input when attempting to accelerate into traffic. The issue is very intermittent - it may occur twice in 10 minutes or drive fine for hours. It has demonstrated both a "bucking" / stuttering / misfire feeling as well as a complete lack of any throttle response. After a few seconds of bucking, th... Read more
KIA
CARNIVAL HYBRID
(2026) - VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Aug 7, 2026
Incident date: Jun 3, 2026
After the "9C9" emissions recall update the vehicle randomly fails to respond to appropriately throttle input when attempting to accelerate into traffic. The issue is very intermittent - it may occur twice in 10 minutes or drive fine for hours. It has demonstrated both a "bucking" / stuttering / misfire feeling as well as a complete lack of any throttle response. After a few seconds of bucking, th... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
The contact owns a 2025 BMW K1600 B. The contact stated that while riding 55 MPH or higher, the motorcycle became unstable, with a noticeable left-right movement. The contact stated that the failure was most noticeable while overtaking other vehicles going in the same direction. There were no warning lights illuminated. The motorcycle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed, and it was determined ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 31, 2025
DESIGN FLAW & SAFETY RISK: Toyota critically mismatched the standard battery to the vehicle's electrical charging profile; an AGM battery should be specified from the factory. Engine programming drops alternator voltage during cruising, deeply discharging the battery, and forces high-voltage surges (15V+) into it during deceleration. Because standard batteries cannot handle these rapid recharge lo... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2026
Went for an oil change and learn the cooler has a leak. Car was getting over heated. What cause this issue as I just got it in Feb.2026
Incident date: May 31, 2026
FAILED COMPONENT & AVAILABILITY: The manual transmission Concentric Slave Cylinder (CSC) failed internally. Due to caustic hydraulic fluid contamination and severe system pressure loss, I had to replace the internal CSC unit, the clutch disc, the pressure plate, the flywheel, the master clutch cylinder, and the hydraulic clutch lines. The failed components have been retained and are available for ... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2026
The contact owns a 2017 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The door locks independently latched and unlatched. In addition, the traction control error message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with wiring harness failure. The... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2026
The contact owns a 2017 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The door locks independently latched and unlatched. In addition, the traction control error message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with wiring harness failure. The... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2026
I bought this vehicle and few weeks later I noticed at a red light. When it turned green i hit the gas. My car took a few seconds, reved and then shot out into the lane. Since then it has had issues over 20 miles and when I stop its a few seconds for the car to accelerate and move which is scary on the road. My 4 sons were horrified! I looked up SR-16-006, after my mechanic said I have exactly e... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2026
The contact owns a 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee L. The contact stated that while his wife was driving 20-25 MPH, the accelerator pedal became stuck, and the vehicle drove through a stop sign and intersection, swerving into a farm, and crashed into a pole in order to bring the vehicle to a stop. After removing her foot from the brake pedal, the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The contact stated that the ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Aug 5, 2026
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Edge. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V544000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact ha... Read more