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 15,126 complaints for LEXUS
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
PLEASE SEE ATTACH FOR DETAILS 1. Component or System Involved The Fuel Cell System and Accelerator Pedal Control System are suspected to have malfunctioned. The issue is characterized by the vehicle's failure to respond to input from the accelerator pedal, particularly at speeds between 45-65 mph, which may be linked to increased power demand from the fuel cell system. The system is available for... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
My passenger airbag sensor malfunctioned and the repair is over two thousand dollars. The car is only 6 years old and I believe airbags should last longer than 6 years. BMW has extended warranties for airbags on some models (mine not included) for 15 years without mileage limitation. If a collision occurs, my passenger would be in extreme danger.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Lexus RZ 450. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in park(P), the vehicle failed to shift out of park after multiple attempts. The vehicle eventually shifted into drive(D) and as the contact began to drive the vehicle, the vehicle began to hesitate as the brake warning light appeared on the instrument panel. Once the contact reached her destination and parked the ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while in reverse (R), an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the air bag warning light was illuminated, and the contact was advised to see the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
Brake malfunction on my 2018 Toyota Camry and steering wheel malfunctioned causing my vehicles to spend on the freeway hitting a barrel and landing the car into a ditch. The car is not available for inspection it’s still at the tow yard. The safety was at risk for me as the driver was tremendously overwhelming and fearful. The problem has not been reproduced or confirmed by anyone. There hasn’... Read more
Crash
10 injured
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Mazda MX-5. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in operation, the rooftop failed to remain sealed opened or closed as intended, causing the alarm system to be disarmed. The contact stated that the vehicle would not move forward or backward while shifted into gear. There was no warning light illuminated. In addition, the rearview would independently turn on and off... Read more
Incident date: Oct 30, 2023
When engaging in reverse, the back up camera screen will blank out consistently for about 1 second or longer, It will do this when the car is already engaged to go in reverse. This happens constantly, and for it to be a safety feature should be corrected.
Incident date: Oct 30, 2023
ABS warning system light constantly pops on and off.
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 BMW I5. 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 unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not exp... Read more
Incident date: Jan 5, 2024
My car frame floods every time it rains. This flooding includes my sunroof drain clogging. As a result of the water retention in my car’s frame, my cars safety system controller units are being corroded and thus I DO NOT have any reliable safety monitoring system. I have looked into this and this a COMMON complaint for Toyota 2019-2021 Rav4 sunroof cars. I have had the sunroof drain cleared mult... Read more
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
225/50 R18. Purchased in March 2024 and tread is already at 4/32 and 5/32 as of Dec 2024 for 2 of them. Tires driven for 13K miles. This is completely unacceptable and unsafe. I believe there is a defect, for tires to be so new and tread to be degrading so quickly.
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
225/50 R18. Purchased in March 2024 and tread is already at 4/32 and 5/32 as of Dec 2024 for 2 of them. Tires driven for 13K miles. This is completely unacceptable and unsafe. I believe there is a defect, for tires to be so new and tread to be degrading so quickly.
Incident date: Dec 4, 2024
Hit a deer that impacted the passenger side of the vehicle. Passenger seat was occupied, and door had to be pried open by tow truck driver to get passenger out. Entire right side, from the "L" logo to the front fender was destroyed. The passenger airbag did not deploy, nor did emergency braking or collision avoidance warning go off as deer was crossing from the left (driver) side to passenger s... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
We have two stop sale safety recalls on our 2018 Acura MDX that have gone over a year without being addressed. I have contacted Acura and the dealership multiple times. Acura refers me to the dealer and the dealer refers me to Acura. Apparently there is no accountability for important safety recalls. Would appreciate some help from NHTSA
Incident date: Dec 5, 2024
THE TAILGATE HAS FELL DOWN SEVERAL TIMES BY ITS SELF .I REPORTED THE PROBLEM ON THIS TO THE CHEVY DEALER THEY SAID THERE IS NO RECALL ON THE 1500 SERIES. THE TAILGATE EVEN UNLATCHED ITS SELF AT THE DEALERSHIP SO THEY DISCONNECTED THE OUTSIDE TAILGATE SWITCH SO IT WOULDNT UNLATCHED ITS SELF 12/23
Incident date: Nov 16, 2024
The computer is not working which connects to the forward collision warning system, navigation, and all safety when it comes to driving. I am still waiting to hear back from Tesla about the problem and haven't had a resolution.
Incident date: Nov 29, 2024
Power steering would stop working randomly. Would need to restart the truck multiple times for it to start working again.
Incident date: Nov 12, 2024
My cars engine is failing. My safety as well as other around me are at risk because the more oil my engine consumes, the more it is likely to quite literally blow up. My car just hit 60,000 and my dealership has informed me that I need an engine replacement. The manufacturer will not take accountability for their fault engines, even though my dealership told me they see this same engine problem co... Read more
Incident date: Jan 15, 2024
The air bag light started flashing. The only thing that I did was have the vehicle oil change and air filters changed. Per the warranty Air Bags are excluded. If the airbags have not deployed or been serviced, there would be no reason to blink unless defective. It costs $2500 for a possible fix and if that doesn’t solve the problem it will cost for the next step and so on. Why is this not a manu... Read more
Incident date: Nov 30, 2024
While the motorhome is traveling down the road, hitting any dips or bumps in the road at any speed, one of the supports for the coach frame hits the helper springs in the rear of the coach. Also, at the front end of the spring, the head of the shackle bolt rubs against one of the welded brackets. Coachmen RV installed helper springs that are manufactured by Super Springs Inc on the rear suspensi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 25, 2024
Push start button failed during highway driving and cause the engine shut down /lost power After dealer checked: they said: - the push button stuck - air damp cannot close - CV Axis loose (safety concern) The truck is less than 5 years and only 69K miles. The quality of the truck is not realiable.
Incident date: Aug 28, 2024
The Center Panel commonly known as ICC does not boot up normally. The ICC basically is the central computer of the vehicle which controls all ADAS systems, HVAC, Charging, Audio and all connectivity. Since the ICC screen is blank, there is no way of controlling any of the above mentioned functions. Sometimes the HVAC blows air at 100°F and sometimes at 30°F. It also gets foggy inside the vehicle... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
My SUV states shift to park, but I already have it in park and it will not shut off. I have to keep starting it up for it to shut-off. Also when I go to the gas station to fill my SUV up with gas and try to start it up it will not start. I keep trying to start it up and after about 10 to 15 minutes it finally starts.
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
My SUV states shift to park, but I already have it in park and it will not shut off. I have to keep starting it up for it to shut-off. Also when I go to the gas station to fill my SUV up with gas and try to start it up it will not start. I keep trying to start it up and after about 10 to 15 minutes it finally starts.
Incident date: Sep 30, 2024
In moderate to heavy rain, the windshield wiper pushes water onto the drivers side window. This water then streaks diagonally down across the window, blurring the view through the drivers side mirror. I experienced this in two cars, once on the test drive on [XXX] in Dublin, and once driving through the [XXX] in rainy conditions. Rain is when you need visibility to be good. I have not experience... Read more
Incident date: Sep 30, 2024
[XXX] slams on brakes going in reverse for no reason, I wish there was a way to disconnect this to me it's more of a safety issue. Problem is there trying to dumb [XXX] down for all the idiots out there that don't know how to drive.. I don't have that problem. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Sep 30, 2024
On accident air bag doesn’t open but car get total loss
Crash
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
When I start the Highlander, there is a loud (hurts your ears) feedback noise through the speakers. It's so loud you instinctively close your eyes and put your hands on your ears, ignoring whatever you were doing before (like maybe putting the car in gear). It lasts a second or two then stops. It doesn't happen every time, more like every 10 starts. I called Toyota and they said take it to th... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2024
Service charging station is the message on screen. Car shut off during normal driving. Car continues to stall out. Car has been inspected by dealer.
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
I was driving on the highway when the PTU randomly locked up as if I hit the emergency brake, and made me come to a stop, no one was behind me at the time and I was able to get the car to the side of the road
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
The rear seats in the 2024/2025 Ford Raptor Ranger are connected to the rear of the cab via a single latch. The single latch does not always latch. I noticed it had failed to properly latch the next day when I was installing my car seats. I figured it was user error, but than I re-tested it and struggled to properly latch it. The danger is the rear portion of the seat could suddenly fold forward d... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
For some unknown reason the car will suddenly display multiple warning lights, check engine, service needed, traction control off/inactive then the car will go into reduced engine power mode which prevents acceleration and causes the car to feel like it’s going to stall or shut off. This has happened several times on major high speed highways causing other cars to slam on their breaks, drive rec... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2023
I was driving on a highway on my way to work the other morning and the power steering light came on out of nowhere and I had to limp it to work with next to impossible steering conditions. I have not had it checked for service but have looked up that multiple people have encountered the same issue with this year truck and it has caused multiple accidents now. I believe with as many issues as peopl... Read more
Incident date: Nov 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Cadillac Lyriq. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking system unintentionally engaged. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed; however, the dealer stated that the cause of the failure could not be determined. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failur... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2024
When driving along using the cruise control, the vehicle will suddenly act as it is avoiding a collision. The collision warning will show on the dashboard and the car will suddenly slow down to a stop or near stop until I disengage the cruise control and hit the gas pedal. This has happened multiple times while I was driving along a paved road with no other cars or obstacles visible ahead of me. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Volkswagen ID.4. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to slow the vehicle, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to slow immediately. The contact stated that his wife was able to bring the vehicle to a complete stop by pump the brake pedal. The contact stated that while his wife was depressing the bra... Read more
Incident date: Nov 21, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. 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 had not experienced a failure. VIN t... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
on 11/18/24 Spark plug issues and misfire cylinder causing loss of power and acceleration with engine light check light on ,EPC and tire pressure. Other Issue with navigation system giving false of whereabout and wrong directions/turns. Occasional lost of power while driving on the street. Navigation system has been replaced twice but problem still continue. in 2021 and 2023.
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
Excessive Engine oil consumption 2-3 quarts between 5000 to 6000 oil changes. ABS Module failure causing all safety feature not working.
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
Center infotainment system screen shorts out and goes dark. Back up camera will not work and it is unsafe to back up as you can't see below the rear window.
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
Fuel pump malfunction. It is available for inspection. My safety was put at risk and others because the car stalled abruptly while driving and would not accelerate. Yes the dealer was able to recognize fuel pump issue. No other symptoms.
Incident date: Oct 22, 2024
Fuel pump malfunction. It is available for inspection. My safety was put at risk and others because the car stalled abruptly while driving and would not accelerate. Yes the dealer was able to recognize fuel pump issue. No other symptoms.
Incident date: Nov 18, 2024
Check power steering warning light Appeared during driving and steering became difficult Light turned off. After stopping and trying to restart vehicle steering warning light is back on and steering is nearly impossible after 2 weeks in repair shop was told it was fixed Incident has recurred 2 x times. Latest date 11/18/24
Incident date: Feb 1, 2024
Vehicle constantly overheats and causes charger to overheat. This causes the charging rate to reduce constantly. Home infrastructure has been checked and confirmed to be wired properly by multiple electricians. The suspension makes lots of noises and is a rough ride despite being constantly checked by the service center.
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired for an unidentified NHTSA Campaign Number however, it failed to prevent a failure from occurring. The contact stated that while the key was in the ignition, the vehicle had failed to start and several unknown warning lights had illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where the... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
Subject: Urgent Safety Complaint Regarding Recall Delays for My Kia Vehicle Dear National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, I am reaching out to file a safety complaint regarding an ongoing recall issue with my Kia vehicle that has not been addressed, despite multiple attempts to have it resolved. Kia has been aware of the necessary recall for several months, and I recently scheduled an app... Read more
Incident date: Sep 8, 2024
transmission shudders from 20 to 60 under light acceleration. took to dealer and said that needed different oil. dealer stated that a common issue with these vehicles. Cost $500 to replace oil to proper oil.
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
On 10/4/2024 I was driving my 2022 Hyundai Kona SEL (61, 492 miles on odometer) with a cruise control set at 75 mph for my morning commute into work. I was approx 15 miles away from my house and at least 7 miles away from my place of employement. Suddenly and without warning the engine revved to beyond 4500 RPM and shut off. The lights on the dashboard all lit up and a message flashed on the sc... Read more
Incident date: Nov 8, 2024
The Hybrid charging system fails once the vehicle is above 75 mph. After about an hour or two, the vehicle will die on the highway. This is a reoccurring issue putting our safety at risk. The dealership cannot find what the problem is. Online forums show similar issues with dealerships unable to solve the problem.
Incident date: Nov 8, 2024
Welds on the frame where the fifth wheel overhang attaches to the main frame have broke allowing the kingpin to raise up off of the front upright. This means that the kingpin overhang is only attached at the rear upright making the RV unsafe to tow.