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 18,739 complaints for LINCOLN
Incident date: Apr 1, 2021
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2007 Lincoln MKX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact called the local dealer who confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2021
I was driving and when I pressed on the brake, the pedal went far down and had no indication of the care stopping. It did, but it took a long time to brake. I took it for repair at Firestone, because my dealer warranty was expired. However, the Firestone let me know there is a booster brake replacement letter; the number of the recall is: 13N02. My car still qualifies as it is under 150,000 miles... Read more
Incident date: Aug 28, 2021
This vehicle's steering gear is not functioning properly. It goes in & out, causing the power steering to fail which is an extreme safety risk. This was issue was under a recall, 15S18, but this specific vin was not listed. We are asking that a closer look be taken & this vin number be added.
Incident date: Jun 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2010 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated while her husband was driving 45 MPH and approaching a traffic light, he had to depress the brake pedal to the floor to stop the vehicle. The driver stated that the advance trac and ABS warning lights were illuminated but turned off shortly after. The driver stated after a week, he experienced the failure again and same the warning lights wer... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2014 Lincoln MKS. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering failed, and the steering wheel was stiff and difficult to turn. The failure almost caused a collision. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed that the steering gear, front lower control arm, rear toe link and rear upper control arm were faulty and needed replacement. Th... Read more
Incident date: Sep 3, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 Lincoln MKX. The contact stated that while the husband was driving approximately 50 mph a 2nd vehicle crashed into the front passenger side of the vehicle. During the crash, the front driver side seat belt failed and did not secure the driver and the driver side air bag did not deploy. The driver sustained fractured sternum, chest, head, neck, and back injuries and was tran... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 25, 2021
The fuel pump/sensor. My vehicle died (steering column locked as well) while in motion on a busy highway. I took it to the Ford dealership and they replaced the sensor. After I picked it up from the dealership, my car died again on the same highway only this time I was in the middle of turning into oncoming traffic. I could not start my vehicle for several minutes. On both occasions, there were no... Read more
Incident date: Sep 2, 2021
Unknown. Fire started in engine while car was not turned on and parked.
Fire
Incident date: Aug 28, 2021
The contact owns a 2006 Lincoln Town Car. The contact stated that while in his driveway, the manifold plate detached into the steering shaft however, he was able to remove the part. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the local dealer. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000. The... Read more
Incident date: Aug 29, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Lincoln MKS. The contact stated that while driving, the steering wheel was difficult to turn and had switched to manual mode, and was inoperable. The power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the power steering sensor needed to be reprogrammed. The vehicle was not repaired. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 20, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that he noticed that there was water leaking into the trunk of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the weld off the assembly line had failed and was letting water inside the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there were not enough complaints related to the fail... Read more
Incident date: Aug 31, 2021
SECONDS AFTER STARTING AND DRIVING APPROX 200 FEET MY, 2011 LINCOLN MKZ HYBRID , CARS POWER STEERING STOP WORKING. ON THE MESSAGE CENTER ON THE DASH LITE UP LISTING THE POWER STEERING ASSIST FAILURE IN RED LETTERS. I STOPPED TURN THE KEY OFF RESTARTED THE CAR UPON STEERING WAS NORMAL, THIS HAS HAPPENED 4 TIMES IN THE LAST TWO MONTHS, I HAD THE FORD DEALER,"MULLAHEY FORD" IN ARROYO GRANDE LOOK A... Read more
Incident date: Jul 17, 2021
The contact owned a 2012 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated while entering a gated garage, when lifting his foot from the brake pedal, the vehicle accelerated independently and crashed into a parked vehicle and continued to accelerate and pushed the first vehicle into two additional vehicles. The contact stated he depressed the brake pedal but failed to stop the vehicle. The contact stated he was not... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2010 Lincoln MKX. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brakes would fail intermittently, and the brake pedal was difficult to be depressed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and diagnosed as a brake booster failure. The contact was informed that the brake booster needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not... Read more
Incident date: Aug 8, 2021
The contact owns a 2011 Lincoln MKT. The contact stated that at start-up the power steering assist failed to operate as needed with the power steering assist message on the instrument panel. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer and was informed that the vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering). The contact was referred to the dealer for ass... Read more
Incident date: Aug 13, 2021
The contact owns a 2013 Lincoln MKX. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, he heard an abnormal noise and had to depress the brake pedal to the floor to stop the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and was informed that the brake booster system needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired. A dealer was not cont... Read more
Incident date: Aug 11, 2021
With booster seats in rear seat, passenger side seat belt is extremely difficult to snap in in place. Got extenders but will not work on passenger rear seat different than the other 2 rear buckles. Wife can not strap grand children in and I the grandfather have a hard time. Shouldn't all the belts be the same? No problems with the other's.
Incident date: Mar 1, 2021
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2007 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2007 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to be repaired under an unknown air bag and service brakes recall. The contact stated that the air bag and service brakes warning lights were illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and the vehicle was repaired; however, the warning lights remained illuminated. The manufacturer was not made aware of ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2021
The contact owns a 2007 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to be repaired under an unknown air bag and service brakes recall. The contact stated that the air bag and service brakes warning lights were illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and the vehicle was repaired; however, the warning lights remained illuminated. The manufacturer was not made aware of ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 19, 2021
While driving down the road, the outside mirrors folded inward, thus unable to see traffic passing to left or right
Incident date: Aug 17, 2021
This is [XXX] my customer is missing and has been missing since 7:45pm 8/17/21 by this vin number i was wondering if you could put a trace on the vin number 3LN6L5D92JR[XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Incident date: Aug 17, 2021
This is [XXX] my customer is missing and has been missing since 7:45pm 8/17/21 by this vin number i was wondering if you could put a trace on the vin number 3LN6L5D92JR[XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Incident date: Aug 1, 2021
Front drivers side door, unable to open door from inside the vehicle. Very hard or impossible for older drivers to cross over the console to exit in the case of a fire or crash.
Incident date: Jul 6, 2021
Front passenger side door, unable to lock. All other doors lock fine. Unable to secure car.
Incident date: Sep 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Corsair. The contact stated while reversing from her driveaway, the vehicle seized. The contact stated that the brake warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The contact stated that the local dealer picked up the vehicle from her residence and drove to their location, where it was diagnosed with needing updates on the brakes to be... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2021
I purchased this vehicle in 2020 and it came with these tires. THREE of the four tires either had a bubble or repeatedly lost air around 28000 miles. These are very unsafe tires and unlikely a road hazard damaged three of the four.
Incident date: Mar 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2010 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that while making a left turn at a low rate of speed, several warning lights including the ABS warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact then received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The dealer was contacted and informed him that the part was not yet available. Northtowne L... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2010 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that while making a left turn at a low rate of speed, several warning lights including the ABS warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact then received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The dealer was contacted and informed him that the part was not yet available. Northtowne L... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2019
For some 4 years now our car has gone into a limp mode while being driven at highway speeds, over bridges, and along dark roadways. The check engine wrench lights up when the car goes into this mode. Unannounced, the sudden and immediate slowing of the car leaves it unsafe to driver, passengers, and others on the road who find themselves behind a fast moving car that suddenly and without notice dr... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2019
For some 4 years now our car has gone into a limp mode while being driven at highway speeds, over bridges, and along dark roadways. The check engine wrench lights up when the car goes into this mode. Unannounced, the sudden and immediate slowing of the car leaves it unsafe to driver, passengers, and others on the road who find themselves behind a fast moving car that suddenly and without notice dr... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2019
For some 4 years now our car has gone into a limp mode while being driven at highway speeds, over bridges, and along dark roadways. The check engine wrench lights up when the car goes into this mode. Unannounced, the sudden and immediate slowing of the car leaves it unsafe to driver, passengers, and others on the road who find themselves behind a fast moving car that suddenly and without notice dr... Read more
Incident date: Aug 16, 2021
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the parts for the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The dealer was notified of the issue. The manufacturer wa... Read more
Incident date: Aug 16, 2021
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the parts for the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The dealer was notified of the issue. The manufacturer wa... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2021
Driving late at night from dinner, brakes failed. Took MKX to servicing dealer, replaced m/cyl problem still there, order brake controller two weeks ago, part on shortage no due date. Part fit alot of models and years. FMC should pay for parts, very safety failure, we live in rural area and have the car serviced at Ford/Lincoln. no warning lights
Incident date: Dec 18, 2019
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienc... Read more
Incident date: Dec 18, 2019
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienc... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2021
The contact owns a 2010 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated while driving 45 mph, while depressing on the brake pedal the vehicle failed to stop. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated she was able to cruise to an independent mechanic. The contact stated that the independent mechanic informed her that the brake master cylinder needed to be replaced. The vehicle was rep... Read more
Incident date: Aug 11, 2021
The rear view camera does not always work. Sometimes it is just a blank green screen with the guide lines. This happen many times but not always. The software to update the image processing module software has been done.
Incident date: Feb 1, 2021
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) 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 recall but informed the contact that parts were not available. T... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) and 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for t... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2020
The contact owns a 2008 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) and 19V904000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for t... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2020
Backup camera is now displaying completely upside down.
Incident date: Aug 5, 2021
I traded in this 2010 Lincoln MKZ on November 24, 2018 at Classic Acura in Beaumont, Texas. Since that time I have contacted both Lincoln Motor Company by phone and email plus Kinsel Ford-Lincoln of Beaumont, Texas in person and by phone. These contacts were done multiple times and today I received another recall notice (19S54-ABS HCU Valve Concern (17X29) on the 2010 Lincoln that I no longer own.... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2021
I traded in this 2010 Lincoln MKZ on November 24, 2018 at Classic Acura in Beaumont, Texas. Since that time I have contacted both Lincoln Motor Company by phone and email plus Kinsel Ford-Lincoln of Beaumont, Texas in person and by phone. These contacts were done multiple times and today I received another recall notice (19S54-ABS HCU Valve Concern (17X29) on the 2010 Lincoln that I no longer own.... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2021
I traded in this 2010 Lincoln MKZ on November 24, 2018 at Classic Acura in Beaumont, Texas. Since that time I have contacted both Lincoln Motor Company by phone and email plus Kinsel Ford-Lincoln of Beaumont, Texas in person and by phone. These contacts were done multiple times and today I received another recall notice (19S54-ABS HCU Valve Concern (17X29) on the 2010 Lincoln that I no longer own.... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Nautilus. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 20V575000 (Visibility). The dealer was contacted on multiple occasions and informed him that the part was still unavailable. The contact also stated that soon after receiving the recall notice, the back over prevention camera failed to operate. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded... Read more
LINCOLN
CONTINENTAL
(2017) — STRUCTURE
Aug 2, 2021
Incident date: Jul 26, 2021
The contact owns a 2017 Lincoln Continental. The contact stated while driving into her garage, there was an abnormal sound heard. The neighbor arrived and inspected the vehicle and saw that the sound board had detached and was located underneath the rear passenger’s side tire. The neighbor placed the detached part into the trunk and took it to the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and ... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2021
Built at Chicago Plant October 2019 purchased Sept 30, 2020. Multiple and ongoing instances where back up camera when put into reverse goes to a blue screen and you cannot see what is behind you in the back up camera. it also cant assist in advising you there is oncoming traffic. APMI completely replaced and several software updates. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE Radio and info screen will freeze u... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2021
Built at Chicago Plant October 2019 purchased Sept 30, 2020. Multiple and ongoing instances where back up camera when put into reverse goes to a blue screen and you cannot see what is behind you in the back up camera. it also cant assist in advising you there is oncoming traffic. APMI completely replaced and several software updates. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE Radio and info screen will freeze u... Read more