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 29,895 complaints for MAZDA
Incident date: Jul 1, 2026
The contact's wife owns a 2011 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the sun was reflecting off the dashboard, which caused a glare onto the windshield. The glare obstructed the driver's vision and caused a dangerous driving condition. The dashboard became sticky, and there were bubbles on the dashboard from the damage caused by the sun. The manufacturer was notifi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2026
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the vehicle lost power, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred within a year. The vehicle was taken back ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2026
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the radio made an abnormal crackling and popping sound, and the instrument cluster flickered with the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), and the cruise control became inoperable while driving. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where the contact was informed that the failure could not be duplicated. The contact associated the fa... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2026
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the radio made an abnormal crackling and popping sound, and the instrument cluster flickered with the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), and the cruise control became inoperable while driving. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where the contact was informed that the failure could not be duplicated. The contact associated the fa... Read more
Incident date: Aug 3, 2026
Over the last couple of months, while driving around curves, the steering wheel sticks in the 1 or 11 o'clock position. It will not recenter on its own. It is unnerving and dangerous, potentially causing an accident. All suspension components have been inspected and found to be in proper working order. The steering rack seems to be the culprit. No warning lamps, the vehicle seems to be operat... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2026
The contact owns a 2023 GMC Canyon. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 - 20 MPH, the message to decelerate immediately was displayed on the instrument panel, and the transmission unexpectedly downshifted to 1st gear. The failure had occurred several times, at times while driving 75 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to replace the valve body and solenoid. The second time ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 10, 2026
While driving on [XXX] north near exit [XXX] in rain, at 70 mph Adaptive Cruise Control and Lane Keeping Assistance were on. The vehicle displayed a warning that the smart systems were disabled. The vehicle then began jerking and changing lanes and speed unexpectedly. The steering wheel pulled/jerked forcefully to the left and right and I had difficulty maintaining control of the vehicle. When I a... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2026
While in reverse of my vehicle, the back-up camera display either goes completely black, displays an error message or glitches turning itself on/off at random. Referencing recall “25v695“ this recall has been on notice with no follow up since I received the notification letter on October 2025. This is a very high safety risk when in reverse potentially causing a crash with other vehicles, st... Read more
Incident date: Jul 27, 2026
Camshaft had to be replaced a couple years ago, followed by cam shaft sensor. Then another $6,300 of "critical" issu3s to be fixed. The vehicle is 5 1/2 y/o. Absolutely ridiculous that this amount of money is required for such a young vehicle.
Incident date: Jul 27, 2026
While driving my 2025 Volkswagen Atlas the vehicle unexpectedly shifted itself into neutral without any action from the driver. I was driving with my daughter when this occurred. After the vehicle shifted into neutral, it would no longer shift back into drive, and I was unable to continue driving normally. This resulted in an unexpected loss of propulsion while the vehicle was being operated on th... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2026
The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced a loss of camera and safety feature functionality for eight hours daily. The message "Adaptive Headlights Feature Unavailable" was displayed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a complaint was filed. The contact was referred to a service center that was over an hour away. The vehicle was not diagn... Read more
Incident date: Aug 5, 2026
The OTA had the interstate lanes bottle necked down. Traffic was trying to merge. The van had already slowed down and moved into the thru lane closest to the median. The van was pushed off the road by a semi into the contrete barrier. The semi clipped the bumper on the front passenger's side. It was also hit on the driver's side rear bumper. All of this caused the van to hit the wall on the front ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 7, 2026
While driving home from work my 2020 GMC Terrain stalled and turned off. I was on a very busy 2 lane road, crossing a intersection in a tourist area in [XXX]. This could have be come fatal very easily. I was able to get the car started and Home but had to take it very slow. Next day we weren't able to get the car started nor turned on. Battery is new and still works, we also had a mechanic come to... Read more
Incident date: Jun 23, 2026
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while reversing, the rear-view camera went blank and flashed on and off. The contact stated that while attempting to latch the front driver's seat belt, the seat belt failed to retract as intended. The contact stated that the seat belt was stuck. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact re... Read more
Incident date: Aug 6, 2026
The starter motor on my 2022 Honda Passport failed, causing a complete 'no-restart' condition after entering Auto Idle-Stop mode. The vehicle previously received the mandatory PGM-FI idle-stop software update under Honda Service Bulletin 23-008, proving that the software fix does not protect the hardware from failing. The dealership diagnosed a failed starter but stated that my 2022 model is exclu... Read more
Incident date: Feb 27, 2026
The car was parked in a parking lot, and when we turned it on and pulled out of the space, the brake light, ABS light, and other warning lights came on and the brakes went soft. We pulled back into the space and tried again, thinking it was a fluke and heard a strange noise coming from the car when it started. Again the lights came on and the brakes did not work. We had it towed to our normal mech... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2026
Broken rear subframe because of rust and corrosion with perforation. Manufacturer refused to cover the repair.
Incident date: Jun 12, 2026
2027 Audi SQ6 e-tron VIN [XXX], [XXX], XXX delivery, 2,609 miles. CONCERN 1 CHARGING: AC Level 2 failed from delivery. GFF 202629856: P2DCE11 (CP Switch B short — J1245), B3A1E63 (JX6 ground fault), P0D9104 (J1246 coupler lock Active/Static — caused dealer CCS lockup). TAC RN-1659178 authorized JX6 replacement (95C915233BC on hand, uninstalled). EVSE eliminated: ChargePoint Ticket XXXno errors... Read more
Incident date: Jun 12, 2026
2027 Audi SQ6 e-tron VIN [XXX], [XXX], XXX delivery, 2,609 miles. CONCERN 1 CHARGING: AC Level 2 failed from delivery. GFF 202629856: P2DCE11 (CP Switch B short — J1245), B3A1E63 (JX6 ground fault), P0D9104 (J1246 coupler lock Active/Static — caused dealer CCS lockup). TAC RN-1659178 authorized JX6 replacement (95C915233BC on hand, uninstalled). EVSE eliminated: ChargePoint Ticket XXXno errors... Read more
Incident date: Feb 15, 2023
I was driving in heavy traffic when I got a reduced power message. There was no where for me to go to get out of the traffic. This is the second time I've had this issue. I have already replaced the entire turbo several months ago. I took it to the dealer then. They attempted to fix it with just replacing part of it. It didn't fix. The cost to fix it at the dealer was more than I could afford ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 31, 2026
ABS actuator/accumulator issue on 2006 Toyota Highlander hybrid limited. Internal component failure there are recalls on others but not this particular year. Was driving along hit the brakes and got hard pedal. Yes there were other indicator lights on including the VSC system and traction control I came to an intersection and I couldn't stop I couldn't even kind of stop it was all hard pedal were ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2026
Follow-up to a prior complaint on this VIN regarding a dangerous limp-mode event caused by a failed DEF injection nozzle. While climbing a steep grade on XXX in [XXX], the DEF dosing nozzle leaked, putting the vehicle into limp mode. Vehicle was limited to ~27 mph while surrounding traffic, including semi-trucks, moved at ~65 mph, creating a serious collision hazard on a grade with limited passin... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2026
Power steering assist cut out while driving and traction controllight came on. There is now no steering assist. The car is with the dealer shop and their diagnostics indicate the the steering column needs to be replaced. Dealer shop now says the steering column is on EXTREME backorder with no time estimate of availability. The car is almost impossible to steer at low speeds.The power steering rack... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2026
since I purchased this truck brand new from the dealer, the brakes always had air in the lines. No matter how many times I bleed the brakes, there is still air in the line. From my understanding, previous years of this truck had master cylinder issues. I went to the dealer and they refused to fix the issue, because I already attempted to fix the problem. Also, the car doesn't start when shut off d... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2026
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Sportage. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle lost automotive power with the accelerator pedal depressed. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufactu... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2026
We have Multipurpose Camera Failure. No damage or accidents. It just started failing. There are many reports of this and the camera is on back order with Honda. They are charging $2100 to fix it. The official Honda Odyssey Forum online has countless complaints on the same issue without resolution by Honda. Honda has acted in bad-faith towards their customers since this defect impacts the vehicle's... Read more
Incident date: Feb 2, 2026
We have Multipurpose Camera Failure. No damage or accidents. It just started failing. There are many reports of this and the camera is on back order with Honda. They are charging $2100 to fix it. The official Honda Odyssey Forum online has countless complaints on the same issue without resolution by Honda. Honda has acted in bad-faith towards their customers since this defect impacts the vehicle's... Read more
Incident date: Aug 4, 2026
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The contact stated that the power train warning light and several other unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was notified that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V237000 (Power Train). The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 28, 2026
The passenger headrest opened without a traffic incident.
Incident date: Jul 28, 2026
While on a long road trip on a hot day, on the interstate, the car suddenly lost speed and would not accelerate. It was like the car had shifted into neutral. I was coasting on the interstate, steadily slowing, and was forced to pull over to the shoulder. I turned the car off and waited a couple of minutes then turned the car back on. No error messages were displaying at that time. About 5-10 min... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2026
The IP cluster (gauges that display speedometer, fuel levels and other ADAS features) was blanking intermittently, BMW service center suggested software update as they believed it to be a software bug. Later, when the software update did not work, they suggested we replace the battery even though we tested it months ago and it was fine. After the battery replacement when the IP cluster was still ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 29, 2026
My driver airbag was stolen 7 months ago and my vehicle has been stuck at body shop ever since because the airbag is on national backorder with no ETA in sight. Acura has done NOTHING to help me and my life has been severely impacted by not having a car. No one is offering me any solutions, they have not provided me a loaner car or anything to help my situation.
Incident date: Jul 23, 2026
Component that failed was the lower lateral link. There was no loss of control but there was a sound going over any uneven surface. Upon bringing the vehicle to the Tesla dealership they recommended a replacement of the upper and lower control arm on both the driver and passenger side. This greatly increased the cost of the repair to a total of $2356.84
Incident date: May 7, 2021
I am reporting a safety-related transmission problem I experienced with my 2021 Ford F-150 equipped with the 10R80 automatic transmission. While driving normally, the transmission suddenly downshifted hard, with a jolt that shook the whole truck, then went into emergency limp mode, where I had to pull over to the shoulder, on Interstate 240 in heavy traffic. I was attempting to accelerate to merg... Read more
Incident date: May 7, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Lincoln MKX. 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 contact stated that while coming to a complete stop and depressing the brake pedal, the brake pedal went to the floorboard, requiring hard braking to stop the vehicle. The contact stated that the... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
My granddaughter was driving the vehicle and experienced a catastrophic engine failure while driving down the road. Warning messages and audible sounds began and said to turn off the vehicle immediately. The brakes completely stopped working at that point. She pulled over immediately and called to ask what she should do. She was approximately 1/2 mile from home and she drove approximately 10mph to... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
I previously reported my rear view camera not working despite ford having many recalls for that problem. Now my shade for my sunroof when opened drops into my car & blocks my view from my rear view mirror. So now I have no camera view or physical view of what's behind me. I also have the same peeling metal on my buttons on my driver's door. The same one that was recalled on 2020 model. I cut my ar... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Jul 8, 2026
I own a Silver 2024 Volkswagen Jetta. My car stopped accelerating while I was driving on the freeway on 7/18/2026 which was a huge safety issue resulting in my car needing to be towed to the dealership because it was not drivable. The warning lights came on after the car stopped accelerating on the freeway. My car needs a ECM replacement which is covered by the Federal Emissions Warranty and I re... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2026
Tire size 275 65 R20 entire tread came completely off the tire & caused damage to my fender & fender well. This tire had approximately 29,830 miles on it. It was 1 of the original tires from the factory on this truck.
Incident date: Jun 15, 2026
I am reporting a safety-related transmission problem I experienced with my 2023 Ford F-150 equipped with the 10R80 automatic transmission. While driving normally, the transmission suddenly shifts down violently from 10th to 8th gear, and rapidly jumping from 10th to 8th to 10th, causing harsh shifts. This occurred while driving on a highway or above 60mph. Just cruising and traveling. creating a p... Read more
Incident date: Jun 15, 2026
There has been a recall for the HCU unit for years. The message for this issue comes up on my dashboard every 10 seconds while I drive. Stellantis says there is no remedy. What XXX am I supposed to do?
Incident date: Jun 15, 2026
I EXPERIENCED BOTH TRIM PANELS ON MY EXPLORER RIPPING OFF AS I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY POSSIBLY CAUSING THEM TO HIT ANOTHER VEHICLE. I BROUGHT MY VEHICLE IN TO THE FORD DEALER IN LAS VEGAS TO GET THE RECALL ITEM REPAIRED. THEY INSPECTED IT AND DETERMINED THAT MY DAMAGE WAS COVERED BY THE RECALL. THIS INCIDENT HAPPENED OVER ONE YEAR AGO. I RECEIVED AS RECENTLY AS NOVEMBER 2025 A LETTER FROM ... Read more
Incident date: May 14, 2026
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2017 Toyota Rav4. It was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 110,000 and at the time of a Carfax check, it was discovered that the mileage was 300,000.
Incident date: Jul 30, 2026
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 2500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed and the vehicle skidded and was shaking. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact... Read more
Incident date: Jul 30, 2026
My tesla model Y was driving on FSD (full self driving) and just did hard full stop brake at a traffic light and brought the car to a complete stop even when the light was green. Both of toddler kids in the back got pulled jolted forward where the seat belt hurt them. This stopping was random was unnecessary as no threat of other cars or the light was present. Luckily no one was behind us or they ... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Jul 16, 2025
The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated that upon attempting to fasten the rear drivers side third row seatbelt they had noticed that the cross lap piece would not secure itself into the latch. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was inspected and the contact was advised that the housing buckle units were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 16, 2025
Center brake light fails intermittently when outside temperature is hot (115). Tesla is aware of the issue and has no fix. Side brake lights still seem to work when center fails.
Incident date: Jul 26, 2026
HVAC water tubing has leaked on to the airbag control module causing airbag errors and many other electrical faults. This is a known safety problem under recall 87H4, NHTSA campaign 21V892. However, Volkswagen stated my VIN is not eligible for this recall. Note: this diagnostic was not performed at a dealership but at an independent German car repair shop.
Incident date: Jul 26, 2026
There is a recall on this vehicle (25S75), issued on July 8, 2025. As of the date of writing this, there is no remedy available. This is a safety issue, and the fact that it remains unresolved over a year later, is completely unacceptable. The NHTSA site says to file a complaint if the issue is not remedied in a timely manner, and this is certainly not a timely remedy.
Incident date: Jul 2, 2026
While driving on an interstate during a heavy summer thunderstorm, the vehicle suddenly displayed a warning stating, "There may be a problem with the Battery Management System," along with a "Check Hybrid System" message. At the same time, the check engine light illuminated and the hybrid system stopped functioning without any prior warning. Approximately 10–15 minutes before the incident, I had... Read more