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 96,425 complaints for NISSAN
Incident date: Jun 18, 2024
On [XXX] I purchased a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport from an auto dealer in Wichita, Kansas. When I bought the car, On [XXX], my car started making a funny noise and the engine light came on and then it quit running and would not restart. I coasted to a back street and then got a ride home. I had it towed home and then purchased a new battery, thinking that might be the issue; but the new battery... Read more
Incident date: Jun 18, 2024
At less than 95,000 miles, the car suddenly started overheating. Coolant level was fine, maybe ever so slightly low (could still see the coolant in tubing and some in reservoir, which was closer to low than full). Replaced ECT sensor, thermostat and water pump which seemed to fix the issue. Drove for 9-10 days with no issues and it started overheating again. I was able to park quickly afterwar... Read more
Incident date: Aug 15, 2023
The dashboard on this has turned a very bright LIME GREEN. It is very hard to drive this at night because it is severely blinding to see the road. I have contacted Freightliner and Winnebago and I keep getting the run around. This happened when this was still under warrantee and I have been trying to get someone to help me.
Incident date: Jan 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Honda CR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System Gasoline) 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 contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the check engine ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2024
The trucks, automatic emergency braking system activated, causing an accident that otherwise would not have occurred. Prior to this incident - Forward collision warning, rear cross traffic, and blind spot warning lights would activate episodically.
Crash
Incident date: Jul 8, 2024
In my 2019 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport, the transmission system began to malfunction, specifically related to the torque converter. This malfunction caused the transmission to shudder, creating a noticeable vibration during acceleration and driving. The unpredictable behavior of the vehicle due to the shuddering compromised control and stability, posing a risk to my safety and the safety of oth... Read more
Incident date: Jun 17, 2024
I was driving on a busy expressway. My Trax began to lose power then there was a loud explosive sound and a cloud of black smoke. The Trax continued to lose power as I navigated across several lanes of traffic to the shoulder. There was oil everywhere. I was stranded with my dog in 100° heat. The Trax has been towed to the dealer and I am waiting on the official diagnosis.
Incident date: Jul 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Ford Ranger. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle failed to start with the key in the ignition. The contact stated that the vehicle started after the battery was recharged. The contact was able to start the vehicle using the key instead of the key fob. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed; however, no cause for the failure was foun... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2024
I was involved in a significant vehicle crash with my Tesla Model S, the vehicle wa a complete write-off and was towed away. I was taken via ambulance unconscious from my injuries. The vehicle was struck by a perpendicular vehicle who ran a stop sign and hit the front driver's side firewall/door area. The impact was hard enough to drive my car sideways against all wheels into the curb, over the cu... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Jul 8, 2024
The engine, running at idle in and out of gear, did not respond to input from the gas pedal. Pushing the gas pedal did not have any effect on the engine revs. This was dangerous because I was attempting to enter a busy roadway and suddenly was faced with zero throttle response although the engine was still running and was in gear. The car has 5,300 miles. The transmission failed at 1,300 miles... Read more
NISSAN
ROGUE SPORT
(2020) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
Jul 8, 2024
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost electrical power, failing to display any information on the instrument panel; however, the vehicle still had motive power. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to t... Read more
NISSAN
ROGUE SPORT
(2020) — STRUCTURE
Jul 8, 2024
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MHP, the contact's husband became aware that there was unknown part had loosened on the front of the vehicle. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and upon inspecting the vehicle, the contact became aware that the front bumper assembly was detaching. The vehicle was taken to an independent mecha... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Hyundai Azera. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V651000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); 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 contact attempted to make the dealer aware of the issue, however; was unable to contact ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2024
The contact owns 2023 Toyota Rav4 Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at various speeds with 3 gallons of fuel remaining in the fuel tank, the message "Low Fuel" was displayed, and the instrument cluster turned blank. The contact stated that the instrument cluster remained blank and inoperable until fuel was added to the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while dr... Read more
Incident date: Jun 9, 2024
At low speed 12-18 mph the transmission hard shifts. It slams so hard that you feel like someone rearended you.
Incident date: Jun 9, 2024
This request is due to my concern that a possible manufacturing or other defect in the 2024 Nissan Altima’s steering and/or wheel mechanisms caused a sudden loss of steering control and resulted in a collision and serious injuries. The car was taken possession by National Car Rental. I am unsure if the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Jul 7, 2024
A faulty fuel injector caused my Tuscon to lose all acceleration while I was in the passing lane of a 4-lane highway going 75mpg. A check engine light came on and it just bricked itself. I had to glide through 3 lanes almost causing a wreck. We were on a family vacation with our [XXX] daughter in the back seat and we had to wait over 2 hours in the blazing heat for a tow. The dealership said ther... Read more
Incident date: Jun 5, 2024
The Tesla is reflecting an error “DIR_a126” that is reducing the speed below the speed limit and with no rhyme or reason. Tesla services are not available and the problem is intermittent. Additionally, based on research it is found to not have consistent resolutions and reasonings
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
225 55/R19. New 2024 Toyota Venza (purchased XXX) with under 4k miles when tire blew out. Was driving the speed of traffic eastbound on [XXX] near [XXX] merge just east of Des Moines in heavy, heavy semi traffic when tire went flat. I had been driving for several hours since my previous stop and was in the far left lane when noise a loss of control made me pull off the road. I have pictures & a vi... Read more
Incident date: Jul 7, 2024
This happens everyday while I’m driving. The vehicle hesitates and grinds when you try to accelerate and prevents you from going forward. It pulls the car back in yanking motion. Which is extremely dangerous.
Incident date: Jul 7, 2024
This happens everyday while I’m driving. The vehicle hesitates and grinds when you try to accelerate and prevents you from going forward. It pulls the car back in yanking motion. Which is extremely dangerous.
Incident date: Jul 7, 2024
Falla en abs y ruedas riesgo al frenar tarda demasiado luces de abs vdc off AWD y tpms
Incident date: Jun 2, 2024
Fuel injector failure on 02/2024. Fuel injector failure on 06/2024. Both times car lost power and started shaking. Hyundai service center will only replace one at a time. Car only has 28k miles.
Incident date: Jul 6, 2024
Twice when opening the drivers door, my 2024 Ford F-150 Raptor V6 has chimed and then displayed “Brake System Failure”. Starting the truck, shutting off the motor and locking/unlocking the drivers door appears to clear the message. The local Ford dealership updated the software and believed it corrected the issue. Today, I drove approximately 30 miles, shut off the engine, locked the door and ... Read more
NISSAN
PATHFINDER
(2017) — POWER TRAIN
Jul 6, 2024
Incident date: Jul 6, 2024
I am writing to express my concerns and frustrations regarding the recurring issues with my vehicle despite multiple service appointments at Classic GMC Arlington. Despite numerous attempts to address these problems, I continue to experience issues with Continuity of service and performance Fueling system and coolant system problems (twice in six months) Stabilizer link light illumination during s... Read more
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
Drivers side door caught on fire overnight. Burned up the interior of the vehicle and smoldered out. Windows were up, car was completely closed and locked. Still starts and drives. Door, seat, steering, ceiling , visor all burnt and melted to some degree. Seems to have been electrical.
Fire
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
Have tried to schedule an appointment with my local Lincoln dealer to have the recall on my car fixed but they told at this time they have no way to fix it.
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
I was taking my 23 versa M/T to the dealer for its 10.000 mile service and upon driving the vehicle while pulling away from a stop sign I stall the vehicle and after that there was a significant loss of power, restarting the engine did not help. When I got to the dealership I did not shut the engine off and told them about the issue and said it was a safety issue and did not have the power to get ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 15, 2023
Unknown. Vehicle disengaged from park to neutral while in garage after vehicle was shutoff (approximately 3-5 minutes ). Vehicle rolled out of garage crossed the street and stopped in neighbors yard. No damage occurred. Incident happened within the last hour, so nothing has been inspected as of yet. I have been hearing an electronic hum with the sound of moving parts in the driver side rear end ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); 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 issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manuf... Read more
Incident date: Jul 5, 2020
At just over 70k miles the engine began running rough. Diagnostic showed cylinder 1 pressure issues from cracked piston requiring engine replacement. This vehicle has had all recommend service since owning it.
Incident date: Jul 5, 2020
Getting a airbag control module open code.
Incident date: Jul 5, 2020
On multiple occasions while driving, at traffic lights or stop signs, a light will come on the dashboard with a symbols including: Place the key near the start switch --even though the car is already on and running; and other times the car will not start at all with the key next to the start switch; Lower Tire Pressure - although the tires when check are not low at all; Low Fuel Gauge -although... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V031000 (Structure) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the A-pillar trim had started to detach and the brackets that hold the A-pillar trim intact had ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 26, 2024
The dashboard of the vehicle has deteriorated causing an extreme shiny surface all over. This can be seen at even given time of inspection. A recall was released to do this issue but when the LEXUS Newport News, VA dealership was contacted, the response was this vehicle was not included. During this time the vehicle was already in the need of the dashbpard being replaced due to the reasons stated ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine misfired, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating. The contact checked the coolant level and discovered that the coolant level was low; however, the contact stated that there were no indications ... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
I have had toxic fuel/engine smells in the cabin from the engine compartment. There are multiple complaints when searching Honda gas cabin smell online. Located the source is the Pcv vent hose on top of the engine. Honda needs to replace this hose with an odor barrier hose that doesn’t allow the fumes to be brought into the cabin via the fresh air intake.
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Forte. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that there was an abnormal burning wiring odor inside the vehicle. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
I have taken the car to 3 mechanics for 4-5 incidents knowing that the mechanics were indeed certified in professionally fixing the issue. I was driving the car and made a proper left turn, yielding to oncoming traffic when suddenly the vehicle was unable to accelerate. The other car was approaching and I pushed on the gas as hard as I could to barely get it to move out of the way, luckily avoid a... Read more
Incident date: May 20, 2024
We have encountered 2 instances of Unintended Acceleration. Lexus has inspected the vehicle and states they could not find anything wrong. In both instances the car jumped forward without notice. No warnings were given. The first time it occurred there was over $8,500 worth of damage. No damage the second time which occurred on May 20, 2024.
Crash
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
Driving on highway car engine died no warning light nothing There is recall for engine but bmw waiting for part they are denying its over 2 months to fix recall
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated while starting with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the fuel injectors and spark plugs were replaced; however, the failure persisted. A second diagnostic test was performed, and the mechanic discovered coolant intrusion into cylinder #1. The vehicle wa... Read more
Incident date: Jul 5, 2024
I purchased this car and the dashboard is melting and sticky. It’s affecting visibility to the point where I found myself trying to lift up to look overtop of the blinding glare on my windshield due to my melting dashboard and got into an minor accident Like was reflecting off the dashboard onto the windshield obstructing my view and resulted in me rear bumping into the rear of another car that ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jul 6, 2022
When a transport is transporting material, a way bill, a description of the shipment on the piece of paper, usually in two copies, the person who receives the material will sign a copy to prove the delivery was done. What if, the transport is hauling dangerous goods which cost more to carry but the way bill says nothing about dangerous goods. It's only a piece of paper and you can never know f... Read more
Incident date: Jul 6, 2022
2.0 Ecobooster engine. Coolant started leaking into engine right after an oil change at dealership. Now I need a new engine. I have researched that this is a known engine problem for Ford. We need a recall. I cannot afford a $9,000 repair for something Ford knew about.
Incident date: Feb 24, 2024
The wheel keeps turning to the right and won't go straight. The wheel makes a clicking noise when it turns. It seems to be something to do with the steering column. Must keep turning the steering wheel to the left for it to work properly. I have replaced the steering gear assembly at my own expense, but the problem has not improved, proving to be a design issue near the tire and tie rod. I'm... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
Vehicle had water falling from dash while turning. Sizzling/Hissing noise with water sloshing around in dash area. Asked by dealer "where do you keep it parked" I asked them where they kept it parked back because it was purchased 8/15/2019 and began making the noises in early october when we got rain. Vehicle given back from the dealership with excessively wet carpet and smelling of mold and f... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
Vehicle had water falling from dash while turning. Sizzling/Hissing noise with water sloshing around in dash area. Asked by dealer "where do you keep it parked" I asked them where they kept it parked back because it was purchased 8/15/2019 and began making the noises in early october when we got rain. Vehicle given back from the dealership with excessively wet carpet and smelling of mold and f... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 2024
The main and most dangerous issue is first hearing high pitch whining/winding sound while driving as the rpm's start to spike and stay high resulting & causing vehicle to lose power and speed for no apparent reason. Subsequently, as you attempt to depress the gas pedal to increase speed to try to mitigate the issue, the vehicle continues to lose power and speed regardless of how depressed gas peda... Read more
Incident date: Jul 3, 2024
Attempted theft with injury Kia's reputation has caused this vehicle to be at risk for theft. Many resulting in injury. Kia had vehicle in 2023 and completed "upgrade" and placed stickers on the windows. Vehicle was still targeted. Insurance rates are insane for this as a result.
1 injured