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 29,025 complaints for RAM
Incident date: Sep 24, 2024
I engaged Tesla's Autopark to park my car in my usual spot. The car kept going after reaching the back of the parking space, crashing into a pole located around one foot behind the parking spot. The time between when it should have braked and the post was of such short duration that I had no time to apply the brakes and prevent the accident. The car lacks both radar and lidar, either of which wou... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 19, 2024
While waiting at a traffic light, I began moving as soon as the light turned green. However, I was momentarily blinded by the sun and accidentally hit the curb. The airbag deployed but failed to inflate properly; it just fizzled out and hung limp, like a deflated balloon. Fortunately, I was traveling at less than 5 mph, and no one was injured. However, the situation could have been much worse if t... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
ABS warning light came on, and stay on , parking sensors shut off , electronic braking system failed, brakes locked up, vehicle is unsafe and undrive able as brakes and abs system aren’t functioning safely.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
Rear coil spring broke at ~33,000 miles under normal driving conditions. No warnings given in vehicle safety system and not included in recommended maintenence. Seen when inspected by independent service center. Cannot safely drive vehicle until replaced.
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
Backup camera operates intermittently in when in reverse, coming on for about 10 seconds before cutting or not coming on at all, which causes near misses when backing up. Also, camera periodically remains on for 10-15 seconds once shifting into drive which is distracting when pulling into traffic and causes near misses. Furthermore, the camera sometimes activates for 10-15 seconds when shifted int... Read more
Incident date: Oct 31, 2024
I reserved this vehicle with a deposit on Oct. 26. At the time I was told the vehicle was under recall/stop sale for a brake issue and I would not be able to take delivery until the recall work was performed. On 11/5, I was able to purchase the vehicle after the repair work was done. After leaving the dealership, about a half mile down the road I received a message on the vehicle display which ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 31, 2024
See attached document for complaint.
Incident date: Aug 2, 2024
To whom it may concern, I am making a safety complaint on a component that failed while operating the vehicle. My vehicle is a 2019 Ram 1500 Bighorn DT. The component that failed and almost cost me to crash my truck while in reverse and parking is called The Park Sense and The Rear Parking Assist . I started to have this problem back in the Summer around August 2024. I have brought the vehicle in ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2024
The contact's wife owns a 2017 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle started losing motive power, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the RPM was raised; however, the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact’s wife stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact’s wife was able to drive the vehicle back to th... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 GMC Savana. The contact stated while driving 60-65 MPH over a bump in the roadway, the vehicle started shaking abnormally. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact researched the failure on YouTube and determined the vehicle had experienced the death wobble. The contact called OnStar and was informed that the vehicle was working as designed. The vehicle was tak... Read more
Incident date: Nov 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen ID4. The contact stated that on several occasions the vehicle would not start and on one occasion the vehicle shut off while at a stop light. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who performed a software update but the failures continued to occur. The manufacturer was notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 100.
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Ford EcoSport. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); 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 ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
There is a problem with the bypass control heater valve of my car Corolla Toyota 2020 It says i have to replace it but it's still running good. I research what this part is about and it says that this is a malfunction in all the Toyota Corollas and RAV4 2019-2021. The message "engine maintenance required" doesn't go away and it doesn't let me see the mile percentage when driving. This problem has... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2024
While towing my 5th wheel rv trailer, the rear wheels locked up numerous times while at highway speeds(60-70mph). Hope our didn't cause any internal/ structural damage to my trailer. Scheduled a service with the dealer(Gamblins Chevrolet, Enumclaw, WA) for them to diagnose. The dealer found no issue or cause. Left the dealer for the same thing to occur the following week. Brought back to the deal... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Trail Blazer. The contact stated that after shifting to the park position the message "Shift to Park" was erroneously displayed and the vehicle would not shut off. The contact had to shift multiple times before the transmission switched to the park position and the engine was able to be shut off. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the shi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
When I am at a complete stop all the sudden when I want to accelerate my engine shuts off and all the warnings come up, this is very dangerous as it has happened to me a few times when I have cars behind me and my cars slows down and does not accelerate. I have to turn off the car and restart like 2 or 3 times to go back to normal. Could be the auto restart, I have tried turning it off when I get ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
ISSUE: PTC Heater failed at 63,617 miles after 6 years of use WARNING MESSAGE: "Vehicle may not restart" CONTACT: [XXX] [XXX] main contact for owner [XXX] . VIN: [XXX] MAKE: MODEL 3 YEAR: 2018 REPAIR QUOTED: $1,104.18 LINE ITEMS: PTC HEATER DUALZONE(1088218-00-I) HVAC, PTC SERVICEASSY(1107677-00-A) LABOR & DIAGNOSTICS SUMMARY: TESL... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
The car would produce white smoke under the engine hood after getting to speed. It would smell like burnt oil. The shop found a crack in the 3rd cylinder. Will need to replace the cylinder head.
Incident date: Nov 6, 2024
My brakes locked up due to the abs pump not working.
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
My brakes locked up due to the abs pump not working.
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
Three weeks ago my dash board lit up like an orange Christmas Tree, with "ABS failure" warnings. I found the Hyundai recall notice in our car file. It said that when the dash warnings appeared, the danger of an engine fire was imminent and that should contact the Dealer that I bought the car from (Hyundai Motors- Naples, Florida-USA). I did so. personally. An appt. was scheduled. This morning ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2024
Three weeks ago my dash board lit up like an orange Christmas Tree, with "ABS failure" warnings. I found the Hyundai recall notice in our car file. It said that when the dash warnings appeared, the danger of an engine fire was imminent and that should contact the Dealer that I bought the car from (Hyundai Motors- Naples, Florida-USA). I did so. personally. An appt. was scheduled. This morning ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 2, 2024
On [XXX] I turned on a [XXX] in Amelia Co Va when I pressed the gas to get up to speed, all of the sudden the headlights, dashboard lights, interior lights go dark. Warning lights on the dashboard were flashing. I put on my hazards and pulled safely into a convenience store parking lot and shut my truck off. I waited a few minutes and turned it back on and everything came on along with the check e... Read more
Incident date: Nov 2, 2024
The battery has died twice within 3 months. I couldn’t leave my house to collect my kids. The problem has been commented on by a dealership. No.
Incident date: Nov 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe. The contact received a notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V529000 (Power Train) 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 made aware of the issue. The contact had not expe... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
The wiring harness on this vehicle is made of a soy based material, I had a rodent chew through this coating and my wiring harness, it caused my rear turn signal to go out, I have a 3 year 36,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty on the vehicle but Ford does not cover this, you have to pay to have it fixed yourself and they replace it with the same material, I am worried that it will happen again and... Read more
Incident date: Nov 15, 2024
The electric parking break was stuck and alarm going off. Only used ebrake maybe 5 times in the years I have had my car. This time was I used it while parked on a hill. The ebrake would not disengage properly. Dealer says need a new one, even though the electric parking brake now engages and releases ok, just the alarm won't go off. Then I learned that there was a recall for the 2016 Outlanders fo... Read more
Incident date: Oct 23, 2024
Check engine light came on one day. Ignored it. The next morning was driving on the highway and noticed the car had some trouble accelerating, tried to switch lanes at ~40-60mph (don’t remember) and the car started to kick back and almost felt like it was coming to a complete stop. I was so scared the car would just stop in the middle of the highway because i couldn’t even change lanes without... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Fusion. While the contact’s wife was driving approximately 30 MPH, the steering wheel was not responding to the steering adjustments to the left or the right. The contact’s stated that the "Power Steering Fault" warning light was illuminated. The contact’s wife stopped, and turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated that the power steering functiona... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
often experience noticeable braking issues. illumination of the ABS or brake warning light on the dashboard, indicating a problem with the anti-lock braking system. difficulty maintaining proper braking pressure, especially in emergency braking situations or on slippery surfaces, where the ABS should engage. As a result, the vehicle's stopping distance increases, and I have noticed a lack of cont... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH for an hour, there was an abnormally loud clunking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle lost motive power and was jerking. The contact was able to pullover safely into a parking lot. The contact stated that the message “Anti-collision System Offline” was displayed. There were no warning lights illum... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH for an hour, there was an abnormally loud clunking sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle lost motive power and was jerking. The contact was able to pullover safely into a parking lot. The contact stated that the message “Anti-collision System Offline” was displayed. There were no warning lights illum... Read more
Incident date: Jul 20, 2024
Our car started slipping gears, jerking, take forever to accelerate, and would lose power. We took to dealership thinking it was a transmission. They told us no it wasn’t the transmission and we needed the replace the fuel pump injector we did that. A week later SAME issues happened again they replaced the pump again. A month later SAME symptoms again this time they told us we needed our engine ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while in reverse occasionally the vehicles rearview cameras do not function properly as they should. The steering assist is not fully functional warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 99,900.... Read more
Incident date: Nov 14, 2024
In December of 2023, my RIGHT rear axle broke when I accidently hit a curb. The car was repaired at the Tesla collision center. On last Tuesday, November 12, 2024, I heard a noise while braking. I continued to drive, but next time I needed to use brakes, I had a sensation that the brakes were failing, and I wouldn't be able to stop. The brakes eventually engaged, and I was able to stop the vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
When shifting from drive to reverse and beginning to reverse it, the car slammed on the brakes and shifted itself into park. The manual states it should only happen when you unbuckle your seat belt, or open the door while in Drive or Neutral. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Incident date: Sep 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 328i. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was smoke coming out from the exhaust pipe, and there was a burning smell coming from the engine compartment. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the oil pan was leaking near the water pump. The dealer replaced the thermostat gasket... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Transit Connect. The contact stated that while reversing with the rearview camera engaged, the screen became blurry or blank. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was due to NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V575000 (Visibility, Back Over Prevention). The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The ma... Read more
Incident date: Oct 17, 2024
When stopped at a light or stop sign, Vehicle will Jerk forward as If hit from behind. Very surprising and dangerous. Very intermittent. The has happened many times. Vehicle will at times have rough downshifts. Ie. overdrive (9th) to (8th) gear. also intermittent. This has happened multiple times. Vehicle was taken to the dealer twice for a total of 50 hours in the shop. The first service... Read more
Incident date: Oct 17, 2024
When stopped at a light or stop sign, Vehicle will Jerk forward as If hit from behind. Very surprising and dangerous. Very intermittent. The has happened many times. Vehicle will at times have rough downshifts. Ie. overdrive (9th) to (8th) gear. also intermittent. This has happened multiple times. Vehicle was taken to the dealer twice for a total of 50 hours in the shop. The first service... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Fusion. The contact stated when starting the vehicle from a cold start the vehicle was vibrating and idling roughly. The contact stated that the failure was a recurring failure. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH the vehicle was again running roughly and he was smelling the odor of coolant in the passenger cabin. The contact stated that the c... Read more
Incident date: Mar 15, 2020
Failure of air valve between primary and secondary air tank. Does not isolate the two systems.
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
ABS won't stay engaged causing traction control to not stay engaged and causes cruise control to not stay engaged. Skidding and loss of control are possible without ABS and traction control systems working. Loss of cruise control can cause rear impact from sudden slow down. Same problems are occurring in similar vehicles. Console chimes and ABS and traction control indicator lights come on. Messag... Read more
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
ENGINE, C1 MISFIRERS, THIS HAS OCCURED OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS AND HAS COSTS ME THOUSANDS TO FIX BUT ITS NOT A PERMANAT FIX, IT'S BEEN A BANDAID TO THIS ISSUE. ITS THE SAME ISSUE AS YOU ALL ARE INVESTAGATING WITH THE NEW MODELS, HONDA DID ACKNOLEDFGE THIS ISSUE BUT THEY SAID AFTER 2014 YOU NO LONGER CAN GET A FIX BY THEM. I PURCHASED THE CAR ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO, I NEVER KNEW OR COULD OF KNOWN THI... Read more
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
The contact owns a 2020 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated while the contact was refueling the vehicle, the fuel was coming back out of the fuel tank onto the ground surface. The contact stated that the failure had occurred while traveling out of town. In addition, the contact stated that the failure had occurred several times and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was tak... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
On September 21, 2024 my Chevy 1500 series truck in the year was 2020. It was made caught on fire white driving it. We were returning from a trip pulling a trailer from Kentucky to Mansfield Ohio when we were on the highway. The transmission light/panel came across and said transmission need to engine idle. I drove it about 3 miles and pulled off on an exit at a gas station and did what it said af... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Feb 29, 2024
The transmission has always juddered and got the run around that nothing was wrong and now the car judders more
Incident date: Sep 11, 2024
The ABS Light along with the EBS light were popping up on the dash every 2-3 seconds. My cruise control quit working. The truck is steadily dinging. I am sure the ABS will not function when this light is on. I am worried the truck will not handle well on wet roads. I have a [XXX] and a [XXX] . Please help me resolve this issue. The code I am getting is C0020 INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE F... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
The car has issue with suspension, i know it is sporty suspension, but I drove so many sport cars. But this is the only one that has jarring issue, my whole upper half is shaking back an forward on bumpy wavy roads causing me to have lower back pain and if i put my back head on head rest on these road my back head will be bouncing on it non stop. I went to service center and they say the car drive... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
Started bike, rode down street engine was on, came back called a service person at a dealership. Went through codes, cleared code. Next day rode to work, left work and stopped to get haircut. When leaving bike was dead wouldn't even turn over. Tried to remember code resetting, tried to start, started but engine xame on again. Got it home called same service guy. Cleared codes. There were different... Read more