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 30,183 complaints for RAM
Incident date: Aug 8, 2022
I own a 2022 Nissan Leaf (VIN [XXX] ) affected by Recall 25V-655. This recall prohibits use of Level 3 DC fast-charging due to a potential battery-fire risk, leaving the car unsuitable for long-distance use. My dealer’s service manager told me Nissan may have a fix “in spring 2026 or not.” That means no remedy is available for at least 6–12 months. I purchased this car only days before N... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2025
The moon roof imploded while driving at normal highway speeds with no cars in front of the car. There was no impact. The sunroof had not opened all the way for about a month before. Kia is not honoring the warranty.
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 2500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V896000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The contact stated that in July, when the vehicle was started, the ABS warning light flashed, and the notification alert persisted. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was diagnosed, and determined that the ABS sensor might be at fault, but the contact believ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
At random times, sometimes at first start, sometimes after its parked and started again, vehicle alerts to below errors: Travel Assist is currently not available Park Distance Control Rear Traffic Alert is currently not available VW has replaced one steering wheel and did some software adjustments but errors are back. Its more noticeable in colder weather
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
2020 Nissan Altima involved in a 3 car collision. Altima was rear ended by a vehicle travelling approximately 50 MPH and forced Altima to rear end the vehicle in front of it. Vehicle is a total loss. No air bags deployed.
Crash
Incident date: Nov 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the A-pillar trim on the driver’s side windshield started to detach. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V031000 (Structure) and 21V746000 (Suspension); however, the parts to perform the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and confirm... Read more
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
All the systems are not working This is a very low mileage vehicle and has not been involved in any accidents. They are many owners reporting the same issue. This is a safety issue as it shuts off many of the safety features of this vehicle while driving. Honda claims it’s normal.
Incident date: Oct 17, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle suddenly lost automotive power and decelerated with white smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was driven to a nearby dealer, who diagnosed the vehicle a blown head gasket. The contact was advised that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The ma... Read more
Incident date: Oct 17, 2025
The low voltage light came on. Voltage was at 11.5V. I continued driving. Voltage dropped below 9V. I pulled into a parking lot. At low speed, the power steering shut down, braking assist, parking sensors, and other functions shut down and the vehicle stalled. Vehicle automatically shifted to Park and engaged the electronic parking brake. Car would no re-start and was towed to the dealer. Car is ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2025
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the rearview camera was inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed there were no recalls on the VIN related to the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention). The manufacturer was c... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2025
The ABS module has failed. As such, the anti-lock brakes, nor the electronic brakes for braking a trailer do not work. This is a safety hazard as when towing you might not be able to stop in time to avoid an accident. I tried to get this fixed at a RAM dealership, but was informed this item has been on backorder for over 1.5 years and there are several other customers waiting for this part. So... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle was running abnormally rough. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to provide a specific diagnosis in relation to the MIL. The vehicle was not re... Read more
Incident date: Sep 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Accord. The contact stated while driving approximately 50-55 MPH, the vehicle was jerking before shutting off. The accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact was able to move over safely. The vehicle was restarted and continued to drive. The ABS, steering, battery, engine, and Lane Departure warning lights were flashing. The vehic... Read more
Incident date: Oct 22, 2025
My 2018 Silverado z71crew cab LT , 5.3L engine was having issues with hold Freon in AC unit. We took to dealer to be fixed in June 2025. They added Freon and it was running good for a week then once again blew but no cold air. So took back second time 7/3/25 and they started the die test and machine went down in middle of doing it. So could not finish fixing . We took back on 07/20/25 and they com... Read more
Incident date: Oct 13, 2025
Metal contamination found on VVT solenoid of 2020 kia optima 2.4L GDI engine. Firestone Autocare Confirmed metal debris in oiling system. Vehicle exhibits symptoms identical to prior theta II bearing recall SC172/SC200/SC227 but not covered under recall range.
Crash
Incident date: Oct 13, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V455000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE). However, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The failure had occurred while driving from a stop or w... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while her mother was driving 55 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn while making left or right turns or while driving straight. An independent mechanic was contacted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the steering gear assembly needed to be replaced, as well as the rack and pinion. ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
On August 7th, 2025 at around 8 AM in the morning, my vehicles mobile phone car key was in-operable and I was unable to get in the car which led me to trouble shoot how to fix this issue with the car. Upon researching I was directed by Tesla to directly complete a soft reset of the vehicle holding down both buttons on the vehicle once I was inside, and pushing on the brake pedal. Upon completion, ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
On August 7th, 2025 at around 8 AM in the morning, my vehicles mobile phone car key was in-operable and I was unable to get in the car which led me to trouble shoot how to fix this issue with the car. Upon researching I was directed by Tesla to directly complete a soft reset of the vehicle holding down both buttons on the vehicle once I was inside, and pushing on the brake pedal. Upon completion, ... Read more
Incident date: Apr 1, 2025
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 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 manufacturer was... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2024
Upon purchase of the vehicle, unlike previous models and versions of the software - the vehicle’s speed limit control was incapable of being set - instead, using FSD, you had to select from percentage based offsets - which were frequently ignored and would still go much higher or much lower than the percentage value set. The owner of the vehicle was unable to say limit to only 10 over the speed ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 6, 2025
An issue has surfaced with my car that it turns off while driving. Obviously this is a serious safety hazard and likely to result in an accident. Now that it has happened, it is continuing and frequently happening. I reached out to Subaru as I saw there was a recall for my car's make and model that is causing the same issue. The issue is listed as NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID: 19V297000, described as "The en... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2025
Started up the van and the following appears on the dash: ACC problem Collision Mitigation Problem Lake Keep Assist Problem Auto High Beam Problem Safety features unavailable when driving vehicle. In my research this issue has occurred with other owners of the vehicle as well.
Incident date: Oct 8, 2025
I was driving on the highway and my panoramic moonroof spontaneously shattered. It sounded like a gunshot and I didn't realize what had happened until I was able to pull over and examine my car several minutes later. I was very shaken up from the noise and knowing something was wrong with my vehicle but not knowing what happened. As far as I know I didn't have anything hit my vehicle/sunroof and I... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
The second row captains chairs are able to be buckled when any booster or car seats are in the seat. The seat belt buckle is too far flush into the seat, so when any car seat/booster seat is in the seat, the buckle is inaccessible and blocked and the seat belt is not able to be used. We had to purchase seat belt extenders so the seat belt could be buckled. We spoke to Hyundai corporate and the loc... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. The contact stated that shortly after an oil change was performed, the "Low Oil" icon was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced excessive oil consumption, and the oil dipstick indicated that the engine oil level was low. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer was notified of the fail... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
Car is slow to start or doesn't start at all, particularly after frequent engine stops/starts or when engine has idled for a period of time. Battery has been replaced. Symptom comes and goes, but seems to get worse with frequent engine stops/starts (i.e., driving to different locations with short stays at each, or with the automatic engine shut off)
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
Car is slow to start or doesn't start at all, particularly after frequent engine stops/starts or when engine has idled for a period of time. Battery has been replaced. Symptom comes and goes, but seems to get worse with frequent engine stops/starts (i.e., driving to different locations with short stays at each, or with the automatic engine shut off)
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
Unexpectedly shifting down to first gear during any speed
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
While driving our vehicle on the highway, the check engine light suddenly came on and traction control turned off. Within moments, the vehicle began to stall and would not accelerate. My wife and children were in the car and we were nearly hit by another vehicle as she struggled to get the car to safety. It was a terrifying experience that put my entire family in danger, along with everyone else o... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2025
The engine of my 2023 Toyota Tundra failed at approximately 34,500 miles. The failure involved sudden loss of oil pressure and severe internal damage, with metal shavings found in the oil and oil filter. The oil filter itself detached during the incident and was later recovered with metallic debris inside. The vehicle and the recovered filter are available for inspection upon request. While accele... Read more
Incident date: Jun 14, 2025
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed an unusual ticking sound and smoke coming from under the hood. In addition, the contact stated that several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the shoulder of the road. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed smoke that was coming from the HECU fuse... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Feb 22, 2022
This is a follow-up to my previous NHTSA complaint （11689215.）regarding the flexplate failure on my 2016 Ford Edge (VIN: [XXX] ). This is a follow-up to my previous NHTSA complaint regarding the flexplate failure on my 2016 Ford Edge (VIN [XXX] ). Ford opened case XXX but closed it without any resolution, even though my vehicle remains undrivable. A new case CXH-XXX 1 was later created under ... Read more
Incident date: Feb 22, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH uphill and depressing the accelerator pedal, the contact heard a grinding sound and smelled an odor coming from the front of the vehicle. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was towed to a dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Th... Read more
Incident date: Feb 22, 2022
These transmissions fail prematurely. I have experienced major slippage on the highway, particularly when changing lanes in traffic or merging and needing to accelerate quickly. Most of the time it does, but occasionally the car just doesn't move with faster traffic quickly closing the gap. It is VERY scary when this happens, and there have been near misses! In another instance, the car would not ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 14, 2025
The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to Auto Zone, and DTC: P0720 was retrieved, which indicated a failure with the output shaft speed sensor. The contact was informed that the output shaft speed sensor needed to be replaced. The... Read more
Incident date: Oct 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was overheating, prompting the contact to discontinue driving the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who determined that there was coolant intrusion into several cylinders, resulting in damages ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 21, 2025
The vehicle lost powertrain upon accelaration. Merging onto a freeway and accelerating my vehicle was as if it was in Neutral. Same with starting out at a stop sign, coming to a turn lane and accerlerating to cross traffic, NO POWERTRAIN... just neutral. This issue was also reported by my mechanic when I brought it in as he test drove it. He contacted the local dealership and they inspected as ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2025
The steering and suspension suddenly vibrated the whole car violently for over two miles straight, steering is uncontrollable it feels as if the wheels of the jeep were going to fall off. This is well known in the Jeep community as the death wobble. It is a safety issue as there is a loss of control of the car and causes the need to pull over or stop immediately which is hard to do on a fast movin... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2025
The steering and suspension suddenly vibrated the whole car violently for over two miles straight, steering is uncontrollable it feels as if the wheels of the jeep were going to fall off. This is well known in the Jeep community as the death wobble. It is a safety issue as there is a loss of control of the car and causes the need to pull over or stop immediately which is hard to do on a fast movin... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2025
The steering and suspension suddenly vibrated the whole car violently for over two miles straight, steering is uncontrollable it feels as if the wheels of the jeep were going to fall off. This is well known in the Jeep community as the death wobble. It is a safety issue as there is a loss of control of the car and causes the need to pull over or stop immediately which is hard to do on a fast movin... Read more
Incident date: Oct 17, 2025
Truck did not have reverse. Service engine came on after going forward and possible loud shudder like going over a pot hole. Not sure if it was a pot hole or transmission. Dealer fixed the valve body in Transmission after 1 week.
Incident date: Oct 10, 2025
component: main engine wiring harness. cause: rodent caused damage: the rodent severely damaged this component and made the vehicle inoperable. fix: required the replacement of this component. insurance covered the 8,500 repair bill (minus deductible). a check engine light appeared eventually.
Incident date: Sep 5, 2025
While driving the van in town it completely shut off. I was driving straight at 35 mph. It would not restart and had to be towed to service garage. When it shut off the first time all of the dash warning lights came on for a second then shut off. The garage said the ignition switch had to be replaced and the main computer. Then the Chrysler dealership had to flash the computer. They said they did ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2025
Engine is burning oil at an excessive rate. Burning a liter every 1,000 miles and Hyundai refuses to do anything about it.
Incident date: Sep 5, 2025
Alternator went out and fried the pcm. I know certain vehicles were on the recall for this and mine was not one of them but odd that it happened anyways.
Incident date: Oct 19, 2025
While driving through a construction zone on Route 81 at 55mph the car suddenly braked extremely hard to 30mph. It was very sudden and slammed me so my seatbelt activated. Fortunately no one was behind me. There was no one in front of me. Concrete lane barriers were on my left side. I have gone through this construction zone many times before and have never had this happen. If this had ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2025
I am writing to express serious concern regarding a potentially dangerous mechanical issue with my Mercedes GLE 350. The vehicle has experienced a complete cylinder head failure, requiring an estimated $7,000 repair. Both an independent service center and an authorized Mercedes service center have confirmed this diagnosis. During the inspection process, Mercedes conducted two diagnostic tests—on... Read more
Incident date: Sep 6, 2025
While I was driving on a major road, the car appeared to sense an issue and automatically started to brake. While I was a road with 55mph drivers, my car was forcing me to stop. May warning light appeared; Eyesight Issue, Check Engine, Brake and many others. I was able to disengage the crash prevention manually and continue to drive. When I took it to my mechanic, he told me all the codes went... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Dodge Charger. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, while the accelerator pedal was depressed, there was an abnormal thumping sound coming from the front passenger’s side of the vehicle. The contact slowed down the thumping sound decreased; however, the faster the vehicle was driven, the louder the sound became. An independent mechanic was contacted. The vehicle ... Read more