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 2,835 complaints for SCION
Incident date: Jan 12, 2023
Total loss of power while driving occurred on 2 separate occasions driving the Hyundai Sonata. The dashboard lit up with multiple failures with no warning, and car lost all power. Both times were in peak traffic conditions and on one of the two instances, a very dangerous mountain road with very little time to react. Towed on 2 occasions to 2 different dealers with no clear cut fix for the car. Th... Read more
Incident date: Jan 19, 2018
Occasionally we would smell gasoline fumes. The occurrence became more frequent to the point we had a mechanic check it out. The mechanic dropped the gas tank and found that there is a steel ring between the tank and the fuel pump flange. This flange had rusted and expanded to the point of cracking the fuel pump flange. Mechanic replaced the flange, seal and fuel pump. I have retained the crack... Read more
Incident date: Jul 21, 2022
Since disabling the radar, the car very frequently brake checks on the highway when there are no cars in front of it, due to the reflection off the surface of highways that are very flat. This happens at least every hour or 2 when driving.
Incident date: Apr 1, 2020
I was experiencing what is known as the "death wobble" in my 2016 Ford F250 FX4 truck. The truck only has 56,000 miles but is out of warranty. I recently spent $1326.00 to have the problem repaired. Apparently this is a major problem with these trucks. I have the repair bill but didn't include it with this statement.
Incident date: Oct 2, 2021
I was experiencing what is known as the "death wobble" in my 2016 Ford F250 FX4 truck. The truck only has 56,000 miles but is out of warranty. I recently spent $1326.00 to have the problem repaired. Apparently this is a major problem with these trucks. I have the repair bill but didn't include it with this statement.
Incident date: May 23, 2022
The contact owns a 2013 Scion FR-S. The contact stated there was an abnormal clunking sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check oil warning light was illuminated while the vehicle was decelerating. The contact drove into a nearby parking lot. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that th... Read more
Incident date: Oct 14, 2021
I was shocked by electrical component on a rainy day on the driver side the electric component In the door panel were exposed to rain as all buttons to control lock and windows from driver side have sunk down a couple inches. This happened almost right away after I purchased pre-owned from Honda dealership in Corona. I took my Scion to Toyota of Ontario who said faulty electrical components had be... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 14, 2021
I was shocked by electrical component on a rainy day on the driver side the electric component In the door panel were exposed to rain as all buttons to control lock and windows from driver side have sunk down a couple inches. This happened almost right away after I purchased pre-owned from Honda dealership in Corona. I took my Scion to Toyota of Ontario who said faulty electrical components had be... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 17, 2022
Under normal driving conditions, a well maintained 79k car, the joint that holds up cylinder #2 failed, totalling the engine. Thankfully the rod did not kill me.
Incident date: Oct 3, 2022
It is my belief that the valve spring on the engine broke, even after the recall work had been done. I was getting out of my car and heard, what sounded like, metal under tension popping really loudly. After that the engine made a rattling noise. In hindsight I should have known something was wrong, but I had an oil change at the dealer in 2 days and thought they would hear it. After the oil chang... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2022
Defective engine/motor failure spark plug popped out of engine along with coil. The service technician and service manager were shocked at the spark plug broken internally. I paid for spark plug replacement totaling approximately $1,200. Upon inspecting other parts of the motor it was determined the engine bay has coolant inside mixed with oil. The tech mention of engine over heating however the t... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2022
Defective engine/motor failure spark plug popped out of engine along with coil. The service technician and service manager were shocked at the spark plug broken internally. I paid for spark plug replacement totaling approximately $1,200. Upon inspecting other parts of the motor it was determined the engine bay has coolant inside mixed with oil. The tech mention of engine over heating however the t... Read more
Incident date: Mar 1, 2016
Very poorly wired and wires are spliced together which I a fire hazard
Incident date: Mar 1, 2016
Very poorly wired and wires are spliced together which I a fire hazard
Incident date: Apr 22, 2022
On April 22, 2022 the car burst into flames while parked in a supermarket parking lot at 1000 US Route 1, Edison, New Jersey. Fortunately I was not in it at the time but the car was a total loss. There were no warnings ahead of time.
Fire
Incident date: Jul 1, 2022
ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS THE HOUSING AROUND THE AIR CONDITIONER FILLS WITH WATER FROM CONDENSATION, THE DRAINAGE TUBE IS NARROW AND CLOGS, WHICH CAUSES THE WATER TO DRIP OUT OF THE HOUSING AND INTO THE PASSENGER SIDE INTERIOR WHERE IT SWAMPS THE CARPETING FROM FRONT TO BACK. I KNOW AC NORMALLY DOES NOT QUALIFY AS A SAFETY CONCERN BUT TO MY UNDERSTANDING THERE IS ELECTRIC WIRING THAT RUNS UNDER THE CAR... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2022
ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS THE HOUSING AROUND THE AIR CONDITIONER FILLS WITH WATER FROM CONDENSATION, THE DRAINAGE TUBE IS NARROW AND CLOGS, WHICH CAUSES THE WATER TO DRIP OUT OF THE HOUSING AND INTO THE PASSENGER SIDE INTERIOR WHERE IT SWAMPS THE CARPETING FROM FRONT TO BACK. I KNOW AC NORMALLY DOES NOT QUALIFY AS A SAFETY CONCERN BUT TO MY UNDERSTANDING THERE IS ELECTRIC WIRING THAT RUNS UNDER THE CAR... Read more
Incident date: Jul 8, 2015
Timing chain cover oil leak Oil pan cover oil leak Has been a persistent leak since I purchased the car in 2014. I’ve learned it’s an extremely common issue which the dealership won’t warranty. It’s been a documented leak since 2015 and over $2500 to fix. Several members on forums/Facebook claim the exact same leak in same location. It’s due to poor quality sealant used by manufacturer... Read more
Incident date: Jun 7, 2022
The vehicles car horn no longer works, this is safety manufacturer defect that should be reported and fixed by the manufacturer. I was driving the vehicle and could not honk to other vehicles thus creating a safety hazard.
Incident date: Jun 7, 2022
The vehicles car horn no longer works, this is safety manufacturer defect that should be reported and fixed by the manufacturer. I was driving the vehicle and could not honk to other vehicles thus creating a safety hazard.
Incident date: Jun 7, 2022
The vehicles car horn no longer works, this is safety manufacturer defect that should be reported and fixed by the manufacturer. I was driving the vehicle and could not honk to other vehicles thus creating a safety hazard.
Incident date: May 11, 2022
The contact owns a 2009 Scion TC. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, he slowed for a traffic light and the vehicle failed to shift out of third gear. The accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle revved without moving. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle occasionally slipped out of gear and failed to exceed 15 MPH while driving. The contact stated that there... Read more
Incident date: Nov 18, 2018
The day before the incident, took the vehicle for an oil change at dealership. Driving in a Interstate 8 under construction and vehicle had engine malfunction turning off and also turned off power steering creating difficulty steering, could have created accident on freeway jeopardize my safety and of others. The engine malfunction started by making a rattling sound and turning off the engine. Sin... Read more
Incident date: Apr 28, 2022
Was going down the road. To a fast food place. As soon as I turned. A pop happens and the whole car started to shake. All the maintenance was done every 6k miles. Got the car at 32k miles Went to Toyota. And they called and said it was engine failure “mechanical failure” then they called back and said there was no coolant. In my eyes I feel it’s to cover their end to not do a recall.
Incident date: Apr 5, 2021
The contact owns a 2012 Scion XB. The contact stated that the vehicle was exhibiting excessive engine oil consumption. The contact stated that the oil pressure warning light would illuminate approximately 1,000 miles prior to the next scheduled oil change. The contact stated that the oil pressure warning light recently illuminated less than a month after the previous oil change; 2,500 miles prior ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 19, 2020
2013 SCION FR-S Valve spring recall notice was received in the mail. Recalled valve spring replacement caused engine to seize twice. The first time the engine seized Tustin Toyota admitted fault, noting issue was from recall fix and repaired the engine at no cost. The second time the engine seized Toyota denied responsibility and wanted to charge $5000
Incident date: Jun 19, 2020
2013 SCION FR-S Valve spring recall notice was received in the mail. Recalled valve spring replacement caused engine to seize twice. The first time the engine seized Tustin Toyota admitted fault, noting issue was from recall fix and repaired the engine at no cost. The second time the engine seized Toyota denied responsibility and wanted to charge $5000
Incident date: Apr 22, 2020
I have a recall on my brakes. I took it to toyota in newnan ga. they said it would be a few hours and I asked for a rental because it was my only day off and I have 3 kids and errands to run. They then proceded to tell me I dont have a recall. They lied to get out of letting me use a rental or another car. My brakes go bad alot its so unusual. I hope Toyota insures my safety with their lack of ca... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2017
Over the past 4-5 years, 2015 scion tc has had numerous electrical issues. Both driver and passenger electric door locks do not work. Head and tail lamp lights burn out frequently. Seems like a grounding issue? Car failed to start August 2021 due to electrical problems. 3rd party mechanic fixed the issue. Toyota Dealer-installed automatic start fails multiple times before starting car. Basi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2017
Over the past 4-5 years, 2015 scion tc has had numerous electrical issues. Both driver and passenger electric door locks do not work. Head and tail lamp lights burn out frequently. Seems like a grounding issue? Car failed to start August 2021 due to electrical problems. 3rd party mechanic fixed the issue. Toyota Dealer-installed automatic start fails multiple times before starting car. Basi... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2017
Over the past 4-5 years, 2015 scion tc has had numerous electrical issues. Both driver and passenger electric door locks do not work. Head and tail lamp lights burn out frequently. Seems like a grounding issue? Car failed to start August 2021 due to electrical problems. 3rd party mechanic fixed the issue. Toyota Dealer-installed automatic start fails multiple times before starting car. Basi... Read more
Incident date: Mar 24, 2022
The contact owns a 2009 Scion XB. The contact stated the hood failed to close after several attempts. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 08V451000 (Structure) as the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage wa... Read more
Incident date: Mar 29, 2022
The air bag light has been trigger on and won't go off. Nov 1, 2018 If the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners unintentionally deploy, it can increase the risk of a crash. If the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners are deactivated, it can increase the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Incident date: Jan 12, 2022
Just entered the interstate and was 2 miles from home when the car started shaking cause the car to make a sudden hard right across multiple lanes of traffic going down an embankment and hitting trees. Witness who saw the accident while traveling behind the car saw smoke coming from driver rear tire, then car began to shake and car abruptly went to the right and off the road. Highway patrol stated... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Mar 4, 2022
My car is burning oil, like a quart per week I always maintain the oil level, not leaks I just want to know if Toyota can help me, I am a third owner of this car has 94000 miles
Incident date: Feb 2, 2022
After completing the valve spring recall I got my car back and not 200 miles later the engine started to have rod knock. The Toyota dealership told me that there was now metal in my oil pan and I would need a new engine. This is not a unique issue, it has been happening to hundreds of other cars going through this exact recall, for years now.
Incident date: Feb 2, 2022
After completing the valve spring recall I got my car back and not 200 miles later the engine started to have rod knock. The Toyota dealership told me that there was now metal in my oil pan and I would need a new engine. This is not a unique issue, it has been happening to hundreds of other cars going through this exact recall, for years now.
Incident date: Aug 25, 2021
Warranty Enhancement Program – ZE7 OIL Leak Certain 2007-2010 Scion tC Extension of Warranty Coverage for 2AZ Engine Oil Consumption Toyota is now announcing the part replacement phase of Warranty Enhancement Program ZE7 for vehicles exhibiting excessive engine oil consumption. Eligibility for part replacement under this Warranty Enhancement Program is dependent on a Toyota dealer performed engi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 12, 2021
Was getting off work. Started car and Engine system malfunction light, DSC malfunction light, TPMS System Malfunction light, Auto transmission malfunction light, and SCBS malfunction light all turned on. Car was not currently in motion when lights went on. Was in parking lot. Turned car off, and restarted, lights remained on. Drove vehicle 6.8 miles home, car was in limp mode. When at hom... Read more
Incident date: Nov 12, 2021
Was getting off work. Started car and Engine system malfunction light, DSC malfunction light, TPMS System Malfunction light, Auto transmission malfunction light, and SCBS malfunction light all turned on. Car was not currently in motion when lights went on. Was in parking lot. Turned car off, and restarted, lights remained on. Drove vehicle 6.8 miles home, car was in limp mode. When at hom... Read more
Incident date: Nov 12, 2021
Was getting off work. Started car and Engine system malfunction light, DSC malfunction light, TPMS System Malfunction light, Auto transmission malfunction light, and SCBS malfunction light all turned on. Car was not currently in motion when lights went on. Was in parking lot. Turned car off, and restarted, lights remained on. Drove vehicle 6.8 miles home, car was in limp mode. When at hom... Read more
Incident date: Dec 5, 2021
Brake pedal is to close to gas pedal and almost got rear ended several times by accidentally touching the brake when I accelerate.
Incident date: Nov 6, 2021
1. I believe my airbags deployed pre-maturely with a soft impact to another vehicle. There was no damage to the other vehicle and no police report needed to be filed. There is a minor damage to my front bumper. 2. The airbags inflated on me, but no medical attention was required. 3. I have not confirmed or reproduced this problem with a professional. 4. My car has not been inspected nor re... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Sep 17, 2021
There is a repetitive problem with mold and AC leaks with the Scion xD. I’m having breathing problems and I feel sick. Geico and Toyota have discovered mold in my vehicle. It is actually visible but I have no idea how long there has been a leak or how long I have been breathing in mold. The AC line is under the carpet with no protective barrier which is an ideal environment for mold to grow. ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2021
There is a repetitive problem with mold and AC leaks with the Scion xD. I’m having breathing problems and I feel sick. Geico and Toyota have discovered mold in my vehicle. It is actually visible but I have no idea how long there has been a leak or how long I have been breathing in mold. The AC line is under the carpet with no protective barrier which is an ideal environment for mold to grow. ... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2021
The car is giving problems in the engine, it's consuming way too mucho oil. I found out that there was a recall this Monday oct 18, 2021, and they told me that I can not participate because my car exceeds the miles limit by 6k miles, which I know, but if I knew that, I would've taken the car to a Toyota Dealer earlier. Is it possible to have it repair by some empathy and understanding of not recei... Read more
Incident date: Oct 16, 2021
My issue is that I was never notified and I just so happened to look up out of curiosity and I’m upset that something bad could have possibly happened.
Incident date: May 1, 2021
2006 scion XA The dash light indicator for pass airbag stays on, showing problem with that system. Toyota had a recall and my car was supposedly fixed this problem, only to have same problem again 4 mos past the 1 year warranty on repairs. I contacted toyota...they sent me an email saying they would get back to me, and gave me a case #[XXX]. 5 mos. later had not heard from them...so called them... Read more
Incident date: Aug 2, 2021
2009 Scion tC consumes to much engine oil due to bad pistons installed by manufacture and needs to be repaired before major engine problems occur. I also found out I’m not the only one having this issue. I’ve just purchased the vehicle.8
Incident date: Aug 4, 2021
The horn on the vehicle began to operate intermittently and now it does not work at all. This is a major safety issue as I have several near misses with other drivers turning into my travel lane without signaling and nearly causing an accident. I have no way of preventing an incursion without the horn being operational. Toyota dealership informed me it was a spiral cable and the cost would be n... Read more