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 35,035 complaints for SUBARU
Incident date: Sep 21, 2024
While driving on the roadway, I was almost to a four way intersection, as i was going to get into the left turn lane, I turned the steering wheel slightly to the left as the steering wheel turned but the car almost did little adjusting to turn into the left turn lane. As this occurred you could here a noise underneath the vehicle . As I wasn't sure exactly what had happened, I attempted to limp th... Read more
Incident date: Jan 10, 2025
My parking gage engaged several times while parked I saw that it said the parking breaking was engaged but I had not put it on. Next it engaged when stopped for a traffic light. I was able to restart it several times. Noticed that this was most likely to happen after a rainfall. Last time it happened my son was able to trick it into disengaging and get it home. Next day it had to be flatbed ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 31, 2025
Traveling on the interstate late at night in the winter with my family, which includes small children, a clicking noise began but then went away. No diagnostic lamps came on, everything seemed fine, vehicle responded appropriately. Moments later, on a remote stretch of interstate, we lost power and the engine shut down. The vehicle would not turn back on. We were stranded in the dark on a free... Read more
Incident date: Jan 31, 2025
lifters in the left and right side snapped into 3 pieces. Caused engine failure happened 2 different times. All before 50,000 miles. The first time was before 30,000 miles.
Incident date: Nov 1, 2018
The cruze control shuts it's self off It said "ACC temporarily blocked, service required" this is very dangerous. The headlights don't project in the correct direction to have proper visibility. All the system error lights come on for no reason, seems like something is aways wrong according to the dash lights.
Incident date: Jan 16, 2025
Defective pcv valve system caused the rear main seal to blow out. Causing oil leak which made my engine stall while driving on interstate 95.
Incident date: Dec 5, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Edge. The contact stated while the vehicle was idling in the driveway, the temperature gauge was showing that the indicator had raised to HOT, and the message "Engine Coolant over Temperature" was displayed on the instrument cluster. The contact shifted the gear selector into drive(D) and accelerated and the temperature gauge lowered back to the normal engine temperatu... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2024
My 2017 Chevy Equinox, equipped with the 2.4L Ecotec engine, experienced a catastrophic failure due to a faulty PCV system. In cold weather, condensation caused the PCV valve to malfunction, leading to excessive pressure and ultimately blowing out the rear main seal. This issue has been well-documented in the 2010–2013 models, which were covered under a class-action lawsuit, but the same defect ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 22, 2024
The contact owned a 2014 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH in the mountains, the check engine light illuminated. There was an abnormally strong odor of anti-freeze inside the cab. There was antifreeze coming from the tailpipe. The contact and her son noticed smoke on the side of the vehicle. The contact decreased her speed to approximately 45 MPH and was able to pull over. Aft... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Jan 30, 2025
It appears that the driver seat and I suspect the passenger seat has some sort of internal issue or defect. Every time I accelerate, brake, or go up and down on the road, there is a crunching or punching feeling in the seat right around the middle back area. Not sure if something is loose or broken but whatever it is, it is not a normal feeling and aside from being extremely annoying, it could be... Read more
Incident date: Jan 26, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Mercedes-Benz CLA250. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the sunroof switch was enabled to open the sunroof; however, the sunroof failed to open as intended. The contact stated that the left side of the sunroof did not open as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with sunroof assembly failure. The contact was informed that ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
Egr coolant leak in the first 70k miles of driving the car this has been causing my check engine light to turn on and the problem is 'discovered' when the part is no longer covered by warranty.
Incident date: Jan 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while her son was driving 30 MPH, while depressing on the accelerator pedal the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact merged to the side of the road. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was towed by an insurance vendor to the Sam's Auto Repair. The vehicle was then towed to the dealership where it was diagnosed that the transmiss... Read more
Incident date: Jan 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Sequoia Hybrid. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V640000 (STRUCTURE, TRAILER HITCHES); 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 c... Read more
Incident date: Jan 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Sequoia Hybrid. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V640000 (STRUCTURE, TRAILER HITCHES); 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 c... Read more
Incident date: Jan 29, 2025
Was taken into the dealership on 1/27 for an oil change and a general check-up. This morning 1/29 before starting up the vehicle noticed that the windshield had cracked windshield that looked like it was due to a bubble being created between the panes of glass which caused it to crack and shatter. This is not only a safety concern but an issue as well. Thankfully I was not driving the vehicle at t... Read more
Incident date: Jan 29, 2025
On Sunday [XXX] , while driving my Cadillac Escalade 2022 with a 6.2L V8 engine on [XXX] at 70 mph, my vehicle suddenly lost power without warning. This put me in immediate danger, as I was in the left lane and had to quickly maneuver to the right emergency lane to avoid a complete stop in moving traffic. During this emergency maneuver, vehicles behind me nearly crashed into me, creating a high r... Read more
Incident date: Jan 29, 2025
1. When I turn my car either left of right there is a huge noise under the hood at the joint like a cracking noise. It is very concerning and doubt that some thing big is broken. I got to know in the forum that almost all the cars are having this issue. 2. When using my HondaLink app to unlock the door, sometimes the app has issues sending the signal to the car. This is a safety issue because in ... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2024
Upon braking on the interstate the truck lost control and almost crashed due to not braking properly. ABS, Brake and traction control lights all came on and have stayed on steadily since. Truck pulls to the right every time we brake. When we spoke with dodge they told us the ABS module is the problem but that it can not be replaced due to no longer being made. They said the the truck is not ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 24, 2025
The contact owns a 2013 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated that over time the vehicle became slow to start and that the engine was rattling and shaking abnormally at start-up. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed and the contact was informed that ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 27, 2025
My wife was driving to the store on surface streets at about 9am on a clear morning. At a stop light, waiting for the green. After light turned green she accelerated at a normal rate. Midway through the intersection (at about 10 mph) the vehicles emergency braking system engaged for no reason slamming her to an immediate stop. There were no obstructions in front or to either side of the vehicle. T... Read more
Incident date: Nov 1, 2024
There is an active recall on the brake calipers and fuel pump for Acura Mdx 2017, and Hondas. My Acura Mdx 2017 has the same issues with a code of p07e4, which is the brake calipers. When looking up the recall of my car, there is no recall on it when inserting the VIN. My car is an Acura Mdx 2017; I do not understand why it is not included in the recall when it should.
Incident date: Jan 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the backover prevention camera failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the back-over prevention screen displayed a multi-color screen. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assista... Read more
Incident date: Jan 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Corsair. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the "Check Headlamp System, See Manual," message was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer; however, the dealer failed to duplicate the failure. The contact stated that the message remained on the instrument panel. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure... Read more
Incident date: Jan 15, 2024
My rear shocks and or insulator were replaced under a TSB 22-SS-001H at 50000 miles. At 79000 they are needing replaced again. I am told the TSB no longer applies since it is out of warranty. I see others having the same issue. Can Hyundai be held accountable for obviously replacing a defective part with another one?
Incident date: Jan 18, 2025
All the controls in my Van (cruise control, lane assist, auto break etc...) stopped working. I took the van multiple times and the reason they gave is its possible that the Camera stopped working. I replaced the front windshield with OEM through Insurance. I have a feeling this happened only after the repair. The issue goes away for some reason while driving and comes back again. So its not due ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH and at various speeds, the cruise control and several other features failed to activate. The contact stated that the air bag indicator and a message that the rear seat monitor default warning light were illuminated. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined to replace the driver's side s... Read more
Incident date: Jan 27, 2025
When I start the car Multiple times the car will throw over half of all the error code and could not start the vehicle. Driving in the highway doing 65mph with the cruise control on the car completely shut off and I had to limp it to the shoulder and was unable to start the car. Each time I cleared the fault codes then was able to start the car. If I didn’t have my scanner I would have had to ge... Read more
Incident date: Jan 23, 2025
The vehicle sunroof exploded while traveling on the interstate. Stopped and inspected the vehicle to find no impact objects inside the vehicle. Later reviewed online that this was a common problem with this modern Mercedes and the item is already under recall but not my year. I have a 2012 and the recall stops at 2011 although 2012 sunroofs are exploding too
Incident date: Jan 23, 2025
On 3 occasions, in the past three weeks, the vehicle has lost power while in motion and display states “shift to park”. Restarting vehicle is required. This occurs while in motion and could be dangerous for driver and passenger. Car repair unable to diagnose issue. Reported numerous codes concerning “communication errors”
Incident date: Jan 19, 2025
Car stalled in middle of road. Would not start. When did get it started told me there was engine problem. Took it to Smith Kia, told me my engine burning oil shutting down important sensors. No low oil light. Nothing no warning or anything. There used to be a recall for 2015 for same issue but my car isn’t covered because of year but you can’t tell me my engine is any different than the 2015.
Incident date: Jan 25, 2025
We were driving on the interstate and my front seat passenger headrest blew apart. I could have suffered neck injury due to the force of the impact, or accident due to startling the driver. We called our local dealership and they were familiar with this issue however stated it is not on a recall and we could have the headrest replaced for $500 plus labor. There were no warning signs from the vehic... Read more
Incident date: Jan 26, 2025
My car lost its brakes on [XXX] last December, putting my life and my husband's life in the vehicle at great risk, at that time the vehicle was only 9 months old, after the event the car was taken to the Chevrolet Bay Dealer in Estero, FL, where I bought it with zero miles just a few months ago, it was taken to the dealer to solve the brake problem and the service that corresponded to it, oil chan... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2025
Front parking sensors always being disabled due to something. Keeps saying wipe sensors. Even after going through wash bays. Tailgate has been opening on its own multiple times while driving, while going through car wash, and just sitting still. Try to close it, and it pops back open instantly. Have to do this several times and hope it stays closed. Now the tailgate won't open at all via the hand... Read more
Incident date: Nov 16, 2024
Within a period of three weeks, I received two alarming messages that appeared suddenly on the dashboard, "Pull over now, engine will turn off soon." The first instance happened as I was driving on I-80 East going about 70 mph, while towing a teardrop trailer. Fortunately, there was a rest stop ahead and I was able to pull over safely. After 30-45 minutes, I turned the ignition on, the message ... Read more
SUBARU
XV CROSSTREK
(2013) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Jan 24, 2025
Incident date: Aug 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 GMC Yukon XL. The contact stated that upon attempting to start the vehicle with the key fob, messages that the key fob was not connected, to put the key fob in the compartment, to push the brake, and that the battery light was low, were displayed. The contact stated that he was able to start the vehicle by pressing the Push to Start button. The contact stated that the failu... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2025
The failed component of the car was the drivers side fuel transfer pump. After noticing the faint smell of gas in my car i checked under the rear driver side passenger seat. I was shocked to find more than 16 fluid ounces of gas floating freely around the well of the gas pump.the insulation under the rear passenger seat is soaked in gas. I can only imagine what could’ve happened if there was a... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon Denali. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the contact was notified by another driver that the rear taillights were inoperable. No warning light was illuminated. Neither a dealer nor an independent mechanic was contacted, and the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that there was n... Read more
Incident date: Jan 20, 2025
Transmission has had shifting, shudder and failure to go into gear from day 1 of owning the truck. Has been to the dealer on several occassions for the same issue just to be told that they either could not reproduce the issue or it was normal. On another occasion the dealer was able to notice some shudder and shifting issue and replaced the valve body under warranty. Now that the vehicle is out ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 24, 2025
Recurring System Problems: My vehicle continues to exhibit intermittent system failures, causing unpredictable and potentially dangerous driving conditions. These issues have included: engine stalling, braking issues, electronic system malfunctions].
Incident date: Jul 1, 2024
All of a sudden my vehicle has started consuming large amounts of oil. My wife was driving with my two small children when a check engine light went on and she pulled over and there was no oil left in the engine! i am unsure of the scale of the problem or if any significant damage has occurred. I worry that the car is at 149k that I will go over the 150k and be out of luck for a recall claim. I kn... Read more
Incident date: Jan 22, 2025
I had gotten my sepertine belt replaced and it started showing message transmission over heating it had not aloud my jeep to start and it made the starter go out to the alternator is now bad I have had it stall before I got the message and it about caused an accident several times until message. Brakes had skidded me about into a tree & other things and people when I had pressed on them two handfu... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The Vehicle was sold to me by a local dealership not SUBARU Manufacturer themselves with the conditions marked above and more, the wheels when purchased as i turned any corners it would sound like the underside of the vehicle would explode even when driving straight it was just less frequent and caused the ABS system to activate and would pull one way or another. the Transmission has never been in... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
The Vehicle was sold to me by a local dealership not SUBARU Manufacturer themselves with the conditions marked above and more, the wheels when purchased as i turned any corners it would sound like the underside of the vehicle would explode even when driving straight it was just less frequent and caused the ABS system to activate and would pull one way or another. the Transmission has never been in... Read more
Incident date: Jan 21, 2025
Rear differential is going dealership says it’s a common issue.
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
The fuel door does not stay open. It flaps around. This issue becomes problematic while attempting to refuel and insert the fuel nozzle while fighting with the fuel door. On numerous occasions, I was the wind forcing the fuel door closed while trying to insert the fuel nozzle and I depressed the trigger on accident, resulting in fuel spillage.
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
Honda service center (1601 Dallas Pkwy, Frisco, TX 75034) is avoiding making a repair of recalled fuel pump. I took the car in on what they said was a slow day for a 3hr repair. They told me it would take 2+ days to repair and that if I scheduled in advance they could make sure to get it done in about 3 hours. I scheduled a week in advance with an appointment and came in and they used the same exc... Read more
Incident date: Sep 15, 2024
On two separate occasions, the front passenger side seat belt has disengaged during driving. There was no warning when this occurred. The seat belt monitor was off (indicating it was appropriately latched) when this occurred. The entry of the seat belt is very soft and does not latch appropriately. I have brought this up to the hyundai dealership I have my car serviced at and am awaiting an appoin... Read more
Incident date: Oct 24, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Passport. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Forward Collision Avoidance system activated and briefly applied the Automatic Emergency Braking system before returning to normal functionality. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The Forward Collision Avoidance warning light was illumi... Read more
Incident date: Jan 23, 2025
The tie rod broke while the vehicle was in motion. This caused the vehicle to lose control and crash into another vehicle, causing damage to both vehicles. There was no warning and no sign of any issues. Vehicle has been very well maintained, in fact, it has been in the shop at least once per month for the past year due to a number of mechanical issues unrelated to the tie rod.
Crash