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 22,185 complaints for TESLA
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
I was driving on the interstate in a construction zone and begin reducing speed from about 62 mph after noticing brake lights from cars in the far distance. As the car start to reduce speed, I begin to apply the brakes as I'm approaching the stopped traffic and instead of stopping my car kept going. I pressed the brakes harder, and the car began to slide. After sliding about 9-10 car lengths, I wa... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
My ABS lights come on at 37000 miles, the code reads C0020-01 which is the hydraulic control unit . There are no parts to replace these units which means no ABS brakes . After looking in to this issue it seems to be a issue with the 2017 and 2018 models.
Incident date: May 1, 2023
Unintended acceleration during public street and highway while approaching a stop to make a right turn on November of 2022 in Orange County California onto a highway I let go of the pedal ready to press the brake and while turning it made a unnecessary acceleration to speed up making steering difficult, another incident where I believe in February 2023 as I was driving in the right lane a truck ma... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2023
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Often when the car is started, the center console screen freezes. When it is in the frozen state the backup camera does not work despite the vehicle reversing. I have video if this event occurring. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? While reversing, driver is unable to see haz... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2023
The car's AC system made an audible hissing sound from within the cabin, I then smelled what I believe was refrigerant, 10 minutes later the hissing sound stopped and the AC won't work. This occurred when I was idling and was about to start driving. The fan still blows hot air, but will not cool. The car has not been checked by a dealer or independent service provider, due to insufficient funds, b... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2023
While driving at speed (75-80 mph) on Interstate 90 and 80 (different days) auto aggressively applied brakes. No other autos, trucks or obstructions were anywhere close to the car. There was no forewarning the problem was going occur. All occurred in daylight from morning until mid afternoon. I recognize this as phantom braking. Tesla refuses to look at the car because I did not have the exact ti... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2023
Driver's side windshield molding flew off while traveling on the PA turnpike at approximately 70mph. This not only startled myself (the driver) but caused the vehicle behind me to swerve. No accident was caused as there were no vehicles in the left lane of traffic at that time.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
The contact owns 2022 Ram 2500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V140000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic, Electronic Stability Control), 22V835000 (Power Train), 22V904000 (Structure), and 23V060000 (Electrical System) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recal... Read more
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
Tesla took my car in for service again, fixed nothing again. This time they messed up my dashcam even though it is clearly marked with bright red NOTICE stickers on both sides of the car that consent for audio and video recording is given by entering vehicle that is owned by me (not a lease). Car wouldn't charge yesterday, then I do the newest software update and when I get 3 miles down the street... Read more
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
My car had the Takata airbags that were recalled. It says the recalls were repaired but my vehicle is saying that the driver-side airbag has malfunctioned. I haven't been in any accidents. So I contacted Mercedes and they could not find verification that the previous open recalls were ever fixed.
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
Took the vehicle in for a recall of the trailer tow hitch and was told it would be fixed free of charge. I also got an oil change. Once the work was complete, I was informed that they are unable to fix it and there is no remedy available currently. The consultant told me that the vehicle is at risk of catching on fire while driving and/or parked so I should not park it in my garage. I now have a v... Read more
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
Made it less than a mile from my house this time when the Tesla couldn't see the FHP (Florida Highway Patrol) with lights on and perfect visibility. The car was updated yesterday but it has NEVER actually worked as advertised and the more I complain the more everywhere I go gets hacked. My wife Red Cross servers, hacked. My medical files, hacked. The pizza shop I was driving to, hacked, my grill, ... Read more
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
Fuel gauge is always stuck to full. I have to rely on the gas pump to know that I have full tank of gas. Luckily I only drive it for short distances. It will not be safe to drive interstate.
Incident date: Jun 2, 2023
Acc, breaking system, lane departure, collision warnings all on. Cruise control not working! The cmbs is not functioning properly.
Incident date: Sep 17, 2022
"Phantom braking:" Vehicle has braked Multiple times on the freeway while using adaptive cruise control, when no objects were In the vehicle's path. Typically occurs when driving on curved section of freeway at speeds above 50 mph.
Incident date: Sep 17, 2022
I bought the Model Y in Feb 2023, after 2 months of driving, 3 weeks back on 5/14/2023, all of sudden the car lit up Yellow Brake indicator on dashboard while I was driving downhill. I didn't understand what this indicator meant but when I needed to brake - I could not brake at all, so I let regenerative braking slow the car down which it did. I was horrified as I was on the road at that time, so ... Read more
Incident date: Sep 17, 2022
I bought the Model Y in Feb 2023, after 2 months of driving, 3 weeks back on 5/14/2023, all of sudden the car lit up Yellow Brake indicator on dashboard while I was driving downhill. I didn't understand what this indicator meant but when I needed to brake - I could not brake at all, so I let regenerative braking slow the car down which it did. I was horrified as I was on the road at that time, so ... Read more
Incident date: May 14, 2023
The intermediate shaft - steering column is a design defect on these cars. A service bulletin has been issued (https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10177030-9999.pdf) but that is insufficient. This is a critical safety issue which could lead the driver to lose control of the vehicle. It felt like losing power steering and it required a lot of force to maintain steering control. Other owners h... Read more
Incident date: May 14, 2023
Drove my Tesla on a road trip for the first time and while driving the vehicle would slam on the brakes with no vehicle object or person in front of the vehicle. Very dangerous due to driving 70mph and vehicle tried to come to stop with vehicles behind me. This happened at least 3 times while in adaptive cruise control.
Incident date: May 26, 2023
Drove my Tesla on a road trip for the first time and while driving the vehicle would slam on the brakes with no vehicle object or person in front of the vehicle. Very dangerous due to driving 70mph and vehicle tried to come to stop with vehicles behind me. This happened at least 3 times while in adaptive cruise control.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
Drove my Tesla on a road trip for the first time and while driving the vehicle would slam on the brakes with no vehicle object or person in front of the vehicle. Very dangerous due to driving 70mph and vehicle tried to come to stop with vehicles behind me. This happened at least 3 times while in adaptive cruise control.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
My safety can be affected because Toyota neglected to screen all openings of the car, I now have mouse or rat poop and saw some urine stains.The manufacturing system has failed for this 81 year old.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
Check engine light P052E, PVC valve. Dealer wants $2,500 for this repair and people are complaining that around 30k-50k it does it. Thats ridiculous. My dealer said its a common issue but Mercedes is not issuing a recall.
Incident date: Apr 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V406000 (Fuel System, Diesel) 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. Additionally, the contact stated that the check engine warnin... Read more
Incident date: Apr 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V406000 (Fuel System, Diesel) 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. Additionally, the contact stated that the check engine warnin... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2022
When driving car gives the warning that FCW is not working and other error messages on the screen. When you apply the break, it automatically started breaking having sudden stops which is dangerous to drive on roads. For some reason those check engine lights will go away after some time and everything seems to be normal. Towed to dealer and reported to Chrysler multiple times and they are not taki... Read more
Incident date: May 17, 2023
We ordered a Western Star WITHOUT collision mitigation and when we got the truck it had a WABCO CMS. We have had nothing but problems of hard breaking on overpasses and bridges and false readings of cars on the other side of highway. The truck has been in FYDA Freightliner for about a month total and they "can't find anything wrong". Their suggestion was us to remove a bullguard and drive a few ... Read more
2 injured
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
I just recently had my brakes done & the ABS light came on, along with the brake light, then the rear & front automatic emergency braking sensor lights came on as well. My independent repair shop did a diagnostic & said it was a Faulty ABS pump went out. They also told me to take to the dealership to get it looked at too.
Incident date: Jun 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V120000 (Engine, Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was flashing. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal; however, the vehicle continued losing motive power... Read more
Incident date: May 15, 2023
While driving down the road my driver's side head rest popped open causing my head to be pushed forward. As a result I had to pull over and stop my vehicle. It caused head and neck pain. There were no warning indicators on the vehicle at the time of the incident. It has not yet been inspected by a dealer or service center nor was there a police report or insurance claim.
Incident date: May 9, 2023
EXTREME FRAYING OF THE SEATBELT.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
Car has trouble starting/running often every time the tank is full. Numerous shops can not find the issue
Incident date: Jan 20, 2023
My car is throwing the error code P052E. It keeps going on and off.
Incident date: Jan 20, 2023
The car for the longest time makes a screech at first start and sometimes at other times. Also the steering is off center and wheel turns left and right when brakes applied and when going over bumps. I had steering and shocks and struts replaced and adjusted as well as alignments done problems still there. I had those parts replaced due to originally having problems with handling. I took car b... Read more
Incident date: May 23, 2023
When my vehicle is in park my vehicle will not turn off and an error comes on my screen and says shift to park.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
Two issues that are concerning and I have told Tesla: 1. The car will be on cruise control and I will be relaxed and all of a sudden it will just brake for no reason. Praise God I am aware of it now and prepared so I have to compensate, but it is very dangerous and made the cruise control useless. While it was under warrantee I request it be fixed, but they said there was no way to do that. 2. T... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2023
While operating the vehicle on an open section of highway I passed under an overpass. The collision mitigation system sounded an audible warning and the vehicle abruptly applied momentary maximum braking. Had another vehicle been behind me It likely would have resulted in a rear end collision.
Incident date: May 31, 2023
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V554000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) 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 conta... Read more
Incident date: May 31, 2023
My 2018 kia soul EV has had a significantly decreased range, inconsistent charging, and a check EV light illuminating periodically. All of these are symptoms of the recall. Kia is not only not giving a timeline to diagnose and repair the problem, they are also charging me a "diagnostic" fee for the recall. I cannot just be without a car indefinitely while Kia figures out the issue.
Incident date: May 29, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated while driving at various speeds or while idling, the vehicle was sputtering. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed that the control module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the fai... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2023
I took my car in to have it serviced after I noticed it shuddering when accelerating. Mostly at a lower speed, 1st-3rd gear. I am now being told that I have to have the torque converter replaced which is going to cost me around $4700. This is from the Ford dealership by the way. My vehicle is right at 70k miles so something like this should not be broken already. After doing some research it appe... Read more
Incident date: May 28, 2023
When braking normally, the AEB alert tone sounded, and the display showed a red BRAKE warning with "Brake Booster Failure" displayed on-screen. The brakes then became extremely sensitive and caused the car to abruptly grind to a stop with full ABS action. This occurred in traffic, and the car behind me narrowly avoided a collision due to the uncommanded abrupt halt. I pulled over and the error ... Read more
Incident date: May 21, 2023
Last May I took my 2018 Camry in due to "low braking Power" light coming on. Toyota informed me that it was part of a recall and they did not know how long it would take. It was over a month and they fixed the problem. Now a year later, the same problem is taking place. Again, "low braking power" signal is coming on.
Incident date: May 21, 2023
On May 25, 2023 I was stopped at a red light with one car in front of me. My foot was not on brake because i use the one peddle feature. All of the sudden, my car accelerated and ran into the car in front of me. In the 2 seconds before hitting car, I saw my collision assistant light go on but there was no braking at all. I've been driving for almost 40 years and nothing like this has ever happ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: May 30, 2023
03/17/2023 driving on US1 coming up to speed after pulling onto highway after cars passed I went 0.2 miles and was looking at my driver side mirror ( no traffic on road ahead of me) when I hit something that pushed my big SUV toward oncoming traffic. I held wheel and muscled car to side of road stopping short of a telephone pole. Car was upright I had trouble loosening seat belt while my wife was... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: May 30, 2023
03/17/2023 driving on US1 coming up to speed after pulling onto highway after cars passed I went 0.2 miles and was looking at my driver side mirror ( no traffic on road ahead of me) when I hit something that pushed my big SUV toward oncoming traffic. I held wheel and muscled car to side of road stopping short of a telephone pole. Car was upright I had trouble loosening seat belt while my wife was... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: May 29, 2023
The vehicle is brand new with only 300 miles on the clock. Today while driving to work and listening to XM-radio the volume spiked to max and would not respond to controls to lower volume or turn off. I was able to lower by switching to a different output. It was very detracting and potentially dangerous since the Bose speakers are very loud.
Incident date: May 28, 2023
It was a rainy day. I stopped and about to turn left, there was a check engine warning and it said “ ENGINE Stop press the break firmly to restart”. I was on full break and it dis not went away. I had to park it and on and off the car. It happened twice.in 3 minutes interval.
Incident date: May 29, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Rogue. The contact stated that while her son was driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal popping sound before the passenger’s side rear window shattered. The vehicle was taken to a repair facility and the window was replaced. While the contact was driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a popping sound, and she became aware that the driver’s side... Read more
Incident date: May 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Impreza. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V624000 (Exterior Lighting) 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 not made aware of the issue. The contact had no... Read more