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: Dec 24, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 60 MPH in light rain, the vehicle suddenly braked and causing the vehicle to lose control. The contact stated that the vehicle was on cruise control and auto drive assist. The contact stated that the vehicle veered to the left, crossed two lanes of traffic, and crashed into the highway divider wall. The c... Read more
Crash
1 injured
TESLA
CYBERTRUCK
(2024) — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Jan 5, 2026
Incident date: Dec 23, 2025
The vehicle information system, Radio, Maps, Phone goes uncontrolled, Changes volume, radio station changes randomly and sometimes won't allow the driver to even turn off the radio; makes calls from phone contacts while driving randomly and there's NO WAY to hang up! Unable to change time on screen, plus other random electronic actions. This distracts the driver in numerous ways, diverting attenti... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2025
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Rav4. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); 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, but no case number was provided. ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2026
Will be driving when it switches to EV mode it will have no power and go into limp mode. Can't go over 30 mph. This is now the second time this has happened. Dealership tried to say it was because of temperature. Come on.
Incident date: Dec 29, 2025
The wiper blade motor is gone out. The tire pressure sensor is off : the oil seems to disappear faster than the sensor
Incident date: Jan 4, 2026
If truck has a “dusting of snow” on it, blower motor for defrost and heat retracts to absolute “low” setting to supposedly protect the blower motor. Have been caught driving in snow, and defrost couldn’t keep up with keeping windshield defrosted due to this behavior. Had to pull over on expressway to clean vents on the cowl from snow in order for the defrost to work properly. According... Read more
TESLA
CYBERTRUCK
(2024) — ENGINE
Jan 4, 2026
Incident date: Jan 4, 2026
Component or system that failed or malfunctioned, and availability for inspection The torque converter and transmission system in my 2020 Ford Edge have malfunctioned. The vehicle experiences transmission shuddering/stuttering during normal driving, particularly during low-speed acceleration and gear changes. The vehicle remains in my possession and is available for inspection upon request. Safe... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2026
The electronic power steering rack failed. We have had consistent temperatures near 0°f, with highs rarely above freezing for the past couple weeks. The motor and circuit panel for the steering rack built up enough water to freeze solid and completely lock the steering, luckily in the yard so I didn't have to go get my wife from work. But I've had to sideline my work both to work on it, and so my... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2025
The vehicle experienced an unintended acceleration in which it unexpectedly increased speed without any input from the driver. At no point was the gas pedal depressed, yet the vehicle accelerated on its own. This sudden and uncommanded movement occurred without warning and was inconsistent with normal vehicle operation, leaving the driver with no intentional control over the acceleration. Followi... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 29, 2025
My front camera sensor light came on stating it was unavailable, then turned back on after a few minutes. About a week later on several occasions, the emergency brake notification came on when I was on the freeway with no vehicles in front of me to cause this. There has been an excessive whirring sound coming from the engine also. With these issues there have been no warning signs including check ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 29, 2025
I am reporting a safety defect involving a welded rear subframe component. The welded section snapped under normal driving conditions, and this is a safety-critical structural suspension component. There was no collision, misuse, or accident prior to this failure. The vehicle is currently not safe to drive due to the compromised rear suspension structure. I have included photos showing the snapp... Read more
Incident date: Jul 24, 2025
Hyundai Palisade fails to shift gears from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd coming from a stop. Engine RPMS continuously shoots up until I put it in park causing a very unsafe environment since I had would be forced to stop in moving traffic. Brought car to Hyundai dealership and upon inspection they found internal transmission failure where they removed and replaced with a refurbished transmission. This ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2025
Both front half shafts failed and had to be replaced by Tesla. I did research and this part is known to be substandard, was recalled in China, and remains a problem in the US.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2026
I currently have a recall on my Nissan 2021 Leaf SV Plus. There is an issue with the level 3 charging which can result in fire to the vehicle. As a result, I’m unable to rapid charge. Nissan has failed to remedy the issue or offer any attempts to fix this recall. I’m unable to charge my vehicle at this time.
Incident date: May 12, 2024
Excessive oil leaks. When I fix an oil leak another pop up. Im fixing my 4th oil leak. You can smell the oil burning. Engine is making knocking sounds. Hood latch is not working. You have to hold the hood or it will come down.
Incident date: May 12, 2024
After loading our two children ages 2 and 5 in to vehicle and securing in car seats, the car doors were closed and would not reopen. The children were unable to open the doors themselves. The trunk and other entries did not open. There was no obvious way to open the doors or the issue the car was experiencing. The battery cover would not open. Eventually after I searched the Internet I determined ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 2, 2026
HI, Vehicle is under a second recall for the High Voltage Battery potential fire hazard. The first recall lasted 7 months before a potential fix. The second recall was issued in November with no fix available yet. Received second recall identical to first recall indicating a fire risk with no apparent fix. I have requested Ford buyback the vehicle, but it fell outside the 18 month NYS Lemon Law... Read more
Incident date: Dec 20, 2025
On the driver side adjacent to the fuel tank, improper drainage for the body frame caused severe rust. Over time the frame of the vehicle becomes a safety hazard and may cause the frame to crack or split resulting in loss of control to the rear of the vehicle.
Incident date: Oct 14, 2025
My driver side cv axle snapped in half as I was reversing my vehicle onto my parking pad, as a result of a failure from manufacturing, the roads were treated in my area from snow we had gotten a day prior. I have always lived in a salt belt state PA and this vehicle was originally offered and sold in a salt belt state from New Jersey. NEVER had this happen to any of my vehicles, there was no warni... Read more
Incident date: Dec 29, 2025
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota BZ4X equipped with Goodyear Tires, Tire Line: Electric Drive 2, Tire Size: 215/50/R20, DOT Number: (N/A). The contact stated that while driving at various speeds above 50 MPH, the vehicle experienced severe shaking and abnormal vibration. The vehicle was taken to the local service center who determined that the foam pad inside the tire had malfunctioned. The foam was... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
The contact owns a 2014 Kia Optima. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 20V10000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE) and 21V331000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC). The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal fuel odor coming from the engine and entering the cabin of the vehicle through the A/C vents. The check engine warning light and ABS warning ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
front driver and passenger seat belts do not retract, front passenger headrest clips failed and will not snap back in place
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
I am reporting a repeated safety defect that happens only in rainy conditions. My 2022 Tesla Model Y repeatedly shows critical safety warnings including “Automatic Emergency Braking unavailable”, traction and stability control disabled, and “Vehicle Hold unavailable”. This has occurred during normal driving in rain every rainy season for 3 years, despite 4 service visits and parts replacem... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
I am reporting a repeated safety defect that happens only in rainy conditions. My 2022 Tesla Model Y repeatedly shows critical safety warnings including “Automatic Emergency Braking unavailable”, traction and stability control disabled, and “Vehicle Hold unavailable”. This has occurred during normal driving in rain every rainy season for 3 years, despite 4 service visits and parts replacem... Read more
Incident date: Oct 29, 2025
GPS/Navigation/SOS/Roadside Assistance - SOS System logs as "deactivated" and vehicle thinks it is 2 states away from my current location. In case of an accident, emergency, or other safety issue, the SOS system would, unbeknownst to an operator, not be able to locate the vehicle and/or notify emergency services. When you get into the vehicle, it does not let you know that the SOS function is deac... Read more
Incident date: Oct 29, 2025
I took delivery of this vehicle on [XXX]. Unknown to me Tesla changed the frunk design of my model y premium juniper. It has no light or emergency open button as seen on all juniper models made up until the one I received. My understanding is if a three year old can fit in the trunk/frunk space it must have a light and a way to open it from the inside in an emergency situation. Please recall for a... Read more
Incident date: Jan 1, 2026
Mileage: Approximately 45,000 Current Status: Inoperable; held at Joe Machens Nissan pending evaluation by Nissan Consumer Affairs. Description of the Problem The vehicle has become completely inoperable, making it unsafe to operate. In the months prior to the failure, traction control warning indicators intermittently appeared on the dashboard. I did not recognize their significance at the time a... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2025
all suddenly car started to show : Check electric vehicle system" And slow down to 25 miles and eventually 10 miles. Make it not drivable. Looks like ICCU issues
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
Hyundai - DAW - Driver Attention Warning / Forward Attention Warning System This issue warrants immediate consideration for a recall. Despite wearing glasses, sunglasses, or no glasses, the problem persists. I occasionally remove my glasses while driving, and the warning continues to sound. This occurs regardless of the time of day, weather conditions, or whether I am sitting upright or reclining... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
New 2026 Model Ys made after October 2025 no longer have an emergency release/opener for the front trunk. Easily large enough for a child to lay in and be trapped.
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
New 2026 Model Ys made after October 2025 no longer have an emergency release/opener for the front trunk. Easily large enough for a child to lay in and be trapped.
Incident date: Dec 10, 2025
My car has just under 3,000 miles. While driving home from a friend's house this morning my car would not go above 31 mph. I could put my pedal all the way down and nothing beyond 31 mph. I am reading a lot of people with this same exact issue with their hybrid Kia Carnival. Most note it happens in cold weather. So it is worth noting that it is 21 degrees here today. Regardless this is a serious... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
During a snowstorm, the headlights caused blinding visibility issues due to the reflected light from the snow flakes. Normally, using low beams fixes this problem. I tried all combinations of headlights during the drive- auto high, high, auto low, manual low, just parking lights. All resulted in horrible visibility conditions that limited speed to around 20 MPH. The vehicle was inspected by Te... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
The car caught fire all the sudden while parked and burnt almost completely (~80%)
Fire
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
San JoseCA95129United States12/29/2025"i find the bright lights unacceptable & have to divert my eyes which can be very dangerous. and to add to the problem too many drive with their brights on when not necessary"
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
To Whom It May Concern, I am submitting this complaint to report a serious and potentially dangerous safety defect affecting my 2021 Tesla Model 3 Performance. After exposure to heavy rain or wet conditions, the vehicle’s horn completely stops functioning. The failure occurs regardless of the activation method—neither pressing the steering wheel horn nor using the horn via the mobile app pro... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
Vacuum pump busted as shown in photos. Once that busted it sent metal shrapnel into the engine which broke a piece of the cam shaft into bits. There were metal fragments that had to be meticulously cleaned out of my engine block. The loss of vacuum seal caused me to lose brakes while driving in stop and go traffic on the highway.
Incident date: Jan 2, 2025
Failed/leaking coolant heat exchanger which is integrated into the rear catalytic converter assembly. This seems to be a well-known issue with 2017-2020 Kia Niros. Leaks cause overheating of the engine or no heat in the vehicle and potential blown head gaskets. This issue has been confirmed by an independent service center. Car itself gave no messages or warnings regarding the leak.
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
My car displayed all of the issues listed below for the Electrical system recall. The fuel gague went "blank", other gagues acting irradical, the check engine light stay on, etc. My car make and model fall under this recall but have been excluded. I had to pay out of pocket $4678.50 to replace the entire fuel tank due to this and the Manufacture (Mercedes Benz) is refusing to reimburse me. (1) T... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
Picked up car from tesla service on 12/30/2025. On [XXX] at around [XXX] I had pressed the car break and suddenly accelerated and lead to crashing into the pole. I am concerned about the safety and if it is drivable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
The onboard system for connecting the car to the 4g data has failed. Many many people online are reporting this issue. It is a safety issue because there is a loss of the SOS system that alerts authorities that the car has crashed. It also controls the onscreen road sigh display, which could lead to excessive speed and increase the likelihood of a crash. I have been working with VW Connected Car s... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
Autopilot was engaged and active at the time of the incident. The vehicle failed to detect a stationary piece of road debris (appearing to be a dropped vehicle part) located in the driving lane. The system did not provide any warning, slow the vehicle, or attempt an avoidance maneuver. The vehicle drove directly over the debris, resulting in damage to the lower exterior/body panel. Road and traffi... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
Autopilot was engaged and active at the time of the incident. The vehicle failed to detect a stationary piece of road debris (appearing to be a dropped vehicle part) located in the driving lane. The system did not provide any warning, slow the vehicle, or attempt an avoidance maneuver. The vehicle drove directly over the debris, resulting in damage to the lower exterior/body panel. Road and traffi... Read more
Incident date: Jan 12, 2024
Location: Intersection of [XXX] and [XXX] Lakeville, MN Date/Time: [XXX], at approximately [XXX] Vehicle: 2025 Kia K4 (911 call placed at 10:08 am) On [XXX], while traveling toward the roundabout at [XXX] and [XXX], my vehicle experienced a sudden and violent unintended acceleration. Despite having my foot completely off the gas pedal, the engine began to accelerate the vehicle rapidly on its ow... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 31, 2025
This complaint concerns hardship caused by dealer scheduling and parts availability issues during a mandatory recall, not a defect in the recalled part itself. My vehicle was scheduled for a recall repair at an authorized dealership. The dealership confirmed the appointment but did not have the required parts available. I was informed of this only after dropping off the vehicle. As a direct result... Read more
Incident date: Nov 26, 2025
I own a 2016 Audi A6 3.0T. After filling the fuel tank completely, the vehicle only traveled approximately 190–200 miles before the fuel gauge indicated empty. This represents a sudden and significant loss of fuel range compared to normal operation. There are no warning lights, check engine lights, fuel smells, visible leaks, rough idle, or abnormal noises. The vehicle operates normally otherwi... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
Failure to remedy safety defect within reasonable time. This should be compensated. My child has been at danger for over 2 years
TESLA
CYBERTRUCK
(2024) — STEERING
Dec 30, 2025
Incident date: Dec 30, 2025
The vehicle makes clicking/popping noises when steering. It starts only when turning the wheel hard one way or the other. As the problem gets worse, turning slightly is enough to make clicking noise. CV Joints/Axles have been replaced every 3,000 miles on my vehicle; around 3,000 and 6,000 miles. Honda seems to be aware of this issue, but is using the same parts to replace the bad joints every t... Read more
Incident date: Dec 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at 20 MPH in a parking lot, the brakes became inoperable. The low brake fluid warning light illuminated after the failure. The driver was able to drive safely to her residence. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number 25V544000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The contact called the local dealer, who... Read more
Incident date: Dec 29, 2025
Transmission failure at 80,000 miles. This a known issue with 8F35 transmissions in these model years. Left me stranded and in danger on the roadway. The transmission has other recalls, and a TSB from Ford acknowledging the issues without recall for known failures. There were no lamps, indicators, or codes before failure.