Complaints per year
Owner complaints rose to 74,369 in 2025, the most since 2019
Complaints by the date NHTSA received them, 2000 to 2026. 2026 runs through October.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file. The lighter 2026 column is a partial year.
Owner complaints
What owners report to NHTSA, and what is rising
Every complaint a driver files with the Office of Defects Investigation lands in a public file. Counted by component, by state and against each vehicle's own recent rate, those reports show where problems cluster and which ones are growing before any recall.
Complaints in the twelve months to September 202677,232+6% vs the twelve months before
Complaints on file1.62MDistinct complaints since 1995
Crash, fire, injury or death9.4%Share of all complaints
Rising issues242Model years flagged now
See these complaints city by city on the complaint map.
Components
Engines and cooling draw the most complaints, 17%
Complaints by the component the owner named, twelve most frequent. 118,347 name no component or "Unknown or other" and are left out.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file.
Rising issues
242 model years show complaints running at one and a half times their usual rate or more, 51 with no open investigation or recent recall
Complaints in the last 90 days against the count the prior 365 days predict for 90 days (floored at 1.5). Listed from a ratio of 1.5 with at least 8 recent complaints and 120 days of history. "Unknown or other" is ignored. The years filed do not apply here.
| Model year | Component | Last 90 days | Expected | Ratio | Severe | Already covered by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Toyota Tacoma Complaints since Apr 2, 2025 | Structure | 25 | 3.2 | 7.8x | 0 | Not yet |
| 2025 Honda Passport Complaints since Jan 20, 2025 | Electrical system | 13 | 1.5 | 8.7x | 0 | Investigation EA25004 |
| 2025 Honda Ridgeline Complaints since May 9, 2024 | Engine and cooling | 13 | 1.7 | 7.5x | 0 | Investigation EA25004 |
| 2025 Honda Passport Complaints since Jan 20, 2025 | Engine and cooling | 11 | 1.5 | 7.3x | 0 | Investigation EA25004 |
| 2026 Honda Odyssey Complaints since Nov 4, 2025 | Engine and cooling | 11 | 1.5 | 7.3x | 0 | Not yet |
| 2025 Honda Ridgeline Complaints since May 9, 2024 | Electrical system | 12 | 1.7 | 7.0x | 0 | Investigation EA25004 |
| 2026 Tesla Model Y Complaints since May 5, 2025 | Back-over prevention | 14 | 2.2 | 6.3x | 10 | Investigation AQ25002 |
| 2026 GMC Sierra 1500 Complaints since Sep 23, 2025 | Engine and cooling | 50 | 12.0 | 4.2x | 0 | Investigation EA26005 |
| 2024 Ford Ranger Complaints since Sep 17, 2024 | Powertrain | 17 | 3.0 | 5.8x | 1 | Recall 25V-164 |
| 2019 Ford Expedition Complaints since Feb 17, 2019 | Seat belts | 30 | 6.4 | 4.7x | 10 | Recall 26V-344 |
| 2025 Honda Odyssey Complaints since Feb 14, 2025 | Electrical system | 95 | 27.6 | 3.4x | 0 | Investigation EA25004 |
| 2021 Jeep Wrangler Complaints since Oct 20, 2020 | Fuel system | 23 | 4.7 | 4.9x | 0 | Investigation EA23001 |
| 2022 BMW X5 Complaints since Dec 20, 2021 | Powertrain | 10 | 1.5 | 6.7x | 0 | Not yet |
| 2026 GMC Sierra 1500 Complaints since Sep 23, 2025 | Electrical system | 10 | 1.5 | 6.7x | 0 | Investigation EA26005 |
| 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Complaints since May 7, 2016 | Powertrain | 15 | 2.7 | 5.5x | 0 | Investigation AQ23002 |
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints, investigations and recalls files. 155 of these already have an open investigation on the vehicle and 75 a recall on the component in the last 24 months.
Rising issues by component
Engines and cooling top the rising list, with 70 model years
Model years with a rising issue, by the component named in the complaints.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file.
Rising issues by manufacturer
Honda has the most rising issues, 63
Model years with a rising issue, by manufacturer group.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file. Groups as Recall Radar maps makes (Hyundai and Kia together, for example).
Where complaints come from
Delaware files the most complaints per resident, 127 per 100,000; California files the most overall, 35,401
Complaints per 100,000 residents by the state the owner gave, last five years; the count is in each tooltip and the table. Population: Census Bureau estimates for July 2024. Per-resident rates correct for population, not for how many vehicles of each kind people own. The map page goes down to counties and ZIP areas.
AK89
ME105
VT116
NH122
WA90
ID74
MT79
ND66
MN80
IL88
WI94
MI112
NY72
RI91
MA94
OR81
NV89
WY75
SD73
IA76
IN88
OH104
PA94
NJ96
CT100
CA90
UT74
CO98
NE75
MO97
KY94
WV106
VA119
MD114
DE127
AZ95
NM78
KS86
AR88
TN96
NC100
SC107
DC79
OK82
LA86
MS82
AL96
GA106
HI69
TX87
FL106
Under 76110 and overcomplaints per 100,000 residents
Sources: NHTSA ODI complaints file, complainant state; U.S. Census Bureau population estimates. Territories and blank states are left out.
Severity
9.4% of complaints involved a crash, fire, injury or death
Complaints reporting each outcome, of 1,623,694 complaints. One complaint can report more than one, so the bars add up to more than the 152,802 severe complaints.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file, as reported by owners.
Models
The Ford F-150 draws the most complaints, 38,190
Complaints by model line, all model years, all complaints. Counts follow sales and fleet age as much as quality.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints file.
Complaints per recall
General Motors draws the most complaints per recall, 355; Jaguar Land Rover the fewest, 24
Complaints received for every vehicle recall campaign filed, 2017 to 2026. Manufacturers with at least 10 campaigns. A high ratio means many complaints for each recall, not proof of unrecalled defects: sales volume, fleet age and how owners report all move it.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints and recalls files, vehicle recalls only.
Complaints against recalls
Ford leads both, with the most recalls and the most complaints, 2017 to 2026
Vehicle recall campaigns filed and owner complaints received, 2017 to 2026. Fifteen manufacturers with the most complaints; bubble size is vehicles recalled.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints and recalls files, vehicle recalls only. Complaints are matched to manufacturers by the manufacturer named in the complaint.
Read with care
What a complaint is, and is not
A complaint is one owner's account of a problem. It is useful as a signal and weak as proof, so this page counts complaints and never ranks vehicles by how often they fail.
Filed by owners
Complaints are submitted by vehicle owners and published by NHTSA as received. NHTSA does not verify them, and one problem can be reported more than once.
Not a defect rate
NHTSA publishes no sales or registration volumes, so complaint counts cannot be turned into rates. Popular, older or heavily publicized vehicles draw more complaints for those reasons alone.
Rising issues
A model year is listed when its complaints about one component in the last 90 days run at 1.5 times or more what its prior 365 days predict, with at least 8 recent complaints (15 for a model line) and 120 days of history.