Vehicle Problems, Recalls &amp; Complaints — by VIN or Year, Make &amp; Model

2024 Ford Mustang Recalled Over Electrical System

A loss of driver power increases the risk of a crash. In addition, a loss of headlight function or windshield washing system function can reduce visibility

2025 Mitsubishi Outlander Recalled Over Back Over Prevention

A rearview image that does not display properly reduces the driver's view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

2026 Ford Bronco Recalled Over Engine And Engine Cooling

An unexpected loss of drive power increases the risk of a crash.

13 recalls · 5,125 complaints · reliability 1.0/5

2026 Ford Bronco Sport Recalled Over Structure

Improperly tightened vehicle joints may lead to a loss of vehicle control, electrical failure, or detached parts, increasing the risk of a crash or fire.

Recall Aug 31

Chrysler recalls over 844,000 vehicles for rearview cameras that may fail to display

A rearview image that does not display reduces the driver's view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

I buy used trucks for a moving company in Garland, Texas, and I fix most of them myself. I started keeping notes on which ones were trouble; this site is those notes, scaled to every vehicle in the federal data. It reads the recall and owner-complaint record and gives you a straight answer — buy it, buy it with your eyes open, or walk — and when the data is too thin to call, it says so instead of guessing. We take no money from manufacturers. The only thing we're selling is the honest read.

— Mark Driver, founder · about ProblemsByVin

Trending vehicles most-discussed in the database

2010 Fusion

8 recalls · 3,798 complaints · reliability 2.2/5

2012 Focus

10 recalls · 3,614 complaints · reliability 1.9/5

2007 Camry

14 recalls · 3,374 complaints · reliability 1.7/5

2011 Sonata

10 recalls · 2,821 complaints · reliability 2.2/5

2010 Prius

3 recalls · 2,796 complaints · reliability 2.8/5

2013 F-150

Browse all 6,248 vehicles →

Browse by problem type most common categories across the fleet

Electrical

115,138 complaints · 3211 vehicles

Powertrain

109,107 complaints · 2872 vehicles

Engine

101,018 complaints · 2747 vehicles

Steering

91,606 complaints · 2329 vehicles

Airbags

80,824 complaints · 2464 vehicles

Brakes

50,628 complaints · 2145 vehicles

Body

34,632 complaints · 1819 vehicles

Cruise Control

25,072 complaints · 1599 vehicles

Visibility

23,727 complaints · 1501 vehicles

Lighting

22,845 complaints · 1212 vehicles

Suspension

22,033 complaints · 1474 vehicles

Fuel System

19,455 complaints · 998 vehicles

Failures people search by deep-dive hubs

The failures people actually search by — what they are, which vehicles, and the mileage they hit.

CVT Transmission Failure

Shudder or judder on light-throttle acceleration, typically 30–50 mph

Excessive Oil Consumption

Burning more than a quart of oil per 1,000 miles with no visible leak

Rattle on cold start-up, lasting one to a few seconds before quieting

Timing Chain Stretch

Coolant level dropping with no visible drip under the car

Head Gasket Failure

Spark Plug Ejection (Ford Modular V8)

Sudden loud popping or backfire, often followed by exhaust escaping from under the hood

Theta II Engine Failure (Hyundai / Kia)

Knocking or "marbles in a coffee can" sound from the lower end, especially on cold start

Oil level on the dipstick rising between oil changes (instead of dropping)

Honda 1.5T Oil Dilution

EcoBoost Internal Water Pump Failure

Coolant reservoir level slowly dropping with no visible leak under the truck

GM Ignition Switch Defect

Engine cutting out unexpectedly while driving, sometimes with every dash gauge going dead at once

Hyundai/Kia Theta II 2.4L

Most-complained engines & transmissions the few platforms behind most of the misery

A small number of engine and transmission families cause an outsized share of the complaints. See the full study — or go straight to the worst offenders.

Bearing failure, engine seizure

Lifter failure, oil consumption

GM 5.3L V8 (AFM)

Coolant intrusion, fire risk

Ford 1.6L EcoBoost

Ford 6F35 automatic

Harsh, erratic shifting

Clutch shudder — class action

Ford DPS6 PowerShift

Subaru Lineartronic CVT

Juddering, CVT failure

22 model years · 25,104 complaints — see best & worst

Browse every engine family and transmission family we track.

Which years should you avoid? best & worst model years

Every model year ranked, with a straight buy-or-avoid call and the reason behind it.

Ford Escape

15 model years · 22,898 complaints — see best & worst

Ford Fusion

22 model years · 20,212 complaints — see best & worst

Ford F-150

22 model years · 16,818 complaints — see best & worst

Jeep Grand Cherokee

22 model years · 16,626 complaints — see best & worst

Ford Explorer

22 model years · 15,185 complaints — see best & worst

Chevrolet Silverado

14 model years · 14,415 complaints — see best & worst

Ford Focus

22 model years · 14,405 complaints — see best & worst

Hyundai Sonata

Browse all 6,248 vehicles →

Start here — buyer & owner guides the questions people actually ask

Plain-English guides built on the same federal data — for before you buy, and for what to watch once you own it.

Worst model years to avoid

Every model ranked — best and worst years

Most-complained-about problems

The failures that dominate the federal record

Used-car reliability red flags

What to check before you buy

The mileage failures actually hit

When do cars break?

Engine & transmission families to know

Known powertrain defects

Which CVTs hold up — and which don't

CVT reliability

How to check recalls by VIN

Free, in under a minute

Defects NHTSA is probing right now

Under investigation

What the code your scanner threw means

OBD-II code lookup

2025 Chevrolet Equinox · visibility

Should you buy an extended warranty?

Run the math on any vehicle in our database. We pull every documented failure pattern from NHTSA, scale repair costs by make-complexity, and run the numbers against typical service contract pricing. We say skip when the math says skip.

Try the calculator ->

What owners are reporting recent NHTSA-filed complaints · verbatim

You can't see clearly out the windshield while driving during the day or night due to dashboard reflection on the windshield. The defect is highly publicised on the internet and on Equinox EV forums. I was told it is an engineering defect…

2025 Honda Odyssey · engine

When the Auto Idle Stop is engaged, I have now had 3 instances of the engine completely stalling when at a stop. Not only has the engine stalled, but I have difficulty getting the engine to restart. It has been very scary, as it has left…

2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee L · other

I purchased my 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee, new, approximately one month ago on [XXX] at Victory CDJR in Merrillville, IN 46410. Since purchase, the vehicle has been returned to the dealership three times for the same issue, and I am now…

2025 Jeep Wagoneer S · electrical

Main instrument cluster failed. There was no warning. Occasionally, the main screen would boot up slow. Currently at dealership where they diagnosed the screen to not be communicating. With the screen not working, it disabled the turn…

2025 GMC Yukon XL · brakes

The image module system has completely failed and never worked in the Yukon. Then it would brake while still accelerating.

2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 · powertrain

I was driving on the freeway in the left lane when suddenly a bunch of error lights popped up on the dash and the car threw itself into neutral. When I tried to give the car acceleration it wouldn’t go which is when I realized the car was…