VehDB Insights · NHTSA owner complaints
The Most Complained-About Vehicles of the 2026 Model Year
Every complaint owners filed with NHTSA against 2026 model-year vehicles, whenever it was filed, ranked by vehicle. Complaints are unverified owner reports, but they are the earliest public reliability signal and they precede recalls.
2026 vehicles are still young: complaint counts keep growing for several years after a model year ships, so this ranking will change.
2,982
Owner complaints
filed with NHTSA, 2026 model year
310
Vehicles complained about
distinct make and model
213
Complaints citing a crash
17 citing a fire
167
People injured
0 deaths reported
| # | Vehicle | Complaints | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tesla Model Y |
340
|
72 | 1 |
| 2 | Honda Cr-V |
126
|
9 | 3 |
| 3 | Toyota Camry Hybrid |
120
|
12 | 0 |
| 4 | Hyundai Palisade |
108
|
2 | 0 |
| 5 | GMC Sierra 1500 |
96
|
0 | 0 |
| 6 | Chevrolet Silverado 1500 |
87
|
0 | 0 |
| 7 | RAM 1500 |
82
|
2 | 0 |
| 8 | Chevrolet Equinox |
65
|
4 | 1 |
| 9 | Hyundai Tucson |
59
|
14 | 0 |
| 10 | Honda Passport |
55
|
0 | 0 |
| 11 | Subaru Uncharted |
40
|
0 | 0 |
| 12 | Nissan Rogue |
35
|
2 | 1 |
| 13 | GMC Yukon |
35
|
0 | 0 |
| 14 | Hyundai Ioniq 9 |
33
|
0 | 0 |
| 15 | Hyundai Santa Fe |
33
|
0 | 0 |
| 16 | Toyota Grand Highlander |
30
|
0 | 0 |
| 17 | Honda Odyssey |
29
|
0 | 0 |
| 18 | Subaru Trailseeker |
29
|
0 | 0 |
| 19 | Ford Explorer |
29
|
2 | 0 |
| 20 | Cadillac Escalade |
28
|
0 | 0 |
| 21 | GMC Yukon Xl |
28
|
0 | 0 |
| 22 | GMC Terrain |
27
|
1 | 2 |
| 23 | Honda Civic |
27
|
2 | 0 |
| 24 | KIA Sportage |
26
|
4 | 0 |
| 25 | RAM 3500 |
25
|
1 | 0 |
Top 25 vehicles by complaint count. Source: NHTSA ODI complaint file, aggregated Sep 8, 2026.
What 2026 owners complained about
The ten components named most often across every 2026 model-year vehicle. A complaint naming several components counts once for each.
| Component | Complaints | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 630 | 24 | 5 |
| Unknown Or Other | 593 | 44 | 8 |
| Engine | 473 | 9 | 5 |
| Power Train | 328 | 10 | 0 |
| Service Brakes | 277 | 49 | 1 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking | 249 | 59 | 0 |
| Steering | 180 | 22 | 0 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control | 170 | 16 | 0 |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 155 | 31 | 0 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings | 155 | 35 | 0 |
Methodology
- Source: the official NHTSA ODI complaint file (US DOT, public domain), aggregated into VehDB weekly. Last refresh: Sep 8, 2026. Narratives and complainant details are never stored.
- A complaint is one report by one owner. It counts once in the vehicle totals, and once per component it names in the component table, so component figures over-count if summed.
- Only vehicle complaints with a known model year are included; tire, equipment and child-seat complaints are excluded.
- Counts are absolute, not normalised by sales: a best-selling model accumulates more complaints than a niche one at the same defect rate. A high count is not by itself a verdict on quality.
- Crash, fire, injury and death figures are what the owner reported on the complaint form, not verified outcomes.
Need complaint data per vehicle?
GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/complaints returns these statistics for any car in the catalogue, and the complaints_for_vehicle MCP tool gives them to AI agents.