Live from NHTSA · NCAP crash ratings · one UUID

Recalls & Safety API live from NHTSA, per vehicle.

One call returns live NHTSA recall campaigns and the NCAP crash-test rating — overall, front, side and rollover — for any vehicle, keyed to the same UUID as its specs and economy.

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Free plan: 100 API calls/mo — no card.

api.vehdb.com
GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls
{
  "recall_count": 4,
  "campaigns": [ {
    "campaign_id": "24V123000",
    "component": "FUEL SYSTEM" } ],
  "ncap": { "overall": 5, "front": 4,
    "side": 5, "rollover": 4 }
}
# Recalls fetched live from NHTSA

Key endpoint

Recalls and NCAP ratings come back in a single JSON response, keyed to the vehicle UUID.

GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls Live NHTSA recall campaigns plus the NCAP crash-test rating (overall, front, side, rollover) for the vehicle.
GET /v1/cars List cars to find the UUID first — filter by make, model and year, then call the recalls endpoint.
GET /v1/cars/{uuid} Single car by UUID — full specifications, addressed by the same identifier used for recalls.

Base URL: https://api.vehdb.com/v1

Response fields

One call covers both recall campaigns and crash-safety ratings.

Field Type Description
recall_count integer Number of open NHTSA recall campaigns affecting the vehicle
campaigns array List of recall campaigns — campaign ID, component, and summary
ncap.overall integer NCAP overall crash-test rating (stars)
ncap.front integer NCAP frontal crash rating (stars)
ncap.side integer NCAP side crash rating (stars)
ncap.rollover integer NCAP rollover resistance rating (stars)

Why safety data lives on the same UUID

Recalls move. Tying them to the spec record means one identifier answers "what is it" and "is it safe."

Live from NHTSA

Recall campaigns are fetched live at request time, not stored — a new campaign appears in your response the moment NHTSA issues it.

NCAP in the same call

Overall, front, side and rollover crash-test stars come back alongside the recall list, so one request covers recalls and safety together.

Keyed to the vehicle UUID

The recalls endpoint uses the same UUID as specs, EPA economy and tire fitment — store one identifier, answer every question.

See the Cars API, our data sources, and the solutions we power.

Example response

Recall campaigns and NCAP ratings in one JSON object, keyed to the vehicle UUID.

GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls 
{
  "uuid": "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890",
  "make": "Honda",
  "model": "CR-V",
  "year": 2023,
  "recall_count": 2,
  "campaigns": [
    {
      "campaign_id": "23V456000",
      "component": "ELECTRICAL SYSTEM",
      "summary": "Software may fail to detect a fault, disabling the rearview camera.",
      "remedy": "Dealers will update the software, free of charge."
    }
  ],
  "ncap": {
    "overall": 5,
    "front": 4,
    "side": 5,
    "rollover": 4
  }
}

Recall data is fetched live from NHTSA at request time and is not stored.

Recalls & Safety API FAQ

Common questions about VehDB's recall and safety API.

GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls returns recall_count, an array of NHTSA recall campaigns for the vehicle, and the NCAP crash-test rating — overall, front, side and rollover stars. Everything is keyed to the same UUID used for the vehicle's specifications.
Recalls are pulled live from NHTSA at request time, not stored in our database. When a new campaign is issued, it appears in the API response immediately — you never serve a stale recall list to your users.
The response includes the NCAP overall rating plus the front, side and rollover sub-ratings where NHTSA has tested the vehicle. Ratings are returned alongside recall data in the same call, so one request covers both recalls and crash safety.
First locate the vehicle with the Cars API — GET /v1/cars with make, model and year filters returns each match with its UUID. Then call GET /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls with that UUID. The same identifier also serves specs, EPA economy and tire fitment.
Sign up for a VehDB account — every plan includes API access and the free tier gives you 100 calls per month with no card required. Create a Bearer token in the dashboard and make a GET request to /v1/cars/{uuid}/recalls with it in the Authorization header.

Also see the Cars and Fuel Economy APIs, the data sources, or the API overview.

Live numbers, not logos

Pulled from the production database and the NHTSA sync log, refreshed hourly.

2,663
API calls served this month
REST + MCP, since Sep 1
64
Teams calling the API
Teams with at least one metered call
498,265
Vehicle records
343,168 cars · 71,513 motorcycles · 83,584 boats
45,537
Tire-size fitments
OEM and alternate sizes

NHTSA recalls last synced

API pricing

Start on the free tier; every plan includes the REST API and the MCP server with the same token and quota.

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100 API calls/mo · 10/min
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100,000 API calls/mo · 300/min
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250,000+ API calls/mo · 600/min
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Full plan comparison and FAQ on the pricing page. Prices in USD, cancel anytime.

AI-NATIVE · MCP SERVER

Your AI agent's vehicle-data tools —not glue code.

VehDB ships a native Model Context Protocol server. Claude, Cursor or any MCP client queries cars, recalls, fuel economy and tire fitment as first-class tools — no wrappers, no scraping, no glue code to maintain.

  • Native MCP tools — search_vehicles, recalls_for_vehicle, complaints_for_vehicle, tire_sizes_for_vehicle, my_lists — callable by Claude, Cursor or any agent.
  • One-click AI connector in Claude; in any other MCP client, paste one URL and sign in: no token to copy. Scripts use an API token. Same data and quota as the REST API.
  • No scraping, no function-calling boilerplate, no schema drift — the agent gets typed, documented tools.
Explore the MCP server Connect your agent
One-click AI connectors
Add to Claude
claude_desktop_config.json 
{ "mcpServers": {
    "vehdb": { "url": "https://mcp.vehdb.com/mcp" }
  } }
# the agent calls a typed tool, not your scraper
tool search_vehicles(make="Toyota", year=2026)
tool tire_sizes_for_vehicle(uuid) → "235/65R17" …

Add live recalls & NCAP to your product.

Live NHTSA recall campaigns and NCAP crash ratings per vehicle, on the same UUID as specs and economy. Free tier: 100 calls/mo, no card.

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100 free API calls every month · REST API + MCP server on every plan · No card to start · See pricing