:red_car: NHTSA Vehicle Safety Recalls

Search the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) vehicle safety recall database — covering all manufacturers, makes, models, and model years. Access recall details including defect summaries, consequences, remedies, and the number of affected vehicles.

What data does it extract?

For each recall, the Actor extracts:

Field	Description
Campaign Number	NHTSA campaign identifier
Manufacturer	Vehicle manufacturer
Make / Model	Vehicle make and model
Model Year	Affected model year
Component	Defective component (e.g., Air Bags, Steering, Fuel System)
Summary	Description of the defect
Consequence	What can happen if the defect is not fixed
Remedy	How the manufacturer will fix the defect
Park It	Whether NHTSA advises not driving the vehicle
Units Affected	Potential number of vehicles affected

Output example

{
  "nhtsaCampaignNumber": "26V-042",
  "manufacturer": "Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing",
  "make": "TOYOTA",
  "model": "CAMRY",
  "modelYear": 2025,
  "component": "AIR BAGS",
  "summary": "The passenger frontal air bag may not deploy as intended...",
  "consequence": "An air bag that does not deploy increases the risk of injury...",
  "remedy": "Dealers will replace the passenger air bag module free of charge.",
  "reportReceivedDate": "01/15/2026",
  "parkIt": false,
  "parkOutside": false,
  "overTheAirUpdate": false,
  "potentialUnitsAffected": 45000,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-02-25T12:00:00.000Z",
  "sourceUrl": "https://api.nhtsa.gov/recalls/recallsByVehicle"
}

Input options

Parameter	Type	Description
makes	string[]	Filter by vehicle make (e.g., ["Toyota", "Ford", "Tesla"]). Leave empty for all makes with recalls.
modelYears	number[]	Model years to search. Default: current year and previous year.
components	string[]	Filter by component (e.g., ["AIR BAGS", "STEERING"]). Leave empty for all.
maxRecords	integer	Maximum records to fetch. Default: 1,000.

Use cases

• Car dealerships — Monitor recalls affecting inventory and customer vehicles
• Fleet managers — Track safety recalls across your vehicle fleet for compliance
• Auto insurance companies — Assess vehicle risk profiles based on recall history
• Used car buyers — Check recall status before purchasing a pre-owned vehicle
• Auto parts companies — Identify demand for replacement parts from active recalls
• Automotive journalists — Report on recall trends, safety defects, and manufacturer patterns
• Law firms — Research vehicle defect histories for product liability cases

Data freshness

NHTSA publishes new recalls as they are issued. Schedule this Actor to run weekly to stay current on new vehicle safety recalls.

Cost

This Actor uses the NHTSA public API. Typical cost: less than $0.01 per run for up to 1,000 records.