Compact SUV — what actually breaks

2015–2020 · 39 models · 72 engines · 54,666 federal complaints

Every figure below is computed from federal complaint records decoded to the exact engine, aggregated across the whole segment. Where this segment differs from the all-vehicle average, it says so — where it doesn't, no claim is made.

What complaints in this segment are about

Share of component mentions across all compact suvs in the database, with the all-vehicle average below it for comparison.

This segment

All vehicles

Transmission & drivetrainEngineBrakesElectricalSteeringBody & structureFuel systemEverything else

Steering complaints run well below their all-vehicle share (0.6×).

Engine complaints run 1.3× their all-vehicle share in this segment.

How often those complaints involve a fire, crash or injury

Share of this segment's complaints. The vertical mark is the all-vehicle average — these shares can be compared because sales volume cancels out of a within-group ratio.

Fire1.2%

Crash3.7%

Injury2.3%

all vehicles — Fire 1.2% · Crash 4.1% · Injury 2.6%

The engines with the biggest complaint records

Largest complaint samples in the segment — not a worst-list: complaint totals track sales volume, not failure rate. Each links to the full engine-level breakdown.

Honda CR-V — L15BE · 1.5L I44,741 complaintsEngine 16% · Electrical 12%

Jeep Cherokee — 2.4L I43,268 complaintsTransmission & drivetrain 26% · Engine 19%

Jeep Cherokee — 3.2L V63,209 complaintsTransmission & drivetrain 43% · Electrical 13%

Ford Escape — SIGMA · 1.5L I43,105 complaintsEngine 49% · Transmission & drivetrain 13%

Subaru Forester — 2.5L H42,845 complaintsElectrical 12% · Engine 9%

Ford Escape — GTDI · 2.0L I42,573 complaintsEngine 36% · Transmission & drivetrain 12%

Nissan Rogue — 2.5L I42,110 complaintsTransmission & drivetrain 15% · Brakes 12%

Jeep Renegade — 2.4L I41,867 complaintsEngine 25% · Electrical 17%

Engines that break differently from their class

Across this segment, complaints lead with Engine. These engines don't follow that pattern — their complaint mix points somewhere else, which is worth knowing before buying one.

Toyota RAV4 — A25-FXZ · 2.5L I4Fuel system leads at 43%

Jeep Cherokee — 3.2L V6Transmission & drivetrain leads at 43%

Ford Escape — 1.6L I4Transmission & drivetrain leads at 29%

Hyundai Tucson — GAMMA · 1.6L I4Transmission & drivetrain leads at 29%

Ford Escape — 1.5L I3Body & structure leads at 29%

Jeep Cherokee — 2.4L I4Transmission & drivetrain leads at 26%

Severity outliers in this segment

Engines whose Crash / Fire / Injury share sits at least twice the all-vehicle average, by the conservative bound of a 95% confidence interval. A share of complaints, not of cars on the road.

Toyota RAV4 — 2AR-FE · 2.5L I4Fire ≥ 8.2%

Kia Sportage — THETA II · 2.4L I4Fire ≥ 5.5%

Hyundai Kona — GAMMA · 1.6L I4Fire ≥ 4.8%

Tesla Model Y — ElectricCrash ≥ 13.3%

Lexus NX — 8AR-FTS · 2.0L I4Injury ≥ 8.0%

Toyota RAV4 — 2AR-FXE · 2.5L I4Crash ≥ 12.0%

The recalls that matter in this segment

Recalls where NHTSA told owners to stop driving or park outside. Model-level, manufacturer-confirmed. Recall repairs are always free, whatever the car's age.

BMW X3 — Suspension › Front (stop driving, 2020–2020) 19V678000
Audi Q5 — Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Caliper (stop driving, 2018–2018) 18V369000
Audi SQ5 — Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Caliper (stop driving, 2018–2018) 18V369000
Volkswagen Tiguan — Suspension › Front › Control Arm › Lower Ball Joint (stop driving, 2018–2018) 18V324000
Kia Telluride — Seats › Front Assembly › Power Adjust (park outside, 2020–2020) 26V430000
BMW X3 — Electrical System › Starter Assembly › Relay (park outside, 2020–2020) 25V636000
Kia Telluride — Seats › Front Assembly › Power Adjust (park outside, 2020–2020) 24V407000
Jaguar I-pace — Electrical System › Propulsion System › Traction Battery (park outside, 2019–2020) 24V183000
Jaguar I-pace — Electrical System › Propulsion System › Traction Battery (park outside, 2019–2020) 24V085000
Jaguar I-pace — Electrical System › Propulsion System › Traction Battery (park outside, 2019–2020) 23V709000

All the compact suvs we cover

Method and limits

Complaints: NHTSA public complaint database, model years 2015–2020, each decoded to its exact engine through the partial VIN it carries.
Do not compare complaint totals between engines or models — totals track sales. Only within-group shares (component mix, severity rates) are comparable, because volume cancels out.
Claims on this page only appear when they clear preset thresholds (deviation ≥1.25×, samples ≥500 mentions or ≥80 complaints). Absence of a claim means the data didn't support one, not that we didn't look.