California Cities With the Most Car Complaints (2026)
NHTSA complaints · California DMV registrations · Free to cite
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Home › Lemon Law Guides › California Cities With the Most Car Complaints (2026)
Which California cities report the most car safety problems? We matched 19,632 NHTSA complaints from California drivers to 143 cities and divided by each city's registered 2019 and newer vehicles.
Data report by America's Lemon Lawyer · Published October 21, 2026 · Data through early October 2026
Key findings:
- Across 143 California cities with at least 20,000 registered 2019 and newer cars, drivers filed about 16.9 NHTSA safety complaints per 10,000 vehicles.
- Berkeley (Alameda County) had the highest rate: 30.6 complaints per 10,000 vehicles, 1.8 times the average.
- The rest of the top five: Sherman Oaks (29.0), Rocklin (28.2), Livermore (27.6), Apple Valley (26.9).
- The lowest rate among these cities was in South San Francisco (4.5 per 10,000).
- Tesla was the most named brand in 9 of the top 25 cities.
The 25 California Cities With the Most Car Complaints per Vehicle
NHTSA safety complaints filed by drivers who listed the city, divided by the number of 2019 and newer light-duty vehicles registered in that city (California DMV, January 1, 2026). A higher rate can mean more problem cars, but also drivers who are more likely to report problems, so treat it as a signal, not a verdict.
| # | City | County | Vehicles (2019+) | Complaints | Per 10,000 | Most named brand |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berkeley | Alameda | 21,219 | 65 | 30.6 | Toyota |
| 2 | Sherman Oaks | Los Angeles | 22,377 | 65 | 29.0 | Ford |
| 3 | Rocklin | Placer | 24,500 | 69 | 28.2 | Honda |
| 4 | Livermore | Alameda | 28,977 | 80 | 27.6 | Ford |
| 5 | Apple Valley | San Bernardino | 20,837 | 56 | 26.9 | Toyota |
| 6 | Vista | San Diego | 31,490 | 82 | 26.0 | Ford |
| 7 | Murrieta | Riverside | 45,315 | 118 | 26.0 | Ford |
| 8 | Thousand Oaks | Ventura | 29,723 | 73 | 24.6 | Honda |
| 9 | Dublin | Alameda | 24,035 | 58 | 24.1 | Tesla |
| 10 | Roseville | Placer | 55,666 | 133 | 23.9 | Honda |
| 11 | Folsom | Sacramento | 28,157 | 67 | 23.8 | Ford |
| 12 | San Ramon | Contra Costa | 29,897 | 71 | 23.7 | Tesla |
| 13 | Carlsbad | San Diego | 45,339 | 107 | 23.6 | Tesla |
| 14 | Danville | Contra Costa | 23,541 | 55 | 23.4 | Tesla |
| 15 | Laguna Niguel | Orange | 26,267 | 61 | 23.2 | Toyota |
| 16 | Sunnyvale | Santa Clara | 48,762 | 113 | 23.2 | Tesla |
| 17 | Temecula | Riverside | 44,500 | 103 | 23.1 | Honda |
| 18 | La Mesa | San Diego | 20,380 | 47 | 23.1 | Honda |
| 19 | San Marcos | San Diego | 31,227 | 71 | 22.7 | Tesla |
| 20 | Fremont | Alameda | 75,808 | 172 | 22.7 | Tesla |
| 21 | Chino Hills | San Bernardino | 30,344 | 68 | 22.4 | Honda |
| 22 | Elk Grove | Sacramento | 55,354 | 124 | 22.4 | Honda |
| 23 | Vacaville | Solano | 28,828 | 64 | 22.2 | Honda |
| 24 | Palo Alto | San Mateo | 28,724 | 63 | 21.9 | Tesla |
| 25 | Oakland | Alameda | 78,755 | 168 | 21.3 | Tesla |
Car Complaints by County
Counties are the most reliable comparison, because ZIP code and city names line up less neatly than county lines. Counties with at least 50,000 registered 2019 and newer vehicles.
| # | County | Vehicles (2019+) | Complaints | Per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Placer County | 139,153 | 361 | 25.9 |
| 2 | Santa Cruz County | 60,753 | 147 | 24.2 |
| 3 | Marin County | 80,235 | 177 | 22.1 |
| 4 | San Luis Obispo County | 74,244 | 163 | 22.0 |
| 5 | Santa Clara County | 547,115 | 1,184 | 21.6 |
| 6 | Alameda County | 413,807 | 892 | 21.6 |
| 7 | Sacramento County | 387,063 | 809 | 20.9 |
| 8 | Yolo County | 55,424 | 115 | 20.7 |
| 9 | City and County of San Francisco County | 168,224 | 346 | 20.6 |
| 10 | El Dorado County | 55,679 | 113 | 20.3 |
| 11 | Sonoma County | 130,541 | 263 | 20.1 |
| 12 | Contra Costa County | 323,152 | 643 | 19.9 |
| 13 | San Diego County | 985,605 | 1,929 | 19.6 |
| 14 | Solano County | 112,844 | 219 | 19.4 |
| 15 | Fresno County | 192,822 | 338 | 17.5 |
| 16 | Ventura County | 251,467 | 436 | 17.3 |
| 17 | Riverside County | 741,512 | 1,230 | 16.6 |
| 18 | Santa Barbara County | 106,617 | 171 | 16.0 |
| 19 | Orange County | 1,060,075 | 1,692 | 16.0 |
| 20 | Monterey County | 96,309 | 152 | 15.8 |
| 21 | San Joaquin County | 193,219 | 300 | 15.5 |
| 22 | San Bernardino County | 603,322 | 926 | 15.3 |
| 23 | Los Angeles County | 2,760,627 | 4,178 | 15.1 |
| 24 | Stanislaus County | 123,177 | 186 | 15.1 |
| 25 | San Mateo County | 278,899 | 415 | 14.9 |
| 26 | Kern County | 211,526 | 292 | 13.8 |
| 27 | Imperial County | 58,506 | 68 | 11.6 |
| 28 | Tulare County | 147,066 | 134 | 9.1 |
| 29 | Merced County | 83,110 | 75 | 9.0 |
The 10 Cities With the Fewest Complaints per Vehicle
| City | County | Vehicles (2019+) | Complaints | Per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South San Francisco | San Mateo | 53,434 | 24 | 4.5 |
| Inglewood | Los Angeles | 58,612 | 41 | 7.0 |
| La Puente | Los Angeles | 26,936 | 21 | 7.8 |
| Westminster | Orange | 23,630 | 20 | 8.5 |
| Rialto | San Bernardino | 27,128 | 25 | 9.2 |
| Santa Maria | Santa Barbara | 32,642 | 31 | 9.5 |
| Santa Ana | Orange | 78,031 | 77 | 9.9 |
| North Hollywood | Los Angeles | 45,846 | 46 | 10.0 |
| Covina | Los Angeles | 22,839 | 23 | 10.1 |
| Indio | Riverside | 30,357 | 31 | 10.2 |
California's 15 Biggest Car Cities
The cities with the most registered 2019 and newer vehicles, and how their complaint rates compare.
| City | Vehicles (2019+) | Complaints | Per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 606,707 | 900 | 14.8 |
| San Diego | 391,600 | 775 | 19.8 |
| San Jose | 277,205 | 532 | 19.2 |
| Sacramento | 187,772 | 371 | 19.8 |
| San Francisco | 168,224 | 346 | 20.6 |
| Bakersfield | 145,974 | 174 | 11.9 |
| Fresno | 138,404 | 200 | 14.5 |
| Irvine | 130,544 | 247 | 18.9 |
| Riverside | 122,807 | 191 | 15.6 |
| Long Beach | 104,520 | 207 | 19.8 |
| Anaheim | 101,197 | 154 | 15.2 |
| Valencia | 93,519 | 177 | 18.9 |
| Corona | 88,483 | 113 | 12.8 |
| Chula Vista | 86,235 | 156 | 18.1 |
| Oakland | 78,755 | 168 | 21.3 |
What This Means for Drivers
A complaint to NHTSA does not by itself make a car a lemon, but repeated repairs for the same safety problem can. Under California's Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, if the manufacturer cannot fix a warranty defect after a reasonable number of attempts, it must replace or buy back the vehicle (Civil Code 1793.2(d)). Keep every repair order, report safety problems to NHTSA, and talk to a lemon law attorney after the second repair for the same problem.
Methodology
- Complaints: all 19,632 NHTSA consumer complaints received January 2021 through early October 2026 from drivers who listed a California location, for model year 2019 and newer vehicles, counted once per complaint number.
- City: the city each driver entered on the complaint. Cities with fewer than 20 complaints are excluded.
- Vehicles: California DMV light-duty vehicle registrations by ZIP code as of January 1, 2026, model year 2019 and newer, assigned to cities by USPS ZIP code place name (GeoNames). Only cities with at least 20,000 such vehicles are ranked.
- Limits: ZIP place names do not always match city limits, and drivers sometimes enter a nearby larger city. Santa Clarita includes Valencia, Newhall, Canyon Country, Saugus and Stevenson Ranch; names shared by a city and a Los Angeles neighborhood (such as Brentwood) are left out. Rates show reporting volume, not proven defects.
Download the full data (CSV) Free to use with a link to this page.
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Attorney advertising. Wynn Law Group, APC, 10850 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 1010, Los Angeles, CA 90024. General information, not legal advice.
About the Reviewer
This report was reviewed by Jacob Shayesteh, Esq. (State Bar of California No. 362320), founding attorney of Wynn Law Group, APC (America's Lemon Lawyer).
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