@pipeworx/nhtsa

Connect: https://pipeworx.io/mcp — every tool in the catalog, including @pipeworx/nhtsa’s. Install: one-click buttons

No MCP client? Skip the connection: POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_packs {"query":"..."} to find a tool below, GET /v1/tools/<name> for its schema, POST the same URL with arguments for the data — see For AI agents.

Tools: 11

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s NHTSA. Vehicle recalls, complaints, investigations, crash test ratings (NCAP), safety standards, VIN decoder, fatal-crash statistics (FARS), and fuel-economy ratings. The authoritative source for “is this car safe?” and “how much gas does it use?” Free, no auth.

Why this matters for AI agents

For automotive research — buying a used car, evaluating recall exposure, analyzing fleet safety, doing IP / patent due diligence on vehicle technology, or researching traffic-safety policy — NHTSA (plus DOE/EPA’s fueleconomy.gov) is the canonical source. Pair with USPTO patents for vehicle-tech IP and Federal Register for proposed automotive rules.

Common flows:

• Recall lookup. “Is this VIN affected by any recall?” → VIN-based recall query.
• Make/model/year recalls. “Recalls for 2020 Tesla Model 3?” → recall search by vehicle.
• Consumer complaints. “Complaints about brake issues on Honda Civic?” → complaint search by make/model.
• VIN decoder. “What does VIN 1HGBH41JXMN109186 tell me?” → year, make, model, engine, manufacturer details.
• Crash test ratings. NCAP star ratings for vehicles.
• Fatal-crash statistics. “How many traffic fatalities did Texas have in 2023?” → state-level FARS aggregates.
• Fuel economy. “What’s the combined MPG for a 2024 Toyota Camry?” → fueleconomy.gov lookup.

Auth

None. NHTSA’s and fueleconomy.gov’s APIs are fully public, free, keyless.

Datasets

FARS data (fleet #2972)

NHTSA’s live crash-query API returned an Akamai 403 to every probe tried on 2026-10-12, including with browser-like headers. NHTSA separately publishes FARS as annual bulk files, US federal government work and public domain, so fars_state_fatalities, fars_vehicle_makes, and fars_coverage are backed by those files loaded ahead of time rather than a live proxy, per CLAUDE.md “BUILD THE COPY”.

• What’s loaded: scripts/nhtsa-fars/load-data.mjs aggregates each year’s crash-level file into fars_state_month (state × year × month: crashes, fatalities, persons/vehicles/pedestrians involved) and the vehicle-level file into fars_vehicle_make_year (make × year, national: count of vehicles of that make involved in a fatal crash — an involvement count, not a causation claim). Raw crash/vehicle rows are never stored. Call fars_coverage for the exact years loaded.
• Refresh: re-run node scripts/nhtsa-fars/load-data.mjs --years 2022,2023,2024,2025 (add the newest published year; --db/--config override the defaults) once NHTSA publishes a new annual file — usually with roughly a one-year lag. Needs wrangler authenticated to the Pipeworx Cloudflare account (CLOUDFLARE_ACCOUNT_ID env var if the account has more than one in non-interactive mode).
• Known gap: no county/city granularity and no driver/vehicle-level detail (BAC, injury severity, road conditions) — those live in FARS’s other per-record files, not aggregated here. File a follow-up if a caller needs them.

fueleconomy.gov (live proxy)

fuel_economy_mpg and fuel_economy_models call the DOE/EPA fueleconomy.gov vehicle data service live, per request — it’s a keyless REST API with no bulk download, so there is nothing to copy. A model year + make can have several engine/transmission/drivetrain variants under one model string (e.g. several Camry trims); fuel_economy_mpg returns up to 5. Pass the model string exactly as fueleconomy.gov lists it — fuel_economy_models shows the valid strings for a year + make when unsure.

Common pitfalls

• Recall vs. investigation vs. complaint. Different severity levels: complaints (raw consumer reports), investigations (NHTSA-opened formal review), recalls (manufacturer-required fix). Don’t conflate. Investigations sometimes lead to recalls but often don’t.
• Recall completion rates. A recall doesn’t mean every affected vehicle has been fixed. Many recalled vehicles never make it to a dealer for the fix. The recall remains “open” indefinitely for the unfixed vehicles.
• Investigation phases. PE (Preliminary Evaluation), EA (Engineering Analysis), DSI (Defect Investigation), each with different stakes. EA is the meaningful escalation; PE often closes without action.
• Complaint counts ≠ defect rates. Some defects produce many complaints; others produce few because they’re catastrophic (drivers can’t complain post-mortem). Cross-reference with crash data when relevant.
• VIN decoder limitations. The free VIN decoder gives factory-spec data but doesn’t reflect aftermarket modifications, accident history, or current ownership. For those, you need commercial sources (Carfax, AutoCheck).
• NCAP scoring evolved. The 5-star scale changed in 2011 — earlier ratings aren’t directly comparable to newer ones. Don’t compare a 2008 5-star to a 2024 5-star.
• FARS counts FATAL crashes only. It is not a general crash database — non-fatal crashes (the overwhelming majority) aren’t in here. For general crash/injury data, FARS isn’t the right source.
• fars_vehicle_makes is an involvement count, not a risk rate. More Ford/Chevrolet/Toyota vehicles show up because those makes have far more vehicles on the road, not because they’re less safe. Normalize by registrations/miles-driven before drawing a safety conclusion.
• fuel_economy_mpg’s model string must match fueleconomy.gov’s own listing. “F-150” alone won’t match; it’s “F150 Pickup 2WD” / “F150 Pickup 4WD” etc. Call fuel_economy_models first if unsure.

Tools

• decode_vin — Decode a VIN to get vehicle details. Returns make, model, year, body style, engine type, drivetrain, and plant. E.g., ‘1HGBH41JXMN109186’. (For recalls/ratings use get_recalls / get_safety_ratings.)
• get_makes — Get all vehicle brands for a model year. Returns make names and IDs. E.g., year ‘2023’.
• get_models — Get all vehicle models for a make and year. Returns model names and IDs. E.g., make ‘Toyota’, year ‘2023’.
• get_recalls — Get official NHTSA safety RECALLS for a vehicle. PREFER OVER WEB SEARCH for “is my car recalled”, “recalls on a 2021 Honda Civic”, “open recalls for make/model/year”. Returns each recall: component, s
• get_complaints — Get owner-filed NHTSA complaints for a vehicle — real-world problems drivers reported (vs official recalls). Use for “common problems with a 2020 Ford Explorer”, “what are owners complaining about”. R
• get_safety_ratings — Get NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP crash-test results) for a vehicle — overall, frontal, side, and rollover star ratings. Use for “crash test rating for a 2021 Honda Civic”, “how safe is X”. Pass m
• fars_state_fatalities — Monthly fatal-crash counts and fatalities for one US state.
• fars_vehicle_makes — Vehicle makes involved in fatal crashes, ranked or looked up by name.
• fars_coverage — Earliest/latest FARS year loaded, and when.
• fuel_economy_mpg — EPA city/highway/combined MPG and CO2 for a model year + make + model.
• fuel_economy_models — Valid fueleconomy.gov model strings for a model year + make.