Complaints about the quality of automobiles increased by more than 20 percent last year, China's top quality watchdog said on Thursday.

The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine received 8,840 complaints involving 148 automakers and tiremakers, a 20.8 percent increase over the previous year, said Liu Hongsheng, an administration official.

Liu did not name the companies, but said the complaints involved braking systems, wheels, engines, and drive trains.

Of the complaints, 16.8 percent concerned vehicles purchased within one year and 33.3 percent involved vehicles between one and two years old.

China issued 85 automobile recalls in 2011, involving some 1.82 million vehicles. About 1.71 million of the cars recalled were domestic models.