Illustration2002 TOYOTA AVALON WITH UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. CONSUMER STATES THAT VEHICLE ACCELERATED UNEXPECTEDLY ON TWO OCCASIONS. *KB THE CONSUMER ALSO STATED THE RIGHT PASSENGER WINDOW LOWERED FOR NO APPARENT REASON. *JB
2002 Toyota Avalon
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2002 Toyota Avalon do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 101.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Avalon years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
80–25K
1325–50K
1150–75K
1175–100K
14100–150K
19150K+
76 reports with mileage · 40 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 35 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
32 crash reports2 fire reports13 injury reports
Visibility complaints
4 reportsDRIVING MY 2002 AVALON XLS IN A HARD RAIN AND IN POOLED STREET WATER, THE WASH FROM OTHER CARS CAUSED MY AIRCONDITION BELT TO GET WET AND THE DEFOGGING SYSTEM TO GO OFF IMMEDIATELY, RESULT IN A COMPLETE LACK OF VISIBILITY. THE SERVICE MANAGERAT THE DEALERS SAID THIS WAS A USUAL OCCURENCE AND NOT A PART FAILURE, BUT AN ENGINEERI…
Read full complaint
DRIVING MY 2002 AVALON XLS IN A HARD RAIN AND IN POOLED STREET WATER, THE WASH FROM OTHER CARS CAUSED MY AIRCONDITION BELT TO GET WET AND THE DEFOGGING SYSTEM TO GO OFF IMMEDIATELY, RESULT IN A COMPLETE LACK OF VISIBILITY. THE SERVICE MANAGERAT THE DEALERS SAID THIS WAS A USUAL OCCURENCE AND NOT A PART FAILURE, BUT AN ENGINEERING DEFECT, AND NOT CORRECTIBLE.*AK
THE REAR VIEW MIRROR VIBRATED, WHICH CAUSED THE RIGHT SIDE MIRROR TO CRACK. *JB
DASHBOARD LIGHTS REFLECTED IN WINDSHIELD AT EYE LEVEL, CAUSING A DISTRACTION WHILE DRIVING. CONSUMER CONTACTED MANUFACTURER, AND MANUFACTURER HAS BEEN RECEIVING COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE PROBLEM.*AK
Official recalls
110V345000 · Steering
Jul 29, 2010
TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2000-2004 AVALON VEHICLES. DUE TO IMPROPER CASTING OF THE STEERING LOCK BAR, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT A MINUTE CRACK MAY DEVELOP ON THE SURFACE OF THE LOCK BAR. SUCH A CRACK MAY EXPAND OVER A LONG PERIOD OF REPEATED LOCK AND UNLOCK OPERATIONS, AND EVENTUALLY THE LOCK BAR COULD BREAK.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: SHOULD THE STEERING LOCK BAR BREAK, THE STEERING WHEEL WOULD LOCK AND THE DRIVER WOULD LOSE THE ABILITY TO STEER THE VEHICLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STEERING INTERLOCK DEVICE FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 7, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.