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2003 Toyota Avalon

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Avalon years

Owner complaints for the 2003 Toyota Avalon are substantially higher than the model-year median of 101.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

138 reports with mileage · 155 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 184 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 51 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

49 crash reports2 fire reports20 injury reports

Air Bags complaints

184 reports
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Mileage unknown · Sep 8, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE PART NEEDED TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED THE CONTACT TO CALL BACK WITHIN TWO MONTHS. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

NHTSA ODI #10631489

166,427 miles · Aug 22, 2014
Air Bags

I RECEIVED AN INTERIM NOTICE ON MAY 17, 2014 THAT THE ELECTRONIC RESTRAINT SYSTEM'S ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE MAY SHORT CIRCUIT WHEN EXPOSED TO CERTAIN ELECTRICAL NOISE FROM VARIOUS VEHICLE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. I HAVE CALLED TOYOTA ON THERE HOT LINE 1 888 270-9371 TO GET THIS PROBLEM RESOLVED IN MY CAR. EACH TIME I CALL, THE…

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I RECEIVED AN INTERIM NOTICE ON MAY 17, 2014 THAT THE ELECTRONIC RESTRAINT SYSTEM'S ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE MAY SHORT CIRCUIT WHEN EXPOSED TO CERTAIN ELECTRICAL NOISE FROM VARIOUS VEHICLE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. I HAVE CALLED TOYOTA ON THERE HOT LINE 1 888 270-9371 TO GET THIS PROBLEM RESOLVED IN MY CAR. EACH TIME I CALL, THE TOYOTA REP. SAYS THAT TOYOTA "IS WORKING ON IT BUT THEY HAVE NO PARTS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM". IT HAS NOW THE END OF AUGUST, 4 MONTHS LATER AND NO SOLUTION. AM I TO BELIEVE THAT THEY ARE REALLY WORKING ON THIS PROBLEM. I AM THE ONE AT RISK. THE AIRBAG MAY DEPLOY WHILE I'M DRIVING OR NOT DEPLOY IF I HIT SOMETHING OR SOMETHING HITS ME. I WANT TO KNOW WHEN THE REMEDY WILL BE READY AND I CAN DRIVE A SAFE CAR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10627581

78,000 miles · Aug 22, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED THE RECALL NOTIFICATION RELATED TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 14V147000 (AIR BAG). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MIL…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED THE RECALL NOTIFICATION RELATED TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 14V147000 (AIR BAG). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000.

NHTSA ODI #10627399

Mileage unknown · Aug 18, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SRS AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIR BAGS) HOWEVER, THE PART NEEDED FOR THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SRS AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIR BAGS) HOWEVER, THE PART NEEDED FOR THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

NHTSA ODI #10626079

98,500 miles · Aug 18, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER:14V147000 (AIR BAG) AND STATED THAT THE PART NEEDED WAS UNAVAILABLE TO PERFORM THE REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

NHTSA ODI #10626030

Mileage unknown · Aug 18, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE ATTEMPTED TO HAVE HIS VEHICLE REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIRBAGS) BUT WAS INFORMED THAT THE PART WAS NOT AVAILABLE AND THAT THE DEALERS WERE RECEIVING ONE PART EVERY TWO WEEKS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABL…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE ATTEMPTED TO HAVE HIS VEHICLE REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIRBAGS) BUT WAS INFORMED THAT THE PART WAS NOT AVAILABLE AND THAT THE DEALERS WERE RECEIVING ONE PART EVERY TWO WEEKS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

NHTSA ODI #10625955

Mileage unknown · Aug 14, 2014
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V147000 (AIR BAGS). THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE PARTS NEEDED TO REMEDY THE FAILURE WERE NOT AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

NHTSA ODI #10622325

Mileage unknown · Jul 27, 2014
Air Bags

THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT TURNS ON AND OFF. I AM THE ORIGINAL VEHICLE OWNER. THE VEHICLE HAS NEVER BEEN IN A CRASH NOR HAS THE AIR BAG EVER DEPLOYED. CURRENTLY THE AIR BAG LIGHT IS ON. I TOOK THE VEHICLE IN UNDER THE INTERIM AIR BAG RECALL NOTICE THAT I RECEIVED BUT NO REPAIR BY THE TOYOTA DEALER WAS MADE. THE INTERIM REC…

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THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT TURNS ON AND OFF. I AM THE ORIGINAL VEHICLE OWNER. THE VEHICLE HAS NEVER BEEN IN A CRASH NOR HAS THE AIR BAG EVER DEPLOYED. CURRENTLY THE AIR BAG LIGHT IS ON. I TOOK THE VEHICLE IN UNDER THE INTERIM AIR BAG RECALL NOTICE THAT I RECEIVED BUT NO REPAIR BY THE TOYOTA DEALER WAS MADE. THE INTERIM RECALL NOTICE FOR THE AIR BAG WAS RECEIVED 05/19/2014. TODAY IS 07/27/2014. *JS

NHTSA ODI #10616618

105,000 miles · Jul 10, 2014
Air BagsElectrical SystemEngine

ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM) ISSUE: PROBLEM W/ INTERMITTENT WARNING LIGHTS FOR AIR BAG SOME TIME AGO (RESEARCHING DATE)- TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALERSHIP. NO MORE LIGHT, BUT VEHICLE BEGAN STALLING/LOSING POWER WHILE DRIVING- RARELY, BUT BECAME MORE FREQUENT OVER TIME. INSTRUMENT PANEL/CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS WILL ILLUMINATE- NOW EVERY …

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ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM) ISSUE: PROBLEM W/ INTERMITTENT WARNING LIGHTS FOR AIR BAG SOME TIME AGO (RESEARCHING DATE)- TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALERSHIP. NO MORE LIGHT, BUT VEHICLE BEGAN STALLING/LOSING POWER WHILE DRIVING- RARELY, BUT BECAME MORE FREQUENT OVER TIME. INSTRUMENT PANEL/CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS WILL ILLUMINATE- NOW EVERY MINUTE OR SO WHILE DRIVING. OTHER PEOPLE HAVE SAME PROBLEM- NHTSA ID 10605681. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER LATE MAY. DEALER ON PHONE W/ TOYOTA MULTIPLE TIMES + HAD TECH FROM ANOTHER DEALER COME AND LOOK AT VEHICLE - COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG. DEALER NOW SAYS THE ECM FAULTY. NOT REPAIRED, BUT DEALER WANTS TO CHARGE 8HRS OF DIAGNOSTIC TIME AND NOT REPAIRED - CAN DEALER CHARGE IF RECALL ITEM? MY CONCERN IS THAT PROBLEM IS MORE THAN AIR BAGS- FAULTY ECM RESULTS IN LOSS OF POWER/CONTROL WHEN ENGINE SHUTS DOWN, STALLS OR EXPERIENCES INTERMITTENT LOSS OF POWER- VEHICLE NO LONGER SAFE TO OPERATE. I CANNOT DRIVE IT; I CANNOT SELL IT. CALLED TOYOTA, ASKED FOR PART # OF RECALLED SRS/ECM- WAS TOLD ONLY LOCAL DEALER HAS PART NUMBERS. THEY TOOK INFORMATION AND TRANSFERRED ME TO "TOYOTA CORPORATE"- OPERATOR ID'D AS TOYOTA CORPORATE ASKED QUESTIONS, INDICATED THEY HAD DOCUMENTED MY FILE. WHEN I ASKED OPERATOR TO CONFIRM ITEMS OPERATOR HAD CHOSEN TO DOCUMENT, OPERATOR REFUSED TO RESPOND TO MY REQUESTS FOR CONFIRMATION- I ASKED FOR SUPERVISOR- WAS TOLD "NO SUPERVISOR" THERE. OPERATOR THREW ME ON HOLD (ON HOLD FOR OVER 30 MINUTES W/ CORPORATE THEN TRANSFERRED ME TO NHTSA W/OUT OPERATOR EVER COMING BACK ON THE LINE PRIOR TO TRANSFER (NHTSA CONF # AVAILABLE). "CORPORATE" INDICATED THAT TOYOTA HAS NO CONTROL OVER DEALERS- THEY CAN CHARGE WHATEVER THEY WANT TO DIAGNOSE EVEN IF RELATED TO RECALL NOTICE. LOSS OF USE OVER 1 MONTH. DEALER SAID NO NEW ECM REPLACEMENT PART AVAILABLE. PRETTY SURE RECALL REMEDY INADEQUATE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10609730

Mileage unknown · Jul 9, 2014
Air Bags

2003 TOYOTA AVALON. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT MAY EXIST WITHOUT ILLUMINATION OF THE SRS WARNING LIGHT. *SMD A TOYOTA REPRESENTATIVE INFORMED THE CONSUMER, IT WOULD BE MONTHS BEFORE A REMEDY WOULD BE AVAILABLE. *JB

NHTSA ODI #10609381

Official recalls

2

15V043000 · Air Bags:frontal

Jan 28, 2015

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Toyota Corolla vehicles manufactured December 28, 2001, to May 2, 2004, 2003-2004 Toyota Corolla Matrix vehicles manufactured January 6, 2002, to April 29, 2004, 2003-2004 Avalon vehicles manufactured June 5, 2002, to December 20, 2004, and 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe vehicles manufactured January 18, 2002, to April 27, 2004. Due to electrical noise, a component in the air bag control module may fail, causing the front air bags, side air bags, and/or seatbelt pretensioners to deploy inadvertently while the vehicle is being operated.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Inadvertent deployment of the air bags or the seat belt pretensioners increases the risk of an injury or crash.

Remedy: Toyota will notify their owners. Pontiac Vibe owners will be notified by GM. Dealers will replace the air bag control module, free of charge. The recall began on August 24, 2015. Toyota owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. GM issued an interim notification to owners on March 27, 2015. The recall began on August 24, 2015. Pontiac owners may call 1-800-620-7668. Note: This recall supersedes recalls 13V-029 and 14V-147. Vehicles that had a noise filter installed as the remedy for one of those campaigns need to have the air bag control module replaced under this campaign.

10V345000 · 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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.