IllustrationJUST INQUIRING TO SEE IF WILDERNESSHT HAS DEFECTIVE STATUS. NO SAFETY DEFECT LISTED IN SUMMARY. *AK (DOT NUMBER: W2HYAWA TIRESIZE: P215/70R14)
1996 Toyota Tacoma
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1996 Toyota Tacoma do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 228.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Tacoma 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
10–25K
225–50K
450–75K
1075–100K
22100–150K
34150K+
73 reports with mileage · 180 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.
- Suspension. Review the 87 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 64 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
20 crash reports1 fire reports10 injury reports
What owners actually said
253 reportsREAR LEAF SPRINGS FAILED AT 80,000 MILES, CAUSING A GASH INTO TIRE. MECHANIC STATED THAT TOYOTA WAS SENDING A SPRING WITH 4 LEAFS INSTEAD OF THREE. APPARENTLY INSTALLED WITH WRONG LEAFS. *AK CONSUMER STATES THAT PRIOR TO NEW SPRINGS, VEHICLE ROCKED AND ROLLED AND WAS VERY UNSTABLE, MECHANIC INSTALLED A CLAMP ON THE BROKEN SPRI…
Read full complaint
REAR LEAF SPRINGS FAILED AT 80,000 MILES, CAUSING A GASH INTO TIRE. MECHANIC STATED THAT TOYOTA WAS SENDING A SPRING WITH 4 LEAFS INSTEAD OF THREE. APPARENTLY INSTALLED WITH WRONG LEAFS. *AK CONSUMER STATES THAT PRIOR TO NEW SPRINGS, VEHICLE ROCKED AND ROLLED AND WAS VERY UNSTABLE, MECHANIC INSTALLED A CLAMP ON THE BROKEN SPRING, HOWEVER THE SPRING GRADUALLY WORKED ITS WAY UNDER THE CLAMP CUASING THE BROKEN LEAF TO SWING OUT INTO THE TIRE. *SLC
BOTH REAR SPRINGS FAILED. NLM
TWO TIRE FAILURES (COMPLETE SEPERATION) WITHIN 20,000 MILE PERIOD.( DOT NUMBER: )
PE 00 020/TIRE TREAD SEPARATION: RIGHT REAR TIRE EXPERIENCED A TREAD SEPARATION WHILE TRAVELING AT 70-75 MPH, WITH ONLY THE DRIVER IN A 1996 TOYOTA, TACOMA; ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT, P215/70R14, DOT# W2HYAWA275. REAR END DAMAGE RECEIVED, AND TIRE WAS AVAILABLE FOR ANALYSIS. *AK
CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 30MPH ON THE STREET AND ANOTHER VEHICLE WAS COMING FROM A SIDE STREET, HE COULD NOT AVOID AVOID CONSUMER'S VEHICLE, AND HE HIT HER HEAD-ON. UPON IMPACT, DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG DIDN'T DEPLOY. CONSUMER SUFFERED INJURIES TO HIS NECKAND BACK. *AK
THE TIRES ARE SHOWING SIGNS OF SEPARATION OF THE TREADS. THERE ARE CRACKS AROUND THE TREAD BEADING. MY LOCAL FIRESTONE DEALER SAYS IT IS DUE TO AGE AND "TIRE ROT" . THE TIRES ARE IN VERY GOOD CONDITION IN ALL OTHER RESPECTS - THERE IS PLENTY OF TREAD LEFT.( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: P215/70R14 )
NO SUMMARY
FIRESTONE WILDERNESS TIRES (P215 70 R14) WERE REPLACED MANY TIMES DUE TO TREAD SEPARATION, HOLE IN THE SIDEWALL, CAUSING VEHICLE VIBRATION. *SLC
I BOUGHT MY 1996 TOYOTA TACOMA EQUPPED WITH FIRESTONE WILDERNESS AT P215/70R14 96S. WITHIN THE FIRST WEEK I HAD TWO( DOT NUMBER: P215/70R14 TIRE SIZE: P215/70R14 )
Official recalls
196V129000 · Suspension:front
Jul 10, 1996
UNDER CERTAIN DRIVING CONDITIONS, THE FRONT SUSPENSION SUPPORT CAN CRACK LEADING TO FAILURE OF THE SUPPORT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS CONDITION CAN RESULT IN LOSS OF VEHICLE CONTROL.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE SUSPENSION SUPPORT.
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
1EA97015 · Turn Signal Failures
Opened Jul 22, 1997 · Closed Sep 21, 1998
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Exterior Lighting
There is no summary currently available