IllustrationBRAKE SYSTEM HAS CONTINUALLY EXPERIENCED PROBLEMS SINCE 3,000 MILES, REPLACEMENTS MADE ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, HOWEVER COMPONENTS CONTINUALLY EXPERIENCE EXCESSIVE WEAR DUE TO DEFECTIVE SYSTEM. MJS
1997 Toyota Tacoma
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1997 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
125–50K
550–75K
775–100K
15100–150K
29150K+
58 reports with mileage · 73 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.
- Structure. Review the 46 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Suspension. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Tires. Review the 14 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
13 crash reports0 fire reports8 injury reports
Service Brakes, Hydraulic complaints
5 reportsBRAKE PADS FAILED.
BRAKE PADS FAILED. 2 SHOES ON REAR PUT ON BACKWARDS. SHORT NEEDED IN BACK & LONG IN FRONT ACCORDING TO DEALER. FRONT DISC PADS REPLACED DUE TO REAR BRAKES. ALSO, HAD TO REPLACE ROTORS. *AK
FRONT DISC BRAKES WILL LOCK UP WHEN APPLIED, WITH THE REAR BRAKES HAVING A DELAY IN SEQUENCE FOR STOPPING FROM THE FRONT, BECAUSE OF THIS ERRATIC PERFORMANCE, THE TRUCK WAS INVOLVED IN A COLLISION.*AK CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING 30- 35 MPH ON A WET ROAD, HE CAME UPON AN ACCIDENT HE WHEN HE ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKES THE FRO…
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FRONT DISC BRAKES WILL LOCK UP WHEN APPLIED, WITH THE REAR BRAKES HAVING A DELAY IN SEQUENCE FOR STOPPING FROM THE FRONT, BECAUSE OF THIS ERRATIC PERFORMANCE, THE TRUCK WAS INVOLVED IN A COLLISION.*AK CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING 30- 35 MPH ON A WET ROAD, HE CAME UPON AN ACCIDENT HE WHEN HE ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKES THE FRONT WHEELS LOCKED UP AND WAS UNABLE TO STEER AND SLID INTO THE PATH OF ONCOMING TRAFFICHITTING ANOTHER VEHICLE.*JB
WHILE DRIVING EXPERIENCED ABS FAILURE WHEN ATTEMPTING TO SLOW/STOP, PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR, VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ROLL FORWARD, REAR BRAKES LOCKED UP, BRAKE ACTION WAS INADEQUATE TO EFFECTIVELY AVOID REAR ENDING AT APPROX. 40MPH FAST ENOUGH. *AK
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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.