← New search

2016 Toyota Tacoma

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2016 Toyota Tacoma do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 228.5.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

189 reports with mileage · 134 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.

  • Power Train. Review the 136 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 47 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 36 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

4 crash reports4 fire reports1 injury reports

What owners actually said

323 reports
3,500 miles · Nov 22, 2016
Structure

DRIVER AND PASSENGER WINDOWS RATTLE WHEN ROLLED DOWN .5" TO 3". IT'S VERY LOUD AND ANNOYING.

NHTSA ODI #10927410

100 miles · Nov 22, 2016
Structure

THE ADHESIVE USED TO BOND THE SHEET METAL TO THE FRAME OF THE HOOD IS FAULTY. THIS CAUSES THE HOOD TO FLEX AND SHAKE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS.

NHTSA ODI #10927409

12 miles · Nov 22, 2016
Unknown Or Other

THE 2016 TACOMA WILL NOT ALLOW THE DRIVER WITH USB FLASH DRIVE PLUGGED IN WITH MUSIC. CONTROL THE BROWSING ALBUM OR SONG LIST WITH STEERING WHEEL CONTROLS. AS PER THE 2015 TACOMA DID. THIS IS IN ALL ASPECTS. OF OPERATION PARKED, MOVING, ETC. I SEE THIS AS A SAFETY ISSUE. HAVING TO TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE ROAD TO PRESS THE BROWSE …

Read full complaint

THE 2016 TACOMA WILL NOT ALLOW THE DRIVER WITH USB FLASH DRIVE PLUGGED IN WITH MUSIC. CONTROL THE BROWSING ALBUM OR SONG LIST WITH STEERING WHEEL CONTROLS. AS PER THE 2015 TACOMA DID. THIS IS IN ALL ASPECTS. OF OPERATION PARKED, MOVING, ETC. I SEE THIS AS A SAFETY ISSUE. HAVING TO TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE ROAD TO PRESS THE BROWSE BUTTON ON THE HEAD UNIT AND THEN USE SCROLL BUTTONS TO MOVE THROUGH THE LIST OF ALBUMS AND THEN SCROLL THROUGH A LIST OF SONGS TO SELECT ONE. THEN AT THAT POINT I AM ABLE TO USE THE UP AND DOWN ARROW ON THE LEFT STEERING WHEEL CONTROL TO JUST GO THROUGH THE PARTICULAR ALBUM IAM IN. I THINK IT IS A PROGRAM FEATURE THAT WAS OVER LOOKED IN THE HEAD UNIT AND COULD CAUSE WRECK OR DAMAGE WHEN NOT FULLY FOCUSED ON THE ROAD.

NHTSA ODI #10927366

1,863 miles · Nov 10, 2016
Power Train

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS AND TURNING THE STEERING WHEEL, THE RPMS WOULD INCREASE TO APPROXIMATELY 200-300. THE FAILURE WOULD CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO SURGE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS LOW ON TRANSMISSION FLUID. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED…

Read full complaint

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS AND TURNING THE STEERING WHEEL, THE RPMS WOULD INCREASE TO APPROXIMATELY 200-300. THE FAILURE WOULD CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO SURGE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS LOW ON TRANSMISSION FLUID. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE TRANSMISSION SOFTWARE NEEDED TO BE RE-FLASHED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE PERSISTED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS OPERATING PROPERLY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 1,863....UPDATED 12/12/16 *BF UPDATED 12/12/16.*JB

NHTSA ODI #10925412

1,700 miles · Nov 2, 2016
Visibility/wiper

MY WINDSHIELD "POPPED" AND CAUSED A CRACK. NOTHING HIT THE WINDSHIELD. WHEN I TRIED TO GET THE HALF INCH CRACK REPAIRED, THE CRACK SPREAD TO OVER 18 INCHES.

NHTSA ODI #10923804

400 miles · Oct 26, 2016
Fuel/propulsion System

ABNORMAL CHIRP OR SQUEAK NOISE FROM HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP. THIS HAPPENS WHILE AT IDLE AND IS A KNOWN ISSUE FOR 2012-2013 TOYOTA SCIONS TOO (ATTACHING SCION TSB WITH THIS COMPLAINT). TOYOTA REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP AT 2,017 MILES AND IN LESS THAN 400 MILES THE ISSUE RETURNED. THE TOYOTA FIELD TECHNICIAN SAID THAT TOYOTA IS AWARE …

Read full complaint

ABNORMAL CHIRP OR SQUEAK NOISE FROM HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP. THIS HAPPENS WHILE AT IDLE AND IS A KNOWN ISSUE FOR 2012-2013 TOYOTA SCIONS TOO (ATTACHING SCION TSB WITH THIS COMPLAINT). TOYOTA REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP AT 2,017 MILES AND IN LESS THAN 400 MILES THE ISSUE RETURNED. THE TOYOTA FIELD TECHNICIAN SAID THAT TOYOTA IS AWARE THAT THERE IS AN ISSUE BUT THERE IS NO FIX AND NO ETA FOR A FIX. TOYOTA IS REFUSING TO REPLACE THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP AGAIN. I OPENED A CASE WITH TOYOTA CORPORATE AND THEY SENT IT BACK TO THE DEALER FOR AUTHORIZATION FROM THE FIELD TECHNICIAN. AGAIN THE FIELD TECHNICIAN REFUSED TO AUTHORIZE A REPLACEMENT FUEL PUMP. THE DEALER IS LITHIA TOYOTA OF MEDFORD, OREGON.

NHTSA ODI #10919157

6,500 miles · Oct 21, 2016
Vehicle Speed Control

WHEN DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE ACCELERATION IS ERRATIC. I WILL PRESS ON THE ACCELERATOR TO GET TO A CRUISING SPEED (THIS HAPPENS ANYWHERE BETWEEN 40-60 MPH) AND THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATES AND THE TACHOMETER JUMPS FROM BETWEEN 2000 AND 3000 TO THE UPPER 4000 ? 5000 RANGE. ADDITIONALLY, WHEN I HAVE THE CAR IN CRUISE CONTR…

Read full complaint

WHEN DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE ACCELERATION IS ERRATIC. I WILL PRESS ON THE ACCELERATOR TO GET TO A CRUISING SPEED (THIS HAPPENS ANYWHERE BETWEEN 40-60 MPH) AND THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATES AND THE TACHOMETER JUMPS FROM BETWEEN 2000 AND 3000 TO THE UPPER 4000 ? 5000 RANGE. ADDITIONALLY, WHEN I HAVE THE CAR IN CRUISE CONTROL, IT DOES THE SAME THING WHEN GOING UP HILLS. THE ENGINE REVS LOUDLY AND THE TRUCK LURCHES ERRATICALLY FORWARD, SO I HAVE TO QUICKLY TAKE IT OUT OF CRUISE CONTROL AND GET THE PEG ON THE TAC DOWN TO A MORE REASONABLE LEVEL. MECHANICS AT THE SCHEDULED DID NOT MAKE A NOTE OF ANY ISSUES. I WILL PRESS THIS WITH THEM AT THE NEXT TUNE-UP AND SAFETY CHECK. THE ONLINE FORM HERE ASKS FOR A SPECIFIC DATE. THIS HAS BEEN ONGOING SINCE I PURCHASED THE CAR 11-JUNE-2016 TO PRESENT (21-OCT-16). *TR

NHTSA ODI #10917788

11,590 miles · Oct 9, 2016
Unknown Or OtherCrash

AS TRUCK WAS COMING TO A SAFE STOP, THE TRUCK QUICKLY ACCELERATED INTO A SMALL TREE AND CAUSED DAMAGE. SAME SYMPTOM LATER ON HIGHWAY AND ALMOST HAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENT SO I PULLED TO SIDE OF ROAD AND CALLED FOR WRECKER SERVICE. TRUCK NOW AT PANAMA CITY TOYOTA STILL WAITING FOR CODE READING.

NHTSA ODI #10914929

Mileage unknown · Sep 29, 2016
EnginePower Train

NOTICED MY TACOMA BEING SLOW TO DOWN SHIFT TO A LOWER GEAR WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE OR IT WOULD UP SHIFT TO A HIGHER GEAR WHILE ACCELERATING/MERGING RESULTING IN AN UNEXPECTED CHANGE IN ACCELERATION. ALSO IF RIDING BETWEEN 20-40 MPH THE VEHICLE RIDES AT A VERY LOW RPM (~1100) AND SHIMMIES THE VEHICLE LIKE IT WILL STALL. VEHICL…

Read full complaint

NOTICED MY TACOMA BEING SLOW TO DOWN SHIFT TO A LOWER GEAR WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE OR IT WOULD UP SHIFT TO A HIGHER GEAR WHILE ACCELERATING/MERGING RESULTING IN AN UNEXPECTED CHANGE IN ACCELERATION. ALSO IF RIDING BETWEEN 20-40 MPH THE VEHICLE RIDES AT A VERY LOW RPM (~1100) AND SHIMMIES THE VEHICLE LIKE IT WILL STALL. VEHICLE WILL ALSO "NOTICEABLY" DOWN SHIFT WHILE THE FOOT IS OFF THE ACCELERATOR RESULTING IN AN UNEXPECTED CHANGE IN DECELERATION. THE PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE GETTING WORSE AND NOW THE SHIFTING IS STARTING TO JOLT THE VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING AT CONSTANT SPEEDS THE VEHICLE WILL RANDOMLY SURGE HIGH IN RPMS THEN COME RIGHT BACK DOWN. THE VEHICLE IS PRESENTING UNSAFE CONDITIONS. TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES. 1ST TIME THEY TOPPED OFF THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AS IT WAS LOW FROM THE FACTORY. 2ND TIME THEY ARE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND OTHERS WERE HAVING IT AS WELL AND THE TRANSMISSION ECU WAS RE-FLASHED. THIS STILL DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. BROUGHT THE VEHICLE BACK A 3RD TIME AND THEY DIDN'T SEE A PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE. BROUGHT IT BACK A 4TH TIME TO BE SEEN BY A FIELD SPECIALIST AND THE ISSUE COULD BE DUPLICATED BUT THERE IS NO FIX AT THIS TIME BECAUSE THE VEHICLE IS OPERATING AS DESIGNED. VEHICLE CURRENTLY HAS LESS THAN 2500 MILES ON IT. NOT SURE WHY YOU WOULD DESIGN A VEHICLE TO DO THIS.

NHTSA ODI #10910678

5,000 miles · Sep 22, 2016
Power Train

WHEN WE ARE DRIVING EITHER ON CITY ROADS OR ON HIGHWAY, EITHER IN SPORTS MODE AND AUTOMATIC THERE IS A LAG IN THE WAY THE ENGINE WILL SHIFT INTO GEARS. IN SPORTS MODE THE LAG IN GEAR SHIFT IS RIDICULOUSLY LONG WHEN IT SHOULD SHIFT QUICKER. AS FOR AUTOMATIC THERE IS ALSO A SLOW RESPONSE IN SHIFTING WHETHER GOING UP A HILL AS WELL…

Read full complaint

WHEN WE ARE DRIVING EITHER ON CITY ROADS OR ON HIGHWAY, EITHER IN SPORTS MODE AND AUTOMATIC THERE IS A LAG IN THE WAY THE ENGINE WILL SHIFT INTO GEARS. IN SPORTS MODE THE LAG IN GEAR SHIFT IS RIDICULOUSLY LONG WHEN IT SHOULD SHIFT QUICKER. AS FOR AUTOMATIC THERE IS ALSO A SLOW RESPONSE IN SHIFTING WHETHER GOING UP A HILL AS WELL AS GOING DOWN A HILL. WE HAVE 5000 MILES ON THIS TRUCK AND WOULD HAVE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE BROKEN IN BY NOW

NHTSA ODI #10908668

Official recalls

4

17V425000 · Equipment; Structure:body:hood:hinge And Attachments

Jul 3, 2017

Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2011-2016 Toyota Tacoma and 4Runner vehicles equipped with accessory hood scoops installed by SET or SET dealers. The adhesive attaching the hood scoop may weaken, allowing the hood scoop to detach from the vehicle.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the hood scoop detaches, it may become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: SET will notify owners, and dealers will mechanically fasten the scoop to the hood, free of charge. The recall began on September 1, 2017. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-954-429-2000. SET's number for this recall is SET17B.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Equipment

Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2011-2016 Toyota Tacoma and 4Runner vehicles equipped with accessory hood scoops installed by SET or SET dealers. The adhesive attaching the hood scoop may weaken, allowing the hood scoop to detach from the vehicle.

Consequence: If the hood scoop detaches, it may become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: SET will notify owners, and dealers will mechanically fasten the scoop to the hood, free of charge. The recall began on September 1, 2017. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-954-429-2000. SET's number for this recall is SET17B.

Structure:body:hood:hinge And Attachments

Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2011-2016 Toyota Tacoma and 4Runner vehicles equipped with accessory hood scoops installed by SET or SET dealers. The adhesive attaching the hood scoop may weaken, allowing the hood scoop to detach from the vehicle.

Consequence: If the hood scoop detaches, it may become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: SET will notify owners, and dealers will mechanically fasten the scoop to the hood, free of charge. The recall began on September 1, 2017. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-954-429-2000. SET's number for this recall is SET17B.

17V356000 · Engine

Jun 1, 2017

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Tacoma vehicles equipped with a six-cylinder engine. The affected vehicles have a crank position sensor that may malfunction, potentially resulting in an engine stall.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An engine stall may increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the crank position sensor with an improved design, free of charge. The recall began July 26, 2017. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is H0H.

17V285000 · Power Train:driveline:differential Unit

Apr 27, 2017

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Tacoma vehicles. Oil may leak from the area where the rear differential carrier is assembled to rear axle housing.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the vehicle is operated with an insufficient amount of oil in the rear differential, the differential may seize and cause a loss of control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the rear differential for oil leakage. Based on the inspection, dealers will either tightening the fastening nuts or replace the fastening nuts and gasket. If the rear differential components are damaged, the rear differential carrier assembly will be replaced. The repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall June 19, 2017. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is H0G.

15V656000 · Air Bags:knee Bolster

Oct 14, 2015

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2016 Tacoma trucks manufactured August 20, 2015, to September 10, 2015. In the affected vehicles, incorrect bolts were used to install the driver's knee air bag module.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: The incorrect bolts may loosen over time and affect the performance of the driver's knee air bag, increasing the risk of driver injury during a crash that necessitates deployment of the air bags.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will install the correct driver's knee air bag module mounting bolts, free of charge. The recall began on November 19, 2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is F0T.

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

1

EA19001 · Electrical Overstress

Opened Apr 19, 2019 · Closed Sep 19, 2024

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags: Air Bag/restraint Control Module

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect.  During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW.  The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with manufacturer design specifications.  The ECU in the subject vehicles contains a model DS84 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) which controls the communication of the crash sensor signal, firing commands (i.e., when to deploy the airbag(s) and/or pretensioners), and fault information (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes). In September 2016, FCA announced recall 16V-668 for certain model year (MY) 2010 to 2014 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products manufactured with the subject ZF-TRW ACU.  In this recall, FCA discussed an EOS condition that resulted in a failure of the subject DS84 ASIC, which caused air bag non-deployment.  FCA noted that the defect condition had only been observed in vehicles equipped with sensor harnessing routed across the front of the vehicle.  Other FCA vehicles that also used the subject ACU, but were not equipped with cross-car harnessing, had not experienced EOS failures, despite similar time in service. During the course of this investigation, ODI sent two separate Information Request (IR) letters to six vehicle manufactures (including FCA, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Mitsubishi, and Toyota) and one IR letter to ZF-TRW.  These IR letters resulted in ODI receiving comprehensive data from these manufacturers and suppliers. Studies of this data found that the DS84 ASIC does not have sufficient protection against negative electrical transients or electrical overstress (“EOS”) that can be generated in certain severe crashes.  An electrical transient occurs when the electrical power supplied to a circuit changes momentarily over a short duration of time.   In these severe crash cases, the crash sensors and other powered wiring can be damaged and short circuited so as to create a negative electrical transient of sufficient intensity and duration (that are outside the vehicle manufacturer's specification) to damage the ASIC before the restraint device deployment signal is received by the SRS ECU.  This damaged signal can lead to incomplete or nondeployment of the air bags and/or pretensioners.  Airbag non-deployment and/or lack of pretensioner operation can increase the risk or severity of injury in a crash.A total of 8 fatalities and 14 injuries were associated with known EOS events. The common element in all investigated manufacturers vehicles is the SRS ECU containing a DS84 ASIC manufactured by ZF-TRW.  The risk associated with the ASIC is equally shared among all OEMS involved in the investigation.  The actual real-world risk can be mitigated by other factors which were assessed by ODI during this investigation. The first mitigating factor involves protections built into the ACU design which protect the DS84 ASIC from damage.  There are multiple strategies and levels of protection employed by different OEMs that provide effective EOS mitigation.  The two most common strategies at the ACU level are circuit protection diodes on the remote senor signal lines, and current limiting resistors that protect critical components. The second mitigating factor is found at the vehicle level and involves the location and routing of the wires leading from the crash sensors to the SRS ECU.  If the wires are well protected in a crash and are not routed with other power wires carrying large currents, the risk for an EOS event is significantly reduced or eliminated. These design specific factors combine to produce a spectrum of risk for the vehicles equipped with ACUs using the DS84 ASIC.  Given the many of years of field exposure, it is possible to divide the subject population into two groups; vehicles which have experienced EOS events, and vehicles which have not experienced EOS field events. Four of the six OEMs involved in this investigation have experienced EOS field events on at least one of their models equipped with a DS84 ASIC.  All vehicle models (including the Toyota models identified in the Failure Report Summary of the opening resume for this investigation) with field events have been recalled.  In an abundance of caution, ODI kept this investigation open five years to monitor field performance and did not identify any field events on vehicles not included in existing safety recalls. Given the spectrum of risk identified in this investigation and that all vehicles with a demonstrated unreasonable risk have been recalled, ODI is closing this investigation. ODI is closing this investigation with the following manufacturer safety recalls: 16V-668, 18E-043, 18V-137, 18V-363, and 20V-024.  With the recall actions taken by the subject vehicle and equipment manufacturers, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exists on other model or model year vehicles outside of the recall scopes. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.