SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE THERE IS A DELAY SO WHEN I GO TO TAKE OFF IT SLAMS INTO DRIVE.
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 →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
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.
What owners actually said
323 reportsTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE ESTIMATED MPG DISPLAYED ON THE MESSAGE BOARD WAS INACCURATE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHO WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE OR REPAIR THE VEHICLE; HOWEVER, THE COMPUTER WAS RESET. THE TECHNICIAN ALSO STATED THAT THE ESTIMATED MPG OF FUEL CONSUMPTION WA…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE ESTIMATED MPG DISPLAYED ON THE MESSAGE BOARD WAS INACCURATE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHO WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE OR REPAIR THE VEHICLE; HOWEVER, THE COMPUTER WAS RESET. THE TECHNICIAN ALSO STATED THAT THE ESTIMATED MPG OF FUEL CONSUMPTION WAS NOT CALCULATED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS IDLING. THE FAILURE PERSISTED AND THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 1,000.
WINDSHIELD CRACKED 2 WEEKS AFTER PURCHASING THE TRUCK. HAD TO PAY $500 DEDUCTIBLE THROUGH MY INSURANCE, WINDSHIELD FROM TOYOTA COST $1,000. NEXT ISSUE IS MY TRANSMISSION SLIPPING WHEN SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE. TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY FOUND THE TRANSMISSION TO BE LOW, THEY TOPPED IT OFF AND IT'S STILL LAGGING …
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WINDSHIELD CRACKED 2 WEEKS AFTER PURCHASING THE TRUCK. HAD TO PAY $500 DEDUCTIBLE THROUGH MY INSURANCE, WINDSHIELD FROM TOYOTA COST $1,000. NEXT ISSUE IS MY TRANSMISSION SLIPPING WHEN SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE. TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY FOUND THE TRANSMISSION TO BE LOW, THEY TOPPED IT OFF AND IT'S STILL LAGGING WHEN SHIFTING. MISS THE ENGINE IN MY 2012 2ND GEN. COME ON TOYOTA!!!!
DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY I HAD A SMALL ROCK COME UP AND HIT MY WINDSHIELD, I DIDN'T NOTICE ANY ROCK CHIP BUT I WOKE UP THE NEXT MORNING AND THERE WAS A 10 INCH CRACK IN THE GLASS, THE SAME THING HAPPENED WITH MY MOM'S 2016 TACOMA.
WHEN SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE THERE IS A DELAY OF ABOUT 1 SECOND BEFORE IT IS FULLY ENGAGED IN FIRST GEAR. AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
AFTER DRIVING 10 MILES FROM A COLD START THE VEHICLES BRAKES WILL START APPLYING BRAKING POWER. VEHICLE BECOMES NOTICEABLY LABORED AND CANNOT ENGAGE HIGHER GEARS. VEHICLE WAS SERVICED MULTIPLE TIMES FOR THIS ISSUE. DEALERSHIP REPORTED THAT FACTORY SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE FEELS THAT VEHICLE IS WORKING AS DESIGNED. ON 2016-03-1…
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AFTER DRIVING 10 MILES FROM A COLD START THE VEHICLES BRAKES WILL START APPLYING BRAKING POWER. VEHICLE BECOMES NOTICEABLY LABORED AND CANNOT ENGAGE HIGHER GEARS. VEHICLE WAS SERVICED MULTIPLE TIMES FOR THIS ISSUE. DEALERSHIP REPORTED THAT FACTORY SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE FEELS THAT VEHICLE IS WORKING AS DESIGNED. ON 2016-03-18 THE BRAKES WHERE ENGAGING WHILE DRIVING. THE BRAKES BECAME OVERHEATED AND GLOWING RED TO THE POINT WHERE OTHER MOTORISTS TRIED TO WARN ME THAT MY TRUCK IS ON FIRE. I PULLED OVER AND FOUND BRAKE ROTORS TO BE HOT ENOUGH TO IGNITE PAPER AND PINE NEEDLES. AFTER TWO HOURS OF WAITING THE BRAKES COOLED AND I DROVE IT HOME. THE FOLLOWING MORNING I DROVE THE VEHICLE AGAIN. THE VEHICLE EXHIBITED THE SAME SYMPTOMS AFTER 15 MILES. UPON STOPPING THE FRONT ROTORS WERE FOUND TO BE EXTREMELY HOT. THE REAR DRUMS WERE ALSO OBSERVED TO BE HOT ENOUGH TO BUBBLE AND MELT THEIR PROTECTIVE PAINTED FINISH. THE SMELL OF OVERHEATED BRAKES AND RUBBER WAS ALSO OBSERVED. TIRE PRESSURE HAD ALSO RISEN SEVERAL DEGREES. VEHICLE IS BEING TOWED IN FOR THE FIFTH SERVICE INCIDENT SINCE ACQUISITION ON 2015-12-22. VEHICLE ODOMETER SHOWS MILEAGE IS UNDER 5,000. NOT CERTAIN THAT ODOMETER IS ACCURATE AND SUSPECT THAT VEHICLE WAS IN SERVICE PRIOR TO ACQUISITION.
AFTER 10,000 MILES THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON. THEN THE NEXT DAY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AS WELL AS THE TRACTION CONTROL. CALLED THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY LOOKED AT IT SAYING I JUST NEED NEW SENSORS. DROVE IT A COUPLE MORE DAYS AND NOTICED THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS NON EXISTENT. I DRIVE A LOT FOR WORK AND USE IT A TON AND ALL OF…
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AFTER 10,000 MILES THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON. THEN THE NEXT DAY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AS WELL AS THE TRACTION CONTROL. CALLED THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY LOOKED AT IT SAYING I JUST NEED NEW SENSORS. DROVE IT A COUPLE MORE DAYS AND NOTICED THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS NON EXISTENT. I DRIVE A LOT FOR WORK AND USE IT A TON AND ALL OF A SUDDEN IT WOULDN'T EVEN BRING THE LIGHT ON OR WORK AT ALL. THE NEXT DAY STARTED DRIVING AND THE REAL ISSUES STARTED. TURNED TRUCK ON; SAME PROBLEMS I HAVE BEEN HAVING; THEN THE TRUCK WOULD NOT SHIFT. KEPT GOING AND GOING TILL I WAS GETTING TO 5000RPM AND IT SHIFTED WITH A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF FORCE. ONCE IT SHIFTED THE WHOLE TRUCK DID A HUGE JERK THEN WENT A LITTLE MORE AN DID A DOUBLE SHIFT TOTALLY BYPASSING THE 3RD GEAR. I TURNED IT OFF AND STARTED IT AGAIN. KEPT HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM ALL DAY. I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID GET IT TO THEM WHEN I COULD AND THEY WOULD TAKE A LOOK. ALMOST CAUSED SEVERAL ACCIDENTS TRYING TO GET THE BRAND NEW $35,000 TRUCK THAT DIDN'T WORK TO THE DEALERSHIP ALMOST RUNNING INTO THE PEOPLE IN FRONT OF ME WHO CUT ME OFF BECAUSE I CAN'T GO OVER 40MPH ON THE FREEWAY AND I HAVE NO CONTROL OF THE VIOLENT SHIFTING MOVING THE WHOLE TRUCK. NEEDLESS TO SAY THE DEALERSHIP TRIED TO BLAME ME FOR ALL OF THESE PROBLEMS THAT I COULD NOT HAVE POSSIBLY CAUSE IF I TRIED AND THAT MY BRAND NEW TRUCK WITH 10,000MILES ON IT WAS FINE JUST NEEDED A COUPLE SENSORS. OBVIOUSLY THIS IS NOT WORKING AND I THINK SENSORS ARE THE LEAST OF THE WORRIES.
MY ABS LIGHT FAILURE CAME ON AND SAID CHECK WITH DEALER. THREE DAYS LATER TAKEN TO DEALERSHIP AND ELECTRICAL HARNESS HAD BEEN CHEWED BY RODENTS. IT IS REQUIRING $5000 TO REPLACE THIS COMPONENT. I HAVE HAD THIS TRUCK FOR ONE MONTH AND BRAND NEW. THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONERY IN DRIVEWAY WHEN EATEN.
VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A COMPLETE LOCKING OF THE REAR WHEELS. TOYOTA AND THE DEALERSHIP HAVE STATED THAT THE PARKING BRAKE CAUSED THE WHEELS TO SEIZE. TOYOTA'S FACTORY REPRESENTATIVE INDICATED THAT THE PARKING BRAKES SHOULD NEVER BE USED IN COLD WEATHER AND THAT ANY FUTURE REPAIRS ARE NO LONGER COVERED UNDER THE WARRANTY.
PASSENGER SIDE DOOR COMES UNLATCHED WHILE DRIVING. COLD WEATHER FREEZES INSIDE THE LATCH-HANDLE AND DOES NOT COMPLETE LATCH. WHEN PASSENGER PUT WEIGHT ON DOOR THEY NEARLY FELL OUT OF THE MOVING VEHICLE. A SECOND OCCURRENCE WAS OBSERVED WHEN GOING THROUGH A CORNER; NO PASSENGER.
Official recalls
417V425000 · 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
1EA19001 · 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.
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