Illustration2016 TOYOTA TACOMA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO PAINT ON THE ROOF OF VEHICLE BEING DISENTEGRATED. THE CONSUMER STATED THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED, BUT DECLINED ANY ASSISTANCE.
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
1180–25K
3525–50K
2350–75K
875–100K
5100–150K
0150K+
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 reportsSystem Failure lost all directional and hazard lights on this vehicle . With no directional signals can cause a serious accident. vehicle is at dealership. component has not been inspected by the manufacture . No warning just stop working. This vehicle has no separate Flasher relay. Toyota did not honor the last request to fix …
Read full complaint
System Failure lost all directional and hazard lights on this vehicle . With no directional signals can cause a serious accident. vehicle is at dealership. component has not been inspected by the manufacture . No warning just stop working. This vehicle has no separate Flasher relay. Toyota did not honor the last request to fix a electrical issue. should be a recall for this issue as other Toyota Tacoma owners had the same issue
This tailgates passenger side rear hinge and bushing. Failed to hold integrity. My 4-year-old attempted to help me and load my truck up with some camping gear. He pulled the handle like he has before to drop the tailgate. The tailgate has a soft dampener built into it. This time the tailgate came of. I'm glad I was within arm's …
Read full complaint
This tailgates passenger side rear hinge and bushing. Failed to hold integrity. My 4-year-old attempted to help me and load my truck up with some camping gear. He pulled the handle like he has before to drop the tailgate. The tailgate has a soft dampener built into it. This time the tailgate came of. I'm glad I was within arm's distance of him. I was able to grab the tailgate before it hit or perhaps could have crushed him. This could have Caused severe bodily injury or death. They were absolutely no warning signs before the situation happened. Upon further investigation you can find the right passenger bushing in multiple different pieces. Not sure what caused the failure in this part. But if I wasn't close by it could have seriously injured my child. And I suppose if the tailgate wasn't properly latched driving down the highway the tailgate could have come off also causing a large accident.
I was involved in an accident and the airbags on my 2016 Toyota Tacoma did not deploy.
The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while driving, the driver’s side fog light housing melted. There was an abnormal odor of smoke. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. …
Read full complaint
The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while driving, the driver’s side fog light housing melted. There was an abnormal odor of smoke. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 143,749.
Vehicle pulls or skips a gears when driving
I brought my truck into Miller Toyota of Anaheim due to a violent shuddering and acceleration at about 40 to 50 mph. This could have caused driver to lose control and injure themselves, passengers, and other drivers on the road. Dealership diagnosed the problem as a bad torque converter in the transmission and said it would cost…
Read full complaint
I brought my truck into Miller Toyota of Anaheim due to a violent shuddering and acceleration at about 40 to 50 mph. This could have caused driver to lose control and injure themselves, passengers, and other drivers on the road. Dealership diagnosed the problem as a bad torque converter in the transmission and said it would cost about $3200.00 to repair. Couldn't afford that so I took vehicle to an independent repair shop and they notified me that there was a Toyota Service Bulletin that addressed this concern and that they would have to do a complete reprogramming update of Transmission Control Module. I haven't had any issues since this was done but the dealership should have been aware of this problem which could be potentially fatal. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to this failure or during the failure.
The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while attempting to activate the seat warmer, he noticed that the seat warmer was inoperable. The contact researched and read that the module underneath the seat could potentially burn causing the seat warmer not to operate as designed. The contact stated that it was…
Read full complaint
The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while attempting to activate the seat warmer, he noticed that the seat warmer was inoperable. The contact researched and read that the module underneath the seat could potentially burn causing the seat warmer not to operate as designed. The contact stated that it was a common failure. The contact stated that he then looked at the module in his vehicle and saw that it was melted. The contact had not noticed any smoke or a burning odor. The dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 45,000.
There is a known factory defect on a robotic seal around the engine block, in which the robot misses a half inch piece of the engine block, causing oil seepage and leaking of engine oil. The problem is on dozens of Toyota forums and I have also consulted with two different dealerships that have verified this. The 4 cylinder engi…
Read full complaint
There is a known factory defect on a robotic seal around the engine block, in which the robot misses a half inch piece of the engine block, causing oil seepage and leaking of engine oil. The problem is on dozens of Toyota forums and I have also consulted with two different dealerships that have verified this. The 4 cylinder engines in the Tacoma have already been recalled for this issue but they are offering no reimbursement or recall on the 6 cylinder engines. The engine begins leaking oil early in it its life as mine has been. An engine should not fail at 20k 30k or 80k miles due to a factory defect. Toyota should be offering a fix for this issue as it will significantly cut the life of rhe engine. This can cause engine fire and various other safety issues in these trucks if enough engine oil leaks down into a hot engine.
We paid $638.42 to repair a leak issue which later became a recall. We we are now having difficulty getting Toyota to reimbursement that money.
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.