IllustrationVEHICLE SURGES WHEN STEERING WHEEL IS TURNED, ALSO IS HESITANT TO SHIFT GEARS ON HIGHWAY. FRUSTRATING AS IT IS DIFFICULT TO DRIVE EFFICIENTLY WHEN YOUR CAR DOES NOT SHIFT AS EXPECTED. TIRING TO DRIVE IN THIS WAY.
2018 Toyota Tacoma
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2018 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
660–25K
1425–50K
350–75K
275–100K
4100–150K
2150K+
91 reports with mileage · 112 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.
- Service Brakes. Review the 44 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 41 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 29 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
7 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports
What owners actually said
203 reportsI WAS DRIVING THE TRUCK AND IT JUST TOOK OFF 'LIKE A RUNAWAY VEHICLE OVER 100 MPH" AND IT DID THIS TWICE.I WAS DRIVING ON EXPRESSWAY APPROX 65 MPH. MY INJURY IS THAT I AM PARANOID TO DRIVE THIS TRUCK. THE TRUCK DOES WHAT IT WANTS.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ACTIVATED, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED TO OVER 100 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO SUBURBAN TOYOTA (35200 GRAN RIVER AVE, FARMINGTON HILLS, MI) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FAILURE WAS DUE TO A FAULTY SENSOR. THE VEHICLE W…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ACTIVATED, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED TO OVER 100 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO SUBURBAN TOYOTA (35200 GRAN RIVER AVE, FARMINGTON HILLS, MI) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FAILURE WAS DUE TO A FAULTY SENSOR. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT INDICATED THAT THE FAILURE OCCURRED ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 19,500.
I FEEL THAT THE TOYOTA DEALER IN WAIPAHU, HAWAII IS UNABLE TO REMEDY THE DEFECT IN REGARDS TO RECALL NO. 18V-888. I RECEIVED THE RECALL REMEDY NOTICE IN THE MAIL, I THEN CALLED OUR DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT THE VERY NEXT DAY ON 2/25/19. I WAS TOLD THE PART WAS ON BACK ORDER AND THEY HAD NO ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL FOR THE …
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I FEEL THAT THE TOYOTA DEALER IN WAIPAHU, HAWAII IS UNABLE TO REMEDY THE DEFECT IN REGARDS TO RECALL NO. 18V-888. I RECEIVED THE RECALL REMEDY NOTICE IN THE MAIL, I THEN CALLED OUR DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT THE VERY NEXT DAY ON 2/25/19. I WAS TOLD THE PART WAS ON BACK ORDER AND THEY HAD NO ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL FOR THE PART. I ASKED FOR A PHONE CALL THAT DAY TO SATISFY MY CONCERN ON NO ETA FOR THE PART SINCE THIS RECALL AFFECTS MY BRAKE PERFORMANCE. NO CALL WAS RECEIVED. ON 3/27/19, I CALLED AGAIN AND WAS TOLD I HAD TO KEEP CALLING SINCE THEY HAVE NO IDEA IN REGARDS TO THE ETA FOR THE PART. SECONDLY, I CANNOT BE PUT ON A WAITING LIST SINCE I NEED TO BE AT THE REMEDY LEVEL. I WAS CONFUSED SINCE OUR RECALL STATES IT IS A REMEDY NOTICE WHICH I EXPLAINED I ALREADY HAD. I WAS PUT ON HOLD ONLY TO BE TOLD SHE MADE A MISTAKE AND THAT A MANAGER WILL CALL ME BACK THE SAME DAY. NO CALL WAS RECEIVED. TODAY IS 4/3/19 AND I STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED A CALL. I FEEL THAT THIS IS NOT VERY REASONABLE SINCE THIS RECALL AFFECTS BRAND NEW TRUCKS (2018-2019). HOW CAN THIS REPAIR BE PUSHED BACK WHEN IT AFFECTS YOUR BRAKE PERFORMANCE? SECONDLY, HOW CAN YOU SEND OUT A REMEDY NOTICE, HAVE A CUSTOMER MAKE CONTACT RIGHT AWAY, AND STATE THAT THERE ARE ALREADY NO PARTS AVAILABLE FOR THE RECALL.
PRE-COLLISION WARNING SYSTEM IS FAULTY. THE SYSTEM ENGAGES WHEN NOTHING IS IN FRONT OF THE VEHICLE TO MERIT WARNINGS OR ENGAGING THE BRAKES AUTOMATICALLY. HOWEVER, THE SYSTEM DOES NOT ENGAGE WHEN THE TRUCK IS EXTREMELY CLOSE TO THE WALL OF A GARAGE. UNFORTUNATELY THERE IS NO WAY TO TURN OFF THIS FEATURE AND IT WILL ULTIMATELY RE…
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PRE-COLLISION WARNING SYSTEM IS FAULTY. THE SYSTEM ENGAGES WHEN NOTHING IS IN FRONT OF THE VEHICLE TO MERIT WARNINGS OR ENGAGING THE BRAKES AUTOMATICALLY. HOWEVER, THE SYSTEM DOES NOT ENGAGE WHEN THE TRUCK IS EXTREMELY CLOSE TO THE WALL OF A GARAGE. UNFORTUNATELY THERE IS NO WAY TO TURN OFF THIS FEATURE AND IT WILL ULTIMATELY RESULT IN AN ACCIDENT WHICH MAY BE FATAL.
WHEN BRAKING, STARTING TO COME TO A STOP AND WHEN THE TRUCK DOWN SHIFTS JUST BEFORE 1ST, THERE IS A VIBRATION BEFORE IT FULLY STOPS.
WHEN DRIVING THE CAR WHEN THE ENGINE IS COMPLETELY COLD AND SHIFTING MAINLY FROM 2ND AND UP, THE TRANSMISSION HESITATES WHEN GOING INTO GEAR. ONCE THE TRUCK IS WARMED UP TO NORMAL OPERATING TEMPS, IT DOESN'T DO IT ANYMORE
MY BRAND NEW TACOMA HAS A STICKING BRAKE PEDAL THAT STICKS IN THE PEDAL'S NEUTRAL POSITION. IT NEEDS MORE FORCE TO PRESS IT AT RANDOM TIMES. THIS ISSUE STOOD OUT WHILE I WAS DRIVING IN THE MOUNTAINS ON A DIRT ROAD AND CAME ACROSS SOME ICE. I JUST NEEDED TO APPLY MINIMAL PRESSURE ON THE BRAKES TO KEEP FROM SPEEDING UP AS I WAS GO…
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MY BRAND NEW TACOMA HAS A STICKING BRAKE PEDAL THAT STICKS IN THE PEDAL'S NEUTRAL POSITION. IT NEEDS MORE FORCE TO PRESS IT AT RANDOM TIMES. THIS ISSUE STOOD OUT WHILE I WAS DRIVING IN THE MOUNTAINS ON A DIRT ROAD AND CAME ACROSS SOME ICE. I JUST NEEDED TO APPLY MINIMAL PRESSURE ON THE BRAKES TO KEEP FROM SPEEDING UP AS I WAS GOING DOWNHILL OVER THE ICE. THERE WAS NO AREA TO TURN AROUND IN THIS LOCATION AND WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO MAKE IT BACK UP THE HILL DUE TO THE ICE. WHEN I DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL, IT STUCK AT FIRST THEN POPPED DOWNWARD MAKING ME APPLY MORE PRESSURE THAN I WANTED TO. THE BRAKES ENGAGED WITH MORE FORCE CAUSING ME TO NOT BE FULLY IN CONTROL AS I BEGAN TO SWERVE WITH THE BRAKES LOCKING UP PRIOR TO THE ABS KICKING IN (TIRES LOCK FOR THE ABS TO WORK). I'VE TAKEN THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALERSHIP 3 TIMES AND VOICED THE SAFETY CONCERN. THEY DID INSPECT IT, HOWEVER, I WAS TOLD EACH TIME THE VEHICLE FUNCTIONS AS IT SHOULD, PER MANUFACTURER SPECS. CASE FILED DIRECTLY WITH TOYOTA CORPORATE ALSO HAD NO RESOLUTION. ONE VISIT STATED ANOTHER VEHICLE ON THE LOT HAD THE SAME CONCERN.
TRANSMISSION STICKS AT 3,500 RPM AT 50, FAILS TO PROPERLY SHIFT, HAS A DELAY WHEN TRYING TO ECELERATE, THEN A SURGE OF HORSE POWER AND STICKS AT HIGH RPM. IT SEEMS LIKE THE TIMING IS OFF ON AN AUTOMATIC. NOT EVEN 10,000 MILES ON MY TRUCK.
2018 TOYOTA TACOMA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO A MANUFACTURING DEFECT AND SAFETY HAZARD. CONSUMER STATES VEHICLE ENGINE NOT PROPERLY CIRCULATING OIL WHEN ASCENDING HILLS. *AS *TR
Official recalls
320V682000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump
Nov 4, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 4Runner, 2019-2020 Avalon, 2019 Corolla Hatchback, 2017-2019 Highlander, 2018-2020 Camry, 2020 Corolla, 2018-2019 Land Cruiser, 2017-2020 Tacoma, 2019-2020 RAV4, 2019-2020 Sequoia, 2017-2020 Sienna, 2019-2020 Tundra, 2018-2020 Lexus ES350, 2017 Lexus GS200t, 2017-2019 Lexus GS350, 2019 Lexus GS300, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500h, 2019-2020 Lexus LS500, 2018-2019 Lexus GX460, 2017 Lexus IS200t, 2019 Lexus IS300, 2019 Lexus IS350, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500, 2018 Lexus LS500, 2019 Lexus LS500h, 2018-2019 Lexus LX570, 2017 Lexus RC200t, 2019 Lexus RC300, RC350, 2017 and 2019-2020 Lexus RX350, 2018-2020 RX350L, 2019 Lexus UX200, 2018-2019 Lexus NX300 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly with an improved one, free of charge. Owners of specific models were notified that remedy parts were available starting January 21, 2021. Owners of other models will be notified as remedy parts become available. Remedy parts should be available for all affected vehicles by late March 2021. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 20V-012. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TA02. Lexus' number for this recall is 20LA01.
20V012000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump
Jan 13, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) recalled certain 2018-2019 4Runner, Highlander, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra, and Lexus RC 300, RC 350, GS 350, GX 460, IS 300, LC 500, LS 500, LX 570, RX 350L, and 2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla, and certain Lexus NX 300, and ES 350 vehicles on January 13, 2020. On March 4, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include certain 2014-2015 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser, 2018 Avalon, Corolla, 2014 FJ Cruiser, 2017 Sienna and Lexus 2018 ES 350, 2018-2019 GS 300, 2013-2014 GS350, 2014-2015 GX 460, IS 350 and LX 570, 2014 IS F, 2018-2019 IS 350, LC 500H and LS 500H, 2013-2015 LS 460, 2015 NX 200T and RC350, 2017 RC 200T and RX 350. Toyota also removed the 2018-2019 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser and 2018-2019 Lexus GX 460 and LX 570 and 2019 NX300 from inclusion in this recall. On March 19, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include 2015 Lexus GS350 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began May 4, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB02 and 20TA02 for Toyota vehicles and 20LB01 and 20LA01 for Lexus vehicles.
18V888000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:master Cylinder
Dec 13, 2018
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Toyota Tacoma vehicles. Improper machining of the brake master cylinder may result in internal damage of one of the seals, affecting brake performance.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Reduced brake performance can lengthen the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake master cylinder, free of charge. The recall began January 28, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are J16/J06.
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.