2012 Toyota Tacoma Suspension Problems

My leaf spring(s) is noisy/loosened and to the best of my limited knowledge is at risk for breaking off and puncturing the fuel tank per repair shops. This issue is not covered under Safety Recall E02 (E12) by Toyota for the model year 2012 Tacoma. As a consumer, I don't understand the determination of when the recall is cut off for specific model years. I would like for NHTSA and Toyota to analyze this issue as the model year 2012 Tacoma could be at risk. I have case with Toyota Customer Resolutions that has been closed. Thanks for your attention into this matter.

NHTSA ID

11664317

Incident

Feb 1, 2025

The passenger leaf spring or right leaf spring has broken and the truck has not hauled any kind of weight, there is a previous recall on similar trucks but they end with 2011 models but looking at the 2012 model it’s build is similar and seems to have a chance of having the same effect as mine already has.

NHTSA ID

11432167

Incident

Jun 20, 2021

Is there a recall on leaf springs

NHTSA ID

11421480

Incident

Jun 11, 2021

HAVING THE SAME ISSUE AS THE 2011 TACOMA'S WITH FAULTY LEAF SPRINGS STARTED AS A SQUEAK SPRAYED WD-40 AND FLUID FILM DIDN'T HELP THEN FEW MONTHS LATER HEARD A CLUNK AND NOW DRIVER SIDE LEAF SPRING IS BROKE THIS SHOULD BE COVERED UNDER THE RECALL!!

NHTSA ID

11408264

Incident

Apr 15, 2021

Mileage

100,000 mi

FAILURE OF DRIVERS SIDE LEAF SPRING WITH LARGE SECTION(4-6IN) MISSING. GAVE NO NOTICE OF FAILURE PRIOR TO FAILING. FOUND WHEN CHANGING TIRES. DO NOT USE VEHICLE FOR TOWING BEYOND SPECS OR OFF ROADING. TOYOTA RECALLED PREVIOUSLY FOR THIS ISSUE UNDER SAFETY RECALL E02(E12) FOR 2005-2011 M.Y. STATING BROKEN LEAF SPRINGS COULD PUNCTURE FUEL TANK PROPAGATING IN A FIRE. TOYOTA DEALERSHIP WAS UNWILLING TO ASSIST IN REPAIR OR ADMIT FAULT DESPITE SAFETY RELATED ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11360680

Incident

Sep 22, 2020

Mileage

150,000 mi

I BROUGHT TRUCK TO TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AS PART OF RUSTED FRAME RECALL TO BE VERIFIED. THEY STATED TRUCK WAS NOT RUSTED ENOUGH UNDERNEATH FOR TOYOTA TO APPROVE RECALL. THAT WAS A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO. I HAVE RECENTLY BROUGHT IT TO A FEW MECHANICS TO DO SOME WORK ON A/C AS THE A/C STOPPED WORKING AND THAT REFUSE TO WORK ON IT AS THE TRUCK IS SO RUSTED UNDERNEATH!! THEY SAID IT WOULD CRUMBLE. NOT EVEN WORTH IT.

NHTSA ID

11350058

Incident

Aug 18, 2020

Mileage

137,000 mi

WHEN I'M DRIVING THE TRUCK BETWEEN 30 AND 40 MILES AN HOUR THE TRUCK FEEL LIKE WANTS TO STOP AND SAUNDS WUIRD I THINK IS THE TORQUE CONVERTER IS NOT DOING HIS JOB PROPERLY ALSO THAT SUSPENSION IS GETTING RESTLESS SO BAD AND SO QUICKLY AND THE CHATS ARE SO HARD SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH IT OR IT'S JUST NORMAL IN THE CAR AND SAW THE THINGS I'VE BEEN CHECKING ON IT 2012 TOYOTA AND I HAD IT FOR THREE YEARS ALSO IT TAKES TOO LONG TO HEAT UP IN WINTER TIME

NHTSA ID

11316975

Incident

Oct 2, 2019

Mileage

108,243 mi

REAR LEAF SPRING IS BROKEN AND NEAR THE GAS TANK. THIS IS AN EARLY 2012 MODEL. THERE IS ALREADY AN ACTIVE RECALL ON THE 2011 MODEL. MILEAGE IS ONLY 45000.

NHTSA ID

11240808

Incident

Jul 22, 2019

Mileage

45,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING 5 MPH, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO PRIME TOYOTA RT 2 (LOCATED AT 700 OLD UNION TURNPIKE, LANCASTER, MA 01523, (978) 353-1700) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE LEAF SPRING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIFED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000. *BF CONTACT WAS TOLD BY TOYOTA DEALER NOT TO DRIVE IT.*JB

NHTSA ID

11222924

Incident

Jun 1, 2018

Mileage

50,000 mi

WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION THE BACK END CREAKS LOUDLY OVER THE REAR TIRES. THIS IS ESPECIALLY NOTICEABLE AT LOW SPEEDS AS THE TRUCK BOUNCES OVER THE ROAD. WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STATIONARY AND I AM IN THE BED OR ON THE TAILGATE, THE TRUCK BOUNCES EASILY AND CREAKS LOUDLY OVER THE REAR TIRES. I HAD NEW LEAF SPRINGS INSTALLED IN JULY 2018 BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT MY MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM TO BE. NOW, LESS THAN A YEAR LATER THE SAME ISSUE PERSISTS. THE SOUND IS METAL IS RUBBING ON METAL, AND I SUSPECT ANOTHER PART OF THIS VEHICLE'S SUSPENSION IS BAD.

NHTSA ID

11222217

Incident

Jun 17, 2017

Mileage

90,000 mi

MY VEHICLE HAS THE SAME PROBLEM AS THE RECALL IN THE 2005-2011 TACOMA RECALL FROM TOYOTA. THE SUBJECT VEHICLES REAR SUSPENSION SYSTEM CONTAINS LEAF SPRINGS THAT ARE CONSTRUCTED OF EITHER 3 OR 4 LEAF SPRINGS. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT A LEAF COULD FRACTURE DUE TO STRESS AND CORROSION. THIS COULD CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE FUEL TANK OR OTHER COMPONENTS. MY VEHICLE HAS THE DAMAGED LEAF AS DESCRIBED IN THEIR RECALL ALTHOUGH IT IS A 2012, AND I DISCOVERED IT RECENTLY HEARING A NOISE IN THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE.

NHTSA ID

11164663

Incident

Nov 1, 2018

Mileage

70,000 mi

IN MAY OF 2017 THE LEFT REAR LEAF SPRING BROKE I PROXIMITY TO THE GAS TANK. I WAS TOLD BY HERITAGE TOYOTA THAT THERE WAS NO RECALL IN PLACE FOR 2012 TOYOTA TACOMA PICK-UPS ALTHOUGH A RECALL WAS IN PLACE THAT STOPPED AT 2011 VEHICLES. I HAD BOTH SETS OF REAR SPRINGS REPLACED AS A PRECAUTION IN MAY OF 2017 AT MY EXPENSE. AS OF LAST WEEK. A LEFT REAR SPRING HAS AGAIN BROKE IN THE VICINITY OF THE GAS TANK AND I AM AGAIN BEING TOLD THAT THERE IS NO RECALL IN PLACE FOR 2012 TACOMA'S. THIS TRUCK DOES NOT GET HEAVY USE OR CARRY HEAVY LOADS ALTHOUGH I DO LIVE ON A GRAVEL ROAD. I AM HAVING A HARD TIME BELIEVING THAT THIS REPEATED PROBLEM IS NOT A MANUFACTURING OR DESIGN DEFECT WITH A REAL SAFETY CONCERN GIVEN THE PROXIMITY OF THE BROKEN SPRING TO THE GAS TANK. THE DEFECT WAS NOTICED WHILE DRIVING DUE TO A LOUD CLUNKING SOUND COMING FROM THE LEFT REAR OF THE VEHICLE.

NHTSA ID

11141870

Incident

Oct 15, 2018

MECHANIC SAYS LEAF SPRINGS NEED TO BE REPLACED,SHOULD HAVE BEEN INCLUDED IN 2011 RECALL.ONLY 55,000 MILES ON TRUCK

NHTSA ID

11132457

Incident

Sep 15, 2018

Mileage

55,000 mi

LOWER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINT GOES BAD ON BOTH SIDE CAUSE THE STEERING WHEEL TO VIBRATE.

NHTSA ID

11124625

Incident

May 1, 2018

Mileage

43,000 mi

I BOUGHT A USED 2012 TOYOTA TACOMA WITH 75,000 MILES ON IT FROM A DEALERSHIP WITH THE "TOYOTA CERTIFICATION." AT 86,400 MILES, THE TRUCK BED STARTED SAGGING, AND EVERYTIME I ACCELERATED, THE SUSPENSION WOULD MAKE A LOUD THUMPING NOISE, & THE BACK END WOULD WIGGLE & VIBRATE. I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP, AND THEY SAID BOTH LEAFSPRINGS (UNDER THE TRUCK BED) CRACKED (AT THE SAME TIME), BUT UNFORTUNATELY MY 2012 WAS NOT COVERED UNDER THE SUSPENSION RECALL, WHICH COVERED ONLY UNTIL THE 2011 MODEL YEAR. OTHERWISE THE RECALL WOULD'VE PAID FOR THE FIX. IT APPEARS FAULTY STEEL WAS STILL USED IN THE LEAFSPRINGS MANUFACTURE WELL INTO THE 2012 MODEL YEARS. IN THE MEANTIME, I HAD TO GET MY TRUCK FIXED, AND SPENT ROUGHLY $1,100 AT A NON-DEALERSHIP MECHANIC. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS AS THERE ARE OTHER TRUCKS IN THIS SAME PREDICAMENT.

NHTSA ID

11080196

Incident

Mar 19, 2018

Mileage

86,400 mi

LEAF SPRINGS

NHTSA ID

11078293

Incident

Mar 9, 2018

Mileage

80,000 mi

I WAS APPROACHING A STOPLIGHT AT A DOWNWARD ANGLE AND WHILE APPLYING THE BRAKE THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY. I WAS GOING APPROX. 15PMH WHEN IT STARTED AND IT DIDN'T STOP SHAKING UNTIL I GOT DOWN TO ABOUT 5 MILES PER HOUR. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THAT DAY AND EXPLAINED THE PROBLEM TO THEM. THEY GOT THE VEHICLE TO REPRODUCE THE VIBRATIONS AND I HAVE PAPERWORK STATING THIS. IT HAS BEEN A FULL YEAR LATER AND THEY HAVEN'T REPAIRED IT YET. THEY CONTINUALLY TELL ME PARTS ARE BEING DESIGNED. JUST WAIT. THAT'S ALL THEY KEEP SAYING. I FOUND OUT THAT THEY MADE A FIX FOR THE V6 MODEL WITHIN 7 MONTHS, BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH COMPLAINTS AGAINST THE 4 CYLINDER MODEL TO WARRANT REDESIGNING PARTS. I WAS TOLD THIS BY THE SERVICE TECH AT THE DEALERSHIP. *TR

NHTSA ID

10584327

Incident

Apr 11, 2013

Mileage

11,201 mi

STEERING WHEEL SHAKES AT HIGHWAY SPEED, TOYOTA ESCONDIDO HAS BEEN ABLE TO DUPLICATE'S PROBLEM. WHEELS HAVE BEEN ROTATED AND BALANCED AND PROBLEM STILL PERSIST, VEHICLE IS NOW AT 9100 MILES AND I PLAN HAVING DEALER LOOK AT ISSUE AGAIN , BUT I'M CONCERNED THIS COULD LEAD TO A MORE SERIOUS ISSUE THAT COULD AFFECT THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE.I HAVE RESEARCHED FORUMS AND FOUND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS REGARDING THIS ISSUE THAT SEEMS TO PLAGUE THE TACOMA LINE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10512792

Incident

Mar 16, 2012

Mileage

6,200 mi

MY 2012 TOYOTA TACOMA TRD OFF-ROAD DOES NOT MEET MAXIMUM PAYLOAD CAPACITY. VEHICLE STARTS TO BOTTOM OUT AT 30% OF IT'S MAXIMUM CAPACITY EITHER WHEN TOWING OR CARRYING CARGO. RIDE ON THE VEHICLE IS VERY HARSH WHEN LOADED. TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY SAY THAT THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. THIS PROBLEM IS IDENTICAL TO PREVIOUS YEAR MODELS 2005-2011 WHEN THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A HARSH RIDE WHEN LOADED WITH ANY CARGO IN THE BACK (I.E. TSB# SU006-07). THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS REGARDING THIS ISSUE ONLINE AND SEVERAL DOZEN REPORTS BEING ADDRESSED TO TOYOTA AND THE CURRENT SERVICE BULLETIN HAS NOT BEEN APPLIED TO THIS YEAR MODEL. *TR

NHTSA ID

10480837

Incident

Sep 27, 2012

Mileage

5,000 mi

MY 2012 TOYOTA TACOMA TRD OFF ROAD DOES NOT MEET ITS PAYLOAD CAPACITY. IT HAS A LIMIT OF 1240 LBS AND ROUTINELY BOTTOMS OUT WITH 300-500 LBS IN THE BED OF THE TRUCK. TOYOTA KNOWS ABOUT THE ISSUE HAS ISSUED TSBS ON THE LEAF SPRINGS BUT REFUSES TO SOLVE THE ISSUE ON THE NEW 2012 TRUCKS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10468883

Incident

Apr 1, 2012

Mileage

5,000 mi

AT 300 MILES I NOTICED UPON DOWNSHIFTING ( I BELIEVE 3-2 OR 2-1) A RUMBLESTRIP VIBRATION FEELING. I TOOK THE TRUCK TO THE DEALER AND THEY SAID IT WAS NORMAL. IT STILL OCCURS EVERYTIME I DOWNSHIFT (SOMETIMES STRONGER FEELING THEN OTHER TIMES) I RESEARCHED PREVIOUS YEARS WITH THE SAME COMPLAINT.. IT CANT BE HEALTHY FOR THE TRANSMISSION CLUTCHES. I NOW HAVE 1300 MILES...STILL HAPPENING...ANY THOUGHTS? *TR

NHTSA ID

10450425

Incident

Feb 3, 2012

Mileage

323 mi