Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2021 Toyota Tacoma submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 13 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
There are three concerns in this write up: at 117000 miles the blind spot monitoring system has fails and will cost $300 to repair. More concerning is that it was recommended I replace the Power Steering Lines at a cost of $927 and the Transmission Lines at a cost of $797 due to severe rusting and corrosion. Its recommended before they rust through and break/leak.
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while driving 10 MPH, after depressing the accelerator pedal and then attempting to depress the brake pedal to make a left turn, the vehicle failed to respond as intended. An independent mechanic was contacted. The contact pulled over into a church parking lot. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed; however, the diagnostic result was unknown. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 47,000.
Transmission constantly seeking a gear usually 5th to 6th while using Cruize control. At times over-reving to near redline. End up having to manuall downshift to fourth back and fourt to drive. End up shifting more frequently that would if driving my mauual 6 speed transmission tacoma with the V6 as well.
1. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The "coolant bypass hose/joint" (Part #: 16356-31051) located at the rear of the engine, connecting the two heads, failed. This part is made of plastic and is known to be a weak point in the 3.5L V6 (2GR-FKS) engine. The failed component is still in the vehicle and can be inspected upon request. 2. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? A coolant leak from this component can lead to engine overheating, which could cause sudden engine failure while driving, increasing the risk of an accident. Since the leak is not easily visible under the hood, a driver may not notice the issue until significant overheating occurs, potentially leaving them stranded in unsafe conditions. 3. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, the issue was confirmed by the dealership after an inspection. They identified the coolant bypass hose/joint as the source of the leak. Many users on the forum TacomaWorld have also experienced the same issue with their vehicles. 4. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives, or others? The vehicle was inspected by the dealership, but it has not been inspected by Toyota directly, the police, or an insurance representative. 5. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? There were no warning lamps or dashboard messages indicating a problem. The only symptom was a small puddle of coolant on the ground a week after purchasing the vehicle. Upon further inspection, a trail of coolant was observed running down onto the passenger side of the transmission bell housing. Would've costed me 1,000 dollars if didn't have warranty.
I was idling in line for food when I noticed my thermostat gauge going slightly higher in temp. All of a sudden I hear a loud hissing sound and smoke coming off of the engine as well as a chemical burn smell. I pulled over to the side in fear that a fire could potentially start. After some research I’ve concluded that it is the rear coolant bypass joint. It was a high stress situation where my family was in my vehicle. Please look into this!
Vehicle purchased less than year ago. Vehicle has approximately 10,000 miles on it. I am on my second rear differential replacement. The original and the first replacement were both making a whining noise. Dealer inspected and found metal shavings in both. There are numerous complaints of similar situation on Tacoma owner websites. A new vehicle that is less than a year old should not be on its 3rd rear differential. A failure of the rear differential at high speed or in congested traffic could have catastrophic consequences for occupants as well as any other nearby vehicles.
The truck will accelerate on its own during highway speeds of 60+ MPH and residential 25+ MPH. Also accelerates when coming up to a stop sign causing me to almost hit a child in a crosswalk. There was no cruise control engaged during the incidents. I took it into the Autonation toyota dealership twice and they said they could not reproduce and or duplicate the problem. It is very frightening when it happens as it lasts between 4-5 seconds if you do not apply the brakes hard. There has not been any warning lights or anything that comes up on the dash board.
My 2021 Toyota Tacoma is experiencing these exact conditions as discussed in this TSB. T12he only difference between the vehicle in this TSB and mine is I have a 2 wheel drive Tacoma and this TSB is for the 4 wheel drive model. 2021 Toyota Tacoma power train TSB (Bulletin T-SB-0124-20) Bulletin Date:Dec. 15, 2020 Component:Power train. Bulletin Summary:TSB: some 2016 ? 2021 model year tacoma vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission may exhibit a vibration under deceleration (coasting or braking) between 30 ? 10 mph. This vibration is felt in the seat, floorboard, and/or steering w Vehicles covered in this TSB: 2016 Toyota Tacoma, 2017 Toyota Tacoma, 2018 Toyota Tacoma, 2019 Toyota Tacoma, 2020 Toyota Tacoma, 2021 Toyota Tacoma.
I was my 2021 Toyota Tacoma home after work on the highway at night at 11:00 pm. While on the highways there was highway construction and traffic was coming to a stop. I was driving in the slow lane doing 60-65. As I approached the stopped traffic i let my foot of the accelerator pedal and put my foot on the brake pedal to slow down, as i did this the rpm's jumped up to 4000 and the truck went to take off full speed on its own. I held the brake pedal down to the floor and i shifted the truck from drive mode to sport mode than back to drive mode. ( I panicked) but soon as i did that the engine stopped accelerating thankfully because i had many stopped cars in front of me that i would have plowed into. I love my truck but I am not scared to drive it always have my hand on the shift waiting for it to happen again possibly.
When starting and stopping there is a clunking noise coming from the rear of the vehicle.
Visible oil leak or staining in rear differential is consistent with a prior recall in 2016-2016 model years as described in this document https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2017/RCAK-17V285-5030.pdf. This is a 2021 model year vehicle, purchased brand new in January 27, 2021, with less than 10,000 miles. This document indicates that "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."
VEHICLE WILL NOT HOLD 6TH GEAR WHILE IN CRUISE CONTROL. VEHICLE WILL SUDDENLY DOWN SHIFT TO 5TH AND SOMETIMES 4TH. THIS MAKES THE VEHICLE SURGE FORWARD ABRUPTLY.
UPON ACCELERATION VEHICLE WILL HAVE DELAYED ENGAGEMENT, UP TO AND INCLUDING A NEAR STALL OR STUTTERING. HAS LED TO SEVERAL NEAR MISSES (X2). THE TSS SYSTEM TAKES OVER AND DOES IT'S THING VERSUS ALLOWING THE DRIVER TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE FOR THE CONDITIONS. EXAMPLE WOULD BE AUTOMATIC APPLICATION OF BRAKES DUE TO DEER IN ROAD CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL ON AN ICY ROAD WAY. DRIVER RELEASED GAS PEDAL AND WAS COASTING AS DEER WAS CROSSING. DUE TO BRAKES BEING AUTOMATICALLY APPLIED, VEHICLE BEGAN TO SLIDE, DEER BECAME SPOOKED AND STOPPED CROSSING, VEHICLE ENDED UP PARTIALLY IN THE DITCH. AFTER MULTIPLE OCCURRENCES (5+ MEMORABLE), DRIVER HAS LOST ALL FAITH IN THE SAFETY AND RELIABILITY OF THIS VEHICLE AND DOES NOT TRANSPORT PASSENGERS AS THEY FEAR FOR THE PASSENGER'S SAFETY. DRIVER ONLY UTILIZES VEHICLE BECAUSE IT IS THEIR LAST AND ONLY MEANS OF TRANSPORT.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .