2013 Toyota Venza Owner Complaints

Upon approaching my vehicle and unlocking it, the drivers side mirror courtesy light wire caught on fire and started smoking. My safety and the safety of others was put at risk because had I not been there my entire car could have caught on fire as well as any thing or anyone around or in my vehicle. No one has inspected the vehicle at this time. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to failure. They first appeared the moment it happened.

NHTSA ID

11732171

Incident

Mar 4, 2026

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Venza. The contact stated that while reversing, the rear-view camera displayed a distorted image. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact referenced an unknown recall with a similar failure description; however, the VIN was not under recall. In addition, the contact stated that due to the failure, the contact was concerned about crashing into any objects behind the vehicle while reversing. The contact stated that the rear-view display was not viewable. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ID

11704769

Incident

Sep 12, 2025

When the Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) light comes on, it also cuts power to the engine even when the car is moving at full highway speed. This can pose a great danger when crossing bridges or anytime while driving the vehicle in traffic.

NHTSA ID

11699537

Incident

Jul 10, 2025

Fuel pump fail causing the car to stall out going 75 miles an hour on the highway

NHTSA ID

11646588

Incident

Feb 14, 2025

2013 Venza pasenger side and back leak very bad when it rains

NHTSA ID

11556852

Incident

Mar 1, 2023

Subject: Formal Complaint Regarding Potential Safety Issue - 2009-2015 Toyota Venza Models Dear National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), I am writing to formally report a potential safety concern related to the 2009-2015 Toyota Venza Models. The issue pertains to a discernible creaking sound originating from the turn signal stalk when the turn signals are engaged and the steering wheel is turned. Upon thorough examination, it has been identified that the source of this noise is the clock spring, a crucial airbag component designated by its yellow color and distinguished by two orange and yellow wires. It is imperative to emphasize that the clock spring, being a vital element of the airbag system, plays a pivotal role in ensuring occupant safety. Unfortunately, the persistent "clicking/ratcheting" noise associated with the turn signals in these models has been observed to have adverse consequences over time. This prolonged issue leads to clock spring failure, subsequently triggering the activation of the airbag light. It has come to my attention that Toyota is aware of this concern, yet no remedial action has been taken, purportedly due to the relatively low sales volume of the Venza. It is notable that this noise issue is widespread among used Venzas, signifying a systemic problem that necessitates prompt attention. In circumstances where vital airbag components are intricately connected to sensitive elements like the clock spring, the presence of abnormal noises should be considered a cause for concern. Given the critical role of these components in ensuring the efficacy of the airbag system, I urge the NHTSA to investigate this matter thoroughly. The safety and well-being of vehicle occupants should always be of paramount importance, irrespective of sales figures. Your intervention in addressing and rectifying this potential safety issue would undoubtedly contribute to enhancing the overall safety standards of the affected Toyota Venza Models.

NHTSA ID

11548549

Incident

Oct 6, 2023

Sunroof/moonroof assembly leaks heavily in rain, makes cracking sound over bumps Dealer/manufacturer will not fix, they want $4600 to repair

NHTSA ID

11548235

Incident

Oct 1, 2021

I complained to a Toyota Dealer about this problem in 6-2017. The took it for a road test and the car did not do it and it did not record a code. So they could not find a solution. Intermittently and without warning the electronic link between the gas pedal and the engine is inoperative for 3-5 seconds. During this period the car is not under power, it is coasting and depressing the gas pedal has no effect on the engine speed. After this period the electronic link is automatically restored and the engine is again responsive to pressure on the gas pedal. I have been dealing with this scenario ever since I purchased this car in 8-2013. It seems to be happening more frequently. Needless to say, it is a very dangerous situation. I no longer feel safe driving this car. .

NHTSA ID

11470724

Incident

Aug 21, 2013

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Venza. The contact stated when starting the vehicle, the contact noticed that the air bag warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the passenger’s side seat belt warning light remained illuminated with a passenger in the seat. The contact stated that the driver’s side and passenger’s side air bags seat belts warning lights recently started to remain illuminated. The local dealer was contacted about inspecting the vehicle however, the contact declined after being provided a cost to do the diagnostic test. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

NHTSA ID

11437835

Incident

Jun 2, 2021

Mileage

40,000 mi

Both front lower control arms were cracked. Dealer kept old parts. These parts help control the steering to the wheels. The cracks were confirmed by the Dealer only. The car was not inspected by any other entities. There were no warning indicators, the problem was founded during a routine multipoint inspection.

NHTSA ID

11433031

Incident

Aug 20, 2021

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Venza. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V257000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated while starting the vehicle. The dealer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that parts were not available. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000.

NHTSA ID

11427590

Incident

May 13, 2021

Mileage

91,000 mi

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Venza. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V257000 (air bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The local dealer and the manufacturer were made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ID

11425673

Incident

Jul 20, 2021

Internal Fault of fuel pump assembly. With NO prior warnings of messages or warning lights from the dash, nor any poor performance issues of starting or running of the engine the fuel pump failed all at once while driving on an expressway at 65 mph and the engine shut down leaving me without any control of my vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who confirmed that the fuel pump had an internal failure and the vehicle is disabled. No Recall has been issues by Toyota for this model year. An extremely dangerous situation that Toyota is not properly addressing.

NHTSA ID

11418575

Incident

May 20, 2021

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2013 TOYOTA VENZA. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING AT 20 MPH, ANOTHER VEHICLE HAD IMPACTED INTO THE CONTACTS VEHICLE ON THE DRIVER SIDE; NONE OF THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. THE CONTACT STATED MULTIPLE INJURIES (THE CONTACT WAS THE ONLY ONE IN THEIR VEHICLE). THE CONTACT WOKE UP IN THE HOSPITAL WHILE RECEIVING MEDICAL CARE FOR HEADACHES, BRUISING ON THE LEFT ARM, LOWER BACK BRUISING AND BRUISING ON THE CHEST WHICH RESULTED IN INTERNAL BLEEDING. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT STATED THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO INSURANCE LOT WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED WITH BEING DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT INFORMED OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 160,000.

NHTSA ID

11416165

Incident

Apr 21, 2021

Mileage

160,000 mi

THE AIRBAG WARNING SYSTEM LIGHT CAME ON IN DEC 2019. I PURCHASED A DTC READER BLUE DRIVER) AND SCANNED THE VEHICLE. AIRBAG CODE B1698 REGISTERED. I SWITCHED LEFT DOOR SENSOR WITH THE RIGHT DOOR SENSOR AND STILL THE LEFT DOOR SENSOR CODE REMAINED. I DISMANTLED THE CENTER CONSOLE, LEFT AND RIGHT DOOR PANELS, ETC. BUT COULD NOT RESOLVE THE MALFUNCTION CODE. I FINALLY GAVE UP AND HAVE DRIVEN WITHOUT AN ACTIVE AIRBAG SYSTEM. I'M FILING THIS COMPLAINT IN SUPPORT OF YOUR RECALL FOR THE TOYOTA VENZA AIRBAG WIRING.

NHTSA ID

11408354

Incident

Dec 5, 2019

ERROR MESSAGE: CHECK SRS AIRBAG SYSTEM LIGHT CAME ON. I WAS DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 50 MPH. TOOK CAR TO MY MECHANIC WHO HOOKED IT TO THE COMPUTER DIAGNOSTIC MACHINE. HE SAID THIS WAS THE 2ND TIME THE LIGHT CAME ON (FIRST TIME FOR ME SINCE AUGUST 2014) PER THE DIAGNOSTIC MACHINE HISTORY. TOOK TO DEALERSHIP 1/23/2021

NHTSA ID

11389591

Incident

Jan 21, 2021

Mileage

94,801 mi

TURNED ON ENGINE WENT TO PUSH UP THE DRIVER SIDE SUN VISOR IT WOULD NOT CLICK INTO PLACE I TRIED AGAIN AND THE VISOR JUST DROPPED AND WOULD NOT GO UP AGAIN. IT APPEARS THAT THE MECHANISM TO HOLD THE VISOR UP IS PULLING THE FABRIC OUT FROM UNDER THE MIRROR TOO. THIS HAPPENED 8/27/2020. THERE IS NO REASON FOR THIS TO HAPPEN SINCE THIS CAR IS CARED FOR BY THE ORIGINAL OWNER.

NHTSA ID

11351756

Incident

Aug 27, 2020

THIS CAR HAS 166000 MILES ON IT AND ALWAYS HAD A DEALER OIL CHANGES. IT NOW IS USING A QUART OFF OIL EVERY 1000 MILES OR LESS. THERE ARE NO OIL LEAKS TO BE FOUND AND THE DEALER ADMITS THAT THAT IS TO MUCH OIL CONSUMPTION BUT CANNOT HELP ME WITH ANY KIND OF FACTORY REPAIRS. FOR A MODERN ENGINE THIS IS WAY TO MUCH OIL USE. I HAVE A 1990 TOYOTA CAMRY WITH 522000 MILES AND USES LESS THAN 1/2 A QUART BETWEEN OIL CHANGES. TOYOTA HAS REALLY GONE DOWN HILL ON THIS ENGINE DESIGN.

NHTSA ID

11307359

Incident

Oct 9, 2019

Mileage

162,000 mi

I HAVE TO ADD ONE QUART OF OIL EVERY 1200 MILES. DEALER STATES THIS IS NORMAL

NHTSA ID

11287702

Incident

Oct 17, 2019

BOUGHT THE CAR USED, THE VERY FIRST DAY AFTER PURCHASE THERE WAS SMOKE COMING FROM THE FRONT BRAKE AREA. NO WARNING LIGHTS OR ANYTHING ELSE WEIRD, JUST SMOKE. NOW, ABOUT A MONTH LATER, THE BRAKES SOMETIMES FEEL AS IF THEY'RE LOCKING UP AND NOT LETTING GO, BUT ALSO NOT STOPPING THE VEHICLE PROPERLY. SMOKE IS ALSO COMING OUT OF THE FRONT BRAKE AREA AGAIN. SEEING AS THIS IS 2019 AND IT'S A 2013 CAR, THERE IS NO WARRANTY LEFT ON THE CAR. I'VE DONE SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND SOME INFORMATION ABOUT AN INTERNAL LEAK INSIDE THE MASTER CYLINDER. A PROBLEM THAT IS HARD TO REPLICATE FOR A DEALERSHIP, WARRANTY OR NOT. DECIDED TO LOOK FOR RECALL INFO ABOUT THE BRAKES FOR THIS CAR WHEN I CHOSE TO MAKE A COMPLAINT TO THE NHTSA. I WILL ALSO NOTIFY TOYOTA ABOUT THE PROBLEM. I'M HOPING THAT BY REPLACING THE MASTER CYLINDER, THE PROBLEM WILL BE SOLVED.

NHTSA ID

11219069

Incident

Jun 10, 2019

Mileage

154,000 mi

I CURRENTLY DRIVE A 2013 VENZA, UPON ACCELERATION THE TRANSMISSION STUTTERS. THERE IS A RECALL FOR THE TOYOTA CAMRY WITH THE SAME EXACT ENGINE, BUT NOT ON THE VENZA. I AM ALSO WRITING TOYOTA ABOUT THIS ISSUE. IT IS JUST GETTING WORSE.

NHTSA ID

11121891

Incident

Jan 4, 2018

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 TOYOTA VENZA. UPON ENTERING THE VEHICLE, WATER WAS DISCOVERED ON THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE FLOORMAT. THE CONTACT HEARD WATER SWISHING AROUND UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD. IN ADDITION, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE DEALER (BREDEMANN TOYOTA, 1301 W DEMPSTER ST, PARK RIDGE, IL 60068, (847) 655-1435) ADVISED THE CONTACT TO SCHEDULE A DIAGNOSTIC AND REPAIR APPOINTMENT. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND A CASE WAS OPENED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 60,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ID

11109852

Incident

Jun 13, 2018

Mileage

60,000 mi

THE EPS (ELECTRICAL POWER STEERING) WARNING LIGHT COMES ON INTERMITTENTLY. THE NAVIGATION SCREEN GOES BLANK AND THE SATELLITE RADIO TURNS OFF AND THEN IT STARTS BACK UP. IT HAPPENED THREE TIMES IN ONE DAY.

NHTSA ID

11093778

Incident

May 12, 2018

Mileage

92,704 mi

PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN JANUARY 2014 AND WITH LESS THAN 40K MILES THE DOOR ACTUATOR ALREADY FAILED (DRIVER DOOR AND REAR DOOR PASSENGER SIDE). I JUST GOT IT FIXED AND TOYOTA DID NOT CHARGE ME FOR THE PARTS BUT I WAS CHARGED FOR THE DIAGNOSTICS AND THE LABOR. NOW ANOTHER DOOR ACTUATOR FAILED (PASSENGER SIDE FRONT DOOR). I COULDN'T SEE ANY RECALLS ABOUT THE DOOR ACTUATOR BUT HAVING 3 OF THEM FAILED IS JUST NOT NORMAL. I'M NOT SURE IF I'M THE ONLY ONE HAVING PROBLEMS LIKE THIS.

NHTSA ID

11090496

Incident

Apr 27, 2018

WHILE DRIVING ON A WET 50 DEGREE NIGHT IN JANUARY 12 T AND LOST TOTAL VISABILITY WHEN ENTERING LYNDON VERMON GOING AROUND 20 MPH AND RAN INTO A TELEPHONE POLE AND THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. MY HUSBAND, THE DRIVER, SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES INCLUDING A BROKEN STERNUM AND 5 BROKEN RIBS AND CONSIDERABLE INTERNAL BLEEDING. THE POLICE SAID THE VEHICLE WAS TOTALED.

NHTSA ID

11062646

Incident

Jan 12, 2018

Mileage

55,000 mi