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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2021 Toyota Tacoma — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 81 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

81
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
9
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
0
Involved Fire
owner-reported
15 / 1
Injuries / Deaths
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Toyota Tacoma — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

93 complaints

101 complaints

323 complaints

242 complaints

209 complaints

219 complaints

90 complaints

81 complaints

59 complaints

54 complaints

152 complaints

106 complaints

0 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Power Train 14 reports
Engine 12 reports
Service Brakes 12 reports
Unknown Or Other 12 reports
Forward Collision Avoidance 9 reports
Electrical System 9 reports
Air Bags 7 reports
Structure 6 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Electrical System ODI 11707691 12/30/2025

When vehicle is driven at 85 mph (cruise control set) speedometer jolts. Speed must be reduced to 84 to resolve issue.

Air Bags ODI 11707694 12/30/2025

Vehicle was in car accident where airbags did not deploy.

Vehicle Speed Control ODI 11499295 12/28/2022

I have experienced short periods with my Tacoma accelerating when my foot wasn't on the gas pedal. The floor mat was pinned down correctly and not in the way. I was turning left and my truck started to speed up like the gas was being pressed. I had to hit the brakes as a red light was coming and vehicles were stopped at the Red light. I have also had another issue with the tr…

Service Brakes ODI 11561742 12/25/2023

While driving on a freeway I step down on the as needed I got a message on my dash board that my braking power is low Stop in a safe place and see Owen's manual, A few seconds later I lost my brakes I have to use my hand brak to stop, came to a complete stop and called a tow truck, upon arrival the tow truck driver inspected my truck and realized there were brake fluid leaking…

Fuel/propulsion System ODI 11560532 12/17/2023

High-pressure and low pressure fuel pumps. Yes it is available for inspection. The truck cannot maintain posted, speed limit, causing a potential rear end collision. I reported the problem they replaced the high-pressure fuel pump for free and then said the low pressure fuel pump needs replaced the truck only has 40,000 miles. I think there’s a defect in this part that could c…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2021 Toyota Tacoma, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2021 Toyota Tacoma reliable?
Owners have filed 81 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2021 Toyota Tacoma, most often about power train. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Toyota Tacoma years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.