IllustrationCONSUMER STATES THAT WHILE TRYING TO PUT THE VEHICLE IN PARK VEHICLE WOULD ACCELERATE. *AK
1999 Toyota Avalon
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1999 Toyota Avalon do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 101.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Avalon 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
50–25K
925–50K
750–75K
375–100K
4100–150K
6150K+
34 reports with mileage · 58 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.
- Air Bags. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Suspension. Review the 14 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
15 crash reports1 fire reports7 injury reports
What owners actually said
92 reportsWHILE MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN TRAVELING ~ 20 MPH, A '89 HEAVY AUTO TRAVELING @ 48 MPH IMPACTED PASSENGER SIDE OF CONSUMERS VEHICLE, SLAMMING CONSUMERS VEHICLE INTO A '94 HEAVY AUTO STOPPED AT LIGHT, TOTALING ALL THREE AUTOS. NONE OF THE AIR BAGS ON CONSUMERS 1999 TOYOTA AVALON DEPLOYED. DRIVER SUSTAINED EXTENSIVE LEG/HIP/BACK,…
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WHILE MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN TRAVELING ~ 20 MPH, A '89 HEAVY AUTO TRAVELING @ 48 MPH IMPACTED PASSENGER SIDE OF CONSUMERS VEHICLE, SLAMMING CONSUMERS VEHICLE INTO A '94 HEAVY AUTO STOPPED AT LIGHT, TOTALING ALL THREE AUTOS. NONE OF THE AIR BAGS ON CONSUMERS 1999 TOYOTA AVALON DEPLOYED. DRIVER SUSTAINED EXTENSIVE LEG/HIP/BACK, AND CHEST INJURIES. TOYOTA OFFICIALS SAY THE AIR BAGS WERE IN NORMAL FUNCTIONING CONDITION. *NLM
NAR 05/21/2003 *MR THE AIR BAG FLASHED REPEATEDLY FOR 60 MILES. THE CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER, HOWEVER THEY WERE UNABLE TO DETECT ANY PROBLEM CODES. *JB
THE VEHICLES AIR BAG SENSOR FAILED WHICH CAUSED THE AIR BAG LIGHT TO ILLUMINATE. *NLM
FRONT SUSPENSION MAKES A CRUNCHING NOISE WHEN EXPANDED OR CONTRACTED. DEALER STATED THAT THEY "THINK" IT MIGHT BE THE STRUT MOUNTS. VERY COSTLY ESTIMATE TO TRY SOMETHING THAT MIGHT WORK. I'VE SEEN OTHER COMPLAINTS REGARDING THIS AND WANTED TO REGISTER MINE ALONG WITH THE OTHERS. *NLM
MY AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT HAS COME ON FREQUENTLY WHILE DRIVING. THE OWNERS MANUAL STATES TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER IMMEDIATELY. ONCE THERE, THE DEALER STATES THERE IS NO CODE STORED IN THE COMPUTER AND THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO. ONCE THE CAR IS RESTARTED, THE LIGHT IS OFF, BUT COMES ON AGAIN A FEW DAYS LATER. THIS HAS HAPPE…
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MY AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT HAS COME ON FREQUENTLY WHILE DRIVING. THE OWNERS MANUAL STATES TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER IMMEDIATELY. ONCE THERE, THE DEALER STATES THERE IS NO CODE STORED IN THE COMPUTER AND THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO. ONCE THE CAR IS RESTARTED, THE LIGHT IS OFF, BUT COMES ON AGAIN A FEW DAYS LATER. THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES. I AM WORRIED OF AN AIR BAG FAILURE DUE TO THIS INDICATOR LIGHT, BUT THE DEALER CAN'T HELP BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF STORED CODES. *NLM
THE CONSUMER HAD AN AIR BAG ON/OFF SWITCH INSTALLED BY AUTHORIZED COMPANY. THE SWITCH HAS NOT FUNCTIONED PROPERLY SINCE INSTALLATION. THE INSTALLER ATTEMPTED TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM FOUR TIMES SINCE INSTALLATION BUT HAS BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL. *NLM
AIRBAG LIGHT CONTINUES TO COME ON INDICATING A MALFUNCTION. TOYOTA REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE A PROBLEM EXISTS.
AIRBAG LIGHT ON DASH COMES ON INTERMITTENTLY WHILE DRIVING. DEALER UNABLE TO FIND PROBLEM ON 5 ATTEMPTS BRINGING CAR IN WITH AIRBAG LIGHT ON. MANUFACTURER NOT CONCERNED. MR
REAR OCCUPANTS ARE NOT ABLE TO RESTRAIN THEMSELVES BECAUSE SEAT BELTS ARE HIDDEN BETWEEN THE SEATS.DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK MANUFACTURER MODIFIED THE DESIGN ON LATER MODELS BUT NO RETROFIT ON EXISTING VEHICLE. *TT
Official recalls
198V278000 · Electrical SYSTEM:IGNITION:ANTI-THEFT:CONTROL Module
Oct 19, 1998
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, MINI VANS AND PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A THEFT DETERRENT SYSTEMS (TDS) SUPPLIED BY AUDIOVOX CORPORATION AND DISTRIBUTED BY SOUTHEAST TOYOTA DISTRIBUTORS, INC. IN THE STATES OF ALABAMA, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA. THE ALARM WIRING HARNESS PLUGS INTO THE VEHICLE'S IGNITION SWITCH AND THE VEHICLE'S IGNITION SWITCH WIRING HARNESS PLUGS INTO THE ALARM HARNESS TO COMPLETE THE CIRCUIT. A PERCENTAGE OF THE FEMALE TERMINALS USED IN THE ALARM CONNECTOR WERE FOUND TO BE DEFECTIVE, CAUSING AN 'OPEN CIRCUIT' CONDITION WHEN MATED TO THE MALE IGNITION SWITCH TERMINALS.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS CONDITION CAN CAUSE INTERMITTENT PERFORMANCE OF THE VEHICLE'S ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS SUCH AS THE DASH WARNING LIGHTS AND/OR HVAC FAN SPEED CONTROLS. ALSO, THE VEHICLE MAY NOT RUN SMOOTHLY AND COULD STALL.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE DATE CODE LABEL ON THE SECURITY SYSTEM HARNESS AND ANY DISPLAYING THE MANUFACTURING/FINAL DATE CODE WILL BE REPLACED WITH NEWLY PRODUCED HARNESSES. THE DATE CODES ARE: RAV4 - 6/24/98, 6/25/98, 6/26/98; SIENNA - 6/25/98, 6/26/98; AND AVALON - 6/30/98, 7/1/98, 8/31/98, 9/1/98, 9/2/98, AND 9/3/98.
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
1DP02004 · Engine Seizure
Opened Apr 30, 2002 · Closed Jun 20, 2002
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine And Engine Cooling
No summary supplied.