IllustrationWHILE DRIVING ON THE MASSACHUSETTS TURNPIKE (ROUTE 90) MY TOYOTA AVALON SUDDENLY TURNED TO THE LEFT (DRIVER'S SIDE) AND STRUCK THE HIGHWAY MEDIAN. I HAD NO CONTROL OF MY AVALON AND THE VEHICLE WAS UNRESPONSIVE TO TURNING THE WHEEL AND TO BRAKING. *TR
2002 Toyota Avalon
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2002 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
80–25K
1325–50K
1150–75K
1175–100K
14100–150K
19150K+
76 reports with mileage · 40 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 35 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
32 crash reports2 fire reports13 injury reports
Suspension complaints
3 reportsI PURCHASED A CERTIFIED USED CAR FROM IRA TOYOTA AND SINCE I'VE OWNED IT 4 THINGS HAVE NEVER WORKED: 1. THE SEAT BELTS ALWAYS STICK AND HAVE BEEN REPLACED AND STILL DO NOT WORK. 2. THE DRIVER'S SEAT DOES NOT MOVE FORWARD AND BACK. THE DEALER LOOKED AT IT MORE THAN TWICE AND STILL WILL NOT FIX IT. 3. …
Read full complaint
I PURCHASED A CERTIFIED USED CAR FROM IRA TOYOTA AND SINCE I'VE OWNED IT 4 THINGS HAVE NEVER WORKED: 1. THE SEAT BELTS ALWAYS STICK AND HAVE BEEN REPLACED AND STILL DO NOT WORK. 2. THE DRIVER'S SEAT DOES NOT MOVE FORWARD AND BACK. THE DEALER LOOKED AT IT MORE THAN TWICE AND STILL WILL NOT FIX IT. 3. THE STEERING WHEEL DOES NOT TURN SMOOTHLY AND THE DEALER DOES NOT KNOW WHY. 4. THE VEHICLE CONTINUOUSLY TURNS TO THE LEFT, EVEN AFTER ALL NEW, SUPERIOR WHEELS AND TIRES, NEW STRUTS AND TWO FRONT END ALIGNMENTS. THE DEALER: IRA TOYOTA COULD FIND NOTHING WRONG. *TR
FROM THE TIME OF PURCHASE, VEHICLE PULLS TO THE LEFT. ON ONE OCCASION, AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE WAS UNSTABLE MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO MAINTAIN IN ONE LANE. DEALER WORKED ON VEHICLE FIVE TIMES AND EACH TIME PROBLEM WOULD REOCCUR. CONSUMER IS IN PROCESS OF ARBITRATION. MODEL/XLS *TT *SCC
Official recalls
110V345000 · Steering
Jul 29, 2010
TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2000-2004 AVALON VEHICLES. DUE TO IMPROPER CASTING OF THE STEERING LOCK BAR, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT A MINUTE CRACK MAY DEVELOP ON THE SURFACE OF THE LOCK BAR. SUCH A CRACK MAY EXPAND OVER A LONG PERIOD OF REPEATED LOCK AND UNLOCK OPERATIONS, AND EVENTUALLY THE LOCK BAR COULD BREAK.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: SHOULD THE STEERING LOCK BAR BREAK, THE STEERING WHEEL WOULD LOCK AND THE DRIVER WOULD LOSE THE ABILITY TO STEER THE VEHICLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STEERING INTERLOCK DEVICE FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 7, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.