IllustrationBOTH REAR LEAF SPRINGS CRACKED, THIS IS A PROBLEM TOYOTA IS AWARE OF BUT WON'T REPAIR AT THEIR EXPENSE, TOYOTA CLAIMS IT IS NOT DANGEROUS, PERHAPS AFTER FIRST DEATH THEY WILL TAKE NOTICE
1996 Toyota Tacoma
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1996 Toyota Tacoma do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 228.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Tacoma 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
10–25K
225–50K
450–75K
1075–100K
22100–150K
34150K+
73 reports with mileage · 180 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.
- Suspension. Review the 87 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 64 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
20 crash reports1 fire reports10 injury reports
What owners actually said
253 reportsREAR LEAF SPRING BROKE. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED. PLEASE PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.*AK
UNDER NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS REAR LEAF SPRINGS BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT SIDES BROKE AND SEPARATED.*AK (TIRESIZE: 10.5 30 15)( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: 10.5 30 15 )
REAR MIDDLE LEAF SPRING BROKE IN HALF, CAUSEING VEHICLE TO VIBRATE WHEN DRIVING.*AK
RIGHT REAR LEAF SPRING SNAPPED WHILE DRIVING, CAUSING IT TO SWING OUT OF ASSEMBLY, WHICH COULD HAVE GOTTEN CAUGHT ON BRAKE LINE OR CAUSED A TIRE TO BLOWOUT. *AK *TT
BOTH REAR LEAF SPRINGS BROKE, CAUSING SPRING TO CUT INTO BRAKE LINE. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
VEHICLE EXPERIENCED BROKEN LEAF SPRING DUE TO WEIGHT OF TRUCK BED AND UNDERCARRIAGE, AN EX-TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THIS VEHICLE ALONG WITH 1995-1997 MODELS WERE MADE WITH PASSENGER CAR SUSPENSIONS. *SLC
THE AIRBAG HAS NEVER DEPLOYED AND HAS NEVER NEEDED TO. IT SIMPLY STOPPED WORKING. SHOULDN'T THIS BE A RECALL BY TOYOTA? AS THE FEDS REQUIRE THIS SYSTEM, SHOULDN'T I RECEIVE ASSISTANCE FROM THEM. OR, CAN I HAVE THE AIRBAG DISENGAGED COMPLETELY? THANKS, JOHN M. PEEPLES. *AK
WHILE TURNING LEFT INTO A PARKING SPACE LEFT FRONT OF VEHICLE FELL TO GROUND. DEALER VERIFIED THAT FRONT LEFT BALL JOINT BROKE. SIMILAR TO RECALL 96V129000. *AK
THROTTLE VALVE CABLE BROKE DURING NORMAL USE OF THE TRUCK. NOTICED A CHANGE IN TRANSMISSION FUNCTION AND THE VEHICLE WOULD SHIFT TOO SOON AND WAS NOT ABLE TO SPEED UP NORMALLY. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD SHIFT FROM FIRST TO THIRD GEAR AT 10MPH AND THEN TO 4TH GEAR AT 30 MPH. IT WOULD BYPASS 2ND GEAR SO I HAD TO SHIFT IT MANUALLY…
Read full complaint
THROTTLE VALVE CABLE BROKE DURING NORMAL USE OF THE TRUCK. NOTICED A CHANGE IN TRANSMISSION FUNCTION AND THE VEHICLE WOULD SHIFT TOO SOON AND WAS NOT ABLE TO SPEED UP NORMALLY. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD SHIFT FROM FIRST TO THIRD GEAR AT 10MPH AND THEN TO 4TH GEAR AT 30 MPH. IT WOULD BYPASS 2ND GEAR SO I HAD TO SHIFT IT MANUALLY IN ORDER TO ACHEIVE A SPEEDY ENOUGH START TO GET ON THE FREEWAY. ALSO OCCURRED IN MY BROTHERS 96 TACOMA ABOUT 4 MONTHS AGO AND IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IT IS TOO MUCH OF A COINCIDENCE FOR IT TO BE OCCURRING IN THE SAME MODEL AND YEAR TRUCK ALMOST AT THE SAME TIME. TOOK IT IN FOR REPAIR AND THE CABLE WAS RUSTED SO IT SEEMS LIKE IT IS EXPOSED SOMEWHERE IN THE ENGINE THUS CAUSING IT TO GET WEATHERED AND BREAK. REPAIRS WERE OVER $300 DOLLARS AT DEALERSHIP AND I THINK IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED UNDER SOME WARRANTY SINCE IT SEEMS LIKE THAT PART SHOULD HAVE HAD A HOUSING TO PROTECT IT FROM BEING WEATHERED AND RUSTED. I BELIEVE THAT MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING TO GO THROUGH THIS SAME THING WITH THIS SAME MODEL AND YEAR TRUCK SINCE IT HAPPENED TWICE IN THE SAME FAMILY HERE. *AK
Official recalls
196V129000 · Suspension:front
Jul 10, 1996
UNDER CERTAIN DRIVING CONDITIONS, THE FRONT SUSPENSION SUPPORT CAN CRACK LEADING TO FAILURE OF THE SUPPORT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS CONDITION CAN RESULT IN LOSS OF VEHICLE CONTROL.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE SUSPENSION SUPPORT.
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
1EA97015 · Turn Signal Failures
Opened Jul 22, 1997 · Closed Sep 21, 1998
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Exterior Lighting
There is no summary currently available