2018 Toyota Tacoma
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Service brakes is the leading concern among 206 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 15th highest complaint count among 26 Tacoma model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 7 involved a crash. 2 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpNov 4, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 4Runner, 2019-2020 Avalon, 2019 Corolla Hatchback, 2017-2019 Highlander, 2018-2020 Camry, 2020 Corolla, 2018-2019 Land Cruiser, 2017-2020 Tacoma, 2019-2020 RAV4, 2019-2020 Sequoia, 2017-2020 Sienna, 2019-2020 Tundra, 2018-2020 Lexus ES350, 2017 Lexus GS200t, 2017-2019 Lexus GS350, 2019 Lexus GS300, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500h, 2019-2020 Lexus LS500, 2018-2019 Lexus GX460, 2017 Lexus IS200t, 2019 Lexus IS300, 2019 Lexus IS350, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500, 2018 Lexus LS500, 2019 Lexus LS500h, 2018-2019 Lexus LX570, 2017 Lexus RC200t, 2019 Lexus RC300, RC350, 2017 and 2019-2020 Lexus RX350, 2018-2020 RX350L, 2019 Lexus UX200, 2018-2019 Lexus NX300 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly with an improved one, free of charge. Owners of specific models were notified that remedy parts were available starting January 21, 2021. Owners of other models will be notified as remedy parts become available. Remedy parts should be available for all affected vehicles by late March 2021. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 20V-012. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TA02. Lexus' number for this recall is 20LA01.
Campaign 20V682000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpJan 13, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) recalled certain 2018-2019 4Runner, Highlander, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra, and Lexus RC 300, RC 350, GS 350, GX 460, IS 300, LC 500, LS 500, LX 570, RX 350L, and 2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla, and certain Lexus NX 300, and ES 350 vehicles on January 13, 2020. On March 4, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include certain 2014-2015 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser, 2018 Avalon, Corolla, 2014 FJ Cruiser, 2017 Sienna and Lexus 2018 ES 350, 2018-2019 GS 300, 2013-2014 GS350, 2014-2015 GX 460, IS 350 and LX 570, 2014 IS F, 2018-2019 IS 350, LC 500H and LS 500H, 2013-2015 LS 460, 2015 NX 200T and RC350, 2017 RC 200T and RX 350. Toyota also removed the 2018-2019 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser and 2018-2019 Lexus GX 460 and LX 570 and 2019 NX300 from inclusion in this recall. On March 19, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include 2015 Lexus GS350 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began May 4, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB02 and 20TA02 for Toyota vehicles and 20LB01 and 20LA01 for Lexus vehicles.
Campaign 20V012000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, foundation components, master cylinderDec 13, 2018
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Toyota Tacoma vehicles. Improper machining of the brake master cylinder may result in internal damage of one of the seals, affecting brake performance.
Reduced brake performance can lengthen the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake master cylinder, free of charge. The recall began January 28, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are J16/J06.
Campaign 18V888000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
206 reports, newest first.
Service brakes, Mar 18, 2023, crash
Pulling vehicle into the garage on a cold morning (15 deg F). Hydraulic booster/brake master cylinder suddenly stopped providing boost pressure and brake pedal dropped to the floor. With no braking effort able to be applied the vehicle was driven into the house at slow speed. No hydraulic leaks are noted and pedal height and brake performance seems to have returned. There is fluid in the master cylinder reservoir and it doesn't appear to be contaminated. Braking capability returned after placing the vehicle in park and then reversing. Waiting for insurance follow up to select a collision repair shop and have the vehicle towed for repair. Dash cam video of the incident is available and clearly shows braking occurring and then the vehicle speeding up or failing to stop. Was unable to upload the video due to size. Photos are also available showing the damage and dry garage floors where the accident occurred. Vehicle is equipped with WeatherTech floor mats and I've verified there are no issues with mats and unattended acceleration with photographic documentation. I was the driver during the incident, am ASE Master Certified, and have taught automotive courses at the local community college for the last 12 years, worked as an automotive technician for 10 years prior, and work professionally as a Mechanical Engineer. Leveraging my experience, there is clearly a present concern with the hydraulic brake booster/master cylinder, particularly at cold temperatures.
Service brakes, Feb 21, 2023
My brake master cylinder failed on my 2018 Toyota Tacoma. The Toyota service technician inspected it and said it failed. My brake pedal went to the floor which affected my braking distance. There were no warning lights or indication that my brakes failed.
Visibility/wiper, Dec 19, 2022
The mechanical design of Toyota's plastic visor assemblies that are installed in my Tacoma truck is disgustingly worthless and every last one of them will ultimately fail unless they are left securely fastened in the end visor holding clamp, permanently, and at all times while driving. That means not rotating them to shade a glaring sun through a door window glass. Toyota needs to redesign and replace all of their defective visor assemblies. The problem is with the rod holding design on the back side of the visor mounting plate. It is supposed to securely hold the plastic rotating arm from falling out of the mounting plate. It is wholly inadequate and will not safely support even the meager weight of the visor leaf itself. The only safe option is to leave the visor arm snapped into the end stabilizing/holding clamp. Mine dropped out of the mounting plate, twisting and dangling from the power cord wiring at a vulnerable time in moving traffic. It not only restricted my view, I was struggling to grasp the swinging visor to remove it from obstructing my view. All the while, steering with my other hand and merging into freeway speed traffic. It was a very serious problem at an inopportune and critical time. Since I was merging into freeway lanes from an on-ramp, there was no exit opportunity and stopping was not an option; all I could do was fight to avoid colliding with other vehicles. The hazard was compounded by a glaring sun that I was trying to mitigate by using the visor to shield the bright glare coming through the driver's door window. I was left purely with luck and good fortune; no guarantees at all. Compounding the problem was that it occurred during semi-rush hour traffic. It had significant potential of becoming a very serious life-threatening accident. I took the truck to my dealership for repairs but the only option was to purchase a duplicate assembly in excess of $400 U.S. Dollars, installed. Toyota needs to do the right thing and warranty all of them.
Suspension, Power train, Dec 11, 2022
When I go to accelerate at low speed my vehicle shudders shakes and vibrates, no engine lights or codes have popped up, the issue is somewhere from transmission to the rear end. Im guessing transmission or torque converter. With my vehicle only having 136,000 miles and is well taken care of this is ridiculous, I have checked drive line and tires and everything seems to be working as it should so it has to be something internal
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Dec 5, 2022
When accelerating on highway check engine light started flashing and engine running rough. Pulled over and stopped vehicle turned off ignition. Restarted vehicle and light was out no longer running rough. Toyota dealer checked computer, cylinder #2 misfired 47 times & cylinder #3 misfired 3 times. They said they could not find what had created this problem and still charged me for engine diagnostics.
Structure, Dec 5, 2022
Factory paint peeling off
Electrical system, Nov 29, 2022
IQ wireless charging pad gets hot pad has bubbled and dislodged from its place. Pad was replaced already for the same issue in Feb-2020. Now the same issue is recurring. The dealer said they had seen many more vehicles with the same problem. Charging pad gets hot when not in use. I contacted Toyota customer care to report and ask for advice, and they just said thank you for your feedback Vehicle is out of warranty nothing we can do about the issue. Explained this is an ongoing issue through this style of vehicle and should be noted or looked into as a possible safety concern. They said thanks for the feedback.
Power train, Nov 4, 2022
2018 2WD Tacoma. Auto transmission. Ever since new and even today, when traveling 30-40 MPH and slowing to anywhere from 10-25 MPH, and then trying to accelerate, the engine and/or transmission stumbles/hesitates for at least a full second, and then the engine races higher and a hard transmission downshift occurs jerking your head and body back and sending the vehicle into a fast acceleration.
Service brakes, Nov 1, 2022
Brake fluid is leaking into cab of the truck around the brake pedal area. Brake pedal needs to be pushed in slightly more than normal. My truck has the same issues stated in the 2018-2019 Tacoma brake master cylinder recall. As stated in the original recall braking could be affected which could result in crash. I called Toyota and explain the situation and all I received was “there are currently no open recalls for your vehicle.”
Power train, Other or unspecified, Oct 1, 2022
My 2018 Tacoma is experiencing issues with the transmission jerking and shaking. It is not safe to drive. It is currently sitting parked because we can no longer drive it. We are out of a car due to this issue. Is there anything that can be done to get the problem resolved?
Fuel/propulsion system, Sep 28, 2022
The vehicle every time I fuel either does start afterwards or it would start and drive for about 3-6 minutes then it will stall. The very first time it happened was on the highway which I didn’t know why my car had stall but now that it has done it right at the fuel pump and also more often than not. I tried using other gas stations just to rule out bad fue but it has been like this for the past 6 month. I have taken it to Toyota MCDONOUGH in Georgia and they could not give a diagnostic because the check engine light does not stays on and they said they can’t replicate the problem.
Other or unspecified, Aug 19, 2022
The jack failed on this vehicle. I tried to jack it up off road as I got stuck on about 10 February 2021. The base got bent up and the next time I tried to use the jack I lightly dropped my vehicle because the jack was wobbly. I think immediately or some time after that I bought a jack from an automotive store and threw the jack that came with this vehicle away. I was definitely in an unideal situation and place to jack up my vehicle but my only other choice was to wait for someone to move it and I had no cell signal and I was in the middle of no where. The skid plate is dented and the vehicle itself has since been to a toyota dealer for scheduled maintenance and all of the tires have been replaced. Nothing was seemed to be damaged. But the jack was at a slight angle and the base was bent. I believe it is possible that this might be an issue for other owners of this jack component in their vehicles.
Fuel system, Gasoline, Jun 14, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made a rattling sound. Upon inspection, the contact noticed that the fuel tank cover had detached due to the well nuts being corroded. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000.
Service brakes, Jun 7, 2022
My vehicles brakes stopped working unexpectedly. The brakes would not stop the truck until my foot was on the floor which caused me to almost rear end another vehicle. They also locked up when I tried to stop. There were no warning lights showing before, during, or after the incident. The dealer has not had a chance to check the vehicle yet but there was a previous recall issued for braking issues for Tacoma's made between February 2018-November 2018, and my Tacoma was manufactured in August 2018.
Structure, May 7, 2022
Paint on hood is coming up.
Service brakes, Mar 16, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that after her husband parked the vehicle at a private property and shifted into gear and releasing the clutch, the rear passenger’s side tire locked up. The driver stated no warning light was illuminated. The driver and his son manually replaced the 8 springs, 8 retainers, and 8 pins on the rear brakes. The vehicle was not diagnosed. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 102,500.
Forward collision avoidance, Feb 28, 2022
While driving on 3 lane interstate, with the adaptive cruise control on, while passing a semi truck the front collision brake system activated. I was doing 72 miles an hour when it happened. The result was almost got rear-ended by another vehicle when my truck applied the brakes unexpectedly. The semi did not cross into my lane. My lane was clear. 0
Structure, Feb 4, 2022
The paint is peeling off the top sections of both of my trucks rear doors. The paint appears to be peeling away down to either the primer or possibly the bare metal. This trucks paint code is 040 super white.
Structure, Jan 5, 2022
My 2018 tacoma has recently started leaking from the ceiling of the cab in the back seat. It is dripping water from melted snow onto the seat, causing a continuously damp seat.
Engine, Dec 17, 2021
Driving down the road and was passing a truck. CEL and TRAC OFF lights came on and truck went into limp mode. Could not accelerate and truck was slowing down. Had to pull over turn truck off and restart and it ran fine until I duplicated the passing and push on the accelerator. Had codes check and was showing misfires on cylinder 3. I changed the spark plugs and checked the coils which were good. Next day was I was driving and truck had the same problems and eventually died and would not restart. I took it to the toyota dealer and they checked numerous things and had found #1 cylinder intake value was leaking. They suggested to replace the entire motor at a cost of $12,000. I declined and took it to another mechanic to see if the head just needed replacing. In that time I found others were having the same problem and it was a malfunctioning part in the intake manifold. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2016-tacoma-in-limp-mode-fixed.659782/ This is the forum were I found the problem and it fixed it. A piece of it was holding my intake valve open and that was the cause of it not starting and the leaking valve. I went and showed the Toyota dealer and they were not aware of that problem. I would like it to get posted so others don't get con into putting a new motor if it has the same problem. It seems everyone that has this issue is around 17 and 18 year models and all ranges of mileage.
Suspension, Nov 29, 2021
Started noticing vibration on smooth roads a few weeks ago, as if tires were misaligned. Independent service center was able to reproduce the problem and found both rear shocks were cracked, with fluid leaking. Vehicle has not been inspected by anyone else, has not been repaired yet (but parts are being ordered), and is available for inspection. No warning lamps or messages appeared. This vehicle has not been driven off-road, only on smooth roads and highways.
Air bags, Oct 21, 2021, crash
I got in a car accident another car hit me T-bone right between the driver a d passenger door sideairbags weren’t deployed at all the incident cause me to jump into de sidewalk run over a sign and neither of the frontbags were deployed either the hit cause me to hit my head to the side window reason I got a concussion and been having headeaches since the day of the accident October 13th 2021 the car that hit me run a red light and must have been over 25 miles per hour cause the other car end it up been flipped over
Seat belts, Oct 6, 2021
Rear driver seatbelt retracts but won’t reel back up. After replacing it, shop recognized the ineffective nature of the other side. Safety of my children at risk. Inspected by independent shop and dealer. No warning lights. Symptoms include less effective
Service brakes, Sep 19, 2021
When pressing the brake it takes about 1/4 th of pressing the brake down before the brakes engage.
Fuel system, Gasoline, Sep 14, 2021
The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Tacoma. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 20V012000 (Fuel system, gasoline) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact called the local dealer who confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.