Toyota Tacoma Reviews

Now, 10 yrs later...Ive noticed that the past 30-40K miles it wont go into 2nd almost at all when its cold (under 70 or so degrees approx). It seems like the synchonization of the trans isnt working. On another note, I noticed at 50K miles when I changed the trans fluid it was milky white at first...which seems to indicate water in the trans. I have no idea how water ever got in it as Ive had no coolant leaks and never park in water.

Truck wasn't running right took back into Shop. No news on what was going on - called back on 6-18 and found out mechanic had been out on vacation but would call me back re: repairs.

Was told on Engine needed to be replaced. Truck was ready to pick up on 7-31-07 at 5:30 pm - On 8-1-07 took truck back in to Jay Toyota because of lack of power. On 8-15-07 said truck had been ready for two days without notification. Picked up truck on 8-16-07 after going 15 miles it was skipping so bad we had to return it.8-17-07 Customer service rep.

Gloria said they were ordering injectors - on 8-29-07 Service Mgr. Steve said they had to order a tool to put parts in. 9-4-07 Gloria said all lifers did not come in- 9-17-07 Steve said they were putting back together and going to test drive will call when ready. 9-24-07 Gloria said they were waiting for the head to come in. 10-08-07 Still no word on Truck!!!!

This truck was purchased for the company in hopes that we would have a reliable vehicle. As is has turned out it has been more of a problem than a convenience.

It started right back up afterwards and made it home fine. Another problem I seem to have is that when I'm down to about a quarter tank of gas the truck runs like crap. There's hesitation in between shifting when I'm in drive, it doesn't feel like it's getting gas all the time when I want it to. Most of this occurs when I'm trying to do the speed limit which is 50mph.

It feels like it's stuck in between shifting gears. Another problem I have with this truck is that I feel it was falsely advertised on tv to show the truck going through so much damage and driving away with no harm done. I loaded some junk concrete from around the house into the back of my truck, by myself so they coulndnt have been that heavy, I slid the concrete to the middle of the bed and it dented the crap out the bed. I did not slam or try to damage my own truck I'm paying way to much for. I've done nothing but try to baby this nice looking truck but it seems as though my luck is being pushed by this investment.

I dont think Wilson Motors cares that much about customers getting thier cars fixed because they get paid no matter what by Toyota. I've complaind twice now about the same thing and they siad that nothing is wrong according to the computer and that I should wait until somthing major goes wrong. I don't want to wait for somthing major to go wrong with this truck I'm paying up the ass for. I am also not the only unsatisfiied customer from Wilson Motors.

Arriving on the scene he thought I was traveling down the hill and spun out into the ditch. But I had a man who witnessed it who was directly behind me and stopped to see if I was okay and was able to validate my statement. After 10K worth of repairs by the dealer I have been experiencing random poor gas milage. Recently I inspected the truck to find that both front calipers were heavily cooroded and were seizing and had caused the leading inner pad to wear to the metal without any wear to the trailing edge or the outer pads.

I took it back to the dealer and they replaced the seized calipers under warranty as they determined it was a defect. Now back to that accident. I'm 40 years old with a perfect driving record and have traveled the road where the accident occured almost every day for the past year without any incident. I now believe the cause of the accident was the traction control engaging on the front wheel as I was approaching the turn.

The system grabbed the front wheel to distribute the torque to the other wheels briefly and then when it was supposed to release the mechanical defect of the seizing calipers didn't allow the wheel to start rotating again, due to the low speed and the limited traction, causing me to loose steering control of the truck and sucking it into the ravine.

This type of traction control is flawed in my opinion as there is no failsafe mechanism in case of a mechanical failure like I experianced. Oddly enough, I had observed another Toyota truck a week before at an intersection who had a rear wheel seize and lost control of his truck at an intersection simply trying to go in a straight line leaving a traffic signal and was not able steer as each time he tried to apply the gas his truck just went in a circle with 3 wheels turning and 1 wheel locked solid.

They told me they could find nothing wrong with it. About a month later, I was stopped in the driveway of a BP gas station waiting for traffic to clear on the main road. With my foot on the brake, the rear wheels just out of nowhere, began to spin at a high rate of speed. I had to press so hard on the brake pedal to keep the truck from going out into the road. It still wouldn't stop so I turned the vehicle onto the shoulder to avoid going out into traffic. I let that incident pass as bad as it was.

About another three weeks after that, I was heading home on a winding, hilly road. There was a van in front of me about 200 yards. As I approached a sharp turn at the bottom of a hill, just before the hill started upward, I tapped the brakes to slow down. The truck again took off at a very high rate of speed. I could not stop it or control it. Almost striking the van in front of me, I crossed over a double yellow line on a hill (putting my life at risk) and finally, after about another 1000 yards, got the vehicle under control.

This time I took the truck back to the dealership service department and once again, they could find nothing wrong with it. They told me they would have to be able to recreate the problem before they could fix it. I told them it happens sporadically and it could happen the next day or next month or who knows when. Sorry, I was told, but we can't help you. I then contacted Toyota of America and spoke with a corporate regional manager. He told me the same thing... until they could recreate the incident, they could do nothing for me. (By the way, I was told by corporate that they would have a factory representative meet me at the dealership to look the vehicle overe).

To this day, I have never been contacted by anyone from the factory and I reported it to them over a month ago). About three weeks ago, I turned onto a ramp to enter a highway and tapped the brakes to slow down going around the ramp turn. Again the truck took off on me at a very high rate of speed. I brought the truck under control by the time I got on the highway. Luckily there was no traffic on the highway at that point.

I again called Toyota of America and was told there was nothing they could do. I tole them that they could not afford to keep this vehicle on the road because eventually someone, either myself or someone else might be seriously injured or killed. Again, nothing. Finally, returning from the VA hospital in Nashville, TN, I was driving northbound on the I-24. It had just stopped raining very hard and the road was wet with a drizzly rain. I was in the right shoulder lane when a small vehicle in the lane to my left attempted to move into the right lane.

Realizing I was right there, the vehicle moved back into the left lane. By then. however, I had tapped the brakes to prepare to prevent crashing into the car if it did come into my lane. You guessed it, the rear wheels began spinning at a very high rate of speed, only this time, the rear end of the truck spun very rapidly to the left and I was unable to control it in the rain and on the wet pavement. The truck crashed into the embankment just off the shoulder. I skidded along the embankment for about 60 feet seeing nothing but bushes and trees.

The truck then hit a rut and went airborne for about 35 to 40 feet and landed on the paved shoulder on the roof of the vehicle. The truck then rolled over about three or four times and came to rest on the left (drivers) side of the vehicle. The truck waa a total loss and smashed so badly that onlookers that stopped to help, could not believe that I had survived the accident. I was taken to a nearby hospital with neck and shoulder pains. Luckily the seat belt held me in place in the seat. Fortunately, I did not hit any other vehicles and I was not killed. I suffered and still do, neck and left shoulder pain. After being released from the hospital, I went to where the vehicle was towed to.

When I saw the damage, I couldn't believe my eyes. I was a police office for fifteen years and saw many accidents not even as bad as mine and there were fatalities. I was one of the lucky ones. I wish you could see the photos of the truck. After four similar experiences, the same problem each time, and NO HELP FROM Toyota of America, the truck finally did what I expected it would eventually do. I have not yet reported the final incident to Toyota of America because I am considering a lawsuit.

I loved that truck and I was planning on getting another one but after reading all of the incidents described in this site, I'll be looking elsewhere. I too thought I would get a Toyota because of their great reputation and the fact that they will last forever (I know people that have over 200,000 miles on their Toyota trucks). I doubt if I will let that sway me into purchasing another one.

The bottom line is, Toyota of America just plain DID NOT BELIEVE ME and the end result of their ineptness and dismissing my repors of problems, led to an accident that could have very simply been fatal. I was one of the lucky ones. I wonder how many more of this same problem exist out there and Toyota of America is dismissing it because they don't want to admit there is anything wrong with their vehicles.

$4,300 to $4,900 engine replacement cost.

For the following week, there were no service issues and the truck ran reliably. On 05/09/07 the truck failed to start again (~1500mi on the odometer). This time, I had to have the truck towed into the dealership. Note, a follow-up call was never received from the dealership after the initial incident. After waiting 4 hours in the service lounge I was told they did not know what was wrong with the truck.

The decision was made to replace the ECU. It was then found out that the ECU was on back order with no projected date of arrival. I was given a economy class rental car and told to call back the following day. Followed up on 05/10/07 and was told still waiting for part. Followed up again on 05/11/07 and was told You will not have your truck this weekend. Asked about the term os the rental car and was told You will have the rental car as long as I say so by the service rep. Situation is same as of today, 05/12/07.

When the fly wheel came off, this caused a chain reaction. This smashed into the front of the transmission, which in turn forced everything back causing the drive shaft to come out, which in turn punched a large hole in the gas tank. It is amazing that the truck did not catch fire.

The fly wheel should not have come off. The mechanic I used to repair the truck said he had never seen damage this bad unless the vehicle had been in a wreck. The people I talked to at Toyota said there was nothing they could do, as the truck was out of warranty. I also contacted the fly wheel manufacturer, but never received a response. With all the damage that took place, as well as gas and transmission fluid pouring out, it is amazing that I am still here to write this complaint.

After the engine warms up, rather quickly I might add, the gas pedal is so wierd, it works somtimes, and then it does't. I have to tap on it to get it going. Sitting @ a red light one day,and I pulled rather close to the vehicle in front of me, not thinking I pushed the pedal and came really close to hitting the guy, I have to admit it startled me a bit... WHATS UP TOYOTA?

I had the truck towed to our local Toyota dealership. They informed me that the starter and complete clutch had to be replaced. This truck has 35,000 miles on it and has been regularly serviced since we purchased it.

The dealership could not explain what had gone wrong. I looked at the replaced clutch, pressure plate and throughout bearing. None of which showed signs of excessive wear, however, all exhibited discoloration from excessive heat. T

he starter motor was in the same condition. Since the vehicle was older that three years, none of the $1427.75 was covered by warranty. I called Toyota and filed a case complaint and requested an explanation as to what went wrong. They indicated that they had no similar complaints and since the vehicle was out of warranty there was nothing they could do.

1999 toyota 4x4 not driveable

They said they fixed it. However after about a year it seemed to leak worse. This time my carpeting developed mold and needed to be replaced. They again said they fixed it and replaced the carpet, all covered under warranty. And both times I noticed how they fixed it.

They sprayed undercoating onto the fire box area behind the engine.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to realize that after expansion and contraction from heat and cold the undercoating cracks and thus leaks.

So Now for the third time I have a leak that Toyota refuses to fix without me paying for it because now the warranty has expired.I feel they just put a band aid on the problem, received money from Toyota to fix it and now they say it's my Problem. I have owned 5 Toyotas but never again. 2 weeks ago I purchased my first Honda.

The problem I am having is similar to some of the people that say their engine shuts down or misses. My truck with 65,000 miles, misses and the engine balks or shuts partially down all the time. I can be going 5 miles per hour and it kinda jerks like I don't know how to drive a stick shift but it is not the clutch it is the engine. Also at any other speed, the engine cuts down like it is going to stop but doesn't. Toyota says there is nothing wrong with it but I took it to another mechanic and he feels the problem but has no idea what the problem is. I have spent about $400 so far and nothing has fixed the problem.

I don't know whether to get a tuneup, computer changed, new clutch or what. By the way the clutch feels fine to me and the second mechanic. I really had planned on keeping this vehicle for a while until this happened. I don't think I will be able to sell it like it is unless I give it back to Toyota since they say there is nothing wrong. They should not take off from the trade since they say there is not a problem with it. I saw similar problems on your website, so I would like to know what fixed their problems and I can suggest to a mechanic so they can fix it?

It is 10 years old and looks like new on the outside but I also have the rust underneath. From the outside and interior it looks great. I have had many of the problems on your website like the squeky clutch pedal. The bushings had to be replaced or basically the pedal and mechanics had to be replaced. That cost about $300 as I recall. Please advise if you can help.

The initial flaw and overheating of the starter and wiring required towing and starter replacement at a total cost of $389.99 and five days lossof use of the truck.

They never told me anything about it. The very next day the wheel fell off and threw me into oncoming traffic. By the grace of God I lived. Toyotas still isn't telling people.

After the accident I researched the truck and found the recall. I was livid. The very next day they said my truck was ready!! They picked the axle and cv joint up after it had been dragged 100 yards and stuck it back into the transfer case!! I know it sounds like I'm making this up but its true. I am shocked and disgusted by this company. People are going to die if this isn't fixed.

I complined about the problem and they put new leaf springs on . didn't do a thing still bottoms out on all bumps in the road. Can you belive it, a brand new toyota 4x4 truck bottoming out.Help my truck sucks !!!!!

To rebuild the tranny is too expensive for me to pay. So i had to find a used one to repair my truck. there no guarantee that the used tranny want go bad. Thanks TOYOTA FOR YOUR GREAT PRODUCT

I tried taking care of this myself by using POR 15 and various products from NAPA, none of which I thought did a very good job, so I finally setteled on painting the entire undercarrige and frame with Rustolium.

After one year I could tell that nothing had been accomplished, the rust was continuing under my paint job. Later I did a brake job and when putting the truck on jack stands the jack that comes with the truck ended up going right thru the bottom of the frame.

There is no way to repair the frame as rust is everywhere, inside and outside. Other than rust and corrosion I have had no problems with this truck, only scheduled maintenance.

So my wife and i were going to KY for Christmas and it lost traction almost sending us into oncoming traffic at that point i decided right then as we hit the next exit to put new tires on the truck thinking the tires were the whole jest of the problem.

About 3 weeks go by and my wife needs to go back to KY for family related issues and returning back home she enters into a little bit of rain and turning into an off ramp she spins the truck around hitting the guard rail.

I drove this vehicle for 96,000 miles in this condition before they finally fixed it at my expense. When I would call Toyota Corporate they would laugh. I purchased a new Toyota Tundra 2005 in September of 2004 because I like the product. The Corporate people aren't woth two dead flies. Now I got a notice about the ball joints in my 2005 Tundra. How much will Corporate Toyota charge me again for their mistake? Time will tell.

I will never call Corporate Toyota again for any reason. Never will they humiliate me like they did with my 2000 Tacoma again. Great company, stinky CEO's!

My complaint is that if Toyota knows that this component is good for just a couple of years, shouldn't they disclose up-front when the vehicle is purchased that there will be an additional maintenace cost of over $300 within the first couple of years of ownership just as they disclose that the timing belt will have to replaced at a recommended mileage. I've purchased several new Toyotas from this dealership over the years and am sorely disappointed in their response to this problem as well as to Toyota's response.

Additionally, I've read several newspaper articles recently about how Toyota's quality may be slipping. I discarded the articles realizing the presses propensity picking on the top dog. After this unscheduled maintenace cost of over $300 however, I'm beginning to wonder if there isn't perhaps some credibility to the number of complaints that are being logged. Add mine to the list.

Toyota of Cerritos service center quoted me $5,200 to put in a used engine, or $9,800 to rebuild my engine. They said I blew a rod and it went through the block of the engine. Please help or respond if there is anything I can do.

I need to know if You have heard of any similar cases. Is there anything I can do if it's a factory defect? Someone in your list of complaints said he hates his truck, because of the rattling of the dash board. The dash board in my truck has a noticeable, annoying rattle, I can't figure out what is rattling everytime I hit any little bump on the road. I sometimes think something is about to fall apart soon.

I still owe about 18,000 on this vehicle I shouldn't have to buy it a new paint job yet It's a farely new truck, I can't afford it. I hate for it to look the way it does considering the amount I am paying for it

This is 2002 only has 54,000 mi. on it. I change oil & filter in all of my vehicles on a 3mo. 3,000 mi. cycle and I only use Synthetic Motor Oil. I changed oil immediately upon purchase of this truck and saw nothing unususal, heard nothing unusual. About 1 month later I was detecting this problem. I live about 30 mi. from any Dealer, I'm single and do all of my oil changes at home. I'm the owner of 3 Toyotas, my first being a 1996 Tacoma 4 w/d. I bought this with 19,000 mi. in 1997. I've always changed oil religously and currently have 198,000 mi. with no engine problems. My 1997 4-Runner has some oil burning however @ 185,000 I'll accept this. However the 2002, having this mechanical engine noise is not normal for this milage.

He told me we never have any problem with front end part's at 104,000 mile's we crashed,the cause of the crash was a separated Ball Joint thats what the wrecker service said and also Billy owen's Paint and Body Shop,I had the Ball Joint's Removed and still have them in my possession Toyota would not take any blame this Truck was very well kept up and never used offroad.Toyota Tacoma 4X4 SR5 Extended Cab.

They told me the Air-Dam was probably dirty and the sprayed some stuff into the throttle body (whatever all that means). Still does it and truck is now out of warrenty. The clutch sounds like an old screen door. They charged me $70 to diagnose the problem and the fix? Spray some stuff into the trans housing around the clutch shaft. I have since read this is not an unknown problem.

Still does it so I have them spray stuff in there every oil change. I found my power steering pump empty one day after an oil change. I guess now I need to look for the pin point leak as someone else on this site notified us of. Again for the most part it has been a great truck but back your product folks. These problems are not mysterious they are well known. So fix it and keep that great reputation going.

Toyota has sence changed thier frame set up in an attempt to prevent this.This vehicle has been in for the dealer upkeep, and been garaged kept sence new, not abused off road or in any other way,can you check this out and get back with me?

Everything else works on the truck it just doesnt have a reliable frame as it is.

Later on as the kids started growing up and we started going on vacations we did notice bad brake vibrations, and took the truck back to the dealer. They informed us we had the same problem everyone has, but refused to do anything about it because by then we were out of warranty. They expect us to pay the thousands it will take to correct this factory design defect, (even though they admitt they would have fixed for free if we had brought the truck in under warranty).

I feel cheated and abused. If people crash becasue they can't afford to fix Toyota's design problem, I hope they sue the heck out of Toyota for not standing behind their truck's safety equipment.

When they did it it quieted it down about 60%. I then requested the passenger side be done since this should alleviate the problem. They refused saying it wouldn't fix it. The district service rep called and said that's the way it is and yours sounds just like the others on the lot. She didn't even drive it. She refused to replace the other side even with the existing service bulletin saying mine had the updated manifolds.

Well if they did why did changing the one side make such a big difference? I called toyota customer service and they said if that was her position then they couldn't do anything. Two dealerships have acknowledge this problem and have had numerous complaints. Supposedly Toyota is working on a fix. I think it is wrong that half a repair which seems to have had a good result was done and toyota's refusal to complete the repair is terrible customer service. My next step is to write Jim Lentz at toyota in California.

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Starting and engine when it's cold the viscosity of the oil is extremly thick when cold and until it warms up just a little the lubrication to the engine is very damaging with unusually high rpms. Shifting from 4th gear to 5th gear when the engine is free winding and the clutch is disengaged this will damage the clutch plates and they will have to be replaced prematurely. Especially when towing anything. And this could be considered a safety matter. If the clutch is held engages for a bout 6 to 8 seconds the rpms will slowly drop to near normal.

I was told it was normal and what I was hearing was, piston slap which I have never heard of. Mind you, I spent 6 years in the USMC as a Ground Support Equipment Mechanic and had worked on every type of engine manufactured. Never in my life have I heard of such a thing and I immediately attributed it to a problem of inadequate lubrication into the upper cylinder head of the engine.

Time passed into another summer and I tried to ignore it even though it bothered me. When the weather changed once again into the winter months, (2002) the vehicle began to act up again and of course, I returned it to the dealer. I was then told that I should use a higher octane fuel, (I had been using 96 octane which was what the vehicle was rated for by consumer reports and the manufacturer.) So, that's a no-brainer, I was brushed off again.

I originally purchased this vehicle because of the high ratings it was given for dependability and durability as long as one kept up with the preventive maintenance. It was not used for towing or plowing or abused in any way. In fact I babied this vehicle from day one because I intended do drive it into the ground as, I was tired of having a monthly payment.

After getting no satisfaction from Brunswick Toyota, I particiapted in the arbitration process involving the NCSD. Of course they found in Toyota's favor because, (in their opinion) I failed to offer adequate proof for my arguement. Needless to say they did not send out a rep. to varify and/or evaluate the legitimacy of my claim, (as they should have done) but, are not obligated to.

After all this was said and done I was notified by Brunswick Toyota that because I had the complaint on paper, should the engine ever take a dump, there would be no problem in getting it repaired at no charge to my good self. Several weeks ago I pulled into the parking lot at work and the vehicle took a dive. I lost the power steering and was sure it was simply a metter of replacing a belt and/or the pump as I had racked up about 89,000 miles on the vehicle.

I had it towed to the nearest Toyota dealer, (Metro Toyota in Ohio) and was expecting a pretty small bill however, the maintenance rep there notified me that the engine took a dump. Needless to say, I was not surprised as, I had suspected the engine was not receiving the proper lubrication in the upper cylinder head from the start. Metro Toyota came back at me with the crankshaft bolt broke and in order to repair the vehicle it would cost well over $4000. Excuse me but why does a crankshaft bolt fail? Especially when the vehicle has not been used and/or abused.

gave Metro Toyota the go-ahead to repair the vehicle because I needed it to get back and forth from work. After writing Toyota they came back with the excuse that because I authorized the repair of the vehicle I basically admitted that the engine failure was due to my negligence and/or excessive miles. Excuse me but the last Toyota I had I got 300,000 miles out of. Anyhow, I contacted my lawyer who suggested I contact the Attorney General, (which I did.) He of course sided with Toyota after receiving their b.s. response stating that the failure of the engine was not due to my previous claim.

What amazes me is that there are numerous complaint's posted on the net here dealing with the same sort of complaints. Yet, it seems that Toyota continues to get away with this sort of nonsense of not standing by their, suppossed loyalty to their customers. Their recent response to their engines retaining sludge being a no-brainer. They fessed up to it however, closed the window on how long they will accept claims due to the same. Personally, I will never purchase another Toyota as long as I live and will do everything in my power to steer both immediate and extended family members away from considering doing the same.

I have spent over $900 on my brakes and they still don't work properly.

When I got to the service center, the service attendant also stated that he thought my front transmission blew, but when he started the engine it was obvious that the rod had blown and he immediately changed his opinion about the kind of fluid that was draining from my vehicle, directed me to the service representative, Doug Sullivan, who wrote up an estimate of $6500 to repair the motor. Later that day Doug called and confirmed that the motor needed repair because the rod broke and needed to replace the short block, the rod and piston.

The next day, he indicated that the repair would need to include valve replacements and as long as they were in there, they should replace the timing belt and a few other things that would be due at my next scheduled service. The estimate now was up to $8,200. I had just completed a 75,000 mile Service; my mileage at breakdown was 79,405 miles. I purchased a 7/75,000 extended warranty when I purchased the vehicle, which they confirmed they could not apply to this problem.

I inquired about what could have caused this to happen, given that I have faithfully changed oil and completed all suggested service maintenances. I also requested Toyota to cover the costs of this repair since it is not a result of neglect on my part and unreasonable for a rod to break at 79,405 miles unless there is a defective part.

Doug did request relief for my bill and Toyota paid 50% of the parts, and required the dealership to pick up 25% of the labor. In the end, my bill was $5,238.58!! I am registering this complaint because I believe Toyota should cover the cost of the repair, because the repair mechanics indicated the engine was very clean, well maintained and could find no reason for the rod to break. We requested Doug, with whom I have no complaint, to contact Toyota Corporation and speak on our behalf.

He agreed to save the parts for a Toyota Engineer to examine... that he comes about twice each month. I'm still waiting. The cashier was inappropriate. Her comment to me was congratulations, you have the highest bill today! Not funny. It will take me a very long time to replace the $5,238.58.

The damage was also felt in my pocket, a hefty $1,200 was paid for the fix. The mechanic said that at any time, the defective part could have snapped. I guess $1200 isn't a big price to pay for my safety. I have been researching other complaints from tacoma owners and have found quite a few with the same defect.

Friend lost entire truck plus truck usage $17K+ I lost at least $25k-$35K in personal items: computer, printer, scanner, ($4K) clothes (approx $5K), shoes and purses (approx $2K), jewelry ($3K), resources for new business in Hawaii, book I had written, two songs, and so forth. I came to Hawaii with the clothes on my back. The items that were burned up were to help me make up financially for taking a $25K drop in salary to be close to an ailing, hospitalized mother. Am now seeing a psychologist and psychiatrist. Very traumatized financially, socially, and economically.

The economic impact is I spent 22k which is a lot for me for a piece of crap thats always in the shop, the physical damage is my image (cause I have always talked highly of Toyota) Not now

Burnt exhaust valves are a problem for Toyota Tacoma's. Toyota has done everything in their power to sneak around this problem, and I became suspicious of the exhaust valve problem when they showed me where it says it doesn't cover that on my warranty. That is not listed along with everything else, it is listed in a seperate section under Acts of God not being covered. Folks, if you are thinking about buying a Tacoma, be aware that myself, and 3 other people already on this site have had the same problem, at less than 150,000 miles, and 3 of us, less than 100,000.

This is just poor craftsmanship, and the warranty they sell is not worth the paper it is written on. You think that will cover the things that are problems that you didn't cause. However, they have figured out all of Toyota's problems and just made sure not to cover those either. Very shoddy, and sleezy.

As a consequence of this, I have a paid off car that I thought would at least make it to 150,000 miles. Now, I will be buying a new truck, at a cost of about $20,000. My confidence in Toyota fixing it right is not worth the $3,300. They sold me a bum truck, a bum warranty, and now are trying to sell me a bum repair, I would have to be crazy to pay them.

At 35k miles the engine noise returned. Took back to the dealer and was told by service dept. rep. that Toyota had made a batch of bad engines and would not do any more repaires, as the engine would perform properly but would be noisey due to clearences of engine parts. I had a major tune up at this time. At 37k miles had engine, manual transmissiom and exhuast noise. Dealer took test drive and said it sounded normal. Had no repairs. At 59.9k miles I had major tune up. Service Dept. forgot to top off brake fluid. At 82.4k miles check engine light came on. Due to the statement at the made to me at 35k miles I took truck to an independent service mechanic. Had engine diagnostic which indicated random misfire, changed plugs and engine light turned off.

At 82.7k miles check engine light on. Returned to same service as above. Had diagnostic and was advised engine needed valve repair as exhaust vales were to tight, cost would be $3965. At 82.9k miles I went to another independent service. Had diagnostic and was told #3 fuel injector not working. Had it replaced. I asked two Toyota dealers and was told that they had replaced only 6 injectors on any model and all were well over 100k miles.

At 81,000 miles I brought my truck to Tracy Toyota for a check engine light. I was told that all of the exhaust valves and at least one intake valve were burnt resulting in a $3400.00 estimate. I was told that the problem would more than likely have been avoided if I had had the 60k tune up done, which is supposed to include a valve inspection. I asked Antioch Toyota about the valve inspection and was told that Tacomas do not need a valve inspection/adjustment because they are self adjusting. I found this to be untrue. I asked the service manager why the valve inspection was excluded from the 60k tune up. He told me that I had never actually had a 60k tune up but rather a series of random services performed on the truck.

I assumed a 60k tune up was done because I was at a Toyota dealership, requested the required 60k tune up, was told it was completed, and given a list of services which apparantley comprised the 60k tune up (one of those services being the vague "engine tune up"). The service manager told me that because the term "60,000 mile tune up" was not written on the invoice then I must have just requested a bunch of random services. I still can't explain what some of those services are as I am not mechanically inclined. The service manager told me that it was just too bad and it wasn't his problem.

Then one day, the truck started to roll out of my driveway. I knew that I had a problem. I immediately called the dealership and they had me bring the truck in. After about 2 hours, the service representative told me that they would have to order the part to repair this. When the part came in, I took the truck back and they made a repair. When I got home, I realized that I could still move the gear shift between park and reverse without having the engine on or the brake depressed. When the truck is parked on a hill, this allows the truck to roll.

I immediately called the dealership again. This time I was told that they had never seen this problem before and that the truck was dangerous to drive. They gave me a loaner car and I left the truck there. After having the loaner car for two weeks, I was told that they would take another new truck apart and replace the defective part in my truck with the pirated part from the truck on the lot. The service manager called to tell me that my truck was fixed and that he had tested it himself. I attempted to pick up the truck the next day. The service manager got in the truck with me and we test drove it together. IT DID THE SAME THING WHEN PARKED ON A HILL!

He informed me that he wouldn't allow his wife to drive this truck if he owned it and said he would contact the regional service rep. He was going to attempt to have the truck replaced with no additional cost to me. This was on January 16,2004. Yesterday, the service manager called me to inform me that they were unable to fix the truck due to the fact this is an inherent trait of all 4-door Tacoma's from 2001 on, and that this problem would only be a problem if "I lived in San Francisco". I assume that this means that Tacomas are not sold in San Francisco since it would be dangerous to own one there!

I called 1-800- GO TOYOTA and was told that I had no recourse but to deal with the dealership. Then another sales manager from the dealership called me and told me that I had no recourse but to go through Toyota corporate offices. At this point, I want my money back so I can purchase a four-door pickup that does not have this problem. Since I have been told that this is an inherent problem with ALL Tacomas, I am forced into going elsewhere for a truck.

Vicki should report this to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which should investigate and possibly order a recall. The online report form is at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/.

This caused the truck to start lurching backward. When this happened it knocked me into the truck (I was leaning into the passenger side door). I lost my footing and fell in, the engine was still trying to start. All I could think to do was to pull the key out of the ignition, but this did nothing -- the engine was still cranking. I reached for the brake with my hand because I had fallen near the floor, but that didnt help the truck was still lurching backward.

I was starting to panic. I coudn't quite reach the clutch pedal. Then I yelled for help -- my sister-in-law jumped into the drivers seat and slammed on the brake. That didnt help. Just then she got out and my wife jumped in -- she had just barely enough room to jump in as the truck was now just about to the tree on the drivers side. Sh was nearly crushed between the truck and the tree.

My wife shifted into first gear and it rolled off me. I told my wife to leave it in neutral and get out of the truck. The engine was still cranking. The only way we could get it to stop was to disconnect the battery.

I called my local Toyota dealer where I bought the truck. By the way this truck is a 1996 model with 89,000 on it, which I feel makes no difference -- the starter should not be able to engage with no key, no one in the drivers seat, no one pushing in the clutch, dont you agree?

I had to have the truck towed from the campground to the Toyota garage. This was on Saturday, so I wasnt going to hear anything from them until at least Monday. On Sunday I e-mailed Toyota headquarters customer complaint dept., told them the situation and I received an incident number from them and they told me they would be in touch with me within 24 hours. They never got back to me. On Monday my Toyota dealer called me and told me my starter needed to be replaced, would I like them to fix it?

I told them I;ve been trying to contact someone at Toyota headquarters to find out how this could possibly happen. I didnt want them to just put in a new starter and possibly have the same thing happen again. After numerous attempts to contact them via e-mail I found a number I could call and talk to someone -- they referred me to the product liability dept. I told them the story and they told me I could either file a formal complaint or they could send an investigator to check it out.

I needed to be assured that this would not happen again so I wanted the investigation. They told me it could take up to 30 days and then up to another 30 days for an official response. Finally after almost 2 months without a vehicle and 45 days after the investigator checked it out and still no response from product liability, I had to agree to have the truck fixed. The day I agreed to have it fixed, product liability got in touch with me and told me my response was in the mail.

Their response to me was that it is not unreasonable for a vehicle with 89,000 miles on it for the starter to go out, I agree but this starter didnt go out it went "in" and stayed in, causing a life-threatening situation. Someone will eventually be killed from a situation such as this.

After exiting the highway and getting ino street driving, there is a terrible grinding/meshing/bearing noise from the transmission when accelerating in 1st gear from a stop and in 2nd gear at speeds from 15mph - 18mph (note, 15mph is the shift speed suggested by Toyota in their owners manual). The noise is worse when the truck is under load (starting off on a hill, for example).

The dealer has heard the noise and Toyota is making them say it is a characteristic. The technician does NOT think the noise is normal and thinks there is a miscut/miscast gear in the transmission. But his supervisor and Toyota will not let him investigate. Why won't they trust their technician? He is a Master Tech, which means Toyota has vetted his skills and expertise.

I won't drive the truck anymore and so it sits, a $24,000 mistake in my driveway.

Lost my investment in the vehicle in a matter of 4 months instead of 5 or 6 years. A total waste of money and the truck could only be used for short (<20 mile) trips. Not to mention time wasted on 2 trips to the dealer to get the problem dealt with and numerous calls to Toyota corporate to get assistance (they just toss it back to the dealer, a big circle).

On Oct.31,2002 I took my truck back to NYE and explained to them that my check engine light was still on and my truck has a drastic power loss. They checked it agian on the computer and said that my valves are burnt and have to be replaced and that this is also not covered under waranty. The price for this repair is around $1,900.00-$2,100.00. I regulary maintain my truck myself with a log book to prove this.

I immediately called the salesman who sold me the vehicle at Moreno Valley toyota. He said bring it in, you're covered bumper to bumper. The next day, he went back and forth between myself and the service manager by the name of Frank. After an hour of waiting, it was Frank's determination that this could never happen and therefore to not honor the warranty. In other words, I was making this up.

Tell this to the lady whose car it hit.

Aside from the warranty issue, the really scary part of this whole ordeal is that this could have been fatal. And they are ignoring it!

Furthermore, why in the world would I mess with something that could possibly void my warranty on my new truck? I'm not a young kid. I'm 42 years of age and I'm livid over this whole thing..The next step is the arbitration. I have been looking at other Prerunners the same year and I can't see how they are actually connected but it does look like the frame surrounding the glass is of light aluminum and possibly have some kind of spotweld connector which I've seen break before. But I wouldn't know, I've never disected a moonroof before.

I do know this -- Since I have been driving around with duct tape over the roof, there is tremendous cabin pressure pushing the tape up when the windows are rolled up. I am outraged that this did happen and they are basically calling me a liar. It could have been a disaster and the other party knows it. And they are treating it like it was a hoax!