Vehicle speed control, brake and powertrain issues among the top complaints received by the NHTSA from vehicle owners
When looking for a compact pickup truck, most owners want a nice mix of drivability and functionality. The automaker claims that the 2019 Toyota Tacoma allows drivers to “play harder,” so it makes sense that many people flocked to this model. What these people found was that the Tacoma didn’t allow them to do anything harder, other than sit at the dealership more for repairs. Common trouble includes a defective powertrain, malfunctioning service brakes and issues with the vehicle speed control.
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It’s true that the Tacoma is not a full-size truck, but the powertrain should be capable enough to handle a good range of work tasks. Sadly, that’s not what many owners find once they get behind the wheel of this Toyota truck.
One Edmunds review states, “It’s well documented that the V6 doesn’t make power in low RPM. It is equally well documented that the transmission hunts between 6,5, and sometimes 4 on the highway. The most infuriating thing about driving this truck is that the transmission just seems to never be in the right gear. Attempting to pass is an adventure unless you flip the transmission into manual mode and select the passing gear yourself.”
Among the list of service bulletins issues from the company regarding the powertrain, one notable communication discusses an unusual vibration. Service bulletin #T-SB-0171-16 says the vibration is felt in the floorboard, seat and steering wheel, typically between ten and 30 mph. This problem is caused by a driveline vibration under deceleration. To repair the problem, it might be required to replace the steering wheel damper or springs. As we see from the above review, there are also issues with the transmission not finding the appropriate gears. Between that and the crazy vibration, owners are sure in for a wild ride while driving this truck.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Fuel/propulsion System | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Power Train | |
| Engine | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | |
| Electrical System | |
| Vehicle Speed Control | |
| Steering | |
| Structure:body |
While driving a truck, it’s necessary to have properly functioning brakes. After all, owners don’t want to worry about stopping while carrying a load of cargo or towing. This truck seems to suffer from braking concerns.
Just look at the Edmunds review from a driver discussing their situation, “2019 TRD Off-Road. Virtually no miles on the truck, 250 miles as of today. Immediately noticed vibration upon braking from 40-0 mph, this was pulling out of the dealership. Did some digging and found there could be potential issues with axles and/or drums being out of round. There is a technical service bulletin to address this for 2018 models (non-TRD), but nothing for mine. I am still going to the dealer this week to address.”
It turns out that the brakes on the Tacoma aren’t manufactured to be the quality that they should. There’s a recall to prove that fact. NHTSA Campaign Number 18V888000 discusses how a brake master cylinder seal can be damaged on over 44,000 vehicles. This situation reduces braking performance and leads to a higher increase of crashing. To repair it, Toyota needs to replace the master cylinder. In the meantime, owners spend time trying to figure out how much extra time they need to stop this truck. Maybe if they start pressing on the brake immediately upon acceleration, they might stop in time for the next light.
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Today’s vehicles come with a slew of new advanced equipment designed to make the road safer than ever before. One of these additions is vehicle speed control which helps maintain the proper speeds while driving around other vehicles. When this system malfunctions, it becomes difficult to arrive at the destination without anxiety and worry.
One NHTSA review discusses what happens with this truck. “I’ve had my truck for about 1,000 miles. Four times while I was driving with the adaptive cruise control engaged, I’ve had a vehicle pass me in an adjacent lane, then slow down to below my speed. Every time, the adaptive cruise control abruptly applied the brakes to slow my vehicle down for no apparent reason, thereby putting me in danger of being rear-ended.”
Much to our surprise, there are no service bulletins discussing the trouble with these adaptive technologies. The company might figure they would be in better shape by ignoring the problem. After all, they have enough to fix between the powertrain and brake recall. Putting the spotlight on yet another problem just brings attention to one more failure. Whether they ignore it or not, customers experience the issue and are jumping ship for another truck company. They have decided it is more fun to “play harder” with another truck manufacturer.
Think you have a lemon? Sit back and let the experts work out your lemon case at no cost to you. The law makes Toyota pay legal fees. You may be able to get your lemon out of your life. Every year, auto manufacturers buy back, replace or pay cash settlements to thousands of ‘lemon’ owners like you.
Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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I’ve had every gen Tacoma 4×4, and in the TRD… I was excited about my 2019 TRD all except the pre owed price… issues I’ve had with this beautiful truck so far is the TPMS sensors just stopped working for no reason, my cruise control radar will periodically just slam on the brakes for no reason, and now I’m having a chatter sound in the engine at 1500 rpm or 40 mph…. Not happy with this truck at all
My truck with 42,000 miles sr5 2019 Tacoma . When you go to shift into drive it doesn’t engage. You shift into neutral or reverse than back into drive and it finally grabs gear and engages.
My 2019 Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro with 6 speed manual transmission sometimes grinds gears when shifting. The shifting is always very notchy feeing. The shifter double clicks when shifting from one gear to the next if I am not very careful with the shift. I was almost rear ended in traffic because I could not engage 2nd gear fast enough when taking off from a stop light.
I bought a used 2019 Tacoma with 16,000 miles a year ago. Overall, I like the truck. But I swear, this V6 is weak as water. It constantly downshifts and usually sounds like it straining. Merging onto the interstate is always an adventure. I’ve been a loyal owner of 7 Toyota cars and trucks through the years. But this one is on me. Should have done more homework. Not cool!!
Bought my Tacoma 2019, and after three months i started having issues, speeding or when I stop car shakes pretty bad, and also cruise control, I cannot control it it just speed on it’s own. one day the whole system shut off, and i mentioned this to Toyota they said they will check but i don’t know if I believe this did something at this point that is getting worse i don’t think they ever did anything about my issues. and i have my 8 yr. old son with me in this car. I’m praying that nothing bad will happens
One month after owning a 2019 Toyota SR5 Tacoma the cruise control slammed the brakes on and I about got rear ended by a tractor trailer. I was at a red light stopped the transmission slipped into neutral by itself. I went to pull out nothing happened it was like the trans was slipping. Truck then shifted into park and turned off I could not get it started and I had to get a tow home. The transmission jerks hard when putting truck into park. The truck is always to find a gear on the highway.
One month after owning a 2019 Toyota SR5 Tacoma the cruise control smaller the brakes on and I aboutngot rear ended by a tractor trailer. I was at a red light stopped the transmission slipped into neutral by itself. I went to pull out nothing happened it was like the trans was slipping. Truck then shifted into park and turned off I could not get it started and I had to get a tow home. The transmission jerks hard when putting truck into park. The truck is always to find a gear on the highway.
My 2019 tacoma Pro has a whinny noise between 50 and 60 mph the dealership replaced rearend diff. at 5,000 miles it stopped for 1000 miles and came back and keeps getting worse. Toyota headquarters saids it’s a typical noise for that model and they won’t work on it at all
That’s BS I had plenty of Toyota’s but I’ll never buy another one
2019 Tacoma TRD Offroad with every option 6 speed manual. My dream truck! Or so I thought anyway. What a nightmare this truck has been! One of the biggest mistakes of my life & I’ve been divorced twice. I have the same exact issues as Jack D in a previous post the powertrain is a complete mess. Power in all the places you dont want it that surges at random paired with drivetrain vibrations from 22 to 26 mph & 36 to 40 mph. I could live with the 1st part but the vibrations are literally driving me insane. The response I got from Toyota corporate was I’m only the 2nd person on the nation with this issue so it isnt cost effective to try to figure out a fix. I’m literally shopping around to trade this thing off I hate it so much I’d rather just take the loss. This was my 6th new Tacoma & 10th new Toyota but will be my last with customer service like that I dont care how good the previous ones were.
Bought my truck, a Tacoma 2019 Limited with tow package in Nashua, NH. I’m on a 3 month road trip towing a trailer. Drove to Myrtle beach making 4 overnight stops from NH no problems. I leave Myrtle beach and shortly after, cruise control, pre-collesion, and stability control all malfunctioned, telling me to visit your dealer dealer. Took it to nearest dealer to me dealer in Charleston, SC. and was told that some steering postion indicator was at -3000 and should be no more than 1.5. He could find no problem and cleared the computer memory to eliminate the warning. Told me it could be my brake controller. So I bought another brake controller to see if that might be the problem. Shortly after leaving Myrtle beach it happens again. I have an appointment now in Waycross, GA. to see what they say. I think that they won’t find anything either and will clear the computer memory and send me on my way. They will probably blame the controller again . So that means this truck is not built to tow a trailer with a brake controller. I don’t ever see this as being fixed because I am on the road and when I get back to my home town dealer they will say I have driven to long for the lemon law. My only solution is to buy a Ford.
Since day one my Tacoma sport has experienced bucking and jerking during acceleration as well as while maintaining driving speeds. Multiple trips to the dealer is met with the typical response which is we could not replicate the issue. I am prepared to reach out to an attorney.
I have a 2019 Tacoma. Shakes and shudders under load. Surges with foot on the brake Toyota tech says all is fine. There designed that way. Very poor design if you don’t mash on the break it will push you into the intersection
this truck with a v6 has no torque much less 278hp it bucks and jumps starting off from a start with a manual 6 speed I am EXTREMLY unhappy the throttle response is never the same lagging and falling flat and Toyota has done nothing to fix this this. been there twice just bs answers. throttle is not tuned correctly and Toyota is awful about it
My 2019 Tacoma SR access cab, 4 cylinder, will slam on the brakes when I’m on the interstate, in the left hand lane, and a car beside me is getting off the interstate. Almost got rear-ended, by a semi goin 75 miles an hour. Not cool Toyota needs to fix this. If I get hurt bad because of this. Or my family I will sue Toyota