Selling a worn-out or dead Toyota

Before you do, it pays to know which Toyota problems Toyota itself has paid to fix. This page covers the rust programs on its trucks, the coverage that may still be running in 2026, the programs that have closed, the biggest recalls, what owners have told NHTSA, and the 41 Toyota nameplates in our list.

Rust: the trucks, SUVs and vans it hit hardest

Toyota's worst rust problems landed on its pickups, SUVs and one minivan, and mostly in states that salt their roads in winter.

Rusting frames led to a class-action settlement. Toyota's dealer letter puts it plainly: "On May 21, 2017, a settlement of claims in a class action lawsuit involving 2005 – 2010 Toyota Tacoma vehicles regarding frame corrosion was approved." Three groups of trucks came under it:

• 2005-2010 Tacoma, program ZH6. A frame that meets the court's Rust Perforation Standard is replaced at no cost.
• 2007-2008 Tundra, program ZH7, from the same settlement.
• 2005-2008 Sequoia, listed in the settlement's inspection guide.

The catch is time. ZH6 runs for "the latter of 12 years from the Date of First Use (DOFU) or January 31, 2019." A 2010 Tacoma first sold in 2010 passed 12 years in 2022. For nearly every Tacoma it covers, that door has closed.

Older Toyotas had their own rust fixes, all tied to cold, salty states:

The complaint file tells the same story. Structure is the NHTSA category that frame problems are filed under, and it is the component listed most for the Tacoma, 4Runner and Tundra. On the 2001-2004 Tacoma, 720 of 1,503 complaints list it. On the 2000-2003 Tundra it is 919 of 2,307.

In a state with safety inspections, a rotted frame can fail the truck outright. Our guide to selling a car that failed inspection covers that case.

Toyota coverage that may still be open in 2026

If your Toyota died of a big failure, rule this out first. Each item below can still apply to some cars this year:

A few details decide whether yours qualifies:

• The Prius inverter. ZE3 covers failure of the Intelligent Power Module inside the inverter. Fifteen years from first use means a Prius first sold after October 2011 is still covered in October 2026. If Safety Recall E0E covers the car, that work comes first.
• The UA80 transmission. Toyota's letter says there is a possibility that a washer tab inside the transmission, there to stop a nut from loosening, "was not sufficiently bent during assembly." The nut can then work loose. Owners notice whine, harsh shifts or lost power. If a dealer confirms it, the repair is a new transmission. The program names about 66,500 Highlanders and 83,700 Siennas. A 2017 first sold in late 2016 reaches its 10 years in late 2026.
• Older hybrids. Hybrids from before model year 2020 left the factory with 8 years or 100,000 miles on the battery. Toyota's warranty page today promises 10 years or 150,000 miles for every Toyota hybrid battery, yet its press release started the longer term with model year 2020. A dealer can tell from the VIN which term an older car has.

A Toyota dealer can check program coverage by VIN. Safety recalls are a separate check: NHTSA's recall lookup shows any still open on your VIN.

Programs that have run out or been suspended

These programs paid for big Toyota failures: engines, transmissions, brakes and dashboards. Every coverage period in the table has run out, so if one of these failures is why your Toyota quit, that program will not pay for it now. J0D is the exception: it was a software campaign with no coverage period, and Toyota suspended it in 2018, as the note below the table explains.

Two notes. The sludge extension followed 3,400 complaints about sludged engines, according to a 2007 ConsumerAffairs report on the settlement. J0D was a software campaign, not a warranty extension, though Toyota did let dealers seek approval to replace a worn CVT outside the normal warranty. Toyota's 2018 notice says J0D is suspended "until further notice," and we have not seen a later restart.

If oil burning or sludge finished your engine, our blown engine guide weighs repair against selling. For a slipping or shuddering automatic, see selling a car with a bad transmission.

Recalls that touched the most Toyotas

Floor mats, sticking pedals and the 2014 penalty

In 2009 Toyota recalled cars whose gas pedal could be trapped wide open by a loose or wrong driver's floor mat. This was recall 90L, NHTSA 09V-388. Toyota ran it in phases: 2007-2010 Camry, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2004-2009 Prius, 2008-2010 Highlander, 2007-2010 Tundra, 2009-2010 Corolla and Matrix, 2005-2010 Tacoma and 2009-2010 Venza. A 2011 amendment added the 2003-2009 4Runner and 2006-2010 RAV4. NHTSA's file counts 4,445,056 vehicles for the original campaign, a total that spans every model in it.

In January 2010 a second recall followed, A0A (NHTSA 10V-017). A friction part inside the pedal assembly could make the pedal stiff, slow to come back, or stuck partway down. Dealers fitted a steel reinforcement bar at no charge. It named the 2005-2010 Avalon, 2007-2010 Camry, 2009-2010 Corolla, Matrix and RAV4, 2010 Highlander, 2008-2010 Sequoia and 2007-2010 Tundra, 2,230,661 vehicles across that whole list.

In March 2014 Toyota signed a deferred prosecution agreement with the US Department of Justice. In it, "Toyota admits that it misled U.S. consumers by concealing and making deceptive statements about two safety related issues affecting its vehicles, each of which caused a type of unintended acceleration." It agreed to pay a $1.2 billion penalty.

The complaints line up. Vehicle speed control is the component listed most for the Camry, on 2,702 complaints. The 2007 Camry drew 3,615 complaints, more than any other Toyota model year in the file, and speed control tops its list too.

Air bags: Takata inflators and the Corolla's control unit

Takata inflators made with ammonium nitrate and no drying agent can rupture and throw metal pieces into the cabin. Toyota's final phase, in October 2019, named certain 2003-2013 Corolla, 2009-2010 Corolla Matrix, 2002-2007 Sequoia, 2011-2013 Sienna, 2010-2016 4Runner, 2004-2005 RAV4, 2003-2006 Tundra and 2007-2012 Yaris. The fix is a new inflator or a whole new air bag, free at a dealer.

The 2004-2005 RAV4 is the urgent one. Under NHTSA 15V-284, which covers 159,700 RAV4s, owners were told not to drive the car until the driver air bag is replaced.

Air bags are also the top component for the Corolla: 4,813 of its 12,155 complaints, or 40%. A separate recall, NHTSA 20V-024, found the air bag control unit may malfunction in certain crashes, so the air bags, the belt pretensioners or both may not deploy. Its 2,891,976 vehicles include the 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix and 2012-2018 Avalon, not only Corollas.

Do-not-drive and park-outside notices

Three Toyota recalls in our data tell owners not to drive at all:

• 15V-284, the 2004-2005 RAV4 driver air bag above.
• 22V-444, the 2023 bZ4X. Hub bolts can loosen until a wheel comes off. Its 661 vehicles include the Subaru Solterra as well.
• 23V-432, 298 of the 2023 Camry and Camry Hybrid, for lug nuts that may be loose.

One more, NHTSA 25V-636, tells owners of 2020-2022 GR Supras to park outside and away from buildings. The starter relay can corrode and short, which raises the risk of fire. BMW filed it, and its 199,674 vehicles include several BMW models as well as the Supra.

A car under one of these notices should not be driven to a buyer. Our truck comes to where it sits.

Fuel pumps that can stall the engine

If a 2014-2020 Toyota stalled at speed, check recall 20TA02 (NHTSA 20V-012). Inside the low-pressure pump, the impeller can absorb too much fuel and lose its shape, and the engine can quit while you drive. Toyota's dealer notice names certain 4Runner, Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Land Cruiser, RAV4, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra models, plus the 2014 FJ Cruiser. Dealers fit an improved pump free. NHTSA's count of 1,830,752 vehicles covers Lexus models too.

What owners have told NHTSA about their Toyotas

NHTSA's complaint file, downloaded October 10, 2026, holds 107,009 complaints for the 41 Toyota models in our list. Each complaint counts once per model and model year. The ten models below hold 95,110 of them, or 89%, and the Camry alone has 19%.

Popular models collect more complaints simply because more of them are on the road. One complaint can also list more than one component. Read the table as a guide to where problems cluster, not a ranking. A few patterns stand out:

• The 2010 Prius drew 2,829 complaints, and brake categories top its list. NHTSA recall 10V-039 covered inconsistent brake feel after the anti-lock system works on rough or slick roads; its 148,549 vehicles include the Lexus HS 250h.
• The C-HR is small in total, 544 complaints, but 330 of them, or 61%, list the power train.
• Structure leads for six of the 41 models. Four are in the table: the Sienna, Tacoma, Tundra and 4Runner, and all four come up in the rust section above. The other two are the FJ Cruiser, with 306 of its 908 complaints, and the 1984-1995 Pickup, with 71 of 375.

NHTSA's recall files list 395 distinct campaigns that cover one or more of these 41 models.

Toyota in America, from 288 cars to Kentucky

Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. was set up in Hollywood, California, in 1957. Sales began in 1958 with 288 vehicles. All but one were Toyopet Crown sedans; the other was a Land Cruiser. Americans found the Toyopet underpowered and overpriced. Toyota stopped selling it in 1961, which left the Land Cruiser as its only US model.

The Corona, from 1965, was the first Toyota to catch on here. In 1984 Toyota and GM formed NUMMI in Fremont, California. Two years later a white Corolla FX16 from NUMMI became the first Toyota car assembled on American soil. Also in 1986, Toyota became the first import automaker to sell more than one million vehicles in the US in a year. Camry production started in Georgetown, Kentucky, in 1988.

How the sale works for a Toyota

You don't strip anything off the car before it goes. The whole Toyota leaves on a truck, as it is. To get an offer, we need:

1. The model year, the model and roughly how many miles it has.
2. Whether it starts, whether it rolls, and what is broken, rusted or missing.
3. Whether the title is in your name. A lost title has a state-by-state fix; see selling a junk car with no title.
4. Where it is parked, whether that's your driveway, a curb, a shop lot or the back of a field.

If it has sat for years, our guide to cars that have been sitting covers what changes. Pickup is free anywhere in the US. Once it is gone, take care of the plates and paperwork.

Questions before you start? Call (877) 421-6008.

Toyota models from 4Runner to Yaris

Our list holds 41 Toyota nameplates the EPA has rated, model years 1984 to 2027. Years come from the EPA list, so its gaps show here: no 2012 Land Cruiser, no 2016-2020 Venza, no 2023-2025 C-HR. Later plug-in versions of the Prius and RAV4 are counted under those names. Recent model years keep arriving in the EPA list, so a nameplate shown ending in 2024 or 2025 may still be built.