Selling a Toyota Mirai you can't fuel or fix

The public record on this car is thin. NHTSA holds 30 complaints across the 2016 to 2023 model years and 4 recall campaigns, each fixed with software. Toyota's service bulletins say more about what fails.

2016-2020: the first Mirai

The first car drove its front wheels with a 152 hp motor fed by a fuel cell stack, two hydrogen tanks and a nickel-metal hydride battery. EPA range was 312 miles.

Its main documented fault is code P1DEF, for fuel cell stack performance. Toyota bulletin T-SB-0046-22 (May 2022) covers 2016-2019 cars that show "FC malfunction, return vehicle to dealer for service." Dealers start by recalibrating the fuel control module; a new stack is the second step. An earlier bulletin quiets a chirp from the hydrogen regulator on 2016-2017 cars with a silencer pad.

Owners filed 13 complaints across these five years. One in Orange County had the car towed when stations were down. Another says California stations were often offline. A 2017 owner lost power on an expressway after a small rock went through the radiator.

2021-2026: rear drive and three tanks

The second Mirai moved to the rear-drive platform under the Lexus LS. It has 182 hp, a lithium-ion battery and three carbon-fiber tanks, and the 2021 XLE is rated for 402 miles.

Bulletin T-SB-0043-23 covers 2021-2022 cars from the Motomachi plant with a warning light and code P1F6C71 or P1F6E71. Both point to a stuck air valve actuator in the fuel cell. The fix is a new control program or a new valve.

Complaints rise a little here: 10 on the 2022 and 6 on the 2023. Owners describe sudden loss of power at about 60 mph and in traffic. One 2023 car set code P1DC500, for fuel cell air pressure too high, and would not enter Ready mode. Another owner says Toyota traced a power loss to contaminated hydrogen and fixed it by flushing the system. A 2023 owner never saw more than 260 miles of range.

The four recalls are software: stability control that may not switch back on (22V239), two rearview camera faults (24V124 and 25V744), and a gauge cluster that can miss warnings on the 2024 (26V341). Each campaign also covers Lexus or other Toyota models, from 18,616 vehicles to more than a million.

Complaints and recalls by model year

NHTSA's files as of October 10, 2026. Grouped rows count each campaign once.

The warranty decides most repairs

Toyota lists an "8-year/100,000-mile warranty on key fuel cell vehicle components," naming the stack, the power control unit, the hydrogen tanks and the air compressor among them. The two bulletins above both fall under it, counted from the in-service date. From the 2020 model year, the battery gets longer coverage too: "10 years from date of first use/150,000 miles, whichever comes first."

A car still inside eight years and 100,000 miles is worth a dealer visit first, and that includes most 2019 and newer cars. On an early car that is past eight years, a failed stack is the point where selling usually makes more sense than repairing. If yours has been parked a long time, read our guide to a car sitting for years.

Selling the Mirai

1. Note the VIN, the mileage and any warning text on the dash.
2. Request an offer online or call (877) 421-6008.
3. Describe the spot where it's sitting and whether the wheels turn freely.
4. Leave it whole, tanks and battery included.
5. Sign the title for the driver, pass over the keys and have ID on hand. For plates, see after you sell.

Other Toyotas that run on electricity: the bZ4X and the Prius.