Toyota 4 Runner
Owners filed 1,034 complaints across 12 model years of the Toyota 4 Runner. The 2003 drew the most (168); the 2005 the fewest (15).
Model years12
Complaints1,034
Recalls0
Fires8
Deaths8
Every Toyota 4 Runner model year compared
Complaints per year| Year | Complaints | Relative volume | Recalls | Fires | Crashes | Most reported | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 15 | 0 | — | — | Seats | Routine | |
| 2004 | 66 | 0 | — | 5 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Exhaust System › Emission Control › Catalytic Convertor | Routine | |
| 2003 | 168 | 0 | — | 1 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Exhaust System | Routine | |
| 2002 | 32 | 0 | 1 | 7 | Tires | Routine | |
| 2001 | 31 | 0 | — | 3 | Tires › Tread/Belt | Routine | |
| 2000 | 104 | 0 | — | 21 | Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Rotor | Fatalities reported | |
| 1999 | 110 | 0 | 3 | 18 | Tires | Routine | |
| 1998 | 120 | 0 | 3 | 12 | Tires | Routine | |
| 1997 | 122 | 0 | — | 23 | Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip | Fatalities reported | |
| 1996 | 89 | 0 | — | 12 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine | Fatalities reported | |
| 1995 | 125 | 0 | — | 11 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine | Routine | |
| 1994 | 52 | 0 | 1 | 8 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine | Fatalities reported |
Which Toyota 4 Runner years should you avoid?
On raw complaint volume the 2003 is the weakest year on record, with 168 complaints concentrated in the engine and engine cooling › exhaust system.
Read these numbers with sales volume in mind. A model year that sold in huge numbers naturally accumulates more reports than a rare one, and older cars have had more years to fail. The stronger signal is the severity columns and whether the same component keeps coming up year after year.
Data: NHTSA complaint and recall files, September 2026. Complaints are unverified owner reports.