Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STRUCTURE | |||
| 10/01/2012 | 87000 | 1 | |
| I began to notice that my dash has started to crack and it is in the area of the air bag. i did some research and found out that many 2004 toyota 4runner owners are having the same problem. i called toyota to ask for info and they refused to assist in the matter or even help pay for it to be replaced. this concerns me for my safety, since it is in the area of the air bag. toyota is aware of this defect in the dash but has done nothing to remedy the situation. it is not only a safety concern, but it also depreciates the value of my vehicle. i have listed my case number and one other that i know of below with toyota. other from research- [xxx] mine - [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr | |||
| 07/16/2012 | 148000 | 1 | |
| On or about july 16, 2012 owner noticed that the vehicle dashboard had vertical cracks near the driver side and passenger side air vents. on or about 9/21/12, owner noticed a horizontal crack in the passenger side dashboard above the glove box. vehicle has not been in any accidents and has been housed in garages at work and home. *tr | |||
| 09/01/2009 | 1 | ||
| Approx 3 years ago, i noticed a small crack in the dash on the passenger side, i thought maybe someone did something and did not tell me. since that time, my dash has increased in the amount and length of the cracks. one crack is about 24-28 inches long and others are about 2 inches and longer. i looked on the internet and found many complaints about the same issue. my 4runner is garage kept and i have not done anything to my dash that would create they cracks. what can happen if the passenger airbag is deployed in an accident? can this cause flying pieces of the dash board to be in your face when the airbag hits causing possible facial damage? *tr | |||
| 01/01/2011 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact stated the vehicle was parked when he looked under the vehicle and noticed the frame was severely rusted and corroded. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 67,000. sm. | |||
| 04/01/2010 | 84000 | ||
| 2004 toyota 4-runner dash cracking above glove box/ air bag in two places. getting larger daily. | |||
| STRUCTURE - BODY | |||
| 08/25/2012 | 40000 | 1 | |
| Vehicle was being parked alongside the curb when it suddenly jumped the curb, the sidewalk onto the uphill grassy landscape, hit and severed a tree, and almost crashed the house inches away, then bounced back to the street- all in about 3 seconds. the tires spun violently and left a thick residue of rubber and thick smoke throughout. the brake was hard and stuck , as i managed to put the stick to neutral and then to park. i was truly shocked and shaken that i could have hurt or killed myself or others. this is the second time this happened- the first in july 22, 2009 when the same acceleration happened when i was moving the vehicle into the garage, surged in about 2 secs. crashing into the storage and the garage walls. reference: toyota claim no.[xxx] (2009) and no.[xxx] (2012). in both cases toyota disowned any responsibility. while toyota assures me of the safety of the vehicle, i cannot in my right mind continue to drive this vehicle nor pass it on to somebody else except to return it to toyota. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr | |||
| 08/25/2012 | 40000 | ||
| Vehicle was being parked alongside the curb when it suddenly jumped the curb, the sidewalk onto the uphill grassy landscape, hit and severed a tree, and almost crashed the house inches away, then bounced back to the street- all in about 3 seconds. the tires spun violently and left a thick residue of rubber and thick smoke thruout. the brake was hard and stuck , as i managed to put the stick to neutral and then to park. i was truly shocked and shaken that i could have hurt or killed myself or others. this is the second time this happened- the first in july 22, 2009 when the same acceleration happened when i was moving the vehicle into the garage, surged in about 2 secs. crashing into the storage and the garage walls. reference: toyota claim no. 0908120756 (2009) and no.1208271694 (2012). in both cases toyota disowned any responsibility. while toyota assures me of the safety of the vehicle, i cannot in my right mind continue to drive this vehicle nor pass it on to somebody else except to return it to toyota. | |||
| 11/08/2011 | 97377 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact noticed that the entire length of the dashboard exhibited cracks which originated from the driver's side air bag housing. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 97,377. pmb | |||
| 08/25/2012 | 40000 | ||
| Vehicle was being parked alongside the curb when it suddenly jumped the curb, the sidewalk onto the uphill grassy landscape, hit and severed a tree, and almost crashed the house inches away, then bounced back to the street- all in about 3 seconds. the tires spun violently and left a thick residue of rubber and thick smoke thruout. the brake was hard and stuck , as i managed to put the stick to neutral and then to park. i was truly shocked and shaken that i could have hurt or killed myself or others. this is the second time this happened- the first in july 22, 2009 when the same acceleration happened when i was moving the vehicle into the garage, surged in about 2 secs. crashing into the storage and the garage walls. reference: toyota claim no. 0908120756 (2009) and no.1208271694 (2012). in both cases toyota disowned any responsibility. while toyota assures me of the safety of the vehicle, i cannot in my right mind continue to drive this vehicle nor pass it on to somebody else except to return it to toyota. | |||
| 11/08/2011 | 97377 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact noticed that the entire length of the dashboard exhibited cracks which originated from the driver's side air bag housing. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 97,377. pmb | |||
| 08/25/2012 | 40000 | ||
| Vehicle was being parked alongside the curb when it suddenly jumped the curb, the sidewalk onto the uphill grassy landscape, hit and severed a tree, and almost crashed the house inches away, then bounced back to the street- all in about 3 seconds. the tires spun violently and left a thick residue of rubber and thick smoke thruout. the brake was hard and stuck , as i managed to put the stick to neutral and then to park. i was truly shocked and shaken that i could have hurt or killed myself or others. this is the second time this happened- the first in july 22, 2009 when the same acceleration happened when i was moving the vehicle into the garage, surged in about 2 secs. crashing into the storage and the garage walls. reference: toyota claim no. 0908120756 (2009) and no.1208271694 (2012). in both cases toyota disowned any responsibility. while toyota assures me of the safety of the vehicle, i cannot in my right mind continue to drive this vehicle nor pass it on to somebody else except to return it to toyota. | |||
| 11/08/2011 | 97377 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact noticed that the entire length of the dashboard exhibited cracks which originated from the driver's side air bag housing. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 97,377. pmb | |||
| 11/08/2011 | 97377 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact noticed that the entire length of the dashboard exhibited cracks which originated from the driver's side air bag housing. the vehicle had not been rep[aired. the manufacturer was notified of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 97,377. js | |||
| 04/07/2010 | 42000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact stated that the dashboard developed multiple cracks and he was concerned that the air bags would become exposed. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that the dashboard needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who filed a report and offered to pay half of the repair costs. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 42,000 and the current mileage was 64,000. | |||
| 04/07/2010 | 42000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact stated that the dashboard developed multiple cracks and he was concerned that the air bags would become exposed. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that the dashboard needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who filed a report and offered to pay half of the repair costs. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 42,000 and the current mileage was 64,000. kmj | |||
| 04/07/2010 | 42000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4runner. the contact stated that the dash board had developed multiple cracks and he was concern that the air bags might become expose. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, who stated that the dash board needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who file a report and offer to pay half of the repair cost. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 42,000 and the current mileage was 64,000. pm | |||
| 05/28/2012 | 45000 | ||
| Linear cracks appeared seemingly overnight across the entire dash (toyota calls it the safety pad). car is in pristine condition, and a sunshade was used daily. this must be a defect in materials. | |||
| 11/11/2009 | 39000 | ||
| Around the end of 2010, i noticed a crack on the dashboard over the passenger side airbag and took the vehicle to my local dealer to see if the factory representative could look at it at his next visit. instead of the rep looking at it at a later date the service manager had me bring the vehicle back so he could take a picture of it. i got no help from the dealer/manufacturer. mid 2011 the one crack has developed into 2 cracks with one being approx 15 inches long and the other approx 4-5 inches long. december 2011 i called the dealer back again to set up an appointment with the factory rep and i was told to call the manufacturer customer service phone number and they told me i had to call my local dealer. i called back to my local dealer and the service manager told me he would call me when he knew when the rep would be at the dealership. one month later, after not receiving a phone call i called the service manager back and was told he still did not know the reps schedule yet. my concern is that if i am involved in an accident and the airbags deploy, how will these cracks affect the deployment of the passenger side airbag?? will the dashboard break into pieces when the airbag deploys and hurl plastic pieces of the dashboard towards the occupant of the passenger side at great speeds instead of cleanly coming out of the dash. | |||
| STRUCTURE - BODY - HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE | |||
| 05/31/2007 | 1 | ||
| -hatchback electronic closure fails for the second time within a one year period -replaced motor once because vehicle does not operate without--exhaust fumes come through the hatchback, unable to lock vehicle, lights don't automatically shut off, water during rain or snow gets inside vehicle, etc there is no manual over-ride to enable closing the hatchback there is no purpose for an electronic closing device--you still manually pull down the hatch, and once closed, the motor engages to latch it shut! the part wasn't covered under warranty, despite other hatchback complaints (poor aerodynamic design with lots of dirt thrown up on hatchback), so there have been issues with using the key lock, being unable to roll down the window, and now the vehicle is rusting around the window. *tr | |||
| STRUCTURE - FRAME AND MEMBERS | |||
| 04/09/2009 | 61980 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 toyota 4 runner. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for a state inspection. the technician observed frame perforation due to severe rust corrosion. as a result, the vehicle failed inspection because of the frame. there were no warnings prior to the failure. the vehicle was taken to a structure body welder shop for a second opinion and the technician stated that the frame had excessive blisters. the technician did not recommend that the frame be repaired because the failure would recur within a year. the failure mileage was 61,980 and current mileage was 62,400. | |||
| STRUCTURE - FRAME AND MEMBERS - UNDERBODY SHIELDS | |||
| 11/01/2012 | 182000 | 1 | |
| 2004 4runner limited, frame rusted out. *tr | |||