2018 Toyota Tacoma: What to check before buying

The low-pressure fuel pump fails. The truck loses power at highway speed, runs rough, stalls, or won't start, sometimes with no warning light. Most of these complaints date from 2020 and are about the fuel pump recall: owners waited months for parts and some were told to park their trucks. A few say stalling continued after the recall repair, or that dealers couldn't reproduce the low fuel pressure. Some report a strong fuel smell in the cab.

Most of these complaints are about the fuel pump recall, not about breakdowns. Owners received the notice, but dealers had no parts, and most of these owners had not had a failure. The few actual failures describe stalling without warning, hesitation when accelerating, shaking, and trouble starting. One report says the problem continued after the pump was replaced. Separately, the fuel tank cover can rattle loose when its mounting nuts corrode, reported at around 56,000 miles.

Brake fluid leaks into the cab. The brake master cylinder or booster seeps from the back, runs down the pushrod, and drips onto the pedal, floor mat, and floor, where it can cause rust. Pedals feel softer or travel further before the brakes bite. More serious reports describe the pedal suddenly dropping to the floor at low speed, sometimes in cold weather, and the truck rolling into a wall or garage. Five of these complaints involve crashes and one involves an injury. Several owners tie the leak to a brake recall, but their VINs are not covered.

The automatic transmission shudders, hesitates, and hunts for gears, mostly between 35 and 60 mph at light throttle in the top gears. When the driver accelerates out of a coast or a slowdown, there is a delay of a second or more, then a hard downshift and a surge. Many owners notice this in the first few thousand miles. Dealers often can't reproduce it or call it normal, and a software update only partly helps. Manual trucks have their own reports: bucking at low rpm, and a clutch pedal that stays on the floor below 20 degrees F.

The pre-collision system gives false alarms. It flashes brake warnings or triggers with nothing ahead, and dealers often find no fault code. Rodents chew through the soy-based wire coating, which knocks out lights, air conditioning, and key fob functions. Other reports describe a radio that cuts out and drops phone calls, a wireless charging pad that overheats and bubbles, and a hood that won't open when the battery is dead. Two private-sale buyers found rolled-back odometers, including one truck showing 57,000 miles that actually had 254,000.

Radar cruise control and the pre-collision system brake hard for no reason, even on open roads and curves. A recall for the front radar sensor addressed water getting into the grille sensor, but one owner says the braking came back after the fix. Two reports describe the truck surging past 90 or 100 mph with cruise control on. Others describe a delay of several seconds before the engine responds from a stop, low-speed loss of power, and a warning that the brake and accelerator were pressed at once.

Misfires and stalling lead these reports. The check engine light flashes, the engine runs rough, and the truck may go into limp mode or die and refuse to restart. Dealers often can't find a cause. One misfire case was traced to a leaking intake valve, and the dealer recommended a new engine. Hesitation of 1 to 2 seconds when pulling away from a crawl, such as during left turns, persists after computer updates. Less common reports include ticking noises, metal shavings in the oil, erratic cold idle, and failed tensioner bearings at 70,000 miles.

Water gets into the cab through poorly sealed rear cabin vents and the headliner. It soaks the carpet and padding, breeds mold, and rusts the cab mount bolts. Peeling paint and failed clear coat show up on the hood and the tops of the rear doors, including on white trucks. One owner also reports that the air conditioning drain tube drips onto the frame rail, which can lead to rust there.

The electric power steering fails, making the truck hard to turn with no warning light. In one case a mechanic traced this to the rack and pinion at about 35,000 miles. Other reports describe the steering wheel and seat vibrating between 10 and 30 mph, and a rattle from the front suspension on rough roads. The rest of these complaints are actually about power loss and shifting problems, with one blaming the open fuel pump recall.