AI Damage1998 Toyota Tacoma: common problems
Owners of the 1998 Toyota Tacoma filed 300 complaints with NHTSA, most often about structure and air bags. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 300
- involving a crash
- 49
What fails most often
- 1 Structure 33% of all complaints
- 2 Air bags 15% of all complaints
- 3 Tires 10% of all complaints
- 4 Suspension 9% of all complaints
- 5 Seat belts 8% of all complaints
- 6 Service brakes 6% of all complaints
- 7 Vehicle speed control 5% of all complaints
- 8 Engine and cooling 5% of all complaints
- Structure: 98 complaints (33% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Air bags: 46 complaints (15% of all), 42 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Tires: 29 complaints (10% of all).
- Suspension: 28 complaints (9% of all).
- Seat belts: 23 complaints (8% of all), 4 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2.4 L · petrol · 4 cylnamed in 1 complaints
- 2.7 L · petrol · 4 cyl
- 3.4 L · petrol · 6 cyl
- automatic, 4-speed
- manual, 5-speed
Drive: RWD, AWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 300 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Structure | 98 | 1 | 0 |
| Air bags | 46 | 42 | 0 |
| Tires | 29 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat belts | 23 | 4 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 19 | 3 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 16 | 3 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 15 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Equipment | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility | 5 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
I had an accident over a year ago and the airbags did not deploy then I ask the guy that fixed it told me that it didn't have the sensor on the front of my truck, and I wonder why.
Vehicle was stopped in traffic attempting a left turn. Vehicle was rear ended by a driver not paying attention, sent airborne, flipped several times forward and sideways, then hit a parked car. Air bag never deployed, resulting in major injuries to driver of vehicle.
I started my truck and was slowly driving down a driveway, as I changed from 2nd gear to 3rd gear my vehicle acceleration went from 15mph to 67mph within just a few seconds and there was nothing that I could do but swerve to miss the vehicle in front of me. The engine roared out of control.
My 1998 toyota tacoma experience unexpected acceleration in 2004. The vehicle was totaled (worth about $12k at the time) due to the bent frame caused by hitting a concrete wall, then another car in a parking lot.
Upon frontal collision at 40-45 mph in the front middle to left side of vehicle, both air bags did not deploy. Owners information states the air bag should go off at 14 mph.
Consumer was driving at approx 20 mph hit another vehicle head on.seat belt did not hold, locked up. Due to this defect, it caused the consumer to hit windshield ,shattered glass. Also caused neck injuries. Toyota claims cannot find problem, and claims air bag should not have deployed.
The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for routine maintenance, the contact was informed that the subframe was severely corrosion. The vehicle was not repaired.
We later brought the truck to a dealership who took one look at the frame and said we were not driving that truck home it was extremely rusted beyond its years. The dealership gave us a rental car for the evening until they heard back from toyota who refused to replace the frame because the program had expired.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 1,346 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 4% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Tacoma has 258 complaints (33 years in the data). This year has 300, above average.
What to check before buying
- Structure. Rails, pillars, panel gaps, signs of pulling or welding.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
- Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
- Suspension. Wheel alignment, control arms, subframe, even tire wear.
Other years of this model
- Tacoma 1995177 sources
- Tacoma 1996253 sources
- Tacoma 1997131 sources
- Tacoma 1999249 sources
- Tacoma 2000211 sources
- Tacoma 2001396 sources
- Tacoma 2002333 sources
- Tacoma 2003360 sources
- Tacoma 2004415 sources
- Tacoma 2005707 sources
- Tacoma 2006782 sources
- Tacoma 2007541 sources
- Tacoma 2008450 sources
- Tacoma 2009520 sources
- Tacoma 2010294 sources
- Tacoma 2011186 sources
- Tacoma 2012295 sources
- Tacoma 2013125 sources
- Tacoma 201493 sources
- Tacoma 2015102 sources
- Tacoma 2016592 sources
- Tacoma 2017480 sources
- Tacoma 2018379 sources
- Tacoma 2019390 sources
- Tacoma 2020269 sources
- Tacoma 2021246 sources
- Tacoma 2022182 sources
- Tacoma 2023129 sources
- Tacoma 2024244 sources
- Tacoma 2025155 sources
- Tacoma 202640 sources
- Tacoma 999912 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1998 Toyota Tacoma?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: structure, air bags, tires. Total complaints: 300. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: rust, corrosion (28%), airbags did not deploy (8%), seat belts (7%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1998 Toyota Tacoma?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1998 Toyota Tacoma from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1998 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.