Toyota Venza Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls β NHTSA data
Comparing used Toyota Venza options? We analyzed 10 model years (2012β2024) using real NHTSA complaint and recall data so you can spot stronger years, avoid riskier ones, and know what to inspect before buying.
Free VIN check
Found a Toyota Venza? Check that exact car.
Model-year trends show patterns β they can't tell you whether this car was crashed, flooded, or rolled back. A VIN check can.
- Accident & damage history
- Odometer rollback records
- Open recalls & title brands
Based on NHTSA complaint data, the Toyota Venza has 407 owner complaints and 14 safety recalls across model years 2012β2024. The most reported issue area is VISIBILITY/WIPER. 2021 drew the most complaints; 2023 drew the fewest.
- Make
- Toyota
- Model
- Venza
- Model years analyzed
- 2012β2024 (10 years)
- Total NHTSA complaints
- 407
- Safety recall campaigns
- 14
- Crash-related complaints
- 68
- Fire-related complaints
- 1
- Worst model year (by complaints)
- 2021 (182 complaints)
- Best model year (fewest complaints)
- 2023 (20 complaints)
- Top reported issue area
- VISIBILITY/WIPER
- Reliability signal
- Poor
By model year
Toyota Venza: which years to avoid & which to buy
Based on total NHTSA owner complaints per model year. Higher complaint counts indicate a riskier year to buy used β lower counts suggest a cleaner reliability record.
These years have the most owner complaints. Inspect carefully and always run a VIN check.
These years have the fewest owner complaints on record β lower risk starting points.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA NCAP crash test ratings
New Car Assessment ProgramNCAP crash tests measure how well a vehicle protects occupants in controlled frontal crash, side crash, and rollover scenarios. Stars are awarded per category (5 = safest). These laboratory results are independent of owner complaints and are performed by NHTSA engineers on new production vehicles.
NCAP crash test ratings for this model are not yet loaded or this vehicle was not tested in the years analyzed. NHTSA tests a subset of new vehicles each year. Check nhtsa.gov/ratings directly for the latest results.
What the complaint data suggests
PoorThe TOYOTA VENZA has 407 NHTSA complaints and 14 recalls on record. 68 complaints involve crash-related incidents. This data reflects owner-reported issues submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
- 407 total complaints filed with NHTSA
- 14 federal recall campaigns
- 68 crash-related complaints on record
- Review NHTSA complaint history for the most-reported components
- Check recall completion status at nhtsa.gov/recalls
- Verify service records for frequently complained components
Consult the by-year breakdown to identify model years with elevated complaint rates.
Consult the by-year breakdown to identify model years with fewer reported issues.
- Run a VIN check on the specific vehicle you are considering
- Verify all open recalls are completed at nhtsa.gov/recalls
- Request service records for the most-reported complaint components
- Have a certified mechanic inspect the vehicle before purchase
Problems by model year (best vs. worst)
Source: NHTSA public complaints database. Updated: Aug 2026
Safety recalls
NHTSA safety recalls
14 recalls foundSafety recalls are mandatory repair campaigns ordered by NHTSA when a vehicle defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety. Manufacturers are required to fix recalled vehicles free of charge. Always verify open recalls before buying a used car.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE-INACTIVE
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW:CURTAIN
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW:CURTAIN
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC):CONTROL MODULE:SOFTWARE
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW:CURTAIN
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE-INACTIVE
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW:CURTAIN
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC):CONTROL MODULE:SOFTWARE
Source: NHTSA Recalls Database. Data covers model years 2012β2024. Always run a VIN-specific check below for the most up-to-date open recall status.
Common problems
What goes wrong most often
The vehicle systems owners complain about most, ranked from all 407 NHTSA complaints β these are the areas to inspect first on a used car.
Owner complaints
NHTSA complaint reports
407 totalThese are consumer-submitted safety complaints filed directly with NHTSA. Each complaint describes a real owner's experience. Complaints flagged as crash-related or fire-related are highlighted.
Vehicle has an open safety recall (25TD01) for rear traction motor cable corrosion. Corwin Toyota in Boulder, CO was notified in January and failed to order the part. Came in April 14 for the scheduled repair and was told the part was never ordered. It is now May 24 and the recall has still not been completed despite multiple follow-up attempts. Dealership has provided no explanation for the April failure and no confirmed repair date.
The inflation screen keeps going on and off
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Venza. The contact stated that while reversing up a steep driveway to enter a roadway, the vehicle reached the top of the incline. The contact attempted to shift the vehicle into Drive to complete the turn, but the vehicle would not allow the gear engagement. Consequently, the vehicle rolled backward down the driveway, through a ditch, and up an adjacent embankment. The vehicle speed was unknown. The vehicle's final stop was hitting a tree from the rear. No air bags were deployed. The vehicle was towed to an Auto Body Shop. The contact stated that both she and her daughter were in the vehicle and experienced back pain and neck discomfort. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 31,000.
The entertainment screen keeps going on and off. The radio will not stay on! I brought it to the Toyota dealer and told them the problem and that I saw on the internet a recall for this problem. He checked the vin number and said it was not mine. He also if itβs the screen that will be expensive to replace as my car is no longer in warranty
Vehicle loses center display repeatedly Screen and system keep rebooting while driving Dealer refused to fix saying βno recallβ Problem reduces visibility of backup camera and safety information
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Venza Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving into a parking space, the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration and crashed into the rear of another parked vehicle. No injuries were reported, and no police report was filed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. A manufacturer's investigator came to the dealer to inspect the vehicle. The contact was informed that the Black Box information did not indicate that a vehicle malfunction had occurred during the crash. The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced a second similar failure while driving 5 MPH, the accelerator pedal erroneously extended to the floor, and the vehicle began to unintentionally accelerate. The contact was able to press the brake pedal and safely stop the vehicle. The cause of the failures was not determined. The failure mileage was 15,000.
Read 14 more owner reports
My name is [XXX] . I own a 2023 Toyota Venza Limited with about 36,000 miles. On [XXX], while driving, we heard a loud popping sound, and the passenger airbag indicator light came on with a red/orange warning symbol. There was no accident β this appears to be a defective or faulty airbag mechanism. This is a serious safety issue. Please log this report and provide a case number. I can be reached at [XXX] and will also follow up with my local dealer, Team Toyota in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The front headlight developed condensation with zero evidence of a hit or accident. Additionally, the car randomly loses power when going from a stop to acceleration, leaving me in the middle of an intersection with no power for about 3-5 seconds
Purchased used from Metro Ford on 12-31-2024 with 16,689 miles. Was out of town until March 1 so I did not insure or drive the car until March. I had only driven it a few times before the accident happened. At first I started noticing that the car did not respond immediately when the gas pedal was pressed. I thought it was me being unfamiliar with how the new car worked. On 3-26-2025 I had pulled into a parking space in front of a building and all of a sudden the car surged forward unexpectedly even without me pressing the pedal leading to me crashing through the glass windows into the building. No warning lights were on. The car had two known issue with Unintended Acceleration and throttle delay yet no recall has been issued. My safety and the safety of 15 others was a risk and the crash did result in injuries. The building was full of students and clients and they were hurt along with major property damage to the building. State Farm declared the car was a total loss due to all the damage to my car and we have no idea the amount of damage done to the building. The business had to be closed for repairs and they are still closed. I have filed a product liability claim with Toyota case number 250407002330. Toyota will get with State Farm to see if an inspection can be made of the car as I have transferred ownership to State Farm as of April 4, 2025. The car was picked up by State Farm on April 5, 2025. I just discovered the known issue with the car this weekend so I do not think an inspection was done other than the body shop estimate.
Purchased a 2023 Toyota Venza in November of 2023 and had to replace the windshield less than a year later in October 2024. Now in March of 2025 the windshield is cracked again.
My wife owns this Toyota Venza. On October 9, 2024, I took the vehicle to the dealership for maintenance and all regular checkups passed. No sensor lights nor problem lights were on during the incident. On October 16, 2024 my wife was parking in a spot to pick up the mail in our community's mailbox. She pressed the brake and tried to park the vehicle when suddenly the motor accelerated over the parking lines on its own to a small hill continuously. My wife tried to press the brake multiple times with no success and the motor continued accelerating on its own. My wife turned the steering wheel to the right to avoid running into the hill or flipping the vehicle over. Once turned, the vehicle continued accelerating crossing over a neighborhood street and finally crashing into a neighbor's wall. Once it crashed the wall, all air bags were deployed and the vehicle rebounded back into the street where my wife was eventually able to shift it into parking. Once parked, the vehicle wouldn't start or move at all. Thankfully, there were no fatalities but my wife crashed into a wall and had to be taken to the hospital to be treated for the bruises in her legs and body from the air bag impact. Additionally, our community is gated and thankfully there is little traffic but this problem in a main road or highway could easily injure or kill people. We reported the accident to the local police and filed a report with them. We also notified insurance of the crash and have started a repair claim but the vehicle has not been inspected for any damages or problems. We have video recording of the incident which we will use for insurance and can provide as part of this complaint.
Traveling interstate 64 Hampton Virginia with 2023 Venza (9/27/2024) a stone hit the windshield and immediately spidered across the window.
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Venza. The contact stated that while his wife was attempting to park the vehicle and with her foot on the brake pedal, the vehicle suddenly accelerated on its own. As a result, the driver collided with another parked vehicle ahead, lightly damaging the front of the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. A police report was not filed, and no injuries were reported. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 1,000.
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Venza. The contact stated that while at a complete stop, the vehicle accelerated without warning as the accelerator pedal was released. As a result of the failure, the contact crashed into the rear end of another vehicle. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. A police report was not filed and no injuries were reported. The vehicle resumed normal operation after the failure. The vehicle was later towed to the dealer where they were unable to duplicate the failure. The contact was initially informed that the event data recorder did not record the accident. The contact was later informed that the vehicle control history showed that the vehicle's brake pedal was released and that the accelerator pedal was applied before the accident, the contact disputed the finding. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 2,600.
While driving on the interstate the volume on the radio went to full max volume, blasting in our ears, scaring us and in a frantic mode tried to shut it off with no avail almost could have caused an accident. None of the controls on the panel or steering wheel would turn it off. Finally after numerous attempts in a frantic manner was able to power off the audio. Controls wouldnβt respond until I did a reboot the next day.
When the headlights are on Low, not High beam, there is a dark horizontal round area and vertical streak (shadow) in the illuminated area in front of the vehicle. The dark area looks like an a large dark basket ball. It is only the left headlight. This shadow area prevents full illumination of the roadway on the left side of the of the vehicle. This also is a distraction and causes the driver's eyes to drift to the dark areas and further degrades nighttime driving safety. Per Toyota Forum, this problem is across the board for the Toyota vehicles, not just mine. When the lights are on Low and you hold a paper in front of the left light, the dark streak is easily seen.
Head on collision driving 40-45 MPH - a Mercedes pulled out in front of me and I slammed into their vehicle. My air bags did not deploy nor was there auto braking system. The crash indicator also did not call the police. My car is totaled. There is no way this vehicle is not part of your recent recalls. I was injured by the seat belt and have chest pain- this could have been avoided had my air bags deployed
When using low beam lights there are two dark spots being projected
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Venza. The contact stated that while his wife was driving out of the garage at an undisclosed speed, the transmission was shifted into drive (D); however, his wife's foot slipped off the brake pedal and the vehicle crashed into their residence. The contact stated that the forward collision sensing system failed to operate. No injury was sustained. The vehicle was towed to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and dispatched a third-party engineer to inspect the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 86.
Complete brake failure when exiting freeway resulted in crashing into a concrete barrier and guardrail at a high rate of speed before impacting another vehicle. Vehicle has an electronic emergency brake that could not be engaged. Vehicle could not be put in reverse or park to slow impact. There were three prior issues with the vehicle regarding brakes and acceleration. The car had less than 250 miles on it. Issue was reported to the dealer from where it was purchased after the collision. Vehicle is likely totaled pending an assessment by the insurance company. As the driver I had the choice of a direct impact with a string of cars stopped at the end of the off-ramp at a high rate of speed or hitting the barrier wall to slow my momentum. I chose the barrier wall to reduce the risk of the collision upon others.
Showing 20 of 407 total NHTSA complaints. Source: NHTSA Complaints Database
Check the exact car
Before you buy, check the exact Toyota Venza
These pages show model-year patterns across 10 years. Enter a VIN to verify the exact vehicle's accident history, title brands, odometer records, and open recall status before purchase.
The basics
How to read this data
Complaints, recalls, investigations β hereβs what each number actually tells you about a used Toyota Venza, in plain English.
What is an NHTSA Complaint?
An NHTSA safety complaint is a report filed directly by a vehicle owner or driver describing a safety-related issue. Anyone can submit a complaint at NHTSA.gov. The number of complaints is a signal of how common a problem is β but complaints per model-year matter more than raw totals, since popular vehicles naturally receive more reports. The Toyota Venza has 407 complaints on record across 10 model years.
What is a Safety Recall?
A safety recall is a mandatory campaign issued by NHTSA when a vehicle component poses an unreasonable risk to safety or does not comply with federal motor vehicle safety standards. Unlike complaints (which are owner-reported), recalls are formally investigated and confirmed by regulators. Manufacturers must fix recalled vehicles free of charge. The Toyota Venza has 14 recall campaigns in the NHTSA database.
What Are Crash Complaints?
Crash complaints are NHTSA filings where the owner indicates a crash occurred as part of the incident. 68 of the Toyota Venza's 407 complaints involved a crash. This metric is particularly important because it indicates how often defects resulted in actual collisions β a key safety signal beyond general reliability.
How Is the Reliability Verdict Calculated?
The reliability verdict (Poor) is generated by analyzing the vehicle's total complaints, recall history, crash complaint ratio, fire complaint ratio, and top component failures relative to class averages. This verdict gives buyers a quick interpretation before they review year-level details and VIN-level history. It should be treated as one decision input, not a substitute for a VIN-specific report.
Why Do Newer Years Have Fewer Complaints?
Newer model years appear to have fewer complaints because there has been less time for owners to file them. Complaints accumulate over years of ownership. A 2020 model year vehicle will typically show fewer complaints than a 2015 model year even if it is less reliable β simply because fewer owners have had time to report issues. Focus on complaints per year of market presence when comparing across model years.
Fleet Data vs. Individual VIN
Everything on this page reflects aggregated data across all Toyota Venza vehicles on the road β not any specific car. Two Toyota Venza vehicles of the same year can have very different histories: one may have been in three accidents and have an open recall; another may be clean. A VIN check gives you the individual car's history: accidents, title brands, odometer records, service history, and real-time recall status.
What Are NHTSA Investigations?
When NHTSA receives a pattern of related safety complaints, it opens a formal investigation. A Preliminary Evaluation (PE) is the first stage β NHTSA determines if a safety defect may exist. If evidence is strong, it escalates to an Engineering Analysis (EA), which can result in a mandatory recall. The Toyota Venza has 0 investigations on record (0 active). Investigations listed above may have already led to the recalls shown on this page.
Compare
Buyers also compare
How does the Toyota Venza stack up? Compare complaint history with similar vehicles.
Explore
Other Toyota models
By state
Check a Toyota Venza by state
Title-branding rules, flood-damage exposure, and salvage laws vary by state. Run a free VIN check or explore state-specific vehicle history guidance before buying a used Toyota Venza.
Research more
Keep researching before you buy
Compare brands and categories, then check the exact car's history by VIN.
Toyota Venza reliability β frequently asked questions
Is the Toyota Venza reliable?
Poor. The Toyota Venza has 407 NHTSA owner complaints and 14 recall campaigns across model years. A commonly reported issue area is VISIBILITY/WIPER. Use year-level data as a pattern guide, then verify the exact car with a VIN check before purchase.
Which Toyota Venza years to avoid?
Years with the most NHTSA complaints: 2021 (182 complaints), 2022 (40 complaints), 2024 (23 complaints). Use these years as a shortlist for deeper inspection, and always run a VIN check on the exact vehicle before purchase.
What are the most common Toyota Venza problems?
Top reported issues: VISIBILITY/WIPER (96 complaints); UNKNOWN OR OTHER (89 complaints); AIR BAGS (43 complaints).
Does the Toyota Venza have recalls?
Yes β 14 NHTSA recall campaigns have been issued for the Toyota Venza. Check nhtsa.gov/recalls or run a VIN check to see if your specific vehicle has open recalls.