2018 Toyota 4RunnerRecalls, problems, MPG & safety

“Maplewood Toyota dealership service negligence resulted in a severe, 2-tooth mechanical misalignment of the steering intermediate shaft splines. The vehicle was subsequently driven for 11 months under extreme structural binding, inducing unmeasurable metallurgy fatigue on a primary control linkage, internal hydraulic valve balancing failure within the steering gear assembly, and excessive over-tensioning of the primary airbag restraint electronics. Reusing these compromised components creates an active crash hazard and an unreasonable risk of sudden component failure. CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS & REPEATED DIAGNOSTIC FAILURES: In January 2026, an authorized franchise facility (Maplewood Toyota) replaced a steering universal joint and incorrectly reassembled the linkage out of index by two full splines, bypassing factory matchmarking protocols. This error left the steering wheel heavily off-center and created a severe, constant pull to the right. Over the next 11 months, the vehicle was brought into the authorized dealer network for four separate service visits across multiple Toyota franchise locations to address the persistent pulling and unstable tracking. The…”

“The dealership Direct Motor, located in Manassas, Virginia, sold me this car in poor condition. On Sunday the 22nd, I picked up the car around 10 PM. They didn't show me any information about the car. When I picked it up, I saw that the front bumper and rear door were damaged, and the airbag lights were on, which is dangerous. I returned the car first thing Monday morning and asked them to exchange it. They refused. I asked for my money back, which is $3,000, and they refused again. Then I went back on Wednesday and filled out a form explaining why I returned the car. They said they would return my money, but now they're not responding. They're trying to scam me.”

“On [XXX], my husband was driving our 2018 Toyota 4Runner Limited home from Coventry, CT, with me in the passenger seat. At the second-to-last STOP sign on our route, a yellow slip indicator light suddenly appeared on the dashboard. We did not know why. We wondered if we had accidentally touched a control near the steering wheel. The brakes still worked normally, and my husband stopped completely. I photographed the warning light. Since we were only a few minutes from home, we continued cautiously, planning to check the warning once home. Shortly afterward, we were driving downhill on [XXX] toward the next STOP sign at [XXX]. My husband applied the brakes, but the vehicle did not slow as expected. It continued downhill, gained speed, and entered [XXX] without stopping. [XXX] is normally busy. Fortunately, no vehicles were directly in our path, and no collision or injuries occurred. My husband turned on the hazard lights and drove slowly while looking for a safe place to stop. The normal brakes still could not bring the vehicle to a complete stop. He eventually stopped at a repair shop using emergency measures. We left the vehicle there because it was unsafe to…”