Problems · NHTSA complaints
2000 Toyota Echo problems
Owners filed 86 complaints about the 2000 Toyota Echo with NHTSA between Apr 2000 and Sep 2021. The most-cited component is service brakes, hydraulic (24).
Complaints
86
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
28
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
21
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Service brakes, hydraulic24
- Air bags20
- Vehicle speed control13
- Power train8
- Equipment6
- Electrical system6
- Suspension5
- Engine and engine cooling4
- Tires2
- Steering2
- Seat belts2
- Structure2
- Service brakes1
- Engine1
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 27, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
11
22
8
7
6
8
3
0
3
2
5
2
1
1
1
0
2
0
3
0
0
1
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 11 |
| 2001 | 22 |
| 2002 | 8 |
| 2003 | 7 |
| 2004 | 6 |
| 2005 | 8 |
| 2006 | 3 |
| 2007 | 0 |
| 2008 | 3 |
| 2009 | 2 |
| 2010 | 5 |
| 2011 | 2 |
| 2012 | 1 |
| 2013 | 1 |
| 2014 | 1 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 2 |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 |
Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Service brakes, hydraulic
24 reports8 crashes2 related recalls
“TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 TOYOTA ECHO. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH AND ATTEMPTING TO STOP AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT, THE CONTACT APPLIED THE BRAKES BUT THEY LOCKED UP. THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO THE VEHICLE IN FRONT. THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED AND THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG SHATTERED THE WINDSHIELD UPON CONTACT. NO POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE OCCURRED ONCE BEFORE. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE CONTACT NOTIFIED THE MANUFACTURER WHO STATED THAT THEY WOULD REPAIR THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT WAS TOLD BY THE MANUFACTURER THAT THE VEHICLE WAS INCLUDED IN RECALL 04V455000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC: FOUNDATION COMPONENTS: MASTER CYLINDER) BUT THE REPAIR WORK HAD NEVER BEEN PERFORMED. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 213,000.”
Air bags
20 reports18 crashes
“TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNED A 2000 TOYOTA ECHO. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE THAT FAILED TO YIELD FROM THE LEFT. THE STEERING WHEEL AIR BAG DEPLOYED AND STRUCK THE CONTACT IN THE FACE. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOTALED AND WAS TOWED AWAY BY THE INSURANCE COMPANY. THE DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS NOT PROVIDED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000.”
Vehicle speed control
13 reports3 crashes
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 TOYOTA ECHO. WHILE DRIVING 40-50 MPH, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS APPLIED, BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP. THE CONTACT HAD TO PLACE THE VEHICLE IN NEUTRAL TO STOP IT FROM MOVING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE RPMS INCREASED AND THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO REFERRED THE CONTACT TO A LOCAL DEALER. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO COWBOY TOYOTA (9525 E R L THORNTON FWY, DALLAS, TX 75228, 888-434-4611), BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND PROVIDED CASE NUMBER: 1811131014. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 260,010.”
Power train
8 reports
“WHILE ATTEMPTING TO STOP VEHICLE USING FULL BRAKE PEDAL FORCE AND HAND BRAKE THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE. I WAS UNABLE TO STOP THE CAR AND NEARLY CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. AFTER SHIFTING THE TRANSMISSION INTO PARK THE ENGINE CONTINUED OPERATING AT HIGH SPEED. THE GAS PEDAL WAS NOT STUCK OR USED AT ANY TIME DURING THIS TIME. THIS OCCURRED ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS BOTH AT HIGHWAY AND CITY SPEEDS. IT SEEMS THAT THERE ARE OTHER REPORTS OF SIMILAR INCIDENTS WITH THIS CAR. NO PROBLEMS WERE IDENTIFIED BY MECHANIC WHO COULDN'T REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM. *TR”
Equipment
6 reports
“I WAS DRIVING FROM FLORIDA AFTER A VACATION. AFTER APPROXIMATELY 2-3 HOURS OF DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A DECREASE OF AIRFLOW AND COOLNESS FROM MY A/C UNIT. I SHUT IT OFF AND TURNED IT BACK ON AND TRIED DIFFERENT LEVEL OF AIR FLOW AND COOLING AND NO CHANGE. I STOPPED AT A GAS STATION AND FOUND THERE TO BE CONDENSATION ON A TUBE UNDER MY HOOD. AFTER STOPPING FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES AND THEN DRIVING WITHOUT THE A/C FOR 20 MINUTES I TURNED THE A/C BACK ON AND EVERYTHING WAS BACK TO NORMAL. *JB”
Electrical system
6 reports1 crash1 fire
“SPEEDOMETER CONTINUOUSLY FLUCTUATES WHEN DRIVING BETWEEN SPEEDS OF 0 - 60 MPH WHEN VEHICLE IS COLD. SPEEDOMETER WOULD READ 35 - 45 MPH HIGHER THAN ACTUAL SPEED AND WOULD DROP LOWER. VEHICLE ALSO DRIVES POORLY AND SHAKES DURING LOWER SPEEDS. VEHICLE WAS PROMPTLY TAKEN TO DEALERSHIP FOR REPAIRS AT WHICH TIME THE DEALERSHIP NOTATED THAT THEY WERE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM SO THEY SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO ABOUT THE SPEEDOMETER PROBLEM. CONTINUED DRIVING VEHICLE AS IT DID NOT SEEM TO EFFECT DRIVING. 1 YEAR AND 5 MONTHS LATER, TRANSMISSION STARTED SHIFTING POORLY DURING COLD STARTS FOR AT LEAST 5 MINUTES UNTIL VEHICLE WARMS UP. TRANSMISSION WAS FLUSHED BY PERSONAL MECHANIC BUT PROBLEM CONTINUED. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AT WHICH TIME VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DIFFERENT DEALERSHIP. REPORTED OLDER PROBLEM WITH SPEEDOMETER AS WELL AS NEW PROBLEMS WITH TRANSMISSION. DEALERSHIP STATED CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS DUE TO RPM SENSOR MALFUNCTION AND THAT THE VEHICLE NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION AND THAT THE SPEEDOMETER PROBLEM WAS CAUSED BY THE BAD SENSOR AND SHOULD HAVE BEEN FIXED WHEN THE PROBLEM WAS ORIGINALLY DISCOVERED. SAID BAD SENSOR LED TO TRANSMISSION…”
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 27, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.