2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser problems

“After buying my vehicle I have began to notice a growing rust problem that is not due to salt water or other environmental conditions, but clearly a defect in manufacturing. After joining a few Facebook groups with other FJ owners I’ve found countless other people have had the same problem and that without massive trust removal my vehicle is expected to have failures in the frame and suspension at some point.”

“WHILE COMING TO A STOP, IF MY 2008 TOYOTA FJ CRUISER HITS A BUMP THE ABS BRAKE SYSTEM ACTIVATES KICKING BACK ON THE BRAKE PEDAL. THEN, THE BRAKES GRAB AS IF THEY ARE GOING TO LOCK UP AND SKID. THE ONLY WAY TO STOP THE BRAKE SYSTEM FROM CONTINUING TO DO THIS IS TO RELEASE THE PEDAL COMPLETELY THEN, REAPPLY THE BRAKES. OBVIOUSLY THIS ISN'T WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IN ORDER TO STOP. THERE ARE NUMEROUS CASES LIKE THIS DOCUMENTED ON THIS WEBSITE. HOW MUCH MORE DOCUMENTATION DOES TOYOTA NEED BEFORE THEY TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY? *TR”

“the brakes are constantly binding up due to rust and need replaced, recently ABS brake lines rusted off causing me to miss a stop sign, very dangerous, Upper rear control arm mount rusted and cracked completely off causing steering and braking problems and had to be replaced to even use this vehicle, , The front rack has been replaced due to excessive rust of lines and fittings, same with transmission cooler lines-rotted off...brake backing plates rotted off.. Even though I have had this undercoated and rust treated, the frame is rusting inside-out...frame braces, everything on the frame is rusted much more than one would expect, even in a salt state like Ohio....my safety was put at risk by faulty brakes, the frame is not safe under hard braking and may cause an accident, the dealer has seen this vehicle, a local independent says "get rid of it"...no warning lamps, just wild things happen with brakes, pulls left, pulls right, front, then back and this past time ...NONE!...only 111,000 miles.”

“DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT RETRACTOR STOPPED WORKING. SEAT BELT IS FULLY EXTENDED AND WILL NOT RETRACT THE SEAT BELT. ONLINE RESEARCH SHOWS SEAT BELT RETRACTOR SPRINGS ARE RUSTING INTERNALLY, THUS PREVENTING THE RETRACTOR FROM RETURNING THE SEAT BELT TO NORMAL POSITION. DRIVING, PARKING, ETC. WILL NOT RESULT IN THE SEAT BELT RETRACTING AT ALL.”

“On the home my wife went to apply the brakes and she had no brake pressure. The pedal went all the way to the floor. Then several lights and a buzzer sound started, and she could not stop the car. She was able to pull up on the e-brake just before she drove completely into the intersection, where several cars were driving in both directions. The front end of car ended partially in the north bound lane of US MD-5. There was also a home at the end of the road that she could have also driven into. I researched on several forums where other owners have had the same issue and the dealership has been unable to diagnose the issue. No TSB or recall has been made, but the number of people that have had this issue, something should have been done. My 4-year-old daughter was in the car, and I could have lost both of them. People need to aware of this. I had no idea that a total brake failure was possible with these vehicles.”

“2008 TOYOTA FJ CRUISER, BUILD DATE:10/07. HAVE HAD UNNERVING EXPERIENCES WITH THE BRAKE SYSTEM ON MY FJ.(1) WHEN BRAKING OVER A NON SMOOTH ROAD THE BRAKE PEDAL PULSATES FOR A LONG PERIOD AND DOES NOT STOP THE VEHICLE. (2) HAD TO PANIC STOP AND HIT THE BRAKES HARD, THEY LOCKED UP, THERE WAS NO BRAKING JUST THE ABS TOOK OVER AND LOCKED UP THE BRAKES HARD TO THE POINT THAT I WAS GLAD I WAS WEARING MY SEAT BELT, BECAUSE I WOULD'VE BEEN LYING IN THE STREET.(3) THE PEDAL WILL BE HARD ONE TIME AND MUSHY THE NEXT WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES. WHEN THE PEDAL IS MUSHY THE BRAKES DO NOT WORK APPROPRIATELY, NEARLY REAR ENDING PEOPLE OR LOCKING UP THE BRAKES TO STOP. (4) WHEN AT A STOP THE PEDAL WAS MUSHY AND I TRIED TO "PUMP"UP THE PEDAL BY PUMPING THE BRAKE PEDAL, ALL THE WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON (RELATED TO THE BRAKING SYSTEM) THE DASH AND AN ANNOYING ALARM SOUNDED, HAS HAPPENED 3 TIMES NOW. (5) WHEN THE PEDAL IS MUSHY I CAN PUSH IT DOWN ALL THE WAY TO THE STOPPING POINT/FLOOR WITH NO RESISTANCE. CALLED THE DEALER THEY SAID THEY HAVE NEVER HAD ANY "ISSUES". *TR”