2012 Toyota Sequoia problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Service Brakes (4) · Electrical System (4) · Structure:body (3)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Toyota Sequoia model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (4)
Steering:rack And Pinion 2021-12-23 · campaign 21E103000 · 151 vehicles
Defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain JTEKT power steering gear assembly service parts for 2007-2021 Tundra and 2008-2022 Sequoia, part numbers 44250-0C160, 44250-0C131, 44250-0C170, and 11250-0C121. The power steering gear assembly may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in an oil leak.
Risk: An oil leak may cause a sudden loss of power steering assist, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the power steering gear assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on February 17, 2022. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 21TH01.
Steering:hydraulic Power Assist System 2021-11-23 · campaign 21V920000 · 22,462 vehicles
Defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2008-2022 Sequoia and 2007-2021 Tundra vehicles. The power steering gear assembly may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in an oil leak.
Risk: An oil leak may cause a sudden loss of power steering assist, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the power steering gear assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 21, 2022. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 21TB10 and 21TA10.
Equipment:other:labels 2013-04-09 · campaign 13V123000 · 7,525 vehicles
Defect: Southeast Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 and 2010-2013 Toyota Tundra, 2010-2012 Rav4, 2012 Toyota Sequoia, 2010-2011 Toyota Corolla, 2010-2011 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota FJ Cruiser, 2011 Toyota Land Cruiser, 2010-2013 Toyota Venza, 2010-2011 Toyota 4Runner, 2010-2013 Toyota Tacoma, 2011-2012 Toyota Sienna, 2012 Toyota Prius, 2013 Scion FR-S, 2011 Scion XD, 2011 Scion XB, and 2012 Scion TC vehicles. These vehicl
Risk: An inaccurate label could lead to owners overloading their vehicles and tires. An overloaded vehicle can result in a tire failure which may result in a vehicle crash, personal injury, or property damage.
Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners and provide a corrected label with instructions concerning its installation. A small group of the affected vehicles will need additonal remedies which are still being developed. The recall began on May 28, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Seats 2013-01-16 · campaign 13V014000 · 3,235 vehicles
Defect: Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain models interspersed through model years 2009 through 2013 as follows: model year 2009-2012 Tacoma, 4Runner, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Prius, and RAV4; model year 2009-2010 Avalon, FJ Cruiser, and Highlander Hybrid; model year 2010-2013 model year Corolla, Sienna and Tundra; model year 2009-2013 Highlander and Venza; model year 2012 Prius V; and model year 2010-2012 Sequoia. During modification by SET to include accessories such as leather
Risk: If the front passenger seat occupant sensing system is out of calibration, the front passenger airbags may not deploy or they may deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position. This could increase the risk of personal injury during the event of a vehicle crash necessitating airbag deployment.
Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on March 21, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Service bulletins (322)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-01-07 · T-SB-0055-24 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2026 toyota vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-12-06 · T-SB-0039-24 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the condition known as acid rain is caused by airborne chemicals or particles in the atmosphere, which mix with rainwater, nighttime dew, or high humidity to form acidic compounds. if these contaminants settle and remain on a painted vehicle surface, especially the horizonal areas of the hood, roof,
Structure:body 2024-12-06 · T-SB-0038-24 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
to prevent brake rotor rust from forming during transportation and storage, wheel film will be used instead of a cardboard type of anti-rust cover. the purpose of the wheel film is to shield the disc brake rotor from weather elements and initial rust before the vehicle is delivered to the customer.
Structure:body 2024-12-06 · T-SB-0035-24 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
acid rain results from rainwater or other airborne moisture that become acidic due to industrial chemical impurities in the atmosphere. if these acidic compounds settle on an exposed vehicle, especially the horizontal areas such as the hood, roof, and decklid, significant damage to the painted surfa
Structure:body 2024-12-05 · T-SB-0061-23 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
toyota vehicles are currently protected with rapgardtm protective film designed to protect the horizontal painted surfaces. this material protects from acid rain, environmental fallout, and rail contamination. follow the removal procedure in this bulletin to remove the rapgardtm protective film wi
Structure:body 2024-12-03 · T-SB-0062-23 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
vehicles may occasionally be subjected to contamination by airborne iron particles shed from railroad tracks, train wheels, exposure to heavy machinery facilities, grinding, welding, etc. this type of contamination can be identified by the presence of small, red or brown particles on the paint surfa
Showing the 6 most recent of 322 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-07-01 · Structure:body“i am filing a formal complaint regarding a known paint defect on my 2012 toyota sequoia, painted in blizzard pearl (paint code 070). the paint is peeling and delaminating from multiple areas of the vehicle, including the roof, hood, and rear panels, down to the primer and in some cases bare metal. this is not a cosmetic or age-related issue — it is…”
2025-04-11 · Fuel/Propulsion System“toyota had a recall on fuel pumps in 2020 mine was not part of the recall even though mine went bad and had to be replaced in february 2020. now with another fuel pump recall issued in january 2025 i am also told mine is not part if the recall however i am having issues related to the fuel pump once again causing my engine to stall. can someone pl…”
2022-09-29 · Structure:body“the rear door latch for the lift gate malfunctioned and wouldn’t release. the power motor for the lift gate continued to work, trying to lift the rear gate. the result was bending the left gate hinge and hinge mounting area. the gate latch was corroded, but is supposed to be protected from the elements! the lift gate had to be taken apart from the …”
2022-04-06 · Wheels“lower ball joint on drivers side sheared off.…”
2021-03-10 · Structure:body · 90,000 mi“vehicle has been rusting only on the rear hatch since 2019. it's rusting around the wiper assembly and near the latch assembly. we had it repaired once but it's worse now. i've noticed many owners on line complaining of this…”
2021-01-11 · Engine · 150,000 mi“toyota has developed what is becoming an infamous oil leak on their 5.7 v8 engines that is coming from the camshaft tower (camshaft housing sub assembly). apparently in production they use a silicone where this attaches to the head and in many cases they did not get enough silicone. research has shown me that many, many of these have this issue a…”
2017-07-20 · Electrical System“i have a safety issue with my vehicle that toyota is not covering under warranty and i think it should be a recall. i have had 3 door lock actuators fail and the doors will not lock or unlock automatically. you can not open the door. in the event of a crash you cannot open the door safely to exit the vehicle in a timely manner. this is not safe.…”
2017-07-15 · Electrical System · 40,000 mi“electric door locks failed on all 4 doors. two were replaced by toyota under warranty. they made me pay to replace one and they refused to replace the other. now the drivers door lock has failed again. the drivers door will not lock or unlock when using the fob. the rear drivers side door will not lock or unlock using the fob or any other lock / un…”
2017-01-12 · Electrical System · 70,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2012 toyota sequoia. the contact stated that the wiring on the vehicle was chewed due to rodents. the side air bags were also chewed out. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the wiring contained soy products and needed to be replaced the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the …”
2016-01-26 · Vehicle Speed Control · 65,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2012 toyota sequoia. while driving at approximately 15 mph, the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle accelerated without warning. while driving 60 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle decreased in speed. the contact pulled over and turned the ignition to the off position. the vehicle was towed to a de…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.