2021 Toyota 4runner problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Suspension (7) · Steering (6) · Wheels (4)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Toyota 4runner model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (1)
Equipment:other:labels 2022-07-06 · campaign 22V480000 · 280 vehicles
Defect: Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2020-2022 4Runner vehicles equipped with 20-inch Black Gunner Wheels. The load carrying capacity modification labels are incorrect. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
Risk: An incorrect label may lead to unintentionally overloading the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: SET will mail replacement labels to owners, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 4, 2022. Owners may contact SET's customer service at 954-429-2000. SET's number for this recall is SET22A.
Service bulletins (128)
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.
Structure:body 2026-08-10 · T-SB-0002-25 Rev1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2019 – 2024 model year 4runner vehicles may exhibit an abnormal noise that may be described as cracking, clicking, or creaking from the driver and/or passenger front seat cushion track. this condition may occur when the front seat cushion track is at the rearmost position.
Electrical System 2026-01-30 · T-SB-0106-22 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
obsolete notice january 30, 2026: this bulletin is now obsolete. please see t-sb-0001-26.
Electrical System 2026-01-28 · T-SB-0001-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2018 – 2024 model year toyota vehicles equipped with a premium audio with dynamic navigation system require a special service tool (sst) usb flash drive to update the map, points of interest, and system software.
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
Electrical System 2025-06-13 · T-SB-0058-23 Rev1 · Service Campaign
the air conditioning dye injection tool kit has been developed to aid in identifying the location of air conditioning refrigerant leaks. the procedures outlined in this service bulletin aid in locating, inspecting, and repairing refrigerant leaks.
Electrical System 2025-04-02 · T-TT-0780-25 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
to assist with the early detection and early resolution of audio related concerns you may be asked to recover mmr data from the head unit. the following steps are instructions on how to retrieve the data from the system and are only to be used when requested by fts and/or fpe.
Showing the 6 most recent of 128 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-09-03 · Steering“while vehicle was parked and not in use, upon entering the vehicle, the steering wheel/column dropped out of its locked position on its own. disassembly of the steering column revealed that the tilt-lock mechanism's steering lock fracture bolt has broken in half on the right side. this cause the steering wheel to fall out of a locked position and a…”
2026-08-25 · Latches/Locks/Linkages:electronic Lock/Latch Actuator“the power door lock actuators on both front doors of my 2021 toyota 4runner have failed. the problem developed progressively. the front door locks initially began working intermittently and became less reliable over time. eventually, both front door lock actuators stopped operating. they have now been inoperative for more than six months. the front…”
2026-06-22 · Exterior Lighting“the interior of both headlights have the interior coating peeling in the first 20k miles…”
2026-05-30 · Steering“i just had the tires road force balanced on a haweka with lug-centric balance, and the steering wheel persists shaking from 55-65 mph. from what i have seen is this is a design flaw on this generation of 4 runners called the shimmy. for a newer vehicle this is not only dangerous, but unacceptable to not be considered for a recall when it is this wi…”
2026-03-06 · Service Brakes“today while i was driving home from work, in a snow storm, suddenly a low braking power notification and abs malfunction popped up on my console with loud beeping and my brakes completely stopped working. in order to avoid hitting the car in front of me i had to swerve to the shoulder and come to a stop. …”
2026-01-22 · Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera“my backup camera does not work consistently. it will sometimes come on and show objects behind me; other times it is a black screen. i have read where toyota models from 2022 to newer, but not including the 4 runner, are having major issues with the back up camera and are under recall. i believe this recall should include the toyota 4 runner, a…”
2025-12-27 · Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera · 💥 crash“rear backup camera has been failing or intermittently working, it is available for insp[ection upon request. this has created a situation upon reversing in driveway where i expect it to be on and dont see a vehicle or trailer behind me. i have hit a parked car because i was expecting it to work as i check rearview mirrors. this is now a habit and i…”
2025-12-10 · Fuel/Propulsion System“vehicle was diagnosed from a mechanic with no fuel pressure due to not starting. vehicle has approximately 135,000 miles and had no warnings or indications of problem. it appears when vin was ran on gov. recall that honda had issues with fuel pump. vehicle will be inspected by toyota dealer.…”
2025-12-03 · Electrical System“several door lock actuators have prematurely failed. the first to do so was front passenger door in summer 2024; front driver door lock failed a few months after. most recently, approximately 4 months ago, the lock actuator for liftgate failed. this poses safety hazard in easily exiting vehicle and/or entering it if in dangerous situation. i have b…”
2025-07-18 · Seats“saturday morning july 12th after starting my vehicle, a warning was presented “srs airbag system malfunction”. i immediately took it to the dealership where they ran diagnostics. the service advisor admitted he nor his mechanic had ever seen anything like that before. they were unable to detect the issue that day. we planned to return the vehicle t…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.