2023 Toyota Tacoma

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

Fuel economy
18–21 mpgcombined; city 17–20, highway 20–24; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$15,470–$18,050U.S. average; Ohio $13,820–$16,120 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
4 starslowest across the versions NHTSA tested
Recall campaigns
4over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
54filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2023 Tacoma. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 54 complaints with NHTSA about the 2023 Tacoma. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Electrical system12010
Unknown or other10101
Steering9000
Air bags8504
Engine8000
Power train7000
Service brakes5101
Exterior lighting2000
Suspension2000
Vehicle speed control2000
Visibility/wiper2000
Back over prevention1000
8 more parts
Engine and engine cooling1000
Forward collision avoidance1000
Fuel/propulsion system1000
Lane departure1000
Latches/locks/linkages1000
Seats1000
Service brakes, hydraulic1000
Visibility1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 2006782
  2. 2007541
  3. 2008447
  4. 2009519
  5. 2010294
  6. 2011186
  7. 2012295
  8. 2013125
  9. 201493
  10. 2015101
  11. 2016323
  12. 2017242
  13. 2018209
  14. 2019219
  15. 202090
  16. 202181
  17. 202259
  18. 202354
  19. 2024152
  20. 2025106
  21. 202610

Every Tacoma year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for the 2023 Tacoma over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Air bags: frontal; Steering: column

NHTSA campaign 25V040000 · reported Jan 29, 2025 · 1,716 vehicles potentially affected

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2023 Toyota Corolla, Corolla Cross, Corolla Cross Hybrid, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Tacoma, Lexus RX350, 2023-2024 NX250, and NX350 vehicles that may have been incorrectly repaired under previous NHTSA recall number 23V-480. An electrical connection inside the steering column's spiral cable assembly may be insufficiently welded, causing the connection to separate and deactivate the driver's air bag. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Risk: A deactivated driver's air bag will not deploy as intended, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the spiral cable assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 17, 2025. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 25TA02. Lexus' number for this recall is 25LA02.

NHTSA's record and documents

Power train: axle assembly

NHTSA campaign 24V152000 · reported Feb 27, 2024 · 381,199 vehicles potentially affected

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturer (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022-2023 Tacoma vehicles. The axle shaft sub-assembly may separate from the axle housing due to debris causing improperly secured fasteners.

Risk: Axle shaft separation can cause a loss of vehicle stability and brake performance, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect the rear axle assembly, tighten the axle retaining nuts as necessary, and repair or replace any damaged components, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 17, 2024. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 24TB05 and 24TA05.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags: frontal; Steering: column

NHTSA campaign 23V480000 · reported Jul 12, 2023 · 152,927 vehicles potentially affected

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2023 Corolla, Corolla Cross, Corolla Cross Hybrid, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Tacoma, 2023 Lexus RX350, RX350 Hybrid, RX500 Hybrid, 2023-2024 Lexus NX250, NX350, and NX350 Hybrid vehicles. An electrical connection inside the steering column's spiral cable assembly may be insufficiently welded, causing the connection to separate and deactivate the driver's air bag. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Risk: A deactivated driver's air bag that does not deploy as intended increases the risk of injury during a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the spiral cable assembly, if necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 8, 2023. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 23TA08. Lexus' number for this recall is 23LA02.

NHTSA's record and documents

Child seat: vehicle latch anchor

NHTSA campaign 22V520000 · reported Jul 21, 2022 · 75,316 vehicles potentially affected

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022-2023 Tacoma vehicles. One or more of the individual welds in the upper child seat anchors may be insufficient. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, "Child Restraint Anchorage System."

Risk: An insufficient weld may prevent the child seat from being anchored properly, allowing the seat to move during a sudden stop or crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect the upper child seat anchors and reweld the child seat anchors, as necessary. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 02, 2022. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 22TB09/ 22TA09.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 74 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2023 Tacoma, the latest on Jan 30, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: structure (25), electrical system (20), equipment (15), power train (5), air bags (4).

NHTSA hasn't opened a defect investigation that covers this model year.

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2023 Tacoma.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2023 Toyota Tacomas for sale on: Autotrader · CarMax

These are searches on those sites; we don't copy or check their listings. Your ZIP is used for these links and never kept.

Specs

EPA class: small pickup trucks. EPA greenhouse gas score: 4 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Tacoma
Rear-Wheel Drive
3.5 L, 6 cylAutomatic (S6)Regular Gasoline19 / 24 / 21
Tacoma
Rear-Wheel Drive
2.7 L, 4 cylAutomatic (S6)Regular Gasoline20 / 23 / 21
Tacoma
Part-time 4-Wheel Drive
3.5 L, 6 cylAutomatic (S6)Regular Gasoline18 / 22 / 20
Tacoma
Part-time 4-Wheel Drive
2.7 L, 4 cylAutomatic (S6)Regular Gasoline19 / 22 / 20
Tacoma
Part-time 4-Wheel Drive
3.5 L, 6 cylManual 6-spdRegular Gasoline17 / 21 / 18
Tacoma D-CAB MT TRD-ORP/PRO
Part-time 4-Wheel Drive
3.5 L, 6 cylManual 6-spdRegular Gasoline17 / 20 / 18

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data