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All cars · Toyota 4Runner · Transmission

Toyota 4Runner transmission problems by year.

Worst years for transmission complaints per car sold: 2008 (16 complaints), 2000 (20 complaints), 2004 (16 complaints). Fewest since 2010: 2021, 2020, 2015.

Toyota 4Runner
Photo shows a 2017 Toyota 4Runner. Alexander Migl, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · background removed

Transmission complaints owners filed with the U.S. government (NHTSA) for each model year, per 100,000 cars sold. A complaint counts when it's filed under the transmission, or under the power train and the owner describes the transmission (shifting, slipping, gears, CVT). It's an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and older years have had longer to collect complaints.

20002017.9 per 100K sold20011112.2 per 100K sold20021013 per 100K sold20031513.7 per 100K sold20041614 per 100K sold200587.7 per 100K sold20061211.6 per 100K sold200766.8 per 100K sold20081633.4 per 100K sold2010510.7 per 100K sold2011511.3 per 100K sold20120no sales data201311.9 per 100K sold201411.3 per 100K sold201511 per 100K sold201632.7 per 100K sold20170no sales data201821.4 per 100K sold201943 per 100K sold202010.8 per 100K sold202110.7 per 100K sold20220no sales data20230no sales data20240no sales data20250no sales data

What owners describe

Shudder6%
Delay or hesitation6%
Lost power while driving5%
Transmission replaced5%
Hard or jerky shifting4%
Rolled away or park trouble4%

Share of this model's transmission complaints that mention each symptom. One complaint can mention several.

In owners' words

Was driving to work one morning and my frame broke and cause my rear differential to shift cause me to have to tow my vehicle.

2000 Toyota 4Runner owner · NHTSA complaint

2000 toyota 4runner - sr5 4wd - manual transmission: rear differential housing rust-out with pinhole leaks causing gear oil to leak.

2000 Toyota 4Runner owner · NHTSA complaint

Quick answers

Which Toyota 4Runner years have transmission problems?

By transmission complaints filed with NHTSA per car sold, the worst Toyota 4Runner years are 2008, 2000, 2004.

What are common Toyota 4Runner transmission problems?

Owners most often describe shudder, delay or hesitation, lost power while driving.

Which Toyota 4Runner years have the fewest transmission complaints?

Since 2010, the Toyota 4Runner years with the fewest transmission complaints per car sold are 2021, 2020, 2015.

See every problem, not just the transmission: Toyota 4Runner reliability by year. How we count

Updated

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