The Lemon IndexToyota FJ Cruiser reliability.
Is it reliable? Not really. 2.3× the average car's complaints.
Avoid · 2007–2008
What owners say on YouTube
2007–2014 FJ Cruiser · 195 most-watched videos
Owners praise
Owners complain about
Fixes owners look up most
Before you buy, watch
Praise and complaints: the share of each generation's most-watched videos that mention a topic with a praise or trouble word next to it, in the title or what's said. YouTube rank: how positive owners and reviewers sound, compared with every car of the same model year. It measures tone, not failure rates. Videos belong to their creators; we link to them.
Looking at a 2010 or newer? Those are too new for a full complaint score (any score shown is partial, in gray), but YouTube owners like the 2012 best.
Engines & versions
Fewest complaints
2008.
Only 2 Toyota FJ Cruiser years have enough complaints and sales to score, too few for best and worst lists. 2008 drew about twice the average car's complaints.
Every year. Lower is better. Tap a year for its full report.
Newest year first. Red = worse than average, gray = about average or too few complaints to score. #1, #2… = that year's YouTube rank among the 2 Toyota FJ Cruiser years with enough videos (#1 = the year owners and reviewers talk about most positively). It is not a reliability rank.
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<iframe src="https://lemonindex.com/embed/cars/toyota-fj-cruiser/" title="Toyota FJ Cruiser reliability by model year (The Lemon Index)" width="100%" height="261" style="border:0;max-width:720px" loading="lazy"></iframe><p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Data: <a href="https://lemonindex.com/cars/toyota-fj-cruiser/">Lemon Index</a> (Toyota FJ Cruiser reliability by year)</p>Scores before 2010 are rough: fewer owners filed complaints back then.
YouTube rank: we read 197 YouTube videos about the Toyota FJ Cruiser, 2007 to 2014, and ranked every year by how much they praise it vs. how much they talk about problems. YouTube's favorite: 2008. Old cars rank lower partly because most of their videos are repair and restoration videos. A gray dot means not enough data yet: under 10 videos, or a new year with no owner complaints to compare.
Compare the Toyota FJ Cruiser.
Opens the compare tool with both cars, every year side by side. Compare with any car →
Quick answers.
Is the Toyota FJ Cruiser reliable?
Not really. It draws 2.3× the average car's complaints, but YouTube owners sound happier with it than with most cars its age. No year beat the average car. The year with the fewest complaints, 2008, still drew 1.8× the average.
Is the Toyota FJ Cruiser a good car?
Not overall: it draws more complaints than the average car, by owner complaints to the government per car sold (2007-2008: Lemon Index 232; 100 is average). Some years are much better than others: 2008 drew the fewest complaints and 2007 the most.
What are the best Toyota FJ Cruiser years to buy?
Only 2 Toyota FJ Cruiser years have enough data to score, so we don't list best years. 2008 drew the fewest complaints (about twice the average car's complaints).
What Toyota FJ Cruiser years should you stay away from?
Only 2 Toyota FJ Cruiser years have enough data to score, too few to single out years to avoid.
How many recalls does the Toyota FJ Cruiser have?
65 safety recalls across the 8 model years we track. Most: 2009 (12), 2010 (12), 2008 (11). Each year's page lists them, and every Toyota FJ Cruiser recall is in one list here.
What are the most common Toyota FJ Cruiser problems?
Across every year, owners' complaints to the government name body structure, visibility and brakes most. Some years are much worse than others: see the chart above.
Every year in one table
| Year | Index | Compared with average | Complaints | Top complaint | Recalls | Crash test | MPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 248 | about twice the average car's complaints | 244 | body structure (36%) | 9 | — | 16–18 |
| 2008 | 179 | about twice the average car's complaints | 51 | body structure (31%) | 11 | — | 16–18 |
| 2009 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 3 | transmission & drivetrain (67%) | 12 | — | 16–18 |
| 2010 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 32 | service brakes, hydraulic (28%) | 12 | — | 17–19 |
| 2011 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 12 | steering (50%) | 7 | — | 17–19 |
| 2012 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 16 | steering (50%) | 5 | — | 16–19 |
| 2013 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 7 | wipers & visibility (29%) | 4 | — | 16–18 |
| 2014 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 10 | brakes (30%) | 5 | — | 16–18 |
The Lemon Index counts owner complaints filed with the U.S. government (NHTSA) in a car's first 3 years, per car sold, against the average car of the same model years (100 = average, lower is better). It measures complaints, not crash safety. U.S. sales source: en.wikipedia.org. How it works
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Updated · Free to use with credit: Source: The Lemon Index (lemonindex.com)
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