Total Complaints
12 filings
Toyota 4runner · model year
1988 Toyota 4runner
12 NHTSA complaints. A VIN lookup is required to determine whether a specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
- Complaints
- 12
- Recalls
- 0
The verdict
The 1988 Toyota 4runner posts top-quartile complaint standing among its own model-year siblings.
- Top 14%
- fewest complaints, own model years
- 0
- recall campaigns
The 1988Toyota4runner carries 12 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 4 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
The most frequently selected component label in reports for the 1988 4runner is tires:tread/belt with 2 filings, followed by power train:axle hubs (1) and structure:body:bumpers (1). Complaint categories reflect owner reports and intake categorization; they do not establish a defect pattern or cause.
NHTSA currently has 1 investigation file overlapping the 1988 4runner. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should read the complaint-by-year trend as report volume, not a causal diagnosis. Use the related-complaint feed and the official recall lookup when researching a specific vehicle.
12
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
4
Injuries
0
Deaths
F
PlainCars Safety Score
0/100
1988 Toyota 4runner
PlainCars' own composite of NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings and rollover-risk assessment, each dimension normalized against the federal scale or the full national model-year corpus. Not an official NHTSA figure, and not a substitute for a specific vehicle's VIN-level recall check.
NHTSA Overall Rating N/A
Not rated
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program overall crash-test rating.
Front Crash N/A
Not rated
Frontal barrier crash-test rating.
Side Crash N/A
Not rated
Side barrier and pole crash-test rating.
Rollover Resistance N/A
Not rated
Static stability factor + dynamic rollover test rating.
Rollover Risk N/A
Not reported
NHTSA single-vehicle rollover probability, dynamic test.
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
Complaints vs. fleet median (215)
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
Complaints by Component
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| TIRES:TREAD/BELT | 2 |
| POWER TRAIN:AXLE HUBS | 1 |
| STRUCTURE:BODY:BUMPERS | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE | 1 |
| POWER TRAIN | 1 |
| TIRES | 1 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL:SWITCH | 1 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE | 1 |
Recent Complaints
20020109ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
HEAD GASKET WAS LEAKING. VEHICLE RAN POORLY, AND THERE WAS LITTLE HESITATION. *AK
20001127EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL:SWITCH
WHEN USING HIGH BEAMS OR TURN SIGNALS HEADLIGHTS WILL TURN OFF. CONSUMER MUST WIGGLE/TOGGLE SWITCH FOR HEADLIGHTS TO TURN BACK ON.*AK
20001127EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
WHEN USING HIGH BEAMS OR TURN SIGNALS HEADLIGHTS WILL TURN OFF. CONSUMER MUST WIGGLE/TOGGLE SWITCH FOR HEADLIGHTS TO TURN BACK ON.*AK
20001002TIRES:TREAD/BELT
TREAD SEPARATION ON LEFT REAR TIRE. *AK( DOT NUMBER: VOYTAXC124 TIRE SIZE: 3211.5015 )
20001002TIRES:TREAD/BELT
TREAD SEPARATION ON LEFT REAR TIRE. *AK( DOT NUMBER: VOYTAXC124 TIRE SIZE: 3211.5015 )
20000920TIRES
DRIVING TO WORK ON THE HIGHWAY ABOUT 9 AM, THE TIRE TORE ITSELF OPEN WITHOUT WARNING. I HAD NOTICED THE NIGHT BEFORE THAT IT WAS SLIGHTLY UNDERINFLATED, AS IF FROM A SLOW LEAK -- BUT NOTHING SUBSTANTIAL. WHAT WAS ASTONISHING WAS THE SHEER DEGREE OF DESTRUCTION. IT WAS AS IF SOMEONE HAD INSERTED A SAW AND RIPPED THE SIDEWALL OPEN THROUGH 180 DEGREES OF ARC. THANKFULLY I WAS ABLE TO SLOW DOWN AND STOP WITHOUT SERIOUS INCIDENT.( DOT NUMBER: W2HHAWB505 TIRE SIZE: P225/75R15 )
19990324POWER TRAIN
NOT SURE I ANSWERED ALL OF YOUR QUESTIONS PROPERLY. SO TO SUMMARIZE, I JUST HAD MY 5TH SPEEDOMETER CABLE INSTALLED IN MY VEHICLE. THEY LAST 2 YEARS (HAVE A 1 YEAR WARRANTY). THIS TIME I ALSO REPLACED THE SPEEDOMETER HEAD. DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT TO ME AND TOYOTA WAS OF NO HELP. *AK
19990217ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT 65 MPH, VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER
19980822
NO SUMMARY
19980624STRUCTURE:BODY:BUMPERS
BUMPER IS LOCATED TOO HIGH CAUSING DAMAGE DURING A COLLISION; SEAT BELT UNLATCHED IN ACCIDENT.
19980624SEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE
BUMPER IS LOCATED TOO HIGH CAUSING DAMAGE DURING A COLLISION; SEAT BELT UNLATCHED IN ACCIDENT.
19970312POWER TRAIN:AXLE HUBS
4-WHEEL DRIVE LOCKING HUBS FAIL, CAUSING VEHICLE TO JERK/GRAB. *AK
Compare 1988Toyota4runner to Similar Vehicles
NHTSA Investigations
Vehicle Safety Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many complaints does the 1988 Toyota 4runner have?▼
The 1988 Toyota 4runner has 12 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 4 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 1988 Toyota 4runner?▼
The most-complained component for the 1988 Toyota 4runner is TIRES:TREAD/BELT with 2 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include POWER TRAIN:AXLE HUBS and STRUCTURE:BODY:BUMPERS.
Is the 1988 Toyota 4runner safe to buy?▼
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?▼
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.
Data vintage: August 2026. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Every figure on PlainCars is rendered directly from NHTSA complaint and safety data, no number is typed in by an editor. This year-specific record is rendered from NHTSA ODI, recall, and NCAP rows for the 1988 Toyota 4runner; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.