TOYOTA LX470 · model year

1998 TOYOTA LX470

1 NHTSA complaints for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 1998TOYOTALX470 carries 1 consumer safety complaint in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 1998 LX470 is service brakes, electric with 1 filings. Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.

NHTSA currently has 51 investigation files overlapping the 1998 LX470, and 1 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

1
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

1 filings

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

ComponentCount
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC1

Recent Complaints

20100227SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC

SUDDEN TOTAL FAILURE OF VEHICLES (TOYOTA LX 470) PRIMARY BRAKING SYSTEM. VEHICLE TOWED TO TOYOTA DEALERSHIP EL CAJON TOYOTA) FOR DIAGNOSES. NOTIFIED BY SERVICE TECHNICIAN (CARLOS) THAT THE BRAKES HAD FAILED DUE TO A LOW BATTERY (8.2 VOLTS). RECOMMENDED THAT THE BATTERY BE REPLACED. I DIDN'T BELIEVE THAT A BATTERY, THAT HAD NEVER FAILED TO START THE VEHICLE, COULD CAUSE A TOTAL FAILURE OF THE PRIMARY BRAKING SYSTEM. HE EXPLAINED THAT THIS IS WHAT CAME UP WHEN THEY RAN THE CARS ERROR CODES. LATER, CARLOS CALLED MY WIFE AND TOLD HER THEY HAD REPLACED THE BATTERY AND THE BRAKES WERE WORKING FINE. I WOULDN'T ACCEPT THE CAR UNTIL I COULD SPEAK WITH SOMEONE, BESIDES CARLOS, ABOUT THIS. I WAS GIVEN JEFF THE SHOP FORMAN AND HE VERIFIED THAT THE WORK ORDER DID INDICATE THE BRAKE FAILURE HAD BEEN CAUSED BY A LOW BATTERY CONDITION. I ASKED HIM HOW A BATTERY STRONG ENOUGH TO START THE CAR COULD ALSO CAUSE THE BRAKES TO FAIL. HE EXPLAINED THAT THESE CARS HAD AN ELECTRONIC BRAKE ACCUMULATOR. I POINTE

Mileage: 185,073

Compare 1998TOYOTALX470 to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 1 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 1998 TOYOTA LX470 have?
The 1998 TOYOTA LX470 has 1 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 1998 TOYOTA LX470?
The most-complained component for the 1998 TOYOTA LX470 is SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC with 1 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include various components.
Is the 1998 TOYOTA LX470 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.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. 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.