TOYOTA TERCEL · model year

1982 TOYOTA TERCEL

2 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

The 1982TOYOTATERCEL carries 2 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, 0 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 1982 TERCEL is suspension:front:control arm:lower arm with 1 filings, followed by suspension:rear (1). Complaint categories reflect owner reports and intake categorization; they do not establish a defect pattern or cause.

NHTSA currently has 51 investigation files overlapping the 1982 TERCEL, and 1 remain open. 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.

2
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

2 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
SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER ARM1
SUSPENSION:REAR1

Recent Complaints

19970527SUSPENSION:REAR

THE RECALL WORK HAD BEEN DONE BACK IN 1986, AND NOW THE PROBLEM IS BEING EXPERIENCED. THE DEALER WILL NOT COVER IT. *AK

19950823SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER ARM

REAR WHEEL LOWER CONTROL ARMS RUSTED OUT/COLLAPSED. TT

Compare 1982TOYOTATERCEL to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 1 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL have?
The 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL has 2 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL?
The most-complained component for the 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL is SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER ARM with 1 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include SUSPENSION:REAR.
Is the 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL 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 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 1982 TOYOTA TERCEL; 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.