2017 Toyota Corolla: Common Problems, Recalls and Vehicle Data
Check the 2017 Toyota Corolla records before a viewing: recall campaigns,
owner-reported symptoms, investigations, service bulletins and EPA fuel economy.
The public record for the 2017 Toyota Corolla includes 3 recall campaigns, 178 complaints filed with NHTSA, and 2 federal investigations — one of which, EA21002, is still open. That open inquiry concerns the frontal driver-side air bag inflator module; an open investigation means regulators are asking a question about that component, not that they have reached a finding. A second, related investigation, EA19001 into the air bag and restraint control module, has been closed.
Two of the three recalls also touch air bags and seat belts, alongside separate campaigns for a spare tire inflation issue and an incorrect vehicle load label. That is not a large number of campaigns, but combined with the air bag-focused investigations, it is the area of the record where regulatory attention has concentrated most consistently for this model year.
Among complaints, the largest categories are "other" at 51 of 178 and airbag-related reports at 48, followed by electrical complaints at 19. These counts reflect how owners categorized what they reported, not a measured defect rate or how many vehicles were actually affected.
Separately, service bulletins for this year cluster heavily around equipment, with 42 of 235 bulletins, followed by structure and structure:body issues. Bulletins are manufacturer guidance to dealers for addressing symptoms, not recalls, but they indicate where repair guidance was concentrated for this model year.
Body class
Sedan
Drive types
Front-Wheel Drive
Combined MPG
30–34
Recall campaigns
3
Check the VIN to find out whether a recall applies to this car. Complaint counts describe reports on
file; differences in time on the road, sales and reporting prevent a direct comparison of failure odds.
Read our methodology.
Complaint trends
178 complaints on file with NHTSA's
Office of Defects Investigation, grouped into CarTold's broad component categories.
Other51 (29%)
Airbag48 (27%)
Electrical19 (11%)
Brakes16 (9%)
Drivetrain15 (8%)
Steering13 (7%)
Visibility & lighting9 (5%)
Engine6 (3%)
Fuel system1 (1%)
Most frequently reported, by the specific component NHTSA logged each complaint
under (not CarTold's category groupings above):
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix, 2012-2018 Avalon, and 2013-2018 Avalon Hybrid vehicles. During certain crashes, the air bag electronic control unit (ECU) may malfunction, possibly disabling the deployment of the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners.
Consequence: In the event of a crash, air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners that do not deploy as intended may increase the risk of injury.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ECU and install a noise filter between the air bag control module and its wire harness, as necessary, free of charge. Owners were notified of the safety risk beginning March 2, 2020. A second letter notifying owners of the remedy repair will be mailed between March 16, 2020 and June 27, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB03, 20TA03 and 20TA05.
Campaign 19V5030002019-06-28
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Toyota Camry, Corolla, Rav4, Sienna, and Yaris iA vehicles equipped with factory-installed floor mats. The load carrying capacity modification label may be incorrect. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
Consequence: An incorrect label may lead to unintentionally overloading the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: SET will notify owners and provide a corrected label for placement over the inaccurate label, free of charge. The recall began August 23, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. SET's number for this recall is SET19A.
Campaign 17V2950002017-05-02
TIRES:TEMPORARY/EMERGENCY SPARE TIRE
Gulf States Toyota, Inc. (Gulf States) is recalling certain 2017 4Runner , 86, Avalon, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Corolla, Corolla iM, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Prius, Prius C, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Sienna and Yaris vehicles. The spare tire air pressure was not adjusted to the proper pressure as stated on the Tire Pressure Label.
Consequence: A spare tire that is not inflated to the proper value may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Gulf States will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the spare tires, adjusting their pressure as necessary, free of charge. The recall began June 15, 2017. Owners may contact Gulf States customer service at 1-800-444-1074. Toyota's number for this recall is 17R2.
A model-year recall does not mean every vehicle is affected. Look up a specific car with our
recall check — paste a VIN and it lists every campaign covering that
vehicle. Whether the work was actually done needs
nhtsa.gov/recalls or the
manufacturer; our guide explains
what each of its answers means.
Investigations
EA21002 (EA)Open
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE, AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
Opened 2021-09-17
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.…
EA19001 (EA)Closed
AIR BAGS: AIR BAG/RESTRAINT CONTROL MODULE
Opened 2019-04-19 · Closed 2024-09-19
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect. During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW. The ECU receives signals from crash sensors moun…
Manufacturer communications
Expand a component group to read the service bulletins and other communications
manufacturers filed with NHTSA. Use the document number to ask a dealer whether the instructions apply to
this car and whether any repair is covered. A bulletin alone does not establish payment eligibility.
How these records differ from recalls and investigations.
NHTSA crash-tests each body-style/drivetrain configuration separately, so ratings can
differ by variant — shown as tested, not averaged. See
how the 5-star ratings work, including why an
overall score isn't the average of the three category scores.