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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
30 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
61,790 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2005 Toyota Tacoma engine problems

engine problem

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2005 Toyota Tacoma Owner Comments (Page 3 of 5)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #42

Nov 172006

Tacoma

  • 35,072 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Tacoma. The contact was driving approximately 60 mph and stated that the vehicle suddenly accelerated out of control into heavy traffic. The driver had to maneuver into the emergency lane, shift into neutral and turn off the ignition. He re-started the vehicle and took the vehicle to the dealership. The dealer told the contact that the accelerator pedal must have been stuck beside the floor mat but the driver saw no entrapment during the failure. The dealer told them that there was nothing they could do after inspecting the failure and finding no cause. She had not called the manufacturer to-date. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The current mileage was approximately 100,000. The failure mileage was 35,072.

- New Braunfels, TX, USA

problem #41

Jan 022010

Tacoma

  • 90,000 miles
2005 Toyota Tacoma truck would accelerate, going uphill. I was able to gain control by braking. Cruise control was not on. This has occurred over 10 times.

- Clarksville, MD, USA

problem #40

Feb 012005

Tacoma

  • 1,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Tacoma. When he sets the cruise control at 65mph the rpms will increase from 2,000 to 5,000. He took the vehicle to the dealer for the failure several times. The dealer stated they did not locate a failure and nothing was wrong with the vehicle. The manufacturer took a report and sent an inspector to the dealer and the investigator concluded the vehicle was built that way and the vehicle was normal. The failure mileage was 1,000 and the current mileage was 52,000.

- Clinton , SC, USA

problem #39

Apr 282009

Tacoma

  • 16,458 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Throttle got stuck while driving and would not stop going faster until I turned off engine. It was not the floor mat that caused but something in the throttle assy. I did take it to Toyota to document it.

- Lancaster, CA, USA

problem #38

Mar 152006

Tacoma

  • 5,000 miles
Throttle stuck. Truck wanted to lunge in traffic.

- Luthersville, GA, USA

problem #37

Jun 302008

Tacoma

  • 32,521 miles
In June 2008, we experienced a wreck that we at first thought must have been related to my wife mistakenly hitting the gas when she thought she had hit the brake. At the time, she had just turned into our neighborhood and would have been traveling slowly but the Tacoma hit the center median, went across it and ended up in the other side facing the other direction. It did considerable damage underneath the truck. At the time, the Toyota dealer mentioned nothing about acceleration problems. We could not understand what had happened but had no other explanation. We have full records on the incident.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

problem #36

Sep 302005

Tacoma

  • 5,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

2005 Toyota Tacoma pick up truck when operating in the cruise control mode, and when coming up on a stretch of road which is uphill, the accelerator will kick in a full open and uncontrolled acceleration mode causing the need to disengage the cruise control to prevent from running in to something in front of me. This happens often and routinely when using the cruise control and hitting an uphill stretch of road. I have requested service from the Toyota dealer in knoxville, tn several years ago ( approx. 2006-2007 time frame. However, they dismissed the claim as the "passing gear" of the transmission kicking in without even driving the vehicle and testing it. However, the characteristic of the event when it happens is that there is immediate uncontrolled acceleration that is equivalent to the accelerator being fully depressed which requires intervention to interrupt. The incidents have been going on since 2005 and continue under use of the cruise control in this model.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

problem #35

Feb 072010

Tacoma

  • 79,000 miles
I was in a parking lot w/ my 05 Tacoma and needed to perform a K turn. I stopped, put the truck in reverse, and it felt like it went full throttle for about 2-3 seconds. I had to slam on the brake immediately and was able to stop the vehicle before hitting any of the parked cars. The same event occurred moments later when I had to back out of some heavy snow in the same parking lot. I have received a letter about floor mats last year and haven't had them in the driver's side since last October. It also did not seem to be a pedal issue. The throttle seemed to open immediately after the shifting into reverse. I reported the incident to my insurance company. No repairs have been done.

- Pittsburgh, PA, USA

problem #34

Aug 242009

Tacoma

  • 23,997 miles
A couple of years ago I started experiencing sudden un-commanded acceleration at low speed. There have been 4 instances of this problem occurring. It happens randomly with no warning when I apply the brakes (like slowing for a stoplight or a slower car ahead).the last one happened on August 24, 2009. This time it resulted in a low speed collision and damage to my vehicle. Fortunately no other vehicle was involved. At first I thought this might be my error, but on reflection, I believe there is more to this problem and I don't think it is a problem with floor mats. I am following the recall situation and am waiting to be contacted by my dealer for rectification of this problem. I like my Tacoma but I am nervous driving it and try to avoid it when I can.

- Granby, CT, USA

problem #33

Oct 302009

Tacoma

  • 600,000 miles
I received a recall notification from Toyota in October of 2009 for accelerator pedals sticking to carpet. The letter from Toyota stated they would contact me on what to do next to get it fixed. Its February 12, 2010 and I have heard nothing from them about what to do on this issue.

- Chandler , AZ, USA

problem #32

Mar 092009

Tacoma

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was on my way to work when the vehicle in front of me stopped to turn. I hit my brake at which time the accelerator stuck and I hit the vehicle.

- Farina, IL, USA

problem #31

Dec 302005

Tacoma

  • 2,500 miles
With cruise control engaged at legal freeway speeds, any slight uphill (or strong headwind) will cause the vehicle to lose 2 to 3 mph -- then the throttle will suddenly go wide open, or nearly so. The transmission then downshifts (often from 5th to 3rd) followed by very rapid acceleration to a speed several mph above the preset speed, before finally slowing to the correct preset. This has occurred consistently since we purchased the Tacoma new in 2005. The dealer told me it is normal, but none of my other vehicles have ever done this.

- Weaverville, CA, USA

problem #30

Jul 152006

Tacoma

  • 4,000 miles
I was on vacation in my 2005 Toyota Tacoma 4X4 4 door in Colorado. With the cruise control on and set for 65 mph, I started up a pass on I-25 approaching raton, nm from the North. As we went uphill and the vehicle lugged down, it shift down and began rapid acceleration and as we entered a turn was accelerating through 85 mph. My foot was not on the gas pedal and the floor mat was not anywhere near the pedal. I stood on the brake but the acceleration continued. I pushed the cruise control button on the steering wheel and it disengaged. We made it through the incident with no loss of anything but perhaps some of my hair. After returning from vacation I took the vehicle to larry miller Toyota in peoria, Arizona and complained about the problem we experienced. The dealers employees indicated they have never heard such a thing and then copied the owners manual highlighting the part that says to disengage the cruise control when going uphills. I have been driving the vehicle for five years now and have learned to turn off the cruise going uphills but have still experienced the problem three other times when I was not conscious of the grade we were on and it happened again. I have owned several vehicle with cruise control in my life and have never had an issue with cruise control going uphills except the potential of the transmission shifting up and down from overdrive to allow the vehicle to maintain the speed set. We also own a 2000 Toyota avalon which I drive on vacations and if there is any issue I turn off the overdrive and it does fine. I believe there is a computer issue with this model that creates the problem and it has nothing to do with floor mats.

- Glendale, AZ, USA

problem #29

Jun 152009

Tacoma

  • 55,000 miles
2005 Toyota Tacoma. At low speed (25 mph) using cruise control, the vehicle over-accelerates when it approaches a hill or incline. Disengaging the cruise control once the over-acceleration starts seems to fix the problem.

- Leesburg, VA, USA

problem #28

Jan 262010

Tacoma

  • 52,210 miles
My incident occurred while driving my 2005 Toyota Tacoma on January 26th 2010. I was approaching an intersection where I had a red stop light and slowed the truck to an almost stop. My foot was on the brake pedal and it was nearly to the floor but not all the way yet. Then very suddenly the truck lurched forward at which point I jammed my foot down hard on the brake pedal. Then the truck sort of jumped three times during which I had my foot completely pressed on the brake pedal. The gas pedal was pumping by itself. Thankfully the truck stopped about one foot from the oncoming traffic and they were able to get around me. The truck traveled approximately 15 feet during this time where I had my foot on the brake pedal. I have not had another situation like that since. But had no warning the last time and am very worried next time I will not be as lucky.

- Galveston, TX, USA

problem #27

Jan 192010

Tacoma

  • 36,840 miles
While driving my 2005 Toyota Tacoma truck, I approached a stop sign and applied pressure to the brakes. Instead of slowing down, the truck suddenly accelerated. To avoid hitting a car in front of me, I swerved into a yard and put the truck into neutral. This enabled me to bring the truck to a complete stop.

- Asheville, NC, USA

problem #26

Jan 282010

Tacoma

  • 100,000 miles
Driving a 2005 Toyota Tacoma no visible adverse weather, cold/ truck slid sideways, accelerated even though the brakes were depressed to the floor. Vehicle rolled three times. Vehicle continued to idle up even after it was on its side. Contacted Toyota, given an incident reference number, no response from Toyota.

- Dumas, TX, USA

problem #25

Dec 102009

Tacoma

  • 61,400 miles
On the day of December 10, 2009 I was arriving home from work as I always do. I was preparing to park my 2005 Toyota Tacoma truck in front of the garage as I always do. As I began to back up the engine roared causing the truck to plunge backward into the garage door and house. I was unable to stop the vehicle even while having my foot on the brake. However this was not the first time this had happened. The first time was at a traffic light. As I stopped at the light, with a car in front of me, with my foot on the brake the engine roared and the tires screeched causing the truck to accelerate. Fortunately I was able to put the truck in neutral allowing me to avoid slamming into the car. The second time I was taking my wife to her oncologist appointment for a chemotherapy treatment. As I approached the turnpike booth to get my ticket the engine again roared and plunged forward and I was unable to get my ticket. Thank god there was no car in front of us. I was finally able to bring the truck to a stop by placing it in neutral. Again visibly shaken, I turned the truck around explained to the ticket taker what had happened and I returned home. I immediately called the dealer where I had purchased the vehicle and asked if they had heard of any similar incident. They informed me they had not heard of this before. At this point in time no one is willing to help resolve this problem. I am unable and unwilling to use this truck because I am afraid something fatal my happen.

- Collegeville, PA, USA

problem #24

Oct 052008

Tacoma

  • 40,000 miles
This is a second complaint of the etch-intelligent system defect of my 2005 Toyota Tacoma which is causing sudden acceleration. I reported this incident immediately after it happened but my truck is not listed on the recent recall list. (it is on the recall list for the floor mat but not the more accurate recall for the etch-intelligent system.) on or about October 2008, I was driving from New Jersey to North Carolina southbound on I-95 with my daughter. The speed limit on 95 was 65 mph. I was driving at a steady pace of 60-65 mph. Approximately 5 miles after I passed the delware bridge, the truck suddenly accelerated. I tried to brake but the truck would not stop. The brake felt like it was stuck. I tried the emergency brake and it did not do anything. The truck accelerated to 70 mph or so but I cannot remember exactly and I was braking the whole time. I was able to drive the truck to the side and force the gear into park. The engine lurched a bit but stopped and there was smell of burning engine and tire. Thank god there were not many cars on the road that day. Please help me in adding 2005 Toyota Tacoma to the list defective etch-intelligent system. Tw*

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #23

Dec 062009

Tacoma

  • 66,516 miles
I have a Toyota Tacoma 2005. On December 6, 2009 at approximately 3pm I was heading South on I-190 in niagara falls NY. Cruise was on, but had to tap breaks because of slower moving vehicle. This did disengage the cruise & my truck began to slow down. When the car moved over I depressed the accelerator and at that time the truck went into overdrive/passing gear. The motor was roaring and I had no breaks. They were like a rock.it accelerated to over 94mph.it then disengaged on it's own& the speed decreased. I then turned off the cruise control not sure how long this went on but it seemed like an hour. And yes I panicked. This is not a mat problem / this truck is a death trap. I was told it could not be repaired until April of 2010 (5months).

- Grand Island, NY, USA

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