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Toyota Struggles To Manage Tacoma Rear Differential Recall

Tacoma owners are reporting that dealers are keeping their trucks for extended times.
Tacoma owners report long wait times for rear differential repairs.

Tacoma owners are reporting that dealers are keeping their trucks for extended times while trying to cover a recall. Some owners are posting to social media that there is a six month wait time to get trucks back from dealers who have kept them due to safety concerns over differentials damaged by the leaks. We cannot validate those claims, but many owners are reporting similar stories. Some dealers have requested checks of the leaking differentials every two weeks. Toyota is having trouble manufacturing the parts needed for the important recall.

Tacoma Differential Recall
The rear differential recall we recently detailed covers 2016 and newer Tacomas. Some rear differentials had improperly tightened (torqued) nuts, which can cause leaks. The recall involves and inspection of the rear Diff. to see if the truck has the problem. Many don't and owners are sent home the same day with no fuss. Other owners have reported that the differential nuts were retorqued. Some have reported that parts were changed and the wait was minimal.

Long Waits For Tacoma Repairs
Those owners who have reported long wait times also report that they are being offered replacement Toyota vehicles while their truck is in the dealer's quarantine area waiting for parts. Most report a Corolla being the first offer, but some owners have asked for an SUV instead and report being given one to drive while they wait. That would most likely depend on a dealership's loaner vehicle availability. One owner tweeted recently, "When is the Tacoma differential recall part coming in? I really hate the loaner Camry I'm stuck with and am miserable driving it :-(" We have deleted the expletives.

Toyota's History Of Long Delays With Recalls
Tacoma owners are no strangers to long waits for parts. During the Tacoma's multi-year and multi-generation frame rot recall (technically a service program), Tacoma owners waited weeks or months for replacement frames to become available.

The video below shows what happens when a Tacoma does not pass the inspection for the differential recall.

Automotive News
Pickup Trucks
Toyota
Toyota Tacoma

Comments

Mark Day (not verified)    July 6, 2017 - 5:52PM

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A match - inferior drum brakes and a defective differential - a junk assembly. Toyota's grip seems to be slipping a little - cost cutting gone awry.

bob deNeui (not verified)    December 18, 2017 - 11:34PM

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I have a 2009 Toyota Tacoma and am having to have the differential replaced after only 68,000 miles as it is defective. Totally unexpected that a rear differential needs a major overhaul and is not reliable. No drip site where I park regularly to alert me to possible fluid leakage as the cause. Sadly After reading about the differential recalls on 2016 and 2017 models, Toyota has had a serious problem and is not willing to cover older models. I have to sink $2300 into the dealership to repair. The quality reputation of Toyota is history. I will not be considering buying a Toyota truck again.

Mark Day (not verified)    December 19, 2017 - 2:38PM

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You could possibly get some help from the Better Business Bureau by filing a claim. Some indications are that the BBB is not as good as it once was but may be worth a try. Many years ago I had good success resolving issues with GM products. At that time a person could go before the BBB board and present the problem, with a company representative present.

Mark Haskins (not verified)    January 1, 2019 - 5:37PM

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I've seen several Tundras and Tacomas with rear diff failures at surprisingly low mileage. Toyota quality is rapidly becoming a distant memory. Their vehicles today are selling only because of past reputation alone. These days the diffs fail, the transmissions don't work right, the front diff vibrates, the 2.4L 2AZ-FE burns oil just outside of the warranty period, the 3.5L V6 has a nasty reputation for oil line failures and the latest version just doesn't seem to run very well and has had issues with stalling, the 5.7L V8 often has nasty piston slap and goes through water pumps/starters like they're going out of style, etc. It's very disappointing.

78Ned (not verified)    June 29, 2021 - 6:17PM

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My 2014 Tundra was an eye opener. My friend insisted that Toyota fixed the cam tower oil leaks. They didn't mine leaked within 10k miles and took two stays at the dealer to finally get the leak to stop. The rear main seal developed a leak and from what I learned in the Tundra message boards, it's not an uncommon issue with the 5.7. The hvac blower motor failed under warranty. The truck had an electrical glitch after that which was probably caused by having to replace the blower motor. The area of the bed around the wheel wells developed rust and it appears that the fact that the bed is multiple pieces of steel sandwiched together is trapping salty water in the winter time and accelerating the rust. The rear pinion also had a howling noise. It wasn't covered under warranty $$$$.

Patricia Cheney (not verified)    January 20, 2024 - 2:05PM

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I have a 2015 and just found out I have the same rear differential problem gonna cost me $2800. My truck only has 54,000 miles my time ran out on my extended warranty not the miles it’s hardly driven never towed anything I bought this truck because I had a 1998 Toyota forerunner that has lasted me over 20 years with no problems I bought a Toyota on the reputation of my past Toyota. What a mistake.

David (not verified)    July 15, 2017 - 4:46PM

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Long waits are due to Toyota's policy of making clients pay for the recalls
so when they sell enough new vehicles they proceed to fix x amount of recalls

Mark Haskins (not verified)    January 1, 2019 - 5:39PM

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That would explain why they haven't really address the howling/growing rear diff on the 3rd gen Tacoma yet. They released one TSB that didn't do anything for owners or even made the noise worse. Pretty bad when you can hear the noisy rear diff over the radio at highway speeds.

Raimundo Vazquez (not verified)    August 2, 2017 - 8:52PM

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I have a 2016 tocoma at dealer for a month now with a leaking differential and the dealer can't get the parts. They can't even tell me when they will have the parts their is no end in sight. I going to check out the lemon law

Vince Anderson (not verified)    January 31, 2018 - 12:08PM

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I bought a 2015 Tacoma 4wd in March of 2015. It has 105K miles on it now and the rear differential is going out! Of course there was a 100k mile powertrain warranty but that doesn't help out now. I chose to buy a Toyota because of their history of reliability. So much for that I guess. I will not be buying another Toyota!

sam killen (not verified)    February 8, 2019 - 10:22AM

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I have a 2016 Tacoma, soon to be, I had a 2016 Tacoma. I have put up with the loud noise coming from the rear differential for some time. I have 50K miles on this truck and the noise now competes with my radio. Passengers always ask "What is that Noise". Thinking this is part of my drive train with a warranty of 60K miles. Toyota will not recognize this as a drive train problem. Instead they want to put a band aid on the problem with some sound proofing material. I took it to two different dealerships and get the same answer. There never let you know this is an issue and never sent out a recall to fix it. They will only cover this up to 36K miles, what a joke. This is my last Toyota, there was a time when Toyota put out nice trucks, not anymore.

Sean Leibfried (not verified)    January 25, 2020 - 12:59PM

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I been driving full size Chevrolet trucks for 35 years with no major issues( all these trucks were purchased brand new). I decided before I retire to buy the tried and true Toyota Tacoma for my last vehicle. I bought a 2019 Limited Edition Tacoma due to its solid reputation....at 2,500 miles the rear end started howling. U can hear it over the JBL sound system (volume at 35), the noise is loud and gives me an uneasy feeling that I may or may not reach my destination. The dealership acknowledged the howling and told me it was characteristic of the vehicle...BS... I talked to service manager and he assured me they will take care of it... I’m at 7,000 miles now and the dealership is going to replace rear differential on 1-30-2020...however the service manager told me ,this may or may not fix the issue....WTF... I am so disappointed in Toyota’s quality and response to known issues that I’m contemplating going for lemon law and moving back to GM. I bought a $44,000.00 dollar problem that I have to deal with the next 7 years!

Bill (not verified)    February 10, 2021 - 12:12PM

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My 2019 Tacoma Sport TRD 4x4 DCLB 3.5L A/T has the same problem. 13K & I tried to Lemon Law but Toyota corporate said it’s just part of the design & that law does not apply. My lawyer withdrew. It’s at the dealership for the 3rd time. After complaining several times, I got a mechanic assigned to the issue. He is trying everything! Been there for 2 weeks. I see that they have ordered a new rear diff. BD22 rear diffs were defective. My truck has a loud harmonic whine between 50-60 mph at 1500 rpms. Also between 25-30 mph but not nearly as loud. It sounds like it’s directly behind the drivers seat. Carrier bearing??? 2 piece drive shaft ???
Hoping the new rear diff solves it or I’m selling it!

Sam (not verified)    April 9, 2019 - 9:12PM

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I had the differential gasket replaced in my 2017 Tacoma when the recall first came out (mid 2017). Around 55k miles it starts howling and I took it to a different dealership. It's been there a few days as they're waiting on parts to replace the differential. I'm fortunate it happened at just under the warranty cutoff.

CLAUDE STOCKLEY (not verified)    July 5, 2019 - 12:13PM

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I have a 2018 tacoma with 13000km and was told that diffeerential will have to be replaced.

Dennis cutler (not verified)    August 8, 2019 - 11:42PM

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My diff was changed and it still howls now Toyota are try to say that the howl is normal total BS they need to get their great engineers and hold the hot iron to them and get this fixed they are dragging there feet

Kyle (not verified)    August 6, 2019 - 8:33PM

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I have a 2017 Tacoma not included in the warranty recall but it was fixed due to seeping and leak around rear diff. Drove for two weeks and it still leaks or seeps on one spot. I have called warranty and will be taking it back to dealership for repair second time. I have no clue what to do with the truck long term. Warranty department said I will have more options if second attempt to repair doesn't correct the problem. This is not what I signed up for buying a Tacoma.

Sergio Rollolazo (not verified)    November 1, 2019 - 9:27AM

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I have 1998 Toyota Tacoma, 185K miles with a noise at rear differential when applying brakes at around 5mph speed. Please advise if there are any recall on this year model.

Joseph P Hallahan (not verified)    February 11, 2020 - 1:44PM

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Was told today I need to replace frame on my 2009 double cab which is a recall and also need a new rear differential not covered he said it will be about 2000 dollars

Dean Demko (not verified)    February 19, 2021 - 3:16AM

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I have a 2009 TRD Sport and was notified at the beginning of January about the frame issue. Took my truck to dealership and sure enough, 2 rust holes in same spot on both sides and the front. A few years back they called me and had me come in and they applied a protective coating on my frame. Besides getting it all over the underneath of the truck, fast forward to today and I still need e new frame. My trucks KBB value is approx $11,250. This recall cost from what I understand is right in the $15k range. Been waiting for over a month now for the frame to finally get to the dealership. But honestly, all in all, the trucks been great. And none of this has costed me anything but my time. Not sure if I want to pull the trigger on a new one after what I've been reading though. And I'm a die-hard. It's all I've driven since I was 16. And that was, well..... hahahaha, back during the Reagan administration.

Hector L Quinones (not verified)    January 25, 2022 - 11:37AM

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I WAS a happy owner of a new 2022 Tacoma SR5 (3 miles), with 52 miles started howling noises from the differential at 35-45 MPH. , I was told they recognized the problem and that the dealer have to contact Toyota to decide what to do. Now i was brought home. Have not even make my first payment Yet, I am so Piss. I expend over $2800.00 on upgrades from Amazon and Ebay to make it look different, that was my retirement present . Had 5 Tundras in the pass never had any problem other than eat a lot of gas, should stay with Tundra. O there is a clicking sound from the engine they told me is normal, sound like a valve.

Hector L Quinones (not verified)    January 25, 2022 - 11:41AM

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I WAS a happy owner of a new 2022 Tacoma SR5 (3 miles), with 52 miles started howling noises from the differential at 35-45 MPH. , I was told they recognized the problem and that the dealer have to contact Toyota to decide what to do. Now i was brought home. Have not even make my first payment Yet, I am so Piss. I expend over $2800.00 on upgrades from Amazon and Ebay to make it look different, that was my retirement present . Had 5 Tundras in the pass never had any problem other than eat a lot of gas, should stay with Tundra. O there is a clicking sound from the engine they told me is normal, sound like a valve.