2012 Toyota Avalon Problems, Recalls & Reliability
35 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2012 Toyota Avalon, alongside 4 recall campaigns and 1 defect investigation. It scores 11/100 on the trouble index — one of this model's quieter years.
One of the quieter years. Relative to its siblings, the 2012 Toyota Avalon has drawn well-below-average complaint volume with at least four years on the road.
Better year
Where 2012 sits among all Avalon years
What owners report
Recalls (4)
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…
Fix: 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…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2012 Toyota Avalon vehicles. During a vehicle repair, the seat belt inner buckles may have been replaced with parts that may incorrectly tell the air bag management system that the seat…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the seat belt assembly to verify that it is properly detecting being unbuckled, replacing the inner seat belt assembly as necessary, free of charge.…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Toyota Avalon vehicles manufactured February 9, 2010, to October 22, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the sub-woofer speaker located in the trunk may experience an…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the audio system amplifier and install a protective cover around the sub-woofer, free of charge. The recall began on July 1,2015. Owners may…
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Avalon, Avalon HV, Venza, Camry, and Camry HV vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the drain hose for the air conditioning condenser may become clogged causing water to accumulate at the bottom of the air…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will seal the air conditioning condenser unit housing and install a protective cover on the airbag control module, free of charge. The recall began on February…
Federal defect investigations
Led to recall campaign 20V024.
Technical service bulletins
292 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on body & structure and electrical — are on file for the 2012 Toyota Avalon. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2012 Avalon TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2012 Toyota Avalon reliable?
The 2012 Toyota Avalon drew 35 complaints in federal safety records — one of this model's quieter years. Its trouble index is 11/100, scored against the model's worst year (2006).
What are the most common 2012 Toyota Avalon problems?
The top reported problems for the 2012 Toyota Avalon are body & structure (6 complaints), airbags (6), and speed control (4).
Does the 2012 Toyota Avalon have recalls?
4 recall campaigns apply to the 2012 Toyota Avalon. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.