2013 Toyota Avalon Problems, Recalls & Reliability
187 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2013 Toyota Avalon, alongside 4 recall campaigns and 1 defect investigation. It scores 40/100 on the trouble index — a below-average year for this model. Visibility & wipers leads the reports, typically around 13,400 miles.
Below average
Where 2013 sits among all Avalon years
What owners report
“Rear window shade stuck in 'UP' position, cannot see out the rearview mirror, especially at night. Makes for very dangerous driving.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Avalon
“Headliner at the top of the rear window is falling down making it a safety hazard while looking in my rear view mirror.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Avalon
“While parking my car, the motor suddenly accelerated without the accelerator pedal having been depressed. The car surged forward and even after the brake was applied the engine continued to accelerate for several seconds.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Avalon
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 106 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 22,150 miles. Half of those reports fall between 4,200 and 70,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
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 model year 2013-2015 Avalon and Avalon Hybrid vehicles manufactured October 19, 2012 to October 27, 2015 and 2013-2015 Lexus ES350 and ES300h vehicles manufactured June 18, 2012 to July 6,…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace certain PCS components, free of charge. The recall began on July 28, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for…
Toyota Motor Engineering & manufacturing North America, Inc. (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Camry and Camry HV, model year 2013 Avalon and Avalon HV and model year 2014 Corolla vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the windshield wiper…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the wiper switch assembly, free of charge. The recall began on November 8, 2013. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
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
498 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and body & structure — are on file for the 2013 Toyota Avalon. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2013 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 2013 Toyota Avalon reliable?
The 2013 Toyota Avalon drew 187 complaints in federal safety records — a below-average year for this model. Its trouble index is 40/100, scored against the model's worst year (2006).
What are the most common 2013 Toyota Avalon problems?
The top reported problems for the 2013 Toyota Avalon are visibility & wipers (32 complaints), other (27), and body & structure (25).
At what mileage do 2013 Toyota Avalon problems show up?
Owners most often report 2013 Toyota Avalon problems around 22,150 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 4,200 and 70,000 miles.
Does the 2013 Toyota Avalon have recalls?
4 recall campaigns apply to the 2013 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.