2012 Toyota Camry Problems, Recalls & Reliability
808 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2012 Toyota Camry, alongside 2 recall campaigns and 0 defect investigations. It scores 24/100 on the trouble index — a middle-of-the-pack year for this model. Transmission & drivetrain leads the reports, typically around 85,650 miles.
Typical
Where 2012 sits among all Camry years
What owners report
“Transmission shudders when accelerating from a complete stop. When you accelerate it shudders”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
“My 2012 camry with only 60,123 miles is failing the torque converter so that is mean like transmission problems”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
“I recently was a passenger in my vehicle during a motor vehicle crash, and the air bags did not deployed for the driver or the passenger.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
“The driver's side rear door lock actuator failed on my 2012 toyota camry. It would not lock or unlock mechanically and had to be manually locked or unlocked. I have had four other door lock actuator failures, totaling five door lock actuator failures on the same vehicle. Toyota refuses to…”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
“The car will randomly stop accelerating when depressing the gas pedal. You can then lift up and press back down and it normally will respond again. This is very dangerous in traffic.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
“When driving between 25 to 40 mph the car shudder and the engine vibrates. I believe it have something to do with the gears and i hope toyota will fix it for free.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2012 Camry
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 558 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 39,477 miles. Half of those reports fall between 16,000 and 80,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (2)
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…
Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain models interspersed through model years 2009 through 2013 as follows: model year 2009-2012 Tacoma, 4Runner, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Prius, and RAV4; model year 2009-2010 Avalon, FJ Cruiser, and…
Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on March 21, 2013. Owners may…
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 Camry reliable?
The 2012 Toyota Camry drew 808 complaints in federal safety records — a middle-of-the-pack year for this model. Its trouble index is 24/100, scored against the model's worst year (2007).
What are the most common 2012 Toyota Camry problems?
The top reported problems for the 2012 Toyota Camry are transmission & drivetrain (142 complaints), other (102), and airbags (75).
At what mileage do 2012 Toyota Camry problems show up?
Owners most often report 2012 Toyota Camry problems around 39,477 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 16,000 and 80,000 miles.
Does the 2012 Toyota Camry have recalls?
2 recall campaigns apply to the 2012 Toyota Camry. 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.