Toyota Yaris Years to Avoid — and the Years to Buy
Every Toyota Yaris model year from 2006 to 2020, benchmarked against each other with 1,096 federal complaints, 23 recall campaigns, and the odometer readings owners put in their reports.
Avoid: 2007–2008. These years top the Yaris's complaint rankings by volume and severity.
Safer bets: 2011–2012, 2019 — the quietest years with at least four years on the road.
The method in one line: every NHTSA complaint for this model is counted, weighted for crashes, fires, injuries, and deaths, and each year is measured against the Yaris's own worst year — full methodology.
Under investigation. Federal regulators currently have 2 open defect investigations on the Toyota Yaris.
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:12V/24V/48V BATTERY
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received a petition dated June 7, 2023, along with several subsequent submissions from the petitioner, requesting an investigation of the vehicle CAN Bus vulnerability to external attack in the…
Model years named: 2019
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade,…
An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
The trouble strip
One cell per model year. The whole answer in one glance — click any year for the full report.
The defining problem
Airbags tops the Toyota Yaris file with 375 complaints, concentrated in the 2007–2008 model years, most often reported around 64,500 miles. The year pages break down what fails and when.
Every year, ranked
| Year | Verdict | Complaints | Recalls | Top problem | Trouble index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Few reports | 16 | 1 | — | 2 |
| 2019 | Better year | 43 | 3 | — | 8 |
| 2018 | Few reports | 7 | 1 | — | 3 |
| 2017 | Few reports | 21 | 3 | — | 5 |
| 2016 | Few reports | 8 | 2 | — | 5 |
| 2015 | Few reports | 22 | 4 | — | 16 |
| 2014 | Few reports | 4 | 1 | — | 1 |
| 2013 | Few reports | 11 | 1 | — | 4 |
| 2012 | Better year | 47 | 5 | Airbags | 20 |
| 2011 | Better year | 31 | 3 | Airbags | 10 |
| 2010 | Below average | 123 | 9 | Airbags | 36 |
| 2009 | Below average | 134 | 10 | Airbags | 47 |
| 2008 | Avoid | 289 | 10 | Airbags | 100 |
| 2007 | Avoid | 331 | 10 | Airbags | 96 |
| 2006 | Few reports | 9 | 5 | — | 5 |
Technical service bulletins
Beyond complaints and recalls, 2,379 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, service campaigns, warranty extensions — are on file for the Toyota Yaris. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
Browse the Toyota Yaris TSB list by year →
Questions buyers ask
What Toyota Yaris years should I avoid?
Federal complaint records point to 2007–2008 as the Toyota Yaris years to avoid — they drew the highest volume of serious complaints relative to the model's other years.
What is the most common Toyota Yaris problem?
Airbags tops the Toyota Yaris file with 375 complaints, concentrated in the 2007–2008 model years, most often reported around 64,500 miles.
What are the best Toyota Yaris years to buy used?
The quietest Toyota Yaris years in federal records are 2011–2012, 2019 — each with at least four years on the road and well-below-average complaint volume for this model.
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. Counts cover the Toyota Yaris only, scored against this model's own worst year — not against other models. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.