The 1996 Toyota 4runner has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 289,450 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 92 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the structure. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
SUSPENSION02V0210002002-01-18273,743 affected
Defect
ON CERTAIN 2-WHEEL-DRIVE (2WD) AND 4-WHEEL-DRIVE (4WD) 4RUNNER SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, A COMBINATION OF HEAVY LOADING (SIMULTANEOUS LOADING TO REAR GROSS AXLE WEIGHT RATING AND GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT RATING) AND SEVERE STEERING MANEUVERS COULD CAUSE THE 2WD 4RUNNER TO LOSE DIRECTIONAL STABILITY.
Consequence
THIS MAY RESULT IN A LOSS OF CONTROL AND COULD INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE REAR SUSPENSION PARTS. ALTHOUGH THE 4WD 4RUNNERS DO NOT EXHIBIT THE HANDLING CONDITION, TOYOTA WILL RECALL THESE VEHICLES TO AVOID ANY PUBLIC CONFUSION AS TO WHICH VEHICLES SHOULD RECEIVE THE REPLACEMENT PARTS. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN FEBRUARY 28, 2002. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN…
EQUIPMENT96V0980001996-06-1215,707 affected
Defect
THE STICKER REQUIRED BY PART 575, "CONSUMER INFORMATION REGULATIONS" TO ALERT THE DRIVER OF "THE PARTICULAR HANDLING AND MANEUVERING CHARACTERISTICS OF UTILITY VEHICLES" WAS NOT AFFIXED TO THE DRIVER'S SIDE SUN VISOR.
Consequence
CONSEQUENCE OF NON-COMPLIANCE: OWNERS MAY NOT BE AWARE OF THE HANDLING AND MANUEVERING CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS VEHICLE INCREASING THE RISK OF A VEHICLE ACCIDENT.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE SUN VISORS ON THE AFFECTED VEHICLES WITH VISORS CONTAINING THE CORRECT LABELS.
Complaints by component
STRUCTURE:BODY
24
1crashes2injuries
SUSPENSION
21
2crashes1fires1injuries1deaths
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
10
STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
7
STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS
6
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
4
1crashes
AIR BAGS
2
1crashes
POWER TRAIN
2
TIRES
2
1crashes
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
1
Total complaints92
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“I have noticed that my vehicle doesn’t seem to be balance and most of the time I am afraid the tires will fall off by the movement of the vehicle. And the metal parts that attachment part it looks very bad on the metal parts like it rusted so bad. I hope they will be able to figure out whats…”
“I have noticed that my vehicle doesn’t seem to be balance and most of the time I am afraid the tires will fall off by the movement of the vehicle. And the metal parts that attachment part it looks very bad on the metal parts like it rusted so bad. I hope they will be able to figure out whats…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 1996 toyota 4runner. The contact stated while driving 70 mph, the sun roof detached and flew off the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure…”
“My vehicle has been slipping a lot causing me to lose control of the vehicle it's not the first time it has happened just recently it happened again and I was told to check if there was a recall on the vehicle but there wasn't but after researching my 4runner I've read there was some recalls on…”
“The rear axle/suspension is completely rusted out. Just took it to my auto shop for an oil change and they will not put it up for an oil change because they are afraid it will collapse.”
“The axel support rusted off causing it to separate from the frame. This results in a dangerous condition”
“Axel supports rusted off the frame making it dangerous to drive”
“My 1996 toyota 4runner suffers from excessive rust that caused me to be have a horrible loss of vehicle control due to the frame excessively cracking. The cracking was due to what an independent research company stating that the right-rear frame rail cracked and separated from the frame due to…”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1996 Toyota 4runner as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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