The 1999 Toyota Avalon has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 1,960 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 113 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the vehicle speed control. Last updated July 5, 2026.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, MINI VANS AND PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A THEFT DETERRENT SYSTEMS (TDS) SUPPLIED BY AUDIOVOX CORPORATION AND DISTRIBUTED BY SOUTHEAST TOYOTA DISTRIBUTORS, INC. IN THE STATES OF ALABAMA, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA. THE ALARM WIRING HARNESS PLUGS…
Consequence
THIS CONDITION CAN CAUSE INTERMITTENT PERFORMANCE OF THE VEHICLE'S ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS SUCH AS THE DASH WARNING LIGHTS AND/OR HVAC FAN SPEED CONTROLS. ALSO, THE VEHICLE MAY NOT RUN SMOOTHLY AND COULD STALL.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE DATE CODE LABEL ON THE SECURITY SYSTEM HARNESS AND ANY DISPLAYING THE MANUFACTURING/FINAL DATE CODE WILL BE REPLACED WITH NEWLY PRODUCED HARNESSES. THE DATE CODES ARE: RAV4 - 6/24/98, 6/25/98, 6/26/98; SIENNA - 6/25/98, 6/26/98; AND AVALON - 6/30/98, 7/1/98, 8/31/98, 9/1/98, 9/2/98, AND…
Complaints by component
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
15
3crashes2injuries1deaths
AIR BAGS
13
6crashes6injuries
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
5
5crashes1injuries
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE
5
SUSPENSION
5
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL
5
2crashes1injuries
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
4
1fires
SUSPENSION:FRONT
4
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
3
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS
3
Total complaints113
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The car steering is hard to turn until it warms up. I took the steering to the repair shop for flushing 12/3/2015 but this has not solved the problem. The steering continues to be stiff/hard when turning. I don't know what the problem is. It is the only car my family uses and this is increasing…”
“While the vehicle was at a repair facility for an unrelated issue the mechanic noticed an odor of burning plastic from the drivers side door panel. Upon examination the mechanic found the front passenger window switch on the drivers master window control panel had melted and a hole fused through…”
“On or about the date below, I was traveling on the I-405 n freeway in los angeles when my sunroof glass panel flew off of my car. The sunroof was closed at the time, but I had noticed increasing wind noise over the last 12 months or so. After conducting some online research, it appears that other…”
“On or about the date below, I was traveling on the I-405 n freeway in los angeles when my sunroof glass panel flew off of my car. The sunroof was closed at the time, but I had noticed increasing wind noise over the last 12 months or so. After conducting some online research, it appears that other…”
“Was driving sound on gregory rd and another car was traveling north she came into my lane at about 40 mph and hit me head on my airbag new deployed and my seatbelt did not hold I have a bruise across my chest from steering wheel and bumps on my head. *tr”
“Driving my daughter to school about the 17th of december 2013, I attempted to brake the car to a stop. Instead the car lurched forward suddenly out of control and mounted the sidewalk. It traveled about 20 feet before I was able to brake it to a complete stop. There was no object or person in the…”
“Driving my daughter to school about the 17th of december 2013, I attempted to brake the car to a stop. Instead the car lurched forward suddenly out of control and mounted the sidewalk. It traveled about 20 feet before I was able to brake it to a complete stop. There was no object or person in the…”
“There was no specific "event" car just spontaneously caught fire. Car was parked, driver away from the car, when driver returned and got into car noticed a smell, thought it was coming from outside, put the window up and smell was stronger. Looked down and flames were shooting out from under the…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationDP02004 Opened 2002-04-30 · closed 2002-06-20
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1999 Toyota Avalon as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.