SCION Complaints

A major safety structural defect has developed in the rear axle beam. About 50 percent of the welds failed where the passenger side swing arm attaches to the rest of the axle. The lack of support ended up creating about a three inch stress crack across the width of the swing arm tube. This could have led to a complete failure of the swing arm, had I not found the problem. Had this failure occurred on the highway, it might have caused a serious accident. A month prior I started hearing a pop from the rear of the car each time I would back out of the driveway and the first time I went forward. I crawled under the car within about two weeks and checked things over but found nothing. I thought it might have been a coil spring shifting in its seat or a shock absorber with an internal problem. The noise continued and was getting a bit louder each time it occurred. I ended up lifting the back of the car and pulling the rear wheels. I first found the stress crack across the swing arm tube. Upon further inspection, I realized a portion of the welds had failed. The car is 14 years old and has 159k miles. There is rust that is contributing to the deterioration of the connection, yet the design of the swing arm and its connections seem as though they are barely sufficient when it was new. The design of the swing arm connections does not appear sufficient to be exposed to normal wear and tear of winter driving. In searching for a replacement part, this same exact swing arm is also used on the Toyota Prius C and a Yaris model. So this issue could be occurring on those models as well.

Engine stalled won't crank over or run anymore. Mechanic said it was a valve spring issue and vehicle had a recall that entitled engine to be replaced by Toyota.

While driving on the interstate, all of a sudden, I hear a loud bang. This sound sounded like a tire blew or a gun shot. Then I see glass rolling down the back windshield. After inspecting, it was the sunroof/moonroof that exploded outwords as if there was some pressure from the heat built up.My brother was in the backseat, luckily the windshield was closed. He could have gotten seriously hurt from the glass debris falling onto him or into his eyes.After researching, this is a common situation for this model car, being the number 1 car reported for similar incidents.

The contact owns a 2013 Scion FR-S. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V772000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it remained awaiting the parts for the recall repair. The contact stated that once the parts for the repair were available, the mechanic informed her that the manufacturer would not be covering the repairs on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

When braking, the accelerator had somehow stuck and moved me ahead instead of stopping and caused an accident; running into concrete posts in the parking lot, which by USAA standards, totaled my car; Actually it didn't, but because they didn't want to repair it the settlement totaled it, causing me lots of issues in finding transportation. This was not the first time. It has happened three times with this car. I never went back to the dealer (too far to find out if there was a fix for it, or a recall.) In searching for one, never found it.

Why did the dealer tell me this recall is not associated with my vin when I keep getting recall UNADDREESSED notices for my vehicle? This is a safety reason and a complete disconnect between dealerships and Toyota manufacture. I need this addressed immediately!

Engine failure. My safety is compromised by car leaving me stranded at an unpreditable time. Serviced center fixed vehicle twice unsuccecfully because different engine brand but joint partnership. No warning lamps were present before or after failure of engine.

Steering wheel began clunking and locking up when turning. Had this issue on a previous FRS, Electronic Power Steering Motor Coupler had failed and needed replacement.

Steering locks and binds up and clunks while driving, makes steering. Creates dangerous situations as you cannot steer when this occurs. Diagnosed as a failed electric steering damper, repair performed by owner as dealer quoted over $900 for the repair to replace the entire electric power steering motor. This should be a recall as it affects the steering of the car. This failure occurs so commonly on these cars that owners are repairing it themselves with no manufacturer help. See: https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133606

The contact owns a 2013 Scion FR-S. The contact stated there was an abnormal clunking sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check oil warning light was illuminated while the vehicle was decelerating. The contact drove into a nearby parking lot. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the valve spring had fractured. The vehicle was repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number 18V772000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that 115 miles after the repair there was a knocking noise coming from the engine compartment and the vehicle began to run rough. While driving at highway speeds the vehicle began to feel as if it was decelerating with the accelerator pedal being depressed. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer who diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the failure was coming from the bottom of the engine. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was towed back to the residence. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The approximate failure mileage was 115,000.