Owners have filed 11 complaints on the Scion iM, covering 2016–2016. The system named most often is Power Train (4 reports). Worst years by volume: 2016; cleanest: 2016. 1 reports describe a crash. On average the car was 2.7 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Scion iM
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 11 iM complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 4 Read
Transmission began slipping while on the highway less than 25 miles after service at toyota dealership. The clutch then degraded over less than 500 miles to the point where vehicle was barely drivable and did not transmit enough power to go up hills at all. Toyota service tech test drove vehicle and verified clutch is…
Purchased my 2016 scion im and was great for the first year. In 2018, the car developed a rough idle, usually at a stop light and after the car was warm. I reported it to the dealership and nothing was found as it was not replicated during their test drive. The car continued to rough idle until the next issue…
Transmission does quirky things. Sometimes it gets stuck in high RPM's and doesn't want to upshift. Sometimes it won't accelerate because you can't get the RPM's up high enough. This is an automatic transmission. Sometimes it slips
Structure 2 Read
Takata recall- purchase 2016 scion im brand new a few months ago. I noticed a paint detail on the top of the hatchback door inside was done poorly
Drivers side front window makes a noise as it rubs against something inside of door when lowering or raising window
Seats 1 Read
This car has the worst backseat headrest. They're too high and talk and obstruct the rear window when driving. Creates a terrible blindspot on both sides of the back window. Actually got into a car accident in a parking lot pulling out of my spot. Since I did not have the clear visibility the driver behind me pulled…
Service Brakes 1 Read
The brake light on the dash came on for a second while accelerating from a stop. The problem has progressively gotten worse. The light now comes on and stays on the whole time you accelerate but as soon as you let off the gas pedal the light goes out. This now happens every time you accelerate from a stop and the…
Electrical System 1 Read
The horn on the vehicle began to operate intermittently and now it does not work at all. This is a major safety issue as I have several near misses with other drivers turning into my travel lane without signaling and nearly causing an accident. I have no way of preventing an incursion without the horn being…
Steering 1 Read
The vehicles car horn no longer works, this is safety manufacturer defect that should be reported and fixed by the manufacturer. I was driving the vehicle and could not honk to other vehicles thus creating a safety hazard
iM years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Electrical System | 1 | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 5 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.2 |
| Worst single series | 4 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 2.7 years |
A model average of 2.2 hides a worst series at 4. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the iM?
By complaint volume, 2016 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which iM years are the cleanest?
2016 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Scion iM have?
11 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2016–2016. Of those, 1 describe a crash and 0 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.