Owners have filed 22 complaints on the Scion iQ, covering 2012–2015. The system named most often is Structure (6 reports). Worst years by volume: 2012, 2013, 2015; cleanest: 2014, 2015, 2013. 7 reports describe a crash. On average the car was 4.8 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Scion iQ
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 22 iQ complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Structure 6 Read
The paint is peeling off the entire car. The body shop said it is a factory defect. A quick internet search shows that this is a wide spread issue for this year, make, model & color. Why won't toyota do anything about it?
Piston are burning a qt of oil per 200 miles or less and paint flaking on car
Paint is coming off of car in different places & to much oil consumption even after changing egr value have to add oil to often
Air Bags 5 Read
I purchased the vehicle on 10-24-17 from a private party who purchased it from the toyota dealer, ak toyota, guam. Upon bringing the vehicle home I try to fill the windshield washer reservoir but the fluid leaks straight down under the vehicle. I called the dealer and was told the repair would be under warranty since…
The contact owns a 2012 scion iq. The contact stated that while driving at a unknown speed, she crashed into a brick wall. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact suffered injuries to the chest and ribs due to striking the steering wheel. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign I.d. Number 12V528000 (air bags) and…
The contact owns a 2012 Scion iQ. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, another vehicle made a left turn, causing the contact to crash into the other vehicle; however, no air bags deployed. The contact was injured on her back and received medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed…
Engine 5 Read
Excessive oil consumption, starting at 86k miles. Using 7 quarts of oil every 3,000 miles, with a starting capacity of 3.8 quarts. This means I'm doing 2 complete oil changes every 3k miles. Toyota dealership said it was normal for that car to use so much oil. Oil light came on about half way through my last oil…
Recalled for possibility of a valve spring breaking potentially causing the engine to stop working while under driving conditions. Recall notice indicated that the time for repairs was approximately 2 days and this was confirmed by the service department at valdosta toyota when the vehicle was scheduled for repairs.…
The contact owns a 2013 scion iq. The contact stated that the engine was replaced in 2016 by advantage toyota of river oaks (1970 river oaks dr, calumet city, il 60409, (708) 862-0700). The repairs were completed under the warranty. The vehicle was recently taken back to the same dealer for an oil change and the…
Steering 2 Read
(see seattle police) inc.# [xxx]) I was crossing dexter ave. N. To make a left turn at crockett st. Immediately I struck a ford explorer going n/b on dexter which had just pulled from the curb about 100' away. My car sustained front end damage and was declared a total wreck. The right front of the explorer sustained…
The contact owns a 2012 scion iq. The contact stated that while driving 40 mph over a road bump, the contact temporarily lost control of the vehicle. The contact stated that the steering system was not stable. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing and the dealer performed a front end…
Power Train 1 Read
On aug 16, 2018 @ 6:30 am while exiting at the garage in my apt heading to work; I started the engine of my car and it was okey. I started to drive on the ramp on the drive way the engine stops. I reversed/ back up and started the engine again, while on the ramp again it accelerated and never stop though brake was…
Vehicle Speed Control 1 Read
I got into 2 accidents in 3 days while parking into or out of a parking space. The first accident 07/04/2020, my car was parked in a parking lot. I placed the car in reverse and suddenly it accelerated and the brakes failed to work. My vehicle only stopped after crashing into the car behind me. The second accident…
iQ 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2014 | Power Train,vehicle Speed Control,service Brakes | 1 | — | |
| 2013 | Engine | 1 | — | |
| 2012 | Air Bags | 4 | — |
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 | 13 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.7 |
| Worst single series | 5 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.8 years |
A model average of 1.7 hides a worst series at 5. 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 iQ?
By complaint volume, 2012, 2013, 2015 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 iQ years are the cleanest?
2014, 2015, 2013 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Scion iQ have?
22 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2012–2015. Of those, 7 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.