Owners have filed 167 complaints on the Toyota Previa, covering 1991–1997. The system named most often is Air Bags (17 reports). Worst years by volume: 1991, 1993, 1995; cleanest: 1997, 1996, 1994. 16 reports describe a crash, 14 a fire. On average the car was 6.4 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Toyota Previa
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 167 Previa complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Air Bags 17 Read
Consumer was involved in a 10 mph frontal collision, hitting two deers/a tree and a fence. The drivers/or passengers air bags did not deploy.*ak
Consumer was involved in a frontal collision, hitting two deers/tree and a fence in which the driver's or passenger's air bags did not deploy. Dup of 816641, added on 25-feb-98
When van was involved in a front passenger's side crash, there was no deployment of air bags. Reports show that the air bag sensor was pushed in, but the air bag did not deploy. The van is being repaired. Damages totalling $8,000.00
Visibility 17 Read
Windshield wipers failed
Slide/side door window failed
Due to seat belt failure during slow down for traffic light off exit ramp, 2-year old car seat was ejected and pushe dinto headrest of driver's seat, child suffered injuries.also latch for rear-middle window would open whenever the sliding door was closed
Engine And Engine Cooling 16 Read
Vehicle catches on fire due to oil leak. Manufacturer designed inherent flaws
I have a 1991 toyota previa le. The distributor o-ring and valve cover gaskets were leaking oil, and they leak right onto the hot exhaust manifold. I repaired these problems, and all is well, however, I have since seen many instances in various forums online where this has happened to others, and has resulted in a…
Catalytic converter failed. Nlm
Service Brakes 15 Read
Antilock brakes failed
Applied the brakes and there were no brakes, has ABS anti-lock brakes . *ak consumer was driving and all of a sudden a vehicle stopped in front of his car, consumer applied the brake and the brake did not respond at all, then consumer had to maneuver to avoid hitting other vehicle consumer continued to apply brake but…
While driving vehicle on highway or flat surface roads about 30 mph and up, when stepping on the brake pedal, is hard to stop and feels a big vibration like a kick back
Equipment 12 Read
While starting up our 1993 toyota previa, the radio amplifier under the glove compartment caught on fire. The ignition was turned off, and the fire stopped. Smoke odors from the fire still persist, and the amplifier was removed. The circuit board near one output transistor was badly burned, and the amplifier is not…
Car was parked overnight and caught on fire due to an electrical short in the radio. Car was totaled. There is a recall on the radio. Consumer was not notified of this recall. Manufacturer will be contacted. 93V-147
Car radio shorted out, resulting in a passengers compartment fire, prior to recall (93V-147)
Seat Belts 12 Read
Middle right bench seat lap belt is impossible to adjust due to its design
3 point belts don't release after locking without unbuckling belt
I went to ventura toyota to seek repairs on my seatbelt for my recently purchased 1995 previa based upon the 1997 iihsa crash tests which determined that the energy management loop in the belt was a dangerous defect. I was told that there was an updated part for the vehicle, so I ordered it and had it installed on…
Vehicle Speed Control 10 Read
Was driving at 65mph when the van started increasing in speed for no reason,speed shot up to 100mph in a matter of seconds and two feet on the brake pedal could barely slow it down ,upon pulling the hand brake it did slow it down to around 40mph at which time my wife jumped out and the van went down into a ditch and…
Unintended acceleration. Vehicle going ~50 mph on two-lane road. Accelerated rapidly to pass another vehicle. Passed at ~65 mph. Took foot off accelerator but vehicle continued to accelerate. Was able to bring to a stop. In 'park' engine also raced. Linkages checked, but were ok. Vehicle brought to toyota dealer in…
Speed sensor failed
Tires 10 Read
On december 27th, 2000 me and my family were traveling on vacation going east on I-10 out of el paso, tx, right before sonora, tx (mile mark 397 on I-10) I heard a noise coming from the rear of my vehicle and felt my van bouncing from the rear and tried to pull off the road all of a sudden the van pull me completely…
Hankook optimo h724 tire p205/75r-14 DOT t7xc hbh. Inside tire wall (back driver side) separated on 04-16-14 traveling i10 west at arizona high way speed limit causing accident. Nothing was run over on highway. Severe, roll over accident. Mini-van totaled. Purchased at america's tire 07-20-13. Tire had ~ 10,000 miles…
Hankook optimo h724 tire p205/75r-14 DOT t7xc hbh. Inside tire wall (back driver side) separated on 04-16-14 traveling i10 west at arizona high way speed limit of 75 mph causing accident. Nothing was run over on highway. Severe, roll-over accident. Mini-van totaled. Purchased at america's tire, san ramon, ca 07-20-13.…
Previa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Engine And Engine Cooling | — | — | |
| 1996 | Electrical System | 1 | 1 | |
| 1995 | Air Bags | 5 | — | |
| 1994 | Air Bags | 1 | 2 | |
| 1993 | Air Bags | 5 | 6 | |
| 1992 | Air Bags | 3 | — | |
| 1991 | Air Bags | 1 | 5 |
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 | 122 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.4 |
| Worst single series | 4 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 6.4 years |
A model average of 1.4 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
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
- No ads, on every page
- No ads, no tracking — and much more
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 Previa?
By complaint volume, 1991, 1993, 1995 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 Previa years are the cleanest?
1997, 1996, 1994 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Toyota Previa have?
167 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1991–1997. Of those, 16 describe a crash and 14 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.