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2016 Toyota Avalon recalls, complaints and safety ratings

There are 3 US recalls for the 2016 Toyota Avalon, and 4 in Canada. Owners filed 23 complaints with NHTSA, most often about unknown or other. Its best NHTSA overall crash rating is 5 stars.

3US recalls
0urgent recalls
23owner complaints
5★overall crash rating

Is your car affected?

Check by VIN to confirm the exact model and see every recall for it.

Recalls are issued for a make, model and model year. Whether the repair has already been done on one specific car is known only to its manufacturer and dealers. Check your vehicle's official status at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a dealer.

US recalls (3)

Air bags: air bag/restraint control module

2020-01-17 · campaign 20V024000 · 2,891,976 vehicles

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix, 2012-2018 Avalon, and 2013-2018 Avalon Hybrid vehicles. During certain crashes, the air bag electronic control unit (ECU) may malfunction, possibly disabling the deployment of the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners.

Risk and remedy

Risk: In the event of a crash, air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners that do not deploy as intended may increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ECU and install a noise filter between the air bag control module and its wire harness, as necessary, free of charge. Owners were notified of the safety risk beginning March 2, 2020. A second letter notifying owners of the remedy repair will be mailed between March 16, 2020 and June 27, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB03, 20TA03 and 20TA05.

Air bags: knee bolster

2016-12-16 · campaign 16V906000 · 12 vehicles

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2016 Avalon, and 2017 Camry vehicles manufactured August 3, 2016, to September 12, 2016. The front passenger knee air bag module may have been attached to the lower instrument panel with incorrect fasteners.

Risk and remedy

Risk: If the air bag was installed with incorrect fasteners, the fasteners may become loose over time, affecting the air bag deployment and increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the fasteners, and if necessary, replace the instrument panel brace and body bracket and reattach the air bag assembly, free of charge. The recall began on February 8, 2017. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is G05.

Air bags: sensor, occupant classification

2016-04-14 · campaign 16V215000 · 58,515 vehicles

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2016 Avalon and Camry vehicles manufactured November 30, 2015 to March 4, 2016. The occupant classification system (OCS) that activates or deactivates the front passenger seat air bag system may have been improperly calibrated. As a result, the front passenger air bag and the front passenger knee air bag may not deploy as intended in certain crash scenarios. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Risk and remedy

Risk: Air bags that do not deploy as intended during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will recalibrate the OCS, free of charge. The recall began by May 13, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is G0J.

Canadian recalls (4)

Show 4 Canadian recalls

Electrical

2021-11-24 · campaign 2021-723

Issue: This recall is for certain block heater kits installed on certain vehicles or sold as accessories at Toyota or Lexus dealerships. On certain vehicles, the engine block heater cable may not have enough heat protection and could be damaged by high temperatures. If this happens, the cable could short circuit while plugged in, and cause the wiring to overheat or melt. Note: This recall only affects the following block heater/cord part numbers: C014003034 PK5A408J09 PU14000904 C014003151 PK5A408J13 PU14000905 C014000885 PK5A489J11 PU14000907 C014000888 PK5A489J22 PU14000909 C014000907 PK5A410H00 PU14000911 C014100904 PU14000900 PU14000913 C014100907 PU14000901 PU14003571 C014100911 PU14000902 PK5A489J14 PK5A408J05 PU14000903 Safety Risk: Engine block heater wiring that overheats or melts could create the risk of a fire. Corrective Actions: Toyota recommends that you should stop using the engine block heater immediately. Toyota will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to disable the engine block heater. For some vehicles, the corrective actions for this recall are under development. For others, a new engine block heater cannot be installed, and the owner will receive a refund of the purchase price of the engine block heater.

Airbag

2020-01-17 · campaign 2020-013

Issue: On certain vehicles, the circuits within the airbag control module could be damaged in a crash. This could cause the airbags and seat belt pretensioners to not deploy in certain crashes. Safety Risk: Airbags or seat belts that do not work properly in a crash could create an increased risk of injury. Corrective Actions: Toyota will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to install an electrical noise filter to prevent damage to the airbag control module.

Electrical

2017-07-20 · campaign 2017-363

On certain vehicles, the electrical power cords of some dealer installed block heaters may have been improperly manufactured, causing the wires to contact each other, resulting in a short circuit. A short circuit could lead to a fire which would increase the risk of injury and/or damage to property. Correction: For vehicles where the subject block heater was approved for installation, the dealer will replace the block heater assembly with a new one of an improved design. For vehicles where the subject block heater was not approved for installation, dealers will remove the block heater assembly. In the interim, until the remedy can be performed, dealers will cut the plug end from the block heater cord to disable the block heater's operation.

Airbag

2016-04-13 · campaign 2016-160

Certain vehicles may not comply with the requirements of Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 - Occupant Protection in Frontal Impacts. The front passenger seat's occupant classification system (OCS) may not have been calibrated properly during the manufacturing process. This could result in the non-deployment of the front passenger air bag and the front passenger knee airbag, which would increase the risk of injury to the seat occupant in a crash where airbag deployment is warranted. Correction: Dealers will re-calibrate the occupant classification system.

Owner complaints (23)

Owners filed 23 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Toyota Avalon (2 crashes, 1 fires, 2 injuries reported). Among 28 model years of this model, it ranks #24 for the most complaints (median 106).

Most-reported problemComplaints
Unknown or other5
Engine4
Air bags4
Electrical system3
Structure3
Visibility2
Power train2
Vehicle speed control2

Crash test ratings

NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2016 Toyota Avalon.

VersionOverallFrontalSideRollover
2016 Toyota Avalon 4 DR FWD5★4★5★4★

Fuel economy

EPA ratings for each 2016 Toyota Avalon version.

VersionCity MPGHighway MPGCombinedYearly fuel cost
Avalon 3.5 L Automatic (S6)213024$2,800
Avalon Hybrid 2.5 L Automatic (AV-S6)403940$1,700
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Sources: NHTSA recalls, complaints and 5-Star Safety Ratings, US EPA fuel economy and Transport Canada's Vehicle Recalls Database (contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada). Recalls updated 2026-10-30.