1. Toyota Tacoma
  2. Problems
  3. 2012
  4. Engine

2012 Toyota Tacoma Engine Problems

117
Owner complaint records in our dataset

Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.

Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.

What owners report

  • secondary injection · 57 records
  • limp mode · 52 records
  • check engine · 50 records
  • engine light · 37 records
  • injection system · 31 records
  • p2440 p2442 · 29 records

Mileage in stored records

BandRecords
30–60k mi49
60–100k mi43
100–150k mi10
1–30k mi9
150–400k mi1

Complaint records

Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.

  • January 15, 2020 · 68,381 miles

    Engine

    Two dashboard lights illuminated at the same time: the check engine light and the trac off light. At first i really didn't notice much of a difference but after 2 days i experienced significant power loss. I would pull out into traffic ok until about 20mph then have no power. It crawled while trying to get up to speed. I read on the internet that if you disconnect the battery and open the gas cap the lights would go…

    ODI 11302208

  • May 1, 2019 · 86,000 miles

    Engine · Vehicle Speed Control

    I was on the the highway today and suddenly i lost power and won't pass speeds over 40 mph very dangerous have heard this happend to a lot of tacomas/ tundras and has to do something with the emissions i think i need a new diverter valve which toyota should cover

    ODI 11205143

  • April 28, 2019 · 103,000 miles

    Engine

    Cil and trac illumination with codes p2440 and p2442 caused the engine to go to limp mode with loss of power

    ODI 11204350

  • April 25, 2019 · 46,000 miles

    Engine

    While on a road trip i had my check engine light come on while on the highway due to defective secondary injection valves being stuck closed/open. The codes i had for this issue is p2440 and p2442. In my case this issue made my truck go into limp mode which is often a loss of power in the engine and sometimes a restriction in one's ability to shift the truck. Luckily the highway was not busy at the time this…

    ODI 11208428

  • April 4, 2019 · 144,000 miles

    Engine · Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control

    During normal driving, the check engine light and traction control off light came on and truck immediately went in to limp-home mode. I had it scanned for codes at the local auto parts store and it came back with p2440 and p2442 which seems like a common issue with a valve in the secondary air injection system. I quick google search showed that some 2012 tacoma owners are getting this covered under a special…

    ODI 11194082

  • February 27, 2019

    Engine

    Known issue with the secondary air valve. Throws the code p2442 vehicle goes into safe mode. Dealerships want about $2,000 to fix it. Recommending the fan-blower as will to double the amount. This is known issue from all that i have read and the dealership that i purchased it from in va last year didn't mention this at all or offer any kind of warranty to cover potential issues.

    ODI 11183500

  • February 19, 2019 · 50,000 miles

    Engine

    Check engine light and trac off light came on. Truck will not exceed over 2500 rpm and/or reach a speed over 25 mph. No torque/power when gas pedal is pressed, espesicially when traveling up steep terrain. Toyota needs to issue a recall on this issue.

    ODI 11181473

  • February 4, 2019

    Engine

    Having trouble with my vehicles secondary air injection system, replacement parts are super expensive and have seen many people have the same issue, seems like a non-reliable component. Always get the fault codes p2440 and p2442. I strongly beleive that this is a defective component.

    ODI 11205116

  • December 9, 2018 · 80,000 miles

    Engine

    The check eng & trac off light came on while i was on the interstate and almost got struck from the vehicle behind me. My truck went into limp mode & slowed down to 2500 rpms & wouldn't go any faster than 25 mph!! This is a hazard as i have read other complaints about this happening to others, it is a known issue to toyota, they have repaired the tundra's but so far am not showing any recall on the tacoma's. Error…

    ODI 11157138

  • November 16, 2018 · 83,000 miles

    Engine

    83k miles. Eng light and trac lights comes on, while driving truck goes into limp mode and will not excelerate past 2500 rpms and will not go any faster than 35 mph. Error code p2442 secondary air injection system switching valve problem. Very dangerous problem

    ODI 11152096

  • October 31, 2018 · 115,200 miles

    Engine

    While driving the vehicle in a suburban area it lost power, slowing to 25 mph maximum, i was almost rear ended. I swerved off the road into the grass to avoid being hit. There is a problem with the emission system. It is the secondary air injection system. Toyota has been aware of this problem for some time. Some of the 2012 toyota tacoma's have a customer support / warranty extension for this problem, not mine.

    ODI 11144810

  • July 16, 2018 · 75,000 miles

    Engine

    75k miles. Cel light and trac off lights come on, truck goes into limp mode and will not accelerate past 2500 rpms, and will not reach speeds above 35 mph. Very very dangerous and endangers not only the trucks drivers, but other drivers on the road. This is due to a faulty diverter valve that is a known issue that toyota has issued recalls on for other models with the same problem.

    ODI 11111863

  • June 22, 2018 · 102,000 miles

    Engine

    Air injector pump causing engine light and trac light to come on and sudden loss of power. Vehicle in motion when occurring.

    ODI 11104462

  • May 11, 2018 · 55,343 miles

    Engine

    Secondary air injector system switching valve problem at 55000+ odometer

    ODI 11093287

  • April 15, 2018 · 65,000 miles

    Engine

    Went on vacation to texas, stopped to gas up and when i went back on interstate i had a dramatic loss of power. Could not keep up enough speed to go speed limit. Air conditioner did not work. At destination a local told me about a repair shop. Cost me a hundred dollars to reset to factory specs. This has happened again four other times. I disconnected battery and reset myself. Now it`s a daily thing.

    ODI 11121780

  • February 28, 2018 · 123,500 miles

    Engine

    Secondary air injection problems (valves and/or pump) causes a check engine light to come on, and puts the engine in "limp home" mode, without warning, which limits top speed to ~40mph. This is not only ridiculous, but dangerous, especially if it happens while on a freeway. The "limp home" mode persists until the code is cleared, by using an odb tool, or clearing the ecu by other means. This has happened to me 3…

    ODI 11076004

  • February 12, 2018 · 45,000 miles

    Engine · Traction Control System

    Tl* the contact owns a 2012 toyota tacoma. While driving various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate. Also, the traction control and check engine warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the secondary air injection valve failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was not…

    ODI 11072941

  • February 8, 2018 · 164,000 miles

    Electronic Stability Control · Engine · Fuel/Propulsion System

    THE SECONDARY AIR INJECTION SYSTEM WENT OUT

    ODI 11078622

  • January 12, 2018 · 60,000 miles

    Engine

    At 60,000 miles check engine light and trac off lights come on when starting up truck in morning. This put the truck into limp mode. My mechanic cleared the codes but did not want to get involved in repairing as he couldn't guarantee it wouldn't happen again down the road and said toyota will not warranty the replacement parts. Dealer advised approximately $2,000 to repair. After seeing all the other complaints from…

    ODI 11064370

  • January 7, 2018 · 43,000 miles

    Engine

    Vacumme switching valve and air injection pump failure at 43,000 miles, cost to repair is $2052.32. This part is part of the emission control system and should be covered by toyota but is not. When this valve throws a check engine light the truck goes into limp mode and is very dangerous to drive as it has reduced power.

    ODI 11061147

  • January 3, 2018 · 78,000 miles

    Electrical System · Engine

    The check engine light and the trac off light came on as i was merging onto the interstate. I immediately stopped the vehicle, pulled over, and took my 2012 toyota tacoma with 78,000 miles to the mechanic where i left it overnight for them to look at it in the morning. Running a diagnostic they found code p2443 - secondary air injection switching valve stuck. I asked if they had dealt with this before and they said…

    ODI 11060748

  • December 23, 2017 · 49,442 miles

    Engine · Unknown Or Other

    At less then 50k miles on the odometer and 900 miles from home my truck decided to get a check engine light and trac off light caused by codes p2440 and p2442 and p2445. Merry christmas to me. These codes put me into limp mode while on the freeway in snowy and icy conditions. I could not maintain speed with the flow of traffic as i was trying to get to the shoulder with traffic zooming all around me, dangerous and…

    ODI 11056546

  • December 21, 2017 · 87,000 miles

    Engine · Unknown Or Other · Vehicle Speed Control

    Almost lost control of vehicle when the trucks performance jumped into limp mode "trac off" as i was driving. Loss of speed and performance caused me to be a driving hazard. 2 vendors today found the codes p2440 and p2442, which appear to have triggered my truck into "trac off" and "check engine" light on. Mode causes my truck to only drive about 45 significantly impacts performance and dangerous to drive. This is a…

    ODI 11056151

  • November 20, 2017 · 98,000 miles

    Engine

    Vehicle was in motion and check engine light came on. Car immeditely lost power. Computer codes p2440 and p2442 indicated issues that would not effect normal operation of the vehicle- just emmision control issues. 98,000 mi. On vehicle when it occurred. Vehicle would not go over 40 mph.

    ODI 11073959

  • November 15, 2017 · 63,000 miles

    Engine

    Check engine light and trac off light came on and next thing the car would not accelerate properly while pulling out on to a highway heading up hill i had no power. Fortunately i was not killed by the 50 plus mile per hour traffic. After making down the highway was able to get into a pep boys where they coded the secondary air system. This is a serious issue that could have killed me or someone else. I plan to…

    ODI 11047192