Model Years

2012 Toyota Sequoia Recalls and Problems

NHTSA lists 3 safety recalls and 20 owner complaints for the 2012 Toyota Sequoia.

Recalled components: steering, equipment, and air bags. Most-reported area: brakes (6 complaints, 30%).

3Safety recalls
20Owner complaints
0Complaints citing a crash
0Complaints citing a fire

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Toyota dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Data: NHTSA recall, complaint and investigation filesUpdated Oct 2, 2026

3 safety recalls for the 2012 Toyota Sequoia

Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.

Steering

Nov 23, 2021

hydraulic power assist system

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2008-2022 Sequoia and 2007-2021 Tundra vehicles. The power steering gear assembly may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in an oil leak.

Risk: An oil leak may cause a sudden loss of power steering assist, increasing the risk of a crash.

The fix and full notice

Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the power steering gear assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 21, 2022. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 21TB10 and 21TA10.

NHTSA listing: SEQUOIA. Components: Steering: hydraulic power assist system; Steering: rack and pinion. Toyota campaign 21TB10 / 21TA10.

Equipment

Apr 9, 2013

labels

  • Fails federal standard 110 (tire and rim labeling)
  • NHTSA 13V-123
  • 7,525 vehicles

These vehicles were sold with labels that were outside the allowable one percent of accuracy of actual weight added. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) Number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."

Risk: An inaccurate label could lead to owners overloading their vehicles and tires. An overloaded vehicle can result in a tire failure which may result in a vehicle crash, personal injury, or property damage.

The fix and full notice

Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners and provide a corrected label with instructions concerning its installation. A small group of the affected vehicles will need additonal remedies which are still being developed. The recall began on May 28, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.

Southeast Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 and 2010-2013 Toyota Tundra, 2010-2012 Rav4, 2012 Toyota Sequoia, 2010-2011 Toyota Corolla, 2010-2011 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota FJ Cruiser, 2011 Toyota Land Cruiser, 2010-2013 Toyota Venza, 2010-2011 Toyota 4Runner, 2010-2013 Toyota Tacoma, 2011-2012 Toyota Sienna, 2012 Toyota Prius, 2013 Scion FR-S, 2011 Scion XD, 2011 Scion XB, and 2012 Scion TC vehicles.

NHTSA listing: SEQUOIA.

Air bags

Jan 16, 2013

frontal · sensor/control module-inactive

Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain models interspersed through model years 2009 through 2013 as follows: model year 2009-2012 Tacoma, 4Runner, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Prius, and RAV4; model year 2009-2010 Avalon, FJ Cruiser, and Highlander Hybrid; model year 2010-2013 model year Corolla, Sienna and Tundra; model year 2009-2013 Highlander and Venza; model year 2012 Prius V; and model year 2010-2012 Sequoia. During modification by SET to include accessories such as leather seat covers, seat heaters or headrest DVD systems, these vehicles may not have had the passenger seat occupant sensing system calibration tested. Without passing the calibration test, the occupant sensing system may not operate as designed.

Risk: If the front passenger seat occupant sensing system is out of calibration, the front passenger airbags may not deploy or they may deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position. This could increase the risk of personal injury during the event of a vehicle crash necessitating airbag deployment.

The fix and full notice

Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on March 21, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.

NHTSA listing: SEQUOIA. Components: Air bags: frontal, sensor/control module-inactive; Seats.

Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA also lists 1 equipment recall for parts sold for this vehicle, not the vehicle itself: Steering: hydraulic power assist system (Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing, 21E-103).

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA has opened 1 investigation that names the 2012 Toyota Sequoia; it is closed. An investigation means NHTSA is reviewing reports of a problem. It is not a finding that the vehicle has a defect.

Electrical overstress

Engineering analysis EA19001Closed Sep 19, 2024 (opened Apr 19, 2019)

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect.

NHTSA listing: SEQUOIA. Component: Air bags (air bag/restraint control module). This investigation names 46 models.

An engineering analysis is a deeper review, usually opened after a preliminary evaluation. NHTSA lists investigations by make, model and model year only, so one can apply to only some versions of a model, such as one engine; its summary says which.

What owners report

Owners have filed 20 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Sequoia. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.

Problems owners describe

Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these. Compare other models in the problem owners report most for every model year.

Areas named in complaints

A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%.

Toyota Sequoia recalls and complaints by model year

The highlighted bars are the 2012 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2023 Sequoia drew the most (28) and the 2012 drew 9.

Owner complaints

2012: 20 complaints

Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Toyota Sequoia
Model yearComplaints
201031
201117
201220
201312
201417
20159
201611
20177
201820
20197
20204
20214
20221
202338
202438
202510
202610

Safety recalls

2012: 3 recalls

Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Toyota Sequoia
Model yearRecalls
20109
20116
20123
20132
20142
20152
20162
20172
20184
20195
20201
20211
20221
20235
20245
20252
20260

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

Tested versionOverallFrontalSideRollover
Toyota Sequoia SUV 2WD
Rollover risk 18.5%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated
Toyota Sequoia SUV 4WD
Rollover risk 18.5%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated

2012 Sequoia MPG

EPA rates the 2012 Toyota Sequoia up to 16 mpg combined.Every version and fuel cost

Questions

What are the most common 2012 Sequoia problems?

The areas owners name most often in NHTSA complaints: brakes (6), electrical system (5), stability control (4). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can name several areas.

Is NHTSA investigating the 2012 Toyota Sequoia?

No. NHTSA's investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026, lists no open investigations for the 2012 Toyota Sequoia. It lists one closed investigation, which closed on Sep 19, 2024.

How do I check if my Sequoia has an open recall?

Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Toyota dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

Sources and method

  • NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Oct 2, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
  • NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
  • NHTSA investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Defect petitions, which ask NHTSA to open an investigation, are listed apart and only while open. Audit queries, which check whether a company met its recall and reporting duties rather than whether a vehicle has a problem, are not listed.
  • NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
  • NHTSA model names covered: SEQUOIA.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.