UsedScore

2021 Toyota Camry: Solid

Owners filed 130 complaints with NHTSA about the 2021 Toyota Camry in its first five years on the road, about 42 for every 100,000 sold: 0.7× the rate of a typical Camry year. That's close to a typical year.

The biggest problem area, counting serious complaints more, is the air bags (55% of complaints, median 50,000 miles).

Complaint index
0.7×
per vehicle sold, vs. a typical Camry year
Rank
4th of 14
1st = fewest complaints
Complaints
130
first five years; 42 per 100,000 sold
Recalls
1
campaign
8th generation, 2018–2024 · Updated September 24, 2026 · How we rate
2018 Toyota Camry LE

Photo: 2018 Toyota Camry LE · Kevauto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Problem areas

Ranked by severity-weighted complaints · share · median miles
  1. Air bags55% · 72 complaints · median 50,000 miles
  2. Brakes11% · 14 complaints
  3. Driver assistance12% · 15 complaints
  4. Powertrain5% · 6 complaints
  5. Electrical5% · 7 complaints
  6. Engine4% · 5 complaints
  7. Seats and belts3% · 4 complaints
  8. Speed control2% · 2 complaints
  9. Body and structure2% · 3 complaints
  10. Steering2% · 3 complaints

Bars rank problem areas by complaints weighted for severity (crashes, fires, injuries and deaths count more). A complaint can name more than one area. Mileage is reported on about half of complaints.

What owners describe

Air bags

Many owners of this Camry report an open recall on the passenger airbag sensor with no repair parts available yet, leaving the warning light on and the airbag's readiness in question. A few describe crashes where air bags did not deploy, resulting in injuries.

Warning signs:
Owners describe the air bag or SRS warning light illuminating, sometimes with a chime, and a few mention a constant noise or blind spot camera alerts before or during the issue.
What shops did:
Owners report dealers most often say replacement parts for the recall repair are not yet available, so the vehicle is left undiagnosed or unrepaired; a few had costly unrelated repairs that later matched the recall fix.
Mileage:
most between 45,000 and 70,000 miles, among 8 complaints that give it

“Dealership initially said it was due to damage to the electrical harness We paid over 8000 for repairs and got our car back.”

“the air bags did not deploy. After the crash, an indicator for the air bags was defective.”

Brakes

Owners describe brakes that don't respond as expected, sometimes leading to crashes while parking or driving slowly, along with parking brakes that fail to hold the car in place. Several say dealers struggled to find or fix the cause, leaving them uncertain about the vehicle's braking behavior.

Warning signs:
Some report the pedal feeling abnormal, extra travel before stopping, surging while slowing down, or dashboard warning lights and error codes appearing before the failure.
What shops did:
Owners report dealers sometimes could not diagnose or duplicate the issue, quoted parking brake actuator replacement, or the vehicle remained undiagnosed and unrepaired.

“AT 8,060 miles parking brake failes to engage. Got error code on the dashboard stating " Parking brake malfunction/ Hold brake malfunction.”

“When parking brake is set, the vehicle will begin to roll if put on an incline.”

Driver assistance

Owners of this Camry describe forward collision, lane assist, adaptive cruise, and camera systems acting inconsistently or not engaging when expected, in some cases during near-misses or crashes. Dealers frequently found no fault or said the systems were functioning as designed, leaving owners uncertain about reliability.

Warning signs:
Some report the steering pulling side to side, lane assist crossing lane markers without correcting, brake surging, or camera/blind spot alerts disappearing before a failure occurred.
What shops did:
Dealers often could not duplicate the problem, said the computer showed the system working properly, or told owners the behavior was normal.

“When I turn off the LTA switch, it stays on..in other words the steering is affected, and warning beeps sound when I cross into another lane.”

Summaries are written with AI from the owner complaints shown on NHTSA's site and checked against them; quotes are word for word.

Recalls (1)

Check a VIN on NHTSA ›
  • NHTSA 23V865000December 2023999,901 vehicles

    Air bags: sensor: occupant classification

    Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Lexus ES350, Lexus RX350, Lexus RX450H, 2021 Sienna Hybrid, Lexus ES250, 2020-2022 Camry, Camry Hybrid, and ES300H vehicles. A short circuit may develop in the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor, preventing the front passenger air bag from deploying.

    Risk: An air bag that does not deploy during a crash increases the risk of injury.

    Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the sensor as necessary, free of charge.

A recall only helps if the repair was done. Enter the vehicle's 17-character VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup before you buy.

Service bulletins

Toyota sent NHTSA 201 service bulletins and other notices to dealers covering the 2021 Camry. These are repair instructions, not recalls. Warranty extensions and bulletins about its top problem areas:

  • 24TE04 · August 2026 · Warranty extensionAlthough the flow shut-off valve is covered by Toyota’s New Vehicle Limited Warranty for 36 months or 36,000 miles (whichever comes first), we at Toyota care about the customers’ ownership experience.
  • TSB010421 · February 2024TSB: Some 2018 ?
  • TSB003220 · August 2023TSB: Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ?
  • T-SB-0115-22 Rev · March 2023TSB: Some 2019 ?
  • T-SB-0094-21 Rev · November 2022TSB: Some 2005 ?
  • T-SB-0015-20 Obs · September 2022OBSOLETE NOTICE September 26, 2022: This bulletin is now obsolete.
  • T-SB-0088-22 · September 2022TSB: Some 2018 ?
  • TSB004321Rev2 · July 2022TSB: Some 2020 model year vehicles equipped with Audio Plus (version 1021) or Premium Audio (version 1021) or earlier may exhibit one or more of the following conditions: ?Barge in function defaulted…

All 2021 Camry bulletins on NHTSA ›

Questions owners ask

Is the 2021 Toyota Camry reliable?
Owners filed 130 complaints with NHTSA about the 2021 Toyota Camry in its first five years on the road, about 42 for every 100,000 sold: 0.7× the rate of a typical Camry year. That's close to a typical year. Ratings compare Camry years with each other using complaints filed with NHTSA; they don't measure every problem owners have.
What are the most common 2021 Camry problems?
Owners' complaints most often involve the air bags (55%), the brakes (11%) and driver-assistance features and cameras (12%). A complaint can name more than one area.
Has the 2021 Toyota Camry been recalled?
Yes. NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for the 2021 Toyota Camry, the most recent in December 2023 (air bags). Enter the vehicle's VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to see whether the repairs were done.

Sources

Owner complaints, recalls and manufacturer communications from NHTSA's public data files, as of September 24, 2026. Complaints are counted once each, over the model year's first 60 months on the road. UsedScore is not affiliated with NHTSA or Toyota. The 2021 Toyota Camry on NHTSA.gov · How we rate