"How reliable is the 1998 Toyota 4 Runner?"

"Based on 134 NHTSA complaints, the 1998 Toyota 4 Runner has a median complaint mileage of 65000 miles. The most common issue is TIRES."

"What are common problems with the 1998 Toyota 4 Runner?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1998 Toyota 4 Runner is TIRES, accounting for a significant portion of the 134 total complaints filed."

1998 Toyota 4 Runner: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 134 complaints

134

Total Complaints

65,000mi

Median Mileage

TIRES

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

58,500 25th Percentile

65,000 Median Mileage

84,594 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

TIRES

TIRES:TREAD/BELT

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SUSPENSION

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TAIL LIGHTS

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:ROTOR

SUSPENSION:REAR

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"THE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING VEHICLE TO KICK INTO HIGH GEAR, COMING OUT OF THE OVERDRIVE AND REVS UP TO 3500 MPH WHICH ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. CAUSE UNKNOWN."

"WHEN CRUISE CONTROL IS ON AND GOING UP A HILL, TRANSMISSION DOWNSHIFTS."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE 5 complaints

Median: 57,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 48 FL: 12 TX: 8 LA: 8 GA: 7 NY: 7 NH: 5 AL: 5 PA: 3 OR: 3

Who Files Complaints?

62.7%

Original Owners

37.3%

Second+ Owners

Toyota 4 Runner — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1994	61	110,334	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	9
1995	149	104,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	12
1996	111	113,413	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	14
1997	163	86,000	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP	30
1999	134	72,505	TIRES	22
2000	118	47,150	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:ROTOR	26
2001	34	48,000	TIRES:TREAD/BELT	4
2002	45	19,800	TIRES	12
2003	188	600	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM	1
2004	76	969	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM:EMISSION CONTROL:CATALYTIC CONVERTOR	6
2005	20	1,250	SEATS	0

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28