Every Toyota Tacoma Generation Ranked From Worst To Best

If you're in the market for a new pickup, you probably have a lot of must-haves in mind. For one thing, most folks want a reliable vehicle. Looks and onboard features might come after, but steady performance is a must-have. To that end, a Toyota pickup seems like an easy choice. When I was shopping for a pickup in 2018, the Tacoma was at the top of my list for two main reasons.

For one thing, other Toyotas in my family exceeded the 200,000-mile-mark before giving out. What's more, the Tacoma looks good and ticks the boxes mountain-dwellers need. With four-wheel drive, room for the family, and good towing specs, a Tacoma was definitely not a bad choice. The thing is, while the Tacoma's towing capability and rugged design are both selling points, when it comes to the data, some Tacoma generations are better than others.

Everyone has an anecdote about their car or truck that could sway you either way, but when it comes to industry data, the numbers can reveal patterns you may not have suspected. Fortunately, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) makes data on a vehicle's quality public. We've gone through that information to rank every Toyota Tacoma generation from worst to best. For more information on how we determined the order, check out our Methodology at the end of this list. 

Second-generation Toyota Tacomas have the worst track record when it comes to consumer complaints and recalls. Model years from tallied up over 4,000 complaints, per National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data. Those model years were involved in a collective 98 recalls across various trims. The worst offender of the second generation was the , with 13 recalls and over 500 complaints.

What could make this data surprising is the fact that the 2007 Tacoma earned a quality award, and so did the last model of this generation, the . However, context for that data is important; J.D. Power's quality awards only look at consumer feedback within the first 90 days of ownership. Thus, if the second-generation Tacomas had issues long after that initial honeymoon period, that information wouldn't necessarily factor into J.D. Power's determinations.

Plus, based on industry reliability data, there are other options. A handful of trucks that are more reliable than the Tacoma might be worth considering if you're shopping for a new or used pickup. Or, you could opt for a better-performing Tacoma from a different generation.

Just because a pickup is an older model doesn't necessarily mean it has a reputation for being poor quality. Even the first generation of the Toyota Tacoma wasn't the absolute worst, judging by consumer feedback and recall incidents. Although the first rollout of the very intentionally named Tacoma wasn't without problems, the first generation's performance was actually slightly better than the second.

The first-generation Tacomas — which include model years from 1995 to 2004 — ranked second in complaints, after the second generation. In total, the first generation of Tacomas earned over 2,900 complaints and had 54 recalls across various trims. Among the first-generation model years, the  had the most consumer complaints. With a total of 413 complaints and 6 recalls, it's significantly lower than the second-gen's worst year, despite having more time to accrue those complaints.

The complaints were distributed across various categories, such as drivetrain and engine. However, it's true that Tacomas can last a long time, and some anecdotal evidence of this is the fact that the NHTSA has documented complaints about older models (circa ) as recently as 2025. Not every vehicle lasts that long to complain about. Of course, since various model years of Tacomas have compatible parts, thieves may be after replacement parts for the cash, even on some of these older models.

Toyota's third-generation Tacomas rank third among the pickup truck years for consumer complaints, according to the NHTSA. The third generation amassed around 1,100 complaints from consumers, per the NHTSA, and was involved in 24 recalls. The worst model year in the third generation, based on consumer complaints, was the . Over 300 complaints, including those centered on powertrain, electrical, engine, and other issues, also cropped up.

Worth noting is that the 2022 Tacoma was J.D. Power's most reliable pick in 2025. That suggests a Tacoma doesn't have to be brand-new to get great marks, and good performance three years on sounds promising for other owners. Although I didn't have my sights set on any particular model year when I went shopping at the end of 2018, it may have been a lucky time to buy, as this generation doesn't have the absolute worst reputation performance-wise.

As for recalls, the third generation has significantly fewer complaints than the second and first generation model years, according to NHTSA data. The worst offender in the third generation was the , with five recalls for fuel, brake, and other issues. The 226 complaints registered by the NHTSA for that year help the third-generation Tacoma rank better than its predecessors.

If you guessed that Toyota has improved the Tacoma over time, you're probably right. To date, the best Tacoma is the fourth generation, which began in 2024 and is still rolling into 2026. As for the 2024 model year, Toyota claims a number of awards for the Tacoma, including KBB Best Buy, KBB Best Resale Value, and Autotrader Best New Cars.

Based on factors such as frame adjustments, suspension changes, and engine options, the 2024 Tacoma was a significant improvement over previous model years. While there's still plenty of time for consumers to write in with complaints about their fourth-generation Tacomas, so far, the model year has about 125 complaints and only three recalls. All told, the fourth generation has only had around 150 complaints and 7 recalls to date.

Considering what a new Tacoma costs in 2025, you may be right to expect top-of-the-line quality. Still, there are options for every price point, though the top trim levels start at over — more than double the MSRP of lower entries. Only time will tell whether it's worth the cost, but at the very least, you're likely to have fun driving a brand-new Tacoma, especially if you choose a trim that's built for off-roading.

Our methodology utilizes National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data for all Toyota Tacoma model years to rank each of the four Tacoma generations based on the number of recalls and consumer complaints for vehicles within its year span. Tacoma generations with the fewest manufacturer recalls and driver complaints for its model years are the best, while those with the most recalls and complaints are considered the worst.

For example, the second generation Tacoma spanned 2005 to 2015, and vehicles through those years amassed more than 4,000 complaints from consumers, the highest of any generation's total. Note that we only counted the recalls for each model year, not each individual trim. In addition, some recalls may be counted more than once because they may apply to a span of model years, thus appearing multiple times in NHTSA data.