1986 Toyota Tercel Recalls
No NHTSA recalls on record for the 1986 Toyota Tercel. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 8 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the seat belts. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Complaints by component
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“In 2006-2007, my 20 year-old 1986 toyota tercel station wagon began exhibiting sudden acceleration and/or failure to decelerate, caused by a sticking accelerator pedal -- causing no injuries but requiring me to brake, shift to neutral, and/or stomp repeatedly on the accelerator pedal to loosen it…”
“Driver side shoulder belt and track fails to retract properly. As a result seat belt buckle gets caught in the door, and buckle is broken, causing the seat belt to malfunction. Dealer will only repair at owner's expense. *ak”
“Driver side shoulder belt and track fails to retract properly. As a result seat belt buckle gets caught in the door, and buckle is broken, causing the seat belt to malfunction. Dealer will only repair at owner's expense. *ak”
“Belt failed to retract and closing door has cracked buckle. The safety related defect consists of the retracting mechanism failing to fully retract the belt, and the plastic buckle cracking when the door closed on it. There appears to be no way to remediate this other than to replace the entire…”
“Abs: right side caliper broke into pieces, brake pedal went straight to floor with no braking effect; brake pad was lying on ground;prior, heard squeaking noise”
“Abs: right side caliper broke into pieces, brake pedal went straight to floor with no braking effect; brake pad was lying on ground;prior, heard squeaking noise”
“The drivers seatbelt buckle will not release. Please describbe. Tt”
“Vehicle leaks fuel , and it leaks all the time. Owner has taken vehicle to dealer, and was told that fuel tank had rusted out. Owner also notes that dealer noted that this is a common problem with this type of vehicle. Owner is very concerned for safety. *ak”
Defect investigations
IGNITER ASSEMBLY FAILURE
SUMMARY: TOYOTA RECOVERED SOME FAILED IGNITION CONTROL MODULES FROM THEFIELD. INVESTIGATION SHOWED THAT A SOLDER JOINT IN THE POWER TRANSISTOROF THE MODULE WAS SUBJECT TO FAILURE. BECAUSE THE PART IS AN EMISSIONRELATED COMPONENT A VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS RECALL CAMPAIGN WAS CONDUCTED.THE PREDOMINANT MODE OF FAILURE IS AN…
BROKEN STABILIZER BAR
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Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1986 Toyota Tercel as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.