1986 Toyota Camry problems & reliability
32 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1986 Toyota Camry. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1986 Toyota Camry vehicles were involved in 1 fatal crash with 1 occupant death. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Seat Belts → | 10 | 31% |
| Tires | 5 | 16% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 4 | 13% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 4 | 13% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 3 | 9% |
| Structure | 2 | 6% |
| Visibility | 2 | 6% |
| Equipment | 1 | 3% |
| Suspension | 1 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“We are the original owner of a 1986 toyota camry that we bought new. We had an issue with sudden acceleration back in 1986 and brought the car back to the original toyota dealer. They were unable to find anything wrong. The issue with sudden acceleration has happened 3 more times most recently a few weeks ago. We have…”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed May 10, 2016
“1986 toyota camry unintended acceleration once*cw the consumer stated the unintended acceleration he experienced was due to electronics not the pedal. The consumer stated he was on a steep uphill climb on mn highway 52 with the cruise control enabled. The vehicle was slowing because of the hill. He pushed on the…”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed Mar 4, 2010
“3/28/04-purchased 4 new tires from wal-mart tire center (p185/70r13 bw x-trac). 4/16/2005- broke down on side of road due to vehicle shaking violently. Had vehicle towed; mechanic said that belt in tire slipped. I returned tire to wal-mart and they gave me a pro-rated price on new tire (based on the tread that was…”
Tires · filed Jun 28, 2005
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- IGNITER ASSEMBLY FAILURE
Preliminary Evaluation PE87057 · opened Sep 10, 1987 · closed Mar 30, 1988
Technical service bulletins
17 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1986 Toyota Camry. The 10 most recent:
TSB: 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 ? 2023 model year vehicles may be…
TSB003220 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 17, 2023
POL: This consolidated Tire Warranty Guide contains the complete warranty terms for all brands of ground and spare tires currently in use by Toyota. This information must be kept near the point of vehicle sale and be…
Toyota PRO19-02 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 12, 2022
TSB: 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 ? 2021 model year vehicles may be…
T-SB-0032-20 Rev · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 3, 2021
TSB: OBSOLETE NOTICE April 07, 2020: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0032-20. Replacement Certification Labels and VIN Plates
T-SB-0304-17 Obs · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 7, 2020
TSB: SUPERSESSION NOTICE The information contained in this bulletin supersedes Service Bulletin Nos. PG021-88, PG015-89, PG0015-90, PG002-91, PG002-93, PG005-97, PG007-01, PG007-07, PG006-01, PG004-97, T-SB-0144-08, and…
T-SB-0032-20 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 6, 2020
Technical Service Bulletin: OBSOLETE NOTICE: July 31, 2018: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0304-17.
PG006-01-Obsolet · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 31, 2018
Technical Service Bulletin: OBSOLETE NOTICE: July 31, 2018: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0304-17.
PG004-97-Obsolet · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 31, 2018
TSB: REVISION NOTICE July 31, 2018 Rev2: ? The Supersession Notice has been updated. January 11, 2018 Rev1: ? The Supersession Notice has been updated. Any previous printed versions of this bulletin should be discarded…
T-SB-0304-17_Rev · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 31, 2018
TSB: SUPERSESSION NOTICE The information contained in this bulletin supersedes Service Bulletin Nos. PG021-88, PG015-89, PG0015-90, PG002-91, PG002-93, PG005-97, PG007-01, PG007-07, and T-SB-0144-08. Service Bulletin…
T-SB-0304-17_Rev · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 11, 2018
TSB: Vehicle replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) may be available from Toyota, provided the request meets…
T-SB-0304-17 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 27, 2017
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 1986 Toyota Camry in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1986 Toyota Camry?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.