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NHTSA vehicle safety data

2004 Toyota Camry Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

The 2004 Toyota Camry has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns and 638 owner complaints on file as of November 3, 2026. Recall repairs are usually free at an authorized Toyota dealer.

NHTSA recall and complaint data for the 2004 Toyota Camry, plus NCAP crash-test ratings. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

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2004 Toyota Camry owner complaints

Owners have filed 638 complaints with NHTSA about the 2004 Toyota Camry, describing incidents dated September 4, 2003 to June 23, 2026.

Most-cited components

  • Vehicle Speed Control 238 complaints
  • Steering 80 complaints
  • Air Bags 79 complaints
  • Service Brakes 74 complaints
  • Engine 55 complaints
  • Power Train 48 complaints

Of the 638 complaints on file, 199 report a crash and 11 a fire; across all 638 complaints, owners report 133 injuries and 5 deaths (owner-reported, not verified by NHTSA).

Newest complaints

  • ODI #11749220 · Filed

    My wife was in a crash that totaled my 2004 Camry. She swerved to miss a deer and was pulled off the road and into two utility poles and several areas of fence. None of the airbags deployed and the crash was well over the 14 mph speed limit suggested for the airbags to deploy. My wife was seriously…

  • ODI #11654816 · Filed

    The SRS warning light came on. I took it to my mechanic and he tested the sensor. He said the code that showed is B1821...Open in Side Squib (D Seat Side) Circuit. He said I needed to take it to a Toyota Dealer. I have an appointment with one on 4/17/25.

  • ODI #11559606 · Filed

    The power steering freezes up upon the slightest amount of street water ponding making it almost impossible to turn the steering wheel. I have experienced a number of scary situations that make driving this car in wet elements very very difficult. As a result I generally refrain from driving…

Read all 638 complaints

Owner-reported

2004 Toyota Camry mileage at failure

512 of the 638 complaints on file for the 2004 Toyota Camry give the vehicle's mileage when the problem happened.

Mileage at failure by component, from owners' complaints to NHTSA
Vehicle Speed ControlMedian 45,000 milesMiddle half 20,000–75,000 milesBased on 190 complaints
SteeringMedian 40,000 milesMiddle half 14,000–65,000 milesBased on 71 complaints
Air BagsMedian 65,000 milesMiddle half 35,000–105,000 milesBased on 59 complaints
Service BrakesMedian 30,000 milesMiddle half 8,000–90,000 milesBased on 54 complaints
EngineMedian 75,000 milesMiddle half 50,000–115,000 milesBased on 51 complaints
Power TrainMedian 40,000 milesMiddle half 500–75,000 milesBased on 38 complaints

A component's median is its 50th percentile, and its middle half runs from its 25th to its 75th percentile.

Owners give the mileage themselves, often as a round number, and NHTSA doesn't check it. A complaint that names several components counts under each one, and mileages that can't be right, such as 999,999, or 50 miles on a five-year-old car, are left out.

These figures describe the complaints owners filed. They don't predict when a particular vehicle will have a problem, and vehicles that never had one aren't counted.

Mileage from NHTSA's complaints file of October 31, 2026. How these figures are worked out

NHTSA defect investigations

NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2004 Toyota Camry in 2 investigations. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.

Open and recently closed NHTSA defect investigations

CRANKSHAFT PULLEY

NHTSA #11V539000 · Engine and Engine Cooling · NHTSA notice

Reported November 9, 2011 · Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

Potentially affected: 420,326 vehicles

Owners notified December 31, 2011

Defect description

TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2004 AVALON VEHICLES; 2004 AND 2005 CAMRY, CAMRY SOLARA, HIGHLANDER, AND SIENNA VEHICLES, 2006 HIGHLANDER HYBRID; 2004 AND 2005 LEXUS ES330 AND RX330; AND 2006 LEXUS RX400H VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JUNE 1, 2004 THROUGH MARCH 31, 2005, EQUIPPED WITH THE 1MZ-FE OR 3MZ-FE ENGINE. THE AMOUNT OF ADHESIVE AGENT APPLIED BETWEEN THE OUTER RING AND THE TORSIONAL RUBBER DAMPER (INNER RING) IN THE CRANKSHAFT PULLEY MAY BE INADEQUATE. IF THE ADHESIVE IS INSUFFICIENT, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT THE OUTER RING MAY BECOME MISALIGNED AND IT MAY NOT PROPERLY ROTATE WITH THE INNER RING, CAUSING NOISE AND/OR ILLUMINATION OF THE BATTERY DISCHARGE INDICATOR LIGHT.

Safety consequence

IN SOME CASES, THE BELT FOR THE POWER STEERING PUMP MAY BECOME DETACHED FROM THE PULLEY WHICH COULD RESULT IN A LOSS OF POWER STEERING AND A SUDDEN INCREASE IN STEERING EFFORT, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Manufacturer remedy

TOYOTA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL CHECK THE CRANKSHAFT PULLEY TO IDENTIFY WHETHER IT WAS PRODUCED BY THE U.S. SUPPLIER. IF SO, THE DEALER WILL REPLACE THE PULLEY WITH A NEW ONE AT NO CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING EARLY JANUARY 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

Notes

OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV>HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV</A> .

TOYOTA/SEATBELT BUCKLE STATUS SWITCH

NHTSA #04V595000 · Seat Belts — Front — Buckle Assembly · NHTSA notice

Reported December 15, 2004 · TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.

Potentially affected: 150,061 vehicles

Toyota campaign SSC 40M · Owners notified December 20, 2004 · Vehicles built May 7, 2003 – September 8, 2004 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A FRONT PASSENGER POWER SEAT, WHEN INSTALLING CERTAIN REAR-FACING INFANT CHILD SEAT BASES ONTO THE SEAT WITH AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH SEATBELT TENSION, IT MAY BE POSSIBLE TO UNSEAT A COMPONENT CALLED THE BUCKLE STATUS SWITCH FROM THE SEAT BELT BUCKLE.

Safety consequence

IF THE SWITCH BECOMES UNSEATED, THE FRONT PASSENGER OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM MAY MISTAKE THE REAR-FACING CHILD RESTRAINT FOR AN UNBELTED ADULT OCCUPANT, AND MAY NOT SUPPRESS THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE FRONT PASSENGER AIRBAG.

Manufacturer remedy

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FRONT PASSENGER SEATBELT BUCKLE STATUS SWITCH. THIS SAFETY IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN (SSC 40M) BEGAN ON DECEMBER 20, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331 OR LEXUS AT 1-800-255-3987..

Notes

THIS ACTION IS DEEMED A SAFETY IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN AND IS NOT BEING CONDUCTED UNDER THE SAFETY ACT.

TOYOTA/CURTAIN SHIELD AIRBAG

NHTSA #04V346000 · Air Bags — Side/Window · NHTSA notice

Reported July 13, 2004 · TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.

Potentially affected: 128,316 vehicles

Owners notified August 6, 2004 · Vehicles built October 22, 2001 – February 10, 2004 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

ON CERTAIN VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH CURTAIN SHIELD AIR BAGS (CSA), ONE OR BOTH OF THE CURTAIN AIR BAGS MAY BE TWISTED NEAR THE INFLATOR DUE TO IMPROPER ASSEMBLY.

Safety consequence

IF THIS OCCURS, THE CSA MAY NOT DEPLOY RAPIDLY ENOUGH WHEN ACTIVATED IN A SIDE IMPACT COLLISION. THIS MAY RESULT IN FAILURE TO PROVIDE THE INTENDED HEAD PROTECTION, INCREASING THE RISK OF INJURY.

Manufacturer remedy

DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE CSAS AND REPLACE THE AIR BAG ASSEMBLY IF NECESSARY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 6, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

Notes

CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).

Other Toyota Camry model years

Check your 2004 Toyota Camry VIN

Not every recall applies to every VIN in a given year. Enter the 17-character VIN from your Toyota Camry at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether your specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.

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