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2016 Toyota CorollaProblems, recalls & complaints

NHTSA has logged 216 owner complaints about the 2016 Toyota Corolla, most often about the air bags. It is covered by 1 safety recall, and for recall 20V-024 the manufacturer reports only 58% of affected cars repaired.

2016 Toyota Corolla
45
CarFlaw IndexSolid year1.2× the Corolla median · #13 of 38 years by complaints
Safety recalls1Lowest repair rate 58%Owner complaints216112 with a crash, fire or injuryTypical failure mileage35kAir bags, median miles

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports, through November 6, 2026. Updated daily. Photo: LuvsMG481, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Complaints by system

Where the 2016 Toyota Corolla has problems

216 complaints grouped by the system owners reported.

Box size = number of complaints naming that system. Darker = larger share. One complaint can name more than one system.
Complaints by system
SystemComplaintsCrash, fire or injury
Air bags6546
Service brakes3014
Seat belts2611
Power train231
Steering225
Vehicle speed control229
Structure155
Electrical system145
Engine131
9 other systems619

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Complaints are submitted by the public and are not verified by NHTSA.

1 recall

2016 Toyota Corolla recalls and how many were fixed

Each ring shows the share of affected cars repaired, from the manufacturer’s latest quarterly report to NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.

58%repaired · 2022 Q1

Air bags: air bag/restraint control module

Recall 20V-024 · Jan 17, 2020 · 2,891,976 vehicles · 1,672,902 repaired

Risk. In the event of a crash, air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners that do not deploy as intended may increase the risk of injury.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

Recalls apply to specific cars. To see whether a recall is still open on yours, enter the 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with Toyota.

Mileage at failure

When do air bags problems start?

35kmiles, median

Based on the odometer reading in 44 air bags complaints. 93% were reported before 100,000 miles.

median0k50k100k150k200k+
19under 30k miles41under 100k miles3100k miles or more
Best & worst years

2016 vs. every other Corolla year

Bars show complaints per model year. Colors show the CarFlaw verdict: complaints weighted for crashes, fires and injuries, adjusted for years on the road and compared with the Corolla median. How we score

'69'70'71'73'76'77'78'79'80'81'82'83'84'85'86'87'88'89'90'91'92'93'94'95'96'97'98'99'00'01'02'03'04'05'06'07'08'09'10'11'12'13'14'15'16'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24'25'26'27
  • Avoid
  • Caution
  • Solid
  • Best
  • Not rated
NHTSA crash tests

2016 Toyota Corolla safety ratings

2016 Toyota Corolla 4 DR FWD in NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program. Photos are from NHTSA's crash tests.

★★★★★Overall rating
2016 Toyota Corolla frontal crash test, NHTSA
Frontal crash★★★★★
2016 Toyota Corolla side barrier test, NHTSA
Side barrier★★★★★
2016 Toyota Corolla side pole test, NHTSA
Side pole★★★★★
  • Rollover: 4 stars (11.8% risk)
  • Stability control: Standard
  • Forward collision warning: No
  • Lane departure warning: No
2 investigations

NHTSA defect investigations

Federal investigations that included the 2016 Toyota Corolla, and the recalls they led to.

  1. Electrical overstressEA19001 · closed Sep 19, 2024
    Led to recall 20V-024
  2. Desiccated Air Bag Inflator RuptureEA21002 · still open
    Open
In owners' words

What Corolla owners report

Recent air bags complaints filed with NHTSA, shortened. Personal details are removed.

In 2024, my 2016 Toyota Corolla was involved in a collision. The airbags did not deploy. I went to the emergency room following the crash and later required additional medical treatment, including rehabilitation.
Complaint 11707349 · Dec 28, 2025
The driver seat belt dont work and once in a great while it will work but even whenever it does latch it still shows the seat belt isn't on and that noise keeps going off but after a while the noise goes off but the symbol is still on the dash board. I recently got hit from behind (09/15/2025) at a…
Complaint 11699858 · Nov 17, 2025
The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was rear-ended. The contact stated that the air bags did not deploy. The contact stated that the other driver was driving at about 45 MPH when the contact's vehicle was rear-ended. A…
Complaint 11579473 · Mar 26, 2024 · 60,000 miles

Own a 2016 Corolla?

Decode your VIN to see the recalls for your exact car, then confirm open recalls with NHTSA.