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Toyota · NHTSA safety record

2018 Toyota C-HR

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

309

Complaints

9

Crashes

0

Fires

7

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2018 Toyota C-HR have filed 309 safety complaints with NHTSA between August 2017 and August 2026. The most complained-about system is the power train, named in 203 of them (66%). The typical failure was reported at 41,215 miles, the median across the 58 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Complaints more than doubled year on year: 106 in the twelve months to 2026-Q1, against 34 in the twelve before.

NHTSA has issued 1 recall covering this vehicle.

Recalls (1)

PARKING BRAKE

17V717000 · November 15, 2017

The defect
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018 Toyota CH-R vehicles. The electronic parking brake (EPB) may not operate properly, possibly causing the parking brake not to disengage after it is applied or prevent it from being applied. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard FMVSS number 135, "Light Vehicle Brake Systems."
The risk
If the EPB cannot be applied, there is an increased risk of a vehicle rollaway if the vehicle is parked on a hill without being placed into "Park."
The remedy
Toyota has notified owners, and dealers will update the programming of the skid control ECU as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on November 30, 2017. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is H0W.

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing · up to 28,764 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 309.

POWER TRAIN 203 66%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 42 14%
ENGINE 38 12%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 28 9%
SERVICE BRAKES 20 6%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 18 6%
AIR BAGS 5 2%
LANE DEPARTURE 4 1%
PARKING BRAKE 4 1%
STRUCTURE 4 1%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 3 1%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 1%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2026 at 92.

2017 2026
2017 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

2 injured · crash · towed · 19,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2018 TOYOTA C-HR. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, ANOTHER VEHICLE DID NOT YIELD THE RIGHT OF WAY TO THE CONTACT. AS A RESULT, BOTH VEHICLES CRASHED INTO EACH OTHER; THE FRONT OF THE CONTACT VEHICLE WAS DAMAGED. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED A FRACTURED SHOULDER, LEFT WRIST, AND INJURIES TO THE LEFT ANKLE. THE OTHER DRIVER SUSTAINED A BROKEN NOSE. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT SUSTAINED A CONCUSSION AND WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL WHERE SHE RECEIVED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE POLICE TOWED THE VEHICLE BACK TO THE CONTACT'S HOME WHERE THE CONTACT'S INSURANCE COMPANY ADJUSTER DEEMED THE VEHICLE A TOTAL LOSS. THE FRONT END FRAME OF THE CONTACT'S

NHTSA complaint 11282665, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 372 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA C-HR. WHILE DRIVING 15 MPH AND MAKING A LEFT TURN, ANOTHER VEHICLE DROVE THROUGH A RED LIGHT AND STRUCK THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE ON THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE. THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE SPUN AROUND. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE CONTACT WAS INJURED AND TRANSPORTED TO THE HOSPITAL; HOWEVER, THE OTHER DRIVER WAS NOT INJURED. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER (GREEN'S TOYOTA OF LEXINGTON, 630 E NEW CIRCLE RD, LEXINGTON, KY 40505, (859) 254-5751) WHERE IT WAS AWAITING DIAGNOSTIC TESTING AND REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 372.

NHTSA complaint 11118956. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · 18,800 miles

HIT FROM REAR; OTHER DRIVER HIT AT 40 MPH, AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY.

NHTSA complaint 11277563. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

PARKING BRAKE

1 injured · crash · 28,280 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA C-HR. THE CONTACT STATED THE VEHICLE WAS SERVICED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 17V717000 (PARKING BRAKE) THREE TIMES, HOWEVER THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN A STAND STILL IN PARK, THE VEHICLE REVERSED ON IT'S OWN CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO HIT THE CONTACT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT NO AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. THE CONTACT STATED NO WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. A POLICE WAS REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT DID SUSTAIN LEFT LEG AND RIGHT FOOT INJURIES MEDICAL ATTENTION WAS REQUIRED. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED AS OF YET. THE CONTACT STATED A LOCAL DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE

NHTSA complaint 11352334, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
The transmission on the vehicle needed to be replaced. The dealership told me that I was responsible for the repair. The price quote was $14,000.00. The Toyota dealership knew that the transmission were problematic and said nothing.

NHTSA complaint 11757475. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Transmission. My car started making loud noises and eventually got to this point where it is not shifting gears. I would put it into drive, press the gas, and it would accelerate and abruptly stop on me. I've had it for less than 10 years and I bought it brand new. Its completely un-drivable.

NHTSA complaint 11757035. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
The transmission started a whining noise 2022 approx 10k miles it got worse. I took it toyota and got an estimate for 10k plus to replace transmition which is probably what the car is worth.

NHTSA complaint 11756517. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I bought my 2018 CHR in 2017 from Huntersville NC, it has 112,000 miles on it and it is paid off. My CHR has only been serviced at Toyota dealerships and I have all the invoices. On [XXX] Toyota performed the 100,000 mile multi-point inspection and everything was good to go. However, approximately 2 weeks later I started hearing a whining noise. On [XXX] Toyota inspected my vehicle and notified me that the transmission was going bad, and there was no time frame on when the CHR would leave me stranded. Upon my own research the CHR in Canada has issued a 10 year extended warranty due to a faulty bearing in the CVT Transmission; which is the same issue my CHR in North America is having. There

NHTSA complaint 11756585, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
When I accelerate from a complete stop. It makes a roaring noise that dies down once the car is in full swing. Toyota dealership is saying that it is a common problem for Toyota CHR and needs to be replaced. Replacement cost from my pocket is $12k

NHTSA complaint 11756078. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
The transmission (CVT) in my 2018 Toyota C-HR failed at 101,740 miles, approximately 5,000 miles and 2 months after I purchased the vehicle used. The vehicle began making a whining/rotary noise while driving. I took it to Toyota of Downtown Chicago (RO [XXX], 7/28/2026), where the technician test-drove the vehicle, confirmed the noise originates from the transmission, and recommended full CVT replacement. The quoted repair cost is $14,271.52. The vehicle is currently not being driven and is available for inspection upon request. Safety concern: a CVT that is failing internally can produce unpredictable loss of power, hesitation, or sudden changes in acceleration while driving, which creates

NHTSA complaint 11755795, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Toyota C-HR

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2021 32 1 —
2020 58 1 —
2019 106 3 —

Other 2018 Toyota models

Camry 731 RAV4 330 Highlander 259 Tacoma 202 Corolla 133 Tundra 99 Sienna 69 4Runner 58

Every Toyota on this site — 272 vehicles, 370 recall campaigns and 3 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst