2021 Toyota Camry Problems

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 52,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• The air bag (SRS) light should come on at startup and go out within a few seconds. If it stays on, the system may not work in a crash.
• Air bag recalls are some of the most serious. Check this exact VIN for open recalls and get proof any recall work was done.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, a second vehicle T-boned the vehicle while driving approximately 60 MPH and crashed into the driver’s side of the vehicle. During the crash, no air bags had deployed inside the vehicle, including the side curtain air bags. Police and…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 83,000 miles

I went to a toyota dealership June 24th to have my car checked for the airbag recall. They told me my car did have the recall on it and that they would have to order the part. I haven't heard anything from them at all.Owner complaint, filed 2026

What to check before you buy

• The pedal should feel firm and the car should stop straight without pulling, grinding or a pulsing pedal.
• The ABS and stability control lights should go out after startup and stay out.
• Look through the wheels at the rotors. A deep lip on the edge means brakes are due soon, which is a fair thing to negotiate on.

Tools that help

What owners said

Owner bought new 2021 Camry XLR 4 cylinder all wheel drive. It currently has 39,000 miles on it. No problems until January 25, 2026. It was 11 degrees below zero, my car had the original battery. Car started without issue, I return to house to "warm it up" prior to driving. Upon my return I had multiple error codes; 1. AWD System…Owner complaint, filed 2026

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact stated while the vehicle was being parked in the residential garage, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The vehicle was in reverse, and due to the failure, the vehicle crashed into a built-in heater in the garage. The passenger’s side rear…Owner complaint, filed 2024, at 14,284 miles

Parts named most: Automatic emergency braking (6).

What to check before you buy

• Where it is safe, try the adaptive cruise and lane keeping on the test drive and watch for sudden braking or warnings with nothing there.
• Check the windshield in front of the camera and the bumper sensors for cracks, chips or poor repairs.
• Ask whether the windshield has been replaced. The camera has to be recalibrated afterward, and many shops skip it.

Tools that help

What owners said

The rear camera has stopped working. It started working intermittently approximately 6 months ago and now it does not work at all. The warning light saying that it was not available would come on when it first started having a problem but that stopped when it stopped working completely. It will show rear cross traffic alert at times but…Owner complaint, filed 2025

When I do these checks I have my hands lightly on the wheel ready to correct the car when needed. The lane control assist tends to stay to the left of the lane, crossing over the left side lane markers, it also tends to head towards the right side of the lane, crossing over the right side lane markers without compensating. At times it…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• Drive it from cold if you can. Shifts should be smooth in every gear, including reverse.
• Feel for slipping (revs rise without the car speeding up), shudder at low speed and a delay when you put it in gear.
• Listen for whining, which is a common CVT complaint, and clunks when you go from drive to reverse.
• If it has 4WD or AWD, engage it on the test drive and ask when the transmission and differential fluids were last changed.

Tools that help

What owners said

I took it to a repair shop for a transmission issue, the technician noted the transmission fluid degraded or burnt fluid or And it is causing the torque converter shudder and transmission rpm to slipOwner complaint, filed 2026

I bought this car a couple of years ago. I didnt think much of it because I never owned a Toyota. I noticed that the transmission was doing some weird hesitation when going from 1st to 2nd gear. There is an intermittent lag on when the transmission kicks in. You can actually feel the car stutter into the 1st and 2nd gear. Also, while…Owner complaint, filed 2026

What to check before you buy

• Test every switch: windows, locks, mirrors, seat heaters, the screen, the backup camera, Bluetooth and every USB port.
• Watch the dash at startup. Every warning light should come on briefly and then go out.
• Have the battery and charging system tested. A weak alternator or battery drain shows up here.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the transmission and power steering failed to operate as designed. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle acceleration and the power steering functions were sluggish. Upon investigation, the contact read the…Owner complaint, filed 2022, at 35 miles

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. While the contact’s wife was inside the parked vehicle and attempting to open the sunroof, there was an abnormal sound coming from the sunroof while attempting to close it. The motor to open the sunroof was covered and made a sound; however, the sunroof failed to close. No warning lights were…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 20,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Check every light: headlights on low and high, fog lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.
• Run the wipers on every speed with washer fluid, and run the defroster front and back.

Tools that help

What owners said

The passenger side headlight is retaining moisture. Upon further inspection the retaining clips have pulled away and cracked. This causes the headlight to flicker from the moisture inside. Brought the vehicle into Clearwater Toyota in Clearwater, FL and warranty repair was refused with the service manager stating that I was in an…Owner complaint, filed 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that the driver’s side sideview mirror assembly had melted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 15,000.Owner complaint, filed 2023, at 15,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Ask the seller not to warm the car up, and start it cold. Listen for ticking, knocking or a rough idle in the first minute.
• Pull the oil dipstick and the oil cap. Low oil, a gasoline smell or a milky film on the cap are reasons to walk away or get an inspection.
• Plug in an OBD2 scanner. Stored or pending codes matter, and so do readiness monitors that show "not ready", which usually means the codes were cleared right before the sale.
• Ask for oil change records. A gap in the records on a model known for engine complaints is a negotiating point at minimum.

Tools that help

What owners said

Power loss, had to pull off road. multiple fault codes on this event. 2 broken plastic parts in intake duct, one stuck in throttle body butterfly. cleared plastic parts from intake to get home. Later determined 2 of 4 intake resonator tube internal catch bevels broke off. The remaining 2 were very weak and easily broke off as well.…Owner complaint, filed 2026

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that after starting the engine, the warning message "Engine Maintenance Required" was displayed. The local dealer was contacted and informed that there were no recalls or extended warranties related to the failure. The cause of the failure was not determined, and the vehicle was…Owner complaint, filed 2025, at 205,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Look underneath with a flashlight. Utah road salt is hard on frames, brake lines and the bottoms of doors.
• Open and close every door, the hood and the liftgate, and lock and unlock each one.
• Use a paint thickness gauge and compare panels. A panel that reads very differently from the rest has likely been repaired.

Tools that help

What owners said

2021 Camry with 29,000 miles panoramic roof is stuck in the vent position. Took it to two different automotive shops and was told they could not close the vent. The concern was too much pressure on the glass could cause it to shatter if they forced it to close. The recommended repair was to replace the entire sunroof assembly. A private…Owner complaint, filed 2026

I was stopped at a car wash, pressing on the brake pedal when all of a sudden it felt like someone rear-ended me. My car accelerated without me stepping on the gas pedal and I turned the wheel quickly to avoid hitting the car in front of me head on. I clipped his right back bumper, flew over a large shrub and landed smashing into a…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• Read the four-digit DOT date on each tire. Tires older than about six years should be replaced, whatever the tread looks like.
• Check tread depth on all four. On AWD vehicles all four tires should match.
• The tire pressure light should go out after startup.

Tools that help

What owners said

Component failed: Falken tire size 235/40R19. The tire was manually over-inflated to a life-threatening 91 PSI by the service facility. It is currently available for inspection upon request.Safety risk: Upon driving onto public Highway 79, the extreme over-inflation caused the vehicle to immediately exhibit violent structural shaking and…Owner complaint, filed 2026

We ordered this car custom what we wanted 2021 Toyota Camry xse awd. The car is great wife and I love driving it. But at 68,857 miles as of today 4/29/26 it’s on its second set of tires with regular maintenance and rotations on tires it’s eating them up on the inside. We have had 4 alignment checked by Toyota and les Schwab and…Owner complaint, filed 2026

What to check before you buy

• Turn the wheel lock to lock while parked and listen for groaning, clicking or binding.
• On a straight road the car should track straight with the wheel centered and no loose feeling.
• A power steering warning on the dash, even briefly, deserves a mechanic’s look before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Upon driving the vehicle the steering wheel fluid light came on, the car instantly shut off and restarted 3 times repeatedly. Once it cut back on the 4th time the car began smoking from the interior. Once I exited the vehicle and popped the trunk looking for where the smoke was coming from. The car engulfed into flames. It is so badly…Owner complaint, filed 2025

When I turn off the LTA switch, it stays on..in other words the steering is affected, and warning beeps sound when I cross into another lane. This is both irritating and dangerous. I brought it in to Orland Toyota for service. The service advisor related that the Technician who worked on it said the computer in the car shows that it’s…Owner complaint, filed 2023

What to check before you buy

• Pull out and latch every seat belt, and let each one retract on its own.
• Try every seat adjuster, and watch for a passenger air bag "off" light when an adult is in the seat.

Tools that help

What owners said

The SRS Airbag System Malfunction appears on the instrument cluster and will not go away. it hinders me from seeing my speed and other features on my car; it is annoying as well. The seatbelt dinger goes off constantly and will not stop, It has been long enough for Toyota to come up with a remedy to correct the issue. The issue right now…Owner complaint, filed 2024

I started to get the ringing noise I do not have my seatbelt buckled and the SRS Airbag warning started popping up. I learned after taking my car in for service it is due to the recall related to the sensor under my passenger seat.Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• On the test drive, press the gas gently and firmly. The response should be smooth with no lag or surge.
• Set the cruise control, then use resume and cancel to make sure each one works.

Tools that help

What owners said

Vehicle Information: • Year/Make/Model: 2021 Toyota Camry • VIN: [XXX] Incident Date: May 4, [2025] Incident Time: Approximately 9:45 AM Incident Location: [XXX] toward [XXX] Description of Incident: While driving at approximately 25 MPH, multiple dashboard warning lights suddenly illuminated simultaneously. Immediately after, the…Owner complaint, filed 2026

Driving very slowly into my 36 foot deep garage I took my right foot off the accelerator pedal when the 2021 Toyota Camry suddenly unintended accelerated forward 15 feet and crashed through the rear garage wall, the automatic brake didn't work,. Then with my foot on the brake pedal, it continued at high speed across 35 feet of concrete…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• Smell around the engine bay and under the rear of the car for raw fuel.
• On the test drive, accelerate firmly from a stop and up a grade. Stumbling, surging or a flashing check engine light are red flags.
• Fuel pump recalls are common. Check this exact VIN for open recalls before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Our 2021 Toyota Camry Hybrid is spurting gasoline out of the area where the gas cap is and the gas is flowing down the side of the car. The problem has something to do with overpressurizing the gas tank when the temperature changes outside from cold to warm. This can happen while the car is in motion and creates an explosion risk. On a…Owner complaint, filed 2024

1. Driving on the highway with adaptive cruise control feels like taming a wild horse. Pulls side to side, even after alignment and total check up from Toyota. 2. Engine Maintenace required now warning light. This came on at 106,458 miles on Toyota Camry 21 LE. Randomly turned on. Off when air con was turned off, light came back on when…Owner complaint, filed 2025

What to check before you buy

• Drive over a few bumps and potholes slowly with the radio off and listen for clunks or rattles.
• Check the tires for uneven wear on the inside or outside edges, a sign of alignment or suspension trouble.
• Look behind the wheels for oily, wet shocks or struts.

Tools that help

What owners said

I was 165 mph and someone hit me and threw me into a sign that had big huge poles on it all the ones in California do I went right through it got banged all around I have to say the car is a tank because it got me home but it never deployed airbags when I know that it should have I’m pretty sure any other car would have the way that mine…Owner complaint, filed 2025

Unstable wobble when driving at high speeds on some road surfaces. Steering feels as if you could lose control when this happens.Owner complaint, filed 2021