2019 Toyota Avalon: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
69 NHTSA owner complaints · 4 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Owner complaints: 69 filed with NHTSA
Complaints per year on the road: 9.86
What owners say
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
UA80 transmission issues. High pitched whining Erratic and hard shifting shuttering and hesitation Issue has been diagnosed by dealership Toyota Technician and independent service center ASE Certified technicians. Car is still drivable, with no warning lamps as of yet. Issue became more noticeable after I had the transmission fluid changed by dealership.
The transmission needs to be replaced. My car has 75,146 miles and my check engine light came on while I was driving down the interstate. I took it to the Toyota dealership and they confirmed that the transmission needed to be replaced. I was told it would cost $8,600. I was looking for any recalls on my car and saw there were multiple lawsuits involving the transmission in my car and other Toyota and Lexus models. T…
I am experiencing the same malfunction with my backup camera/parking assist software that a million other VINs were recalled for. I called Toyota and was essentially told that not enough people from my cars' "batch" have complained. The malfunction is inconsistent, sometimes the camera works fine, sometimes the screen is totally black, and sometimes it freezes or goes black in the middle of backing up. This is incred…
Recalls: 4 campaigns (3 severe)
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 18V685000 | Electrical System:Software | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Toyota Tundra and Sequoia vehicles and 2019 Toyota Avalon and Avalon Hybrid vehicles. The air bag electronic control unit (ECU) may erroneously detect a fault during the vehicle start-up self check. |
| 20V682000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 4Runner, 2019-2020 Avalon, 2019 Corolla Hatchback, 2017-2019 Highlander, 2018-2020 Camry, 2020 Corolla, 2018-2019 Land Cruiser, 2017-2020 Tacoma, 2019-2020 RAV4, 2019-2020 Sequoia, 2017-2020 Sienna, 2019-2020 Tundra, 2018-2020 Lexus ES350, 2017 Lexus GS200t, 2017-2019 Lexus… |
| 20V012000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) recalled certain 2018-2019 4Runner, Highlander, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra, and Lexus RC 300, RC 350, GS 350, GX 460, IS 300, LC 500, LS 500, LX 570, RX 350L, and 2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla, and certain Lexus NX 300, and ES 350 vehicles on January 13, 2020. On March 4, 2020,… |
| 19V244000 | Equipment:Other:Labels | Gulf States Toyota (GST) is recalling certain 2019 C-HR, 4Runner, Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Highlander, Land Cruiser, Prius, RAV4, Sequoia, Tacoma, Sienna, Tundra and Yaris vehicles. The text on the load capacity label may become illegible. |
What it costs to buy — and what owning it really takes
Class-level estimates, priced as a full-size car of its model year, re-priced to your country. Not a quote, not a valuation of one specific car — condition, mileage and options move it. How these are computed.
What it costs to run
EPA combined 25 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $2,450
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
What this car's problems cost to fix
Ranked by the components owners of this exact model year actually complain about. Each figure is flat-rate labour hours x the local shop rate plus a parts band — an estimate of what this kind of failure costs, not a quote, and not a prediction that this car will need it. Formula.
- Electrical System17 complaints · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement (3.0 h labour + parts)$540–$1,310
- Fuel/Propulsion System17 complaints · typical job: Fuel pump or injector replacement (3.5 h labour + parts)$680–$1,620
- Power Train9 complaints · typical job: Transmission service or clutch-pack repair (7.0 h labour + parts)$1,290–$4,040
- Unknown Or Other8 complaints · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair (2.0 h labour + parts)$360–$940
- Forward Collision Avoidance7 complaints · typical job: Radar or camera module replacement and calibration (3.0 h labour + parts)$780–$2,160
- Engine7 complaints · typical job: Cooling-system or timing-drive repair (6.0 h labour + parts)$1,040–$2,220
Other Toyota Avalon years
FAQ
What is the most common problem with the 2019 Toyota Avalon?
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Electrical System (17 complaints in our indexed sample).
Is the 2019 Toyota Avalon a good used car to buy?
Our data verdict is CAUTION with a reliability score of 53/100, computed from 69 NHTSA complaints and 4 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
How much does it cost to fix the 2019 Toyota Avalon's most common problem?
17 of the NHTSA complaints filed against the 2019 Toyota Avalon sit in the Electrical System group — more than any other component on this model year. The representative job there is alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement: about 3.0 hours of labour plus parts, roughly $540–$1,310 at a US independent shop and re-priced to your country at the top of the page. It is an estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote for this car.
What does a 2019 Toyota Avalon cost to run per year?
About $4,287 a year in fuel or energy plus the maintenance band — roughly $21,435 over five years, before purchase price, insurance and depreciation. Figures come from available EPA fuel-economy data and industry maintenance averages, and are re-priced to your country.
Does the 2019 Toyota Avalon have recalls?
Yes — NHTSA lists 4 recall campaign(s) for the 2019 Toyota Avalon, 3 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 04/10/2018. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Compare with
Other fullsizes of about the same age.
What will a 2019 Toyota Avalon really cost YOU per year?
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorData sources
Complaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-10-04.
Moderate evidence — 69 complaints, 4 recalls on record
- 69 NHTSA complaints on record (9.9/yr of exposure) — worse than a typical year of this model (4.2/yr)
- 4 recall campaigns, 3 touching safety-critical systems