Toyota Tundra vs Nissan Titan: which is more reliable?
The Nissan Titan is ahead of the Toyota Tundra on the federal record, 74/100 against 69/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Toyota Tundra
- 11 model years scored
- 1,320 owner complaints on record
- about 22 complaints per year on the road
- 79 recall campaigns, 33 safety-critical
- best year 2015 (86/100) · worst 2023 (32/100)
Nissan Titan
- 12 model years scored
- 408 owner complaints on record
- about 4 complaints per year on the road
- 34 recall campaigns, 13 safety-critical
- best year 2023 (91/100) · worst 2017 (43/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Tundra against Titan
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Toyota Tundra
- Engine — 281 complaints
- Electrical System — 206 complaints
- Fuel/Propulsion System — 171 complaints
Nissan Titan
- Engine — 166 complaints
- Electrical System — 66 complaints
- Power Train — 61 complaints
Both nameplates have Engine as their largest complaint group, so the choice between them is about how often, not about what.
Years to avoid on each
Toyota Tundra — avoid: 2023.
Nissan Titan — avoid: 2017, 2018, 2019.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Toyota Tundra prices at about $46,200 and a Nissan Titan at about $50,100 — the Toyota Tundra is roughly $3,900 less, and they return 20.0 against 17.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Toyota Tundra or the Nissan Titan more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Nissan Titan scores 74/100 against the Toyota Tundra's 69/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Toyota Tundra and Nissan Titan years should I avoid?
Toyota Tundra: 2023. Nissan Titan: 2017, 2018, 2019. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Toyota Tundra and the Nissan Titan?
The largest complaint group on the Toyota Tundra is Engine (281 complaints); on the Nissan Titan it is Engine (166).
Is the Toyota Tundra or the Nissan Titan cheaper to own?
A recent used Toyota Tundra prices at about $46,200 and a Nissan Titan at about $50,100, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.