2024-2025 Toyota Tacoma and 2024 Tacoma Hybrid recalled over shock reservoirs that may detach, 48,280 trucks

Toyota is recalling 48,280 pickups, 43,827 of them 2024-2025 Tacoma models and 4,453 of them 2024 Tacoma Hybrid models, because the external oil reservoir on the front and rear shock absorbers can detach after the metal flange holding it corrodes and fails. Interim letters warning owners of the safety risk were mailed on September 30, 2026, and NHTSA’s record says more letters will go out once the final remedy is available, anticipated in March 2027. Owners can look up their VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What is wrong

Each affected shock absorber has an oil reservoir attached by a welded flange. According to the Part 573 report Toyota filed with NHTSA on August 6, 2026, the untreated metal surfaces between the flange, the reservoir and the shock absorber “can corrode over time due to moisture intrusion.” As the corrosion builds up, it puts an expansive force on the welds, which can fail. In some cases the reservoir can detach from the shock absorber. NHTSA’s record states the consequence: “An oil reservoir that detaches can create a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.” Toyota’s driving tests found the driver could also lose some suspension dampening, and the filing says weld failure could cause an oil leak.

Only trucks built with certain shock absorbers from one supplier, whose reservoir is attached by a flange of a certain length, are involved, and Toyota says no other Toyota or Lexus vehicles sold in the U.S. use them. The supplier is Thyssenkrupp Bilstein of America of Hamilton, Ohio. Front assemblies carry part numbers 48510-AK042 and 48510-AK032; rear assemblies are 48530-AK030 and 48530-AK020. Production of the covered trucks ran from January 2, 2024, to November 25, 2024, though not every vehicle built in that window was sold in the U.S.

Toyota says it cannot estimate how many trucks actually contain the defect, since that depends on various conditions. NHTSA’s portal requires a whole number, so Toyota entered “1”, which in this report means “unknown.”

How Toyota traced it

The first signs came in September 2025, when Toyota received two allegations of a leaking shock absorber. On one truck inspected at a dealership, the left rear shock was leaking and its reservoir was missing. Teardowns of recovered parts led Toyota to suspect that rock chipping and salt spray together could cause excess corrosion, two effects tested only separately during development. Bench tests combining them did not reproduce the corrosion seen on field parts.

In mid-April 2026, a computer analysis of weld strength showed the lowest two welds on the long flange failing first, similar to field parts that had not yet lost a reservoir. A dye penetration test then showed moisture could reach untreated metal even when the paint and wax looked undamaged. The supplier had already recommended a production change to a shorter flange. Toyota decided on a voluntary recall on July 30, 2026, after considering 20 field technical reports and 62 warranty claims from U.S. sources, counted as of July 27, 2026, that relate or may relate to the condition.

The fix and dates

Dealers will inspect the front and rear shock absorber assemblies and replace affected ones with improved assemblies at no cost. Toyota’s August filing set dealer notification for August 6, 2026, and owner notification by October 5, 2026; the letters that followed on September 30 were interim notices, with the remedy letter still to come. The NHTSA record carries no park-outside or do-not-drive advisory. NHTSA lists it as recall 26V-514 in its suspension component category, Toyota’s campaign codes are 26TB14 and 26TA14, and the full Part 573 report is public.